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Book: Ephesians
 Print ( PC Only )
Ephesians 5:1
I. "Be ye followers of God as dear children."
A. In the previous verse we were exhorted to be kind one to
another tenderhearted, forgiving one another even as God for
Christ sake has forgiven us.
1. This exhortation to be followers (mimesis)of God is
directly related to the previous exhortation to forgive
one another even as God for Christ sake forgave us, as
is noted by the therefore.
2. God has set the example for forgiveness.
3. For holiness, Lev. 11:25, "Be ye holy for I am holy."
4. In love. Matt. 5:43 "Ye have heard that it has been
said, you shall love your neighbor and hate your
enemies, but I say unto you, Love your enemies, do good
to those that hate you, pray for them that despitefully
use you and persecute you, so shall you be the children
of your Father which is in heaven."
5. In perfectness. Matt. 5:48 "Be ye therefore perfect,
even as your Father in heaven is perfect."
6. In mercy. Luke 6:36 "Be merciful as your Father is also
merciful."
7. Your Father wants you to be conformed into His image.
8. You object, "But that is impossible, I am too human."
a. "But as many as received Him, to them gave He
the power to become the sons of God, to as many
as believed upon His name."
b. That power is through the Holy Spirit. "Not by
might nor by power, but by My Spirit saith the
Lord." But you shall receive power, after the
Holy Spirit has come upon you and you shall be
witnesses unto Me."
B. As a parent it makes you feel good when someone says of your
beautiful daughter, "I knew without being told that she was
your daughter, she looks like you." God desires that people
know that we are His children, not by our looks but by our
actions."
II. "Walk in love, as Christ has also loved us."
A. In chapters 1-3 Paul has told us what we are as the result of
God's grace toward us, and of the power to be what we are
supposed be that has been made available to us.
B. Beginning with chapter 4 he begins to tell us how we are to
now walk in accordance to what we are.
1. Walk worthy of the vocation wherewith you were called.
You have been called the sons of God, now walk worthy
of that calling.
2. We are not to walk as the world walks.
3. The remainder of chapter 4 is taken up with the things
we are to do, and not do as a child of God.
C. As he begins chapter 5 he is carrying on the same theme of
chapter 4 as he tells us to walk in love, as Christ has also
loved us.
1. Christ manifested His love for us through the greatest
self sacrifice, as He laid down His life for us.
a. "Greater love has no man than this, that a man
will lay down his life for his friend."
b. His love for you was self sacrificing and
giving.
2. Paul tells us that He gave Himself as a sacrifice to
God for a sweetsmelling savour.
III. Things that are not manifesting love.
A. The top of the list is fornication. (Sex outside of marriage)
1. Fornication is not an act of love. It is an act of
lust, it is insensitive and self gratifying.
a. You are insensitive to the feelings of guilt
that will be imposed upon the other person.
You are forcing your will and desires on them.
b. You are thinking mainly of the momentary
pleasure the act will bring to you.
c. How mistaken the world and Hollywood are on
this issue.
B. All uncleanness. (akatharsia) We are familiar with the word
catharsis, put the negative prefix a before it and you have the
word akatharsia which is an uncleanness morally or physically.
C. Or covetousness. The strong desire for something that belongs
to someone else.
D. These things are all of them signs of a lack of true love of
the agape sort.
E. These things have no place among those who are saints. These
things should not even be mentioned or talked about by the
believers.
IV. Paul expands the list.
A. Neither filthiness. Shamefulness or obscene.
B. Nor foolish talking.
C. Jesting. That is in an evil sense.
D. In thinking about walking in love, we should not speak of
someone in a shameful or obscene way. We should not talk
foolishly about them, and we should speak of them in a jesting
way suggesting evil.
E. Our speech should be that of giving thanks to God for all of
His love and benefits of that love for us.
V. Those who we know will not have any inheritance in the kingdom of
Christ and of God.
A. Whoremongers (pornos) One who sells, their body for the
gratification of others.
B. Unclean person, filthy, lewd.
C. Covetous man, who is an idolater.
VI. These are the very things that brought the wrath of God on the people
in the days of Noah, and will bring the great tribulation upon the
earth.
A. Don't let anybody deceive you with vain words.
B. Paul wrote to the Phillipians, "Be not deceived, God is not
mocked, whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."
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