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Our readings in Ephesians continued this morning in chapter 4, from verse 17 to 32; here are my thoughts:
Our life in Christ should be a new life always; each and every day. It should be a holy, pure, and completely dedicated to God, life. Our daily prayers should be to ask God to help us leave behind our old self behind, seeking new understanding and attachment to God. We should choose sensitivity to the spiritual things, and renounce our having chosen sensuality. We should let Christ lead us to a place and point of surrender of lust, for we know when we were once there it only made us desire it more and more; and that is not a way to live!
Our having come to Christ Jesus was a coming to life in Him and receiving from Him the fullness of His truth. Our surrender to Jesus meant our turning over to Him all of our negative and evil things of our past, and seeking to be truly new in Him. We need a new life in righteousness and holiness.
In our relationships with each other, we should exhibit the same things as we should towards Christ like honesty and commitment. We are all in this together and we are all a part of the body of Christ.
If we get angry, it should not be a sinful anger and we should let the anger go down with the sun; sleeping on anger makes for a terrible bed. We should not take what is not ours. We should be productive members of society, caring and sharing all to make life better for all.
Our words should speak life and build others up. We should not grieve the Holy Spirit, for it was in the Holy Spirit that we were sealed, marked and ready for the day of redemption.
A checklist of unnecessary baggage for our life journey: bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander, and malice.
A checklist of necessary and wanted things for this journey: Kindness, compassion, mercy, and forgiveness towards others.
EAT-TO-YOUR-FILL PRAYER: Awesome God, let me truly live an exemplary life in which I bring honor and glory to You. Help me die again to self, especially the wretched self that I once was. Let me instead be one who seeks to build up others, and one who brings others to Your love. This I pray in Christ Jesus my Lord, amen.
