The Means of Following God (1)

Ephesians 5:2 declares: And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour. Now that we know the meaning of following (mimicking) God (v. 1), we now are compelled to ask, “How can we possibly do that? Is it really possible to mimic God? Isn’t that somewhat naïve? Isn’t that a bit exaggerated? Didn’t Paul get a little carried away? How can we who are sinful and who live in a sinful world be mimics of God?” The answer to those questions is found in viewing the attributes (characteristics) of God.

First, there is what we call God’s “Natural Attributes.” These are those characteristics that describe what God is in His nature and include His omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, eternality, sovereignty, and immutability. These attributes are what are called “incommunicable,” that is, unable to be passed on to man.

Second, however, are God’s “Moral Attributes.” These are the characteristics that describe God’s character and what He does; they include His holiness, righteousness, justice, mercy, grace, and love. These attributes, on the other hand, are “communicable,” that is, able to be passed on to men. God can (and does) communicate holiness, righteousness, justice, mercy, grace, and love to men so we can manifest them in their lives.

So, how can we mimic God? By manifesting His moral attributes. We can indeed mimic God by possessing His “character attributes.” For example, we can possess holiness through Christ and live a holy life (I Pet. 1:16). We can “follow after righteousness” (I Tim. 6:11). We are to “think on” and then “do” the things that are just (Phil. 4:8-9). God will judge us if we do not show mercy to fellow believers (Jas. 2:13). It is by showing grace that we can truly serve the Lord (Heb. 12:28).

In light of all that, we now see another way we mimic God through his moral attributes, and that is by [walking] in love. We have seen the word love (agape) many times in Ephesians and recall its meaning, “a self-emptying self-sacrifice.” We now see something in our text that is quite fascinating—love is actually used three different ways in the verses before us.

First, love is used as an adjective. The word “dear” (v. 1) is actually a form of agape (agapetos), which would allow “dear children” to be translated “loved children.” As noted back in our study of 2:4, agape was actually rather colorless in secular Greek. It originally carried an element of sym­pathy and spoke of the love of a person of higher rank for one of a lower rank; it even went so far as to speak of a love that was not self‑seeking. But the Lord Jesus transformed it, giving the deeper meaning of being totally sacrificial. As the same authority says, “[It] thus creates a new people who will tread the way of self-sacrificing love that [Christ] took.” As Christ was self-sacrificing in His love, we do the same.

Meditate for a moment on Matthew 3:16-17. Moments after Jesus’ baptism, “the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” “Beloved” is again agapetos. Do you see the implication? Think of it! God loves us as much as He loves His Son, Who is “the first born among many brethren” (Rom. 8:29). Jesus, in fact, confirmed this in His high priestly prayer in John 17:23, where He prays that the Father has “loved them [i.e., those the Father gave to the Son, the elect, v. 6, 9, 11-12, 20, 24], as thou hast loved Me” (emphasis added).

Second, love is used as a noun (agape). We are told to walk in [a self-emptying self-sacrifice]. As we’ve seen several times, walk is peripateo, literally “to walk about,” that is, how we conduct ourselves as we walk through life. Love, then, is how we conduct ourselves. It must be the basic attitude of the believer. There must be a love for the Lord and spiritual things and a love for other believers. Love must be the root characteristic of our lives.

Third, however, and most important of all, love is used as a verb (as Christ also hath loved us). People speak so lightly about love, but the crux of the matter is this: true love always expresses itself by an action. Our definition shows this fact. As God’s love was shown by the act of giving Christ, so our love is demonstrated by the act of giving ourselves to God and to others. May we mark it down, “a love” that does not give is not real love; “love” that is not a verb is not real love. Love must prove itself. We’ll continue these thought next time.

The Meaning of Following God (2)

Continuing our thoughts on Ephesians 5:1—Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children—not only does Paul tell us to be followers (“mimics”) of God, but he goes further to use the word be; this is the Greek ginomai, “to become,” and is an imperative. In other words, we are commanded to become mimics of God. This is not optional, rather mandatory.

To help in this process, Paul said that Christians could mimic him as he mimicked God (I Cor. 4:16; 11:1; Phil. 3:17; II Thes. 3:7, 9). Some people view Paul as being arrogant in that attitude, but they do not understand what he is actually saying. We must not misunderstand Paul to say that he is the model but rather Christ is the Model. Paul made this clear in I Corinthians 11:1: “Be ye [mimics] of me, even as I also am of Christ.” Again, he does not say that he is the model but rather an example of the Model. Based upon that, may we now realize that this should be true of every believer. People should be able to mimic me and mimic you. That thought, indeed, puts a tremendous responsibility upon each of us.

Paul even gives an all-important illustration of this principle. He uses the words as dear children. The Greek for children (teknon) is one of three words used in Scripture for children. One is pais, from which is derived English words such as “pediatrics,” refers to a young child. Another, which arises from pais, is paidion, which refers to a smaller child, or even an infant. Teknon, however, which is from tiktō (“to beget”), “emphasizes a child’s origin . . . physical ancestry, or even spiritual fatherhood and sonship.” So Paul’s point is that as those who are God’s children should act like Him. There is nothing more imitative than a child. This is one way in which he or she learns.

I’ve never forgotten a television commercial I saw many years ago. While it was short and had no dialog, the impact was powerful. A father and his little boy, who looked to be about two years old, were sitting together under a tree. The dad reached into his shirt pocket, retrieved a pack of cigarettes, lit one, and laid the pack down between he and his son. Having seen what his father had done, the little boy picked up the pack and looked at it. The camera froze on that picture, and the point was made.

So, as children of God we are to mimic the Father. May this challenge each of us to look at our lives and ask, “When my children mimic me, are they mimicking the right things; can people in general do the Godly thing by mimicking my life?”

To further illustrate with a related passage, this is why one of the qualifications for a pastor is that he is “one that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity” (I Tim. 3:4). That is true for two reasons. First, if he can’t rule his own house, how can he lead a church? Second, however, other Christians must be able to mimic him, and they will whether the result is good or bad.

We have all heard the term “namesake,” which refers to someone who has the same name as another, especially one who is named after someone else. The story has been told that Alexander the Great had a certain namesake, but not one that honored him. One of his soldiers was brought before him for court-martial. After listening to the charges, turned to the soldier and asked, “What is your name?” “Alexander!” was the reply. Again the emperor questioned, “What is your name?” And the second time the soldier answered, “Alexander!” With a cry of rage, the emperor roared, “I say, what is your name?” When the soldier answered for the third time, “Alexander!” the great general angrily replied, “You say your name is Alexander? You are found guilty of your crime as charged, and now you must pay the penalty. Either change your conduct or change your name, for no man can bear the name of Alexander, my name, and do the things that you have done.”

Likewise, many people today call themselves “a Christian,” but their life does not mimic their Namesake. As Christians, we are His namesake; we are Christianos (literally, “of the party of Christ,” cf. Acts 11:26). Our lives, therefore, must reflect Him.

The Meaning of Following God (1)

As mentioned some time back, Ephesians chapters 4-6 reveal seven ways in which we are to walk, each of which in-turn is based on related doctrine in chapters 1-3. The first reality of our Christian walk is to walk in unity (4:1-16), and the second is to walk in purity (4:17-32). We now see the third: Walk in Love in 5:1-7. This passage goes on to demonstrate that there are two realities about walking in love: true love (5:1-2) and counterfeit love (5:3-7). To examine true love we must look at two principles: the meaning and the means of following God.

Ephesians 5:1 declares: Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children. What does that mean? The Greek word behind followers is mimetes, from which we get our English word “mimic” and which is the most literal translation and the most vivid picture. This word goes as far back as the 6^th Century B.C. in secular Greek. According to Aristotle, at the beginning of civilization man learned skills by mimicking animals. For example, weaving and spinning were learned from spiders, and house building was learned from birds. Plays, paintings, sculptures, and poetry were merely “imitations of reality.” Even an actor was called a mimos (a “mimer”). Commentator William Barclay also observes that “imitation, was a main part in the training of an orator. The teachers of rhetoric declared that the learning of oratory depended on three things—theory, imitation, and practice. The main part of their training was the study and the imitation of the masters who had gone before.”

But the Apostle Paul brought this word to the New Testament and gave it deeper meaning. Think about it a moment in light of our world today. In our society people mimic athletes, entertainers, world leaders, military figures, and the like. But the Christian is to mimic God. We are, therefore, to mimic God, copy His character, attitudes, and actions. As the old adage goes, “Imitation is the sincerest of flattery.” I have always been amazed by impressionists who can mimic famous people so perfectly, such as actors Jimmie Stewart and John Wayne. But far greater is the Christian who mimics God. While the first certainly takes great talent, the latter takes a miracle. It is not talent that enables us to mimic God, rather the miracle of the Holy Spirit as He produces “the fruit of the Spirit” (Gal. 5:22-23).

As that great London preacher Charles Spurgeon declared 100 years ago: “While it thus humbles us, this precept ennobles us; for what a grand thing it is to be imitators of God! . . . Time has been when men gloried in studying Homer, and their lives were trained to heroism by his martial verse. Alexander carried the Iliad about with him in a casket studded with jewels, and his military life greatly sprung out of his imitation of the warriors of Greece and Troy. Ours is a nobler ambition by far than that which delights in battles; we desire to imitate the God of peace, whose name is love.”

It’s amazing how many times in Scripture we read that we are to mimic God. In Matthew 5:48, for example, Jesus commanded that we are to be “perfect [teleios, “a complete mature adult”] even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.” Did you get it? We are to mimic God’s maturity! Jesus also declared, “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you” (Jn. 15:12). Paul declared to the Philippians, we are to have the mind of Christ, which is humility (Phil. 2:3-8). Peter likewise admonished that we are to “follow [Christ’s] steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth” (I Pet. 2:21-22). To mimic God is, as Martyn Lloyd Jones put it, “Paul’s supreme argument . . . the highest level of all in doctrine and in practice . . . the ultimate ideal . . . the highest statement of Christian doctrine that one can conceive or even imagine.” We’ll continue these thought next time.

Taking Off Natural Reactions to Put On Spiritual Actions (3)

Concluding Paul’s challenge in Ephesians 4:30-32,having considered the negative consideration, we now see the positive.

The best way to destroy vice is to develop virtue. While we will not here get into the argument of whether or not we can “legislate morality,” it cannot be argued that far better than legislation is changing the heart. The godlier we are, the more we desire holiness, the less vice and corruption there will be, the less evil we will do. So in contrast to the natural reactions of the “Old Man,” verse 32 lists three spiritual actions of the “New Man.”

First, in great contrast to “wrath” (v. 26) and “stealing” (v. 28) toward others, we are to be kind one to another. When used of persons, the Greek chrēstos (kind) describes one who is “good-natured, gentle,” “mild [and] pleasant” in contrast to “harsh, hard, sharp, [and] bitter.” Our Lord used this word, for example, to describe God Himself as one Who is kind even “unto the unthankful and to the evil” (Lk. 6:35). How merciful God is to allow men to continue in his indescribable wickedness! Likewise, no matter whom we deal with, we are to do so with kindness.

Second, in great contrast to being “past feeling” (v. 19), we are to be tenderhearted, that is, full of compassion and pity. This Greek word (eusplagchnos) appears only here and I Peter 3:8, where it is a integral part of unity: “be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful [i.e., full of pity], be courteous” (emphasis added).

Third, in great contrast to “bitterness” and “malice” (v. 31), we are to be forgiving one another. Forgiving translates charizomai, which is derived from charis (grace) and therefore speaks of showing favor, graciously giving to someone. It’s used “chiefly in connection with the decisive, gracious gift of God,” as in Romans 8:32, where He “spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (emphasis added). So, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven [us], we forgive one another.

Bitterness and unforgiveness are well illustrated by the stubborn old farmer who was plowing his field. His neighbor was watching in puzzlement as the old guy was struggling much harder than necessary to guide the plow horse. Finally he said, “I don’t want to butt in, but you could save yourself a lot of work by saying ‘gee’ [right] and ‘haw’ [left] instead of jerking on the reins.” Wiping his brow, the old timer replied, “Yep, I know, but this here mule kicked me six years ago, and I ain’t spoke to him since.”

How often do we act the same way? “But that person wronged me,” we argue, “he hurt me, he insulted me!” But may we consider what we did to the Savior, but He forgave us without hesitation. Oh, the agony we put our Savior through and we have the audacity to say, “That person hurt my feelings and I don’t think I will ever get over it.” How childish! What trouble our “feelings” cause! In a day when many people are “in touch with their feelings,” how often those feeling lead to ruin. There are many Christians who chirp right along with the world’s philosophy today and say such things as, “Well, this is just how I feel,” or, “This is what I think.” But what trouble it all brings!

Neither should we deny our feelings; rather we should deal with them; they should be controlled by the mind. What matters is what the Word of God says, not what we think or feel. Just as God pardoned and released us from the sin we committed, we likewise are to release and pardon someone from a trespass against us. “But they don’t deserve forgiveness,” we may say. Neither did any of us deserve the pardon of God. “But they did a terrible thing to me,” we cry. But was that trespass as terrible as our nailing Jesus to the cross with our sin? “Does this mean they will get away with what they did?” we may ask. Indeed not! God says that vengeance belongs to Him and that He will judge sin (Deut. 32:35; Heb. 10:30; etc.). Let us allow God to take care of the matter.

There we have “The New Life.” My dear Christian Friend, are you living this New Life? Have you taken off the graveclothes and put on the graceclothes?

Taking Off Natural Reactions to Put On Spiritual Actions (2)

Continuing our meditations on Ephesians 4:30-32—And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you—Paul first deals with bitterness and then addresses wrath, and anger.

Third, the explosion wrath, and anger will be manifested in one (or both) of two ways. One manifestation is clamour (kraugē), which refers to a crying out against someone or even physical brawling. I have seen such verbal sin in congregational business meetings. I even heard of one church member who “invited the pastor outside” to settle a matter with fists. How disgraceful!

Whether or not this happens, however, at the very least there will be evil speaking. The Greek here is blasphemia (English, “blaspheme”). This refers to slanderous and damaging speech. While in English, “blaspheme” means speaking evil of God, in Greek it means speaking evil of anyone.

Webster defines “slander” as “the utterance of false charges or misrepresentations which defame and damage another’s reputation.” A legal term for this is “defamation,” which is, as one law professor explains, “a tort [i.e., “a wrongful act”] that imposes liability for making false and derogatory statements that injure someone’s reputation.”

This is a serious problem in Christianity today. We see preacher speaking against preacher, church member against pastor, church member against church member and so on. While certainly disagreements will come, and even rebuking of false doctrine will be required, we must never allow slanderous and damaging speech to characterize our dealing with other believers. We must always “[speak] the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15).

Fourth, there is all malice. Back in verse 29, we noted the word “good,” which is agathos, meaning benevolent, profitable, useful, beneficial, excellent, virtuous, and suitable. The Greek here for malice is kakia, which is used to indicate the exact opposite of agathos. When compared, then, to the aforementioned meanings of agathos, kakia means: malevolent, unprofitable, useless, detrimental, poor, vice, and unsuitable. In other words, any and all forms of “bad” must not characterize the Christian.

Paul adds finally, all these are to be put away. The basic concept behind the Greek here (airō) is “to raise or lift up.” Used in the figurative sense, as it is here, it means “to pick up and carry away, to make a clean sweep.” Indeed, may we sweep away these hindrances to Christian living.

Expositor Martyn Lloyd-Jones offers this solemn challenge: “The Apostle is exhorting the Ephesians to put away all this evil. He does not say that because they have become Christians it has automatically dropped off . . . And again we notice that he does not merely tell them to pray that these sins may be taken out of their lives. Pray by all means, but do not forget that Paul tells the Ephesians to put them off, to put them far from them, and we must do the same. It is not pleasant. It is not at all pleasant even to preach on these things; it is very unpleasant for us to face them . . . but, says the Apostle, we must do it, and if we find any vestige or trace of these things within us, we must take hold of it and hurl it away from us, trample upon it, and bolt the door upon it, and never allow it to come back.”

And may we add, we will battle some of these tendencies daily, but the challenge is to consciously sweep them out of our heart and bolt the door behind them. They grieve . . . the Holy Spirit, so they must go.

Taking Off Natural Reactions to Put On Spiritual Actions (1)

Ephesians 4:30-32 declares: And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you. Here is the fifth and final sin that can easily creep back into the Christian’s life.

These final verses are a summary of what has gone before and graphically contrast the natural reactions of the “Old Man” with the spiritual actions of the “New Man.” In other words, in the Christian walk, the Believer must not react according the impulses of the flesh, rather he must act according the impetus of the Spirit. Once again we consider the negative first: grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

As a foundation to all that follows, Paul first emphasizes that the Christian grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. What a statement! It is actually an allusion to Isaiah 63:9–11, where the prophet declares that God’s people “rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit.” Here is a strong reminder of the indwelling Holy Spirit and the practical result of that doctrine.

Harry Ironside is no doubt correct when he observes that this statement is the most important part of this entire passage. The word grieve (lupeō) means “to sadden, bring pain, or afflict with sorrow.” While all sin saddens God, not just the ones Paul lists here, these listed sins are apparently especially painful to the Holy Spirit. Why? Because they are especially inconsistent in the Holy Spirit indwelt life. Nothing is more inconsistent in the Holy Spirit indwelt life than lying, unrighteous vengeance, stealing, corrupt speech, and the rest of the sins listed here.

We studied the “Sealing of the Holy Spirit” back in Ephesians 1:13-14. As we learned, the word “seal” pictures the ancient signet ring, which signified acquisition, absolute ownership, authenticity, and assurance. While the first mention of sealing is doctrinal, this second mention is practical. The principle here is that since we are sealed until we go home to be with the Lord, we are to act like it now by not grieving the Holy Spirit through sin. This brings us to Paul’s summary list.

First, there is bitterness (pikria), which simply means “harbored hostility,” a smoldering resentment, holding a grudge. In his commentary on the Greek text, John Eadie puts it best: Bitterness is a figurative term denoting that fretted and irritable state of mind that keeps a man in perpetual animosity—that inclines him to harsh and uncharitable opinions of men and things—that makes him sour, crabbed, and repulsive in his general demeanor—that brings a scowl on his face, and infuses venom into the words of his tongue.”

Bitterness is the end result of suppressed anger, and as Hebrews 12:15 declares, it defiles us. The Greek behind “defiled” there is miaino, which means “to stain with color, tinge, or pollute.” Anger must not be suppressed—it must be dealt with.

Second, Paul goes on, bitterness, if not dealt with, eventually leads to wrath and even more anger. As examined earlier, while thumos (wrath) is passionate and temporary, orge (anger) indicates “a more enduring state of mind.” Again, as one ancient put it, “Thumos is anger rising up in vapor and burning up, while orge is a yearning for revenge.” The idea here then is obvious—the time will come when bitterness will explode and dig its way deep into our heart.

Taking Off Corrupt Speech to Put On Good Speech (3)

Taking Off Corrupt Speech to Put On Good Speech (3)

By Dr. J. D. Watson

Pastor-Teacher, Grace Bible Church

Concluding Paul’s challenge in Ephesians 4:29— Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers—having considered the negative consideration, we now see the positive. Turning to the deeper motive, and thereby the greater blessing, this verse reveals three principles that should be true of the Believer’s speech.

First, we speak that which is good. The Greek here is agathos, which occurs frequently in the New Testament (107 times) and has a wide range of meanings, including: benevolent, profitable, useful, beneficial, excellent, virtuous, and suitable. As we’ll see, every one of those meanings is appropriate to speech. With that in mind, may we test ourselves daily and examine our speech according to agathos by asking a series of questions. (1) Is what I am about to say benevolent? Is it kind, compassionate, and caring? (2) Is what I am about to say profitable, beneficial, and useful? Will it accomplish something? Is it constructive or destructive? Will it help or hinder? Is it positive or negative? (3) Is what I am about to say excellent? Is it just good or eminently good, the best thing to say? (4) Is what I am about to say virtuous? Is it righteous, honorable, and moral? Does it avoid suggestiveness, vulgarity, and crudeness? (5) Is what I am about to say suitable? Does it fit the moment? Is it proper? Is it appropriate?

Second, as if good were not enough, Paul adds that our speech should edify. Edifying is oikodomē, which refers literally to the building of a house. Therefore, everything we say should build up other believers, not tear them down. Our speech should be uplifting, encouraging, instructive, and even challenging.

The story is told of a woman who developed a serious throat condition. The doctor prescribed medication but also told her that her vocal cords needed total rest—no talking for six months. With a husband and six children to care for, such a prescription seemed impossible, but she set out to do so. When she needed the kids, she blew a whistle. If she needed to give instructions, she wrote them on memo pad. She also placed such pads all around the house that she and others could quickly grab for questions and answers. When the six months had passed, her first words were most revealing. She said that the children had become quieter, and then she remarked, “I don’t think I’ll ever holler again like I used to.” When asked about the notes, she replied, “You’d be surprised how many hastily written notes I crumpled up and threw into the wastebasket before I gave them to anyone to read. Seeing my own words that I would have spoken had an effect that I don’t think I can ever forget.”

Paul is not done yet.

Third, our speech should gracious (minister grace). The word minister is again the word didōmi, which is translated “give” back in verse 27 (“Neither give place to the Devil”). It means “to give of one’s own accord and with good will.” Grace, of course is charis, which used in the context of salvation means the unmerited favor of God toward man manifested primarily through the person and work of Jesus Christ apart from any merit or works of man.

So what does it mean for us to give grace to others? In broad strokes the word grace and paints a picture of exceptional kindness, special goodwill, friendly action in excess of the ordinary. That is what characterizes our speech. Sometimes we say the right things, and even say them at the right time, but we say them in the wrong way. We must always speak with love, concern, and kindness. While we always “speak the truth” (4:15), we never stoop to today’s co-called “policy of total honesty,” which often hurts those around us. Our words are always kind.

Indeed, the tongue is the best and worst thing we each possess. It can help or hinder, it can build or destroy. May we ask ourselves throughout the day, “Is my tongue the best thing about me or the worst? Does my speech glorify and honour the Lord, and does it build up those around me?” May we pray with the Psalmist, “Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips” (Ps. 141:3).