Ephesians 5:1-4
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you. as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
Observations:
As God's beloved children we need to imitate Him. This means we "walk in love," remembering with what great love Christ has loved us.
There are things that should have no part in our lives: immorality, impurity of any kind, or greed. They are not even to be named among us. It is not enough not to do these things, even speaking of them has no place in our lives. Would that include read, what I watch? (she asks, already knowing the answer.)
Again we need to watch what passes through our lips which should be filled with thanks instead of those other things. (root word for silly talk often translated to "foolish"- the one who thinks there is no God)
Application:
Paul gives us a clear application here- be an imitator of God. If I am to do that well, then I had better know who I am imitating. What a rich resource we have been given, first in God's Word and then in the Holy Spirit who teaches us.
I am really struck by the idea of how we are to walk in love. As an imitator of God has to mean that just as Christ offered Himself as an offering and a sacrifice, my life needs to be marked by that as well. How much of myself am I willing to offer others, sacrifice for others, in my service to God? Christ held nothing back, He gave it ALL, even laying aside His power to die on a cross for me. What Christ did was a pleasing aroma to the Father. What about my offering and sacrifice? Do I give my all, or do I hold back parts of myself? Each day I need to decide whether I will give my all to God or live for myself. How many little bits of me do I hold back, do I refuse to place on the altar to be burnt up completely?
I find myself convicted by the phrase, "must not even be named among you." I have the feeling that we have ignored this part of the verse for a very long time. I can feel pretty good about not doing these things-easy breezy- but to tag that onto it. What am I letting pass through my eyes and ears?
Deb
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you. as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.
Observations:
As God's beloved children we need to imitate Him. This means we "walk in love," remembering with what great love Christ has loved us.
There are things that should have no part in our lives: immorality, impurity of any kind, or greed. They are not even to be named among us. It is not enough not to do these things, even speaking of them has no place in our lives. Would that include read, what I watch? (she asks, already knowing the answer.)
Again we need to watch what passes through our lips which should be filled with thanks instead of those other things. (root word for silly talk often translated to "foolish"- the one who thinks there is no God)
Application:
Paul gives us a clear application here- be an imitator of God. If I am to do that well, then I had better know who I am imitating. What a rich resource we have been given, first in God's Word and then in the Holy Spirit who teaches us.
I am really struck by the idea of how we are to walk in love. As an imitator of God has to mean that just as Christ offered Himself as an offering and a sacrifice, my life needs to be marked by that as well. How much of myself am I willing to offer others, sacrifice for others, in my service to God? Christ held nothing back, He gave it ALL, even laying aside His power to die on a cross for me. What Christ did was a pleasing aroma to the Father. What about my offering and sacrifice? Do I give my all, or do I hold back parts of myself? Each day I need to decide whether I will give my all to God or live for myself. How many little bits of me do I hold back, do I refuse to place on the altar to be burnt up completely?
I find myself convicted by the phrase, "must not even be named among you." I have the feeling that we have ignored this part of the verse for a very long time. I can feel pretty good about not doing these things-easy breezy- but to tag that onto it. What am I letting pass through my eyes and ears?
We are back to what proceeds out of our lips again. We talked about this last week, but Paul brings it up again. Hmmm, I wonder if that is because God knew I needed to hear it again. I looked up the word Paul used in Eph. 4:29, unwholesome, and this is what I found: the word -Sapros -means "rotten, putrefied, corrupted by one and no longer fit for use, worn out, of poor quality, bad, unfit for use, worthless." Wow, that is quite a list. So what kinds of words would those be? Gossip? Complaining? (think about Israel and there many complaints against God, Moses and Aaron.) Arrogance? Sarcasm?.... I found myself last week not really giving this much attention. I found myself trying to defend the way I speak to others. I think I will pay more attention to my speech this week to see if any unwholesome words escape. "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks." Luke 6:45.
Blessings,Deb
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