Bobservations' Column
Pastor Bob Lawrenz
We had been in the Book of Ephesians before the Holidays. It was written to that specific Church in Asia, and also to the broader audience of every Church. We left off at the end of Chapter 4, as Paul wrote to them that they were in an uphill battle against idolatry for the Church, and against a culture of idolatry for Paul.
Prior to becoming a Christian, I was thoroughly enamored by anything that had a powerful engine. It was somewhat “inherited” because three of my four uncles worked for General Motors Corporation, and the fourth one worked on fighter jets while in the US NAVY for 20 years.
I still enjoy those things, but they are no longer goals for my life, and therein lies the difference. For example, money is not the root of all evil. Scriptures tell us, “For the love of money is the root of all evil…” (1 Timothy 6:10a). Money itself is a neutral commodity, how we use it makes the difference.
As a new Christian, I was still looking to possess the idols I had formed in my heart. Every week on the way to Church, my family and I would drive past a boat for sale on a roadside lot. The powerful boat was there for many weeks, sitting with a FOR SALE sign on it. I mentioned it to my pastor’s wife, and how much I would love to own such a boat, and each week the old desires would be activated upon seeing the craft sitting idle on that lot. She told me if the desire keeps coming, then “it must be of the Lord.”
In truth, I didn’t need that boat, what I needed was a new route to Church!
When I came to that conclusion from reading my Bible, I found that the very next week the boat had been sold and was gone off the lot. The temptation had been removed.
Idolatry can come in many forms: people, places, and things. It can be spiritual, or physical, or it can be wealth, power, or popularity, but always, idolatry becomes an issue of lusting after something other than what God has already given us.
There is nothing wrong with any of the things in this world, as long as they used for His glory. Check your heart regularly for the things you “love.” Make sure that Jesus is #1.
“Be ye therefore, followers of God, as (His) dear children.” ~ Ephesians 5:1
Today's Audio Message:
Ephesians 5:1-20 - "The Walk of His Children"
Summary/Notes:
What is the Christian Walk? Walk means lifestyle or manner of living. Life as a Christian means that we walk differently than the world. We walk worthy of our calling and position in Christ, fully pleasing Him. We walk in humility, unity of the Spirit, and love. We walk circumspectly in wisdom and truth. Circumspectly literally means to walk accurately, walk carefully, and walk with exactness.
When we become a Christian, you don’t just carelessly stroll through the Christian life doing whatever pleases you, there is an exactness to how we are to walk. We enter by the narrow gate. We walk a narrow path. God’s principles for this life have been carefully laid out for us in His Word. It is simply living according to God’s standards written in His Word.
Where there is genuine faith in Christ, fruit will always follow. "The Lord knoweth them that are His. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." (2 Timothy 2:19)
Society is corrupted by immorality, and the end of every immoral person is the wrath of God. (vs. 6) "Be ye not therefore partakers with them." (vs. 7)
We have been called out of darkness into light (Acts 26:18), out of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:9; Colossians 1:13). The reality of that calling, is a new nature, a new heart and a new life. We are a new creation in Christ, and that change is reflected in our daily lives as we rely upon His power to enable us to walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh.
True worship flows from the heart of a believer who is filled with the Holy Spirit. This believer is meditating on God's Word, communing with God and worshiping the Lord with a heart of thanksgiving. (vs. 18-19). This is in stark contrast to the world, between the drunken, orgiastic worship of the pagan systems and the Spirit-filled beauty of the worship of the true God. As Christians, we leave off the old life, the pagan rituals, the sinful deeds of the flesh, all of it, and walk in the Spirit as followers of Jesus Christ.
When we become a Christian, you don’t just carelessly stroll through the Christian life doing whatever pleases you, there is an exactness to how we are to walk. We enter by the narrow gate. We walk a narrow path. God’s principles for this life have been carefully laid out for us in His Word. It is simply living according to God’s standards written in His Word.
Where there is genuine faith in Christ, fruit will always follow. "The Lord knoweth them that are His. And, let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity." (2 Timothy 2:19)
Society is corrupted by immorality, and the end of every immoral person is the wrath of God. (vs. 6) "Be ye not therefore partakers with them." (vs. 7)
We have been called out of darkness into light (Acts 26:18), out of the kingdom of Satan into the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:9; Colossians 1:13). The reality of that calling, is a new nature, a new heart and a new life. We are a new creation in Christ, and that change is reflected in our daily lives as we rely upon His power to enable us to walk in the Spirit and not according to the flesh.
True worship flows from the heart of a believer who is filled with the Holy Spirit. This believer is meditating on God's Word, communing with God and worshiping the Lord with a heart of thanksgiving. (vs. 18-19). This is in stark contrast to the world, between the drunken, orgiastic worship of the pagan systems and the Spirit-filled beauty of the worship of the true God. As Christians, we leave off the old life, the pagan rituals, the sinful deeds of the flesh, all of it, and walk in the Spirit as followers of Jesus Christ.
