Put On
Ephesians 4:22-29
Paul is teaching about the result of knowing Jesus.
When we see ourselves as unified with Christ, we begin to align with His character.
There is a contrast so that we can clearly see the two paths:
that of walking in the Flesh and walking in the Spirit
Paul gives 4 examples of areas to pay attention to.
We should expect to see transformation here:
1) Truthfulness
2) Anger
3)Generosity
4)Speech
1 Be Truthful (Zech 8:16)
- lying, manipulating, half-truths, rumors
- dishonesty is the natural tilt
- protect self, profit self, hurt others (FLESH)
- take the hit, put others first, speak truth (SPIRIT)
- especially in the church
- builds community and alleviates worry when brothers and sisters are committed to transparency and honesty
2 Be Careful with Anger (Psalm 4:4)
- if your agitated - calm down and think
- act immediately (FLESH)
- prayerful thoughtfulness of the situation (SPIRIT)
- wake up! the enemy doesn't miss opportunities
- any foothold allows ADVANCE
- there is wisdom seeing beyond the heat of the moment
- sin takes you further than you want to go
3 Be Generous
- consider what motivates people and the worldly value of money and things
- gather as much for yourself while you can (FLESH)
- distribute and share, care for others with your wealth (SPIRIT)
- what a different mindset - work hard for others!
- work hard so that you have more to give?
- we need to evaluate our basis for assigning value
4) Be An Encourager
- the idea of the world unwholesome here is ROTTEN (FLESH)
- the impact of words lasts longer than the moment they are spoken
- use your words to consider how to be a blessing in the moment (SPIRIT)
- go in thinking: what is the need? what is the occasion? how can I represent Jesus with my mouth?