Ephesians 5:1-22
3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. 4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. 5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.[a] 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not be partners with them.
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12 It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. 14 This is why it is said:
“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We can see a crisis of morality all around us. This has become a disease that is causing sickness in some churches across our land and around the world. The temptation is always to compromise our ethics to what we see around us. This is especially true for “baby” or nominal Christians who come to our churches.
In this passage, Paul shows what it means to walk in love (5:1-2). He gives some clear directions to Christians who were living in a culture similar to ours. They had many similar problems with immorality, syncretism (mix of religions), relativism (every one had their own beliefs), and many social problems. The advice he gives is practical and relevant for us 2000 years later. What is God’s message for you in this passage?
The following chart lays out some things to avoid and things to embrace as we live out our new life in Christ.
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Things to avoid |
Things to embrace |
| 1) Sexual immorality (v. 3, 5), deviation from God’s norm and plan.
2) All impurity (v. 3, 5) 3) Greed (v. 3), making wealth our god to the detriment of other people. 4) Filthiness (v. 4): shameful, base, or vulgar 5) Foolish talk (v. 4): evil, like the fool of Ps 53:1 and Prov 1:7. 6) Crude Joking (v. 4): cleverness that puts someone down 7) Covetous (v. 5), the root of so much idolatry in our world 8) Idolatry (v. 5), misplaced priorities 9) Empty words (v. 6), with the consequence of the wrath of God 10) Avoid unfruitful works of darkness 11) Avoid even speaking of these in secret 12) Don’t be foolish 13) Do not get drunk with wine
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1) Imitate God by walking in love (vv. 1-2)
Paul uses the word “walk” several times in this letter: 2:2, 10; 4:1, 17; 5:1, 2, 8, 15. 2) Thanksgiving (v. 4) 3) Do not associate with sons of disobedience who do the actions on the left (v.) Reason: we no longer walk in darkness but in the light. 4) Walk as children of the light. 1 John 2:9-11 5) Discern what pleases the Lord 6) Expose the works of darkness 7) Walk as wise, not unwise 8) Use the time wisely because of evil Don’t just “kill time.” 9) Understand the will of the Lord 10) Be filled with the Spirit 11) Speak to one another with Psalms, hymns, spiritual songs 12) Give thanks always “Let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually.”– Heb 13:15. 13) Submit to one another in reverence to Christ |
These are big challenges. The key idea is that the Holy Spirit is doing a transformation in us. We cannot accomplish these on our own, but only when we cooperate with God. Recreation is God’s work. Our part is submission and obedience.
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