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Ephesians 4.17-24 (ESV)
The New Life
17 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ! — 21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, 22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
In this great passage, we get a common image that Paul uses in his writing. I love that Paul starts to push and encourage the Ephesian believers to live into and live out their faith in Christ. But that encouragement isn’t just a “cheering on” from Paul like someone cheering at a sporting event. Paul reminds the Ephesians of their foundation in Christ in verse 20—remember what you learned.
If they remember what they learned, that is, if they stay centered on Jesus, only then will they be able to walk in their new life in Christ.
Then, starting in verse 22, there is that familiar image repeated throughout Paul’s writings. Paul talks about this process of putting off old things and putting on Christ.
This is all about removing things from your life that do nothing to encourage your relationship with the Lord. Actually, they have the opposite effect: they create barriers between us and our relationship with the Lord, to say nothing of our witness to God’s love, forgiveness, and grace. Paul’s encouragement and direction is to pick up new things, habits, and practices that encourage and help us to know, love, and follow Jesus every step of the way.
This is always a challenging process for us to actively engage in as we continue to grow and mature in our faith.
As you grow in faith, there are some things that the Lord will, at first, gently call to your attention as not consistent with your new relationship with Christ the King. Using Paul’s exhortation, you and I are called to remove those things from our lives.
But it’s not enough just to remove something because all that does is create a space, a vacuum, that we will fill with something else. That’s why Paul says not only are we to remove things that are not consistent with our new faith in Christ, but we are also to be renewed in Christ and put on our new self.
Only as we do that will our hearts and minds change. As we grow in greater fellowship with the Lord and become united in Christ, our lives will change, and so will our relationships. You will become who you are created to be in Christ.
My encouragement to you is to pursue your relationship with Jesus relentlessly. Take off the old and put on Christ, and let the Lord clothe you with His righteousness and holiness, which is incomparably greater than anything that this world can offer! Even greater, through this remarkable process, you and I have become more and more like Jesus and reflect His presence with us and out in the world.
So, here's a simple challenge today: What is one thing that the Lord is calling you to “put off” and to “put on?”
God bless you, and know that you are prayed for constantly.
Scott
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