Ephesians 4:17

Verse of the Day: Ephesians 4:17

“So I say this, and affirm in the Lord, that you are to no longer walk just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their minds.” – Ephesians 4:17

The letter to the Ephesians was written, by Paul, to the saints who resided in Ephesus. “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are at Ephesus and are faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 1:1-2.

We see in chapters one through three he writes to them regarding the spiritual blessings that come to those who accept Christ. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,” Ephesians 1:3. He continually gives thanks to God for their faith as he prays for them. He encourages them, saying they have received grace from God, though Christ. “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9.  And then in chapter three, he tells them that he prays for them that they will become and remain strong in the faith. “For this reason I bend my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner self, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled to all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:14-19. He encourages them to be in unity with all the saints. “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:1-3.

Now because of this Paul tells them, as we see in our focus verse, to no longer live in a worldly way as the non-believers in Ephesus lived but rather in the new life provided to them by Christ when they were saved. “So, I say this, and affirm in the Lord, that you are to no longer walk just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their minds.” Ephesians 4:17. Now, as I proceed, I will be speaking not only of the unsaved Ephesians whom Paul was referring to, but also the unsaved today. There are several specific areas Paul focuses on which we need to be on the watch for in our lives as well.

First is that the unbelievers had hardened their hearts to the truth. “being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart.” Ephesians 4:18. Many people then, and today as well, are hardening their hearts against the truth because it goes against what they desire. He is stressing their deliberate choices to reject God and His ways, not necessarily accidental. In a sense sin has caused them to lose their minds. Their thinking process has been tainted by the dark forces of evil, called “the powers of this dark world. “And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” Ephesians 2:2. In essence, they separated themselves from the life of God. And this is a dangerous ignorance, for it is the result not of a lack of knowledge but of a deliberate denial of the knowledge God has made available to them. Paul puts it this way in his letter to the Romans. “because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, being understood by what has been made, so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:19-20. God has made clear his ‘eternal power and divine nature,’ but because of their darkened understanding, depraved humanity has rejected that knowledge and chosen ignorance. Although the world was created by Christ, the world refused to know him. As John put it, “He was in the world, and the world came into being through Him, and yet the world did not know Him.” John 1:10. Thus they, as the theologian Grant Osborne put it, ‘lost all sensitivity’. Grant then explains what he meant, ‘Ignorance leads to hardness, which in turn leads to callousness, the inability to feel pain; here it refers to the inability to feel shame or guilt in the presence of abiding evil.’  And this becomes even more prevalent when friends and family push you to join them in these wrong activities. “In all this, they are surprised that you do not run with them in the same excesses of debauchery, and they slander you; but they will give an account to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.” 1 Peter 4:4-5. In essence, they have become greedy, never satisfied with what they have and do. In Colossians we read, “Therefore, treat the parts of your earthly body as dead to sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.” Colossians 3:5.

We who are Christians, followers of Christ, need to take heed of what are focus verse is saying. “So, this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,” Ephesians 4:17.  Paul states farther down, “if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another.” Ephesians 4:21-25. It is essential that we put aside our old nature, ignore it’s desires, and put on our new self which is given to us, and which is pleasing to God. The cure for a life of sin and excess is to reject the old lies the world told us and to embrace the eternal truths of Christ. This is what we have learned about Him. Since we have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, we should live accordingly. To live in any other way is against what Christ requires.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.

Philippians 4:7

Verse of the Day Devotion Philippians 4:7 

“And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:7 

This verse is the result of doing what can be an extremely difficult. Looking back at verse 4 we read, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice!” Philippians 4:4. Paul is telling the Philippians to always to be happy and content.  They are to rejoice no matter what happens. This is important because anything that God allows is for our good. “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28.  Or it is for the benefit of another. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4. iz

Then in the next verse he continues, “Let your forbearing spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.”   Philippians 4:5.  The word ‘forbearing’ is the Greek word ‘epieikēs’ having the idea  of being gentle, kind, and courteous. Those who are truly rejoicing in the Lord at all times will be characterized by the idea mentioned above. This is how other people are to experience the Christian’s joy in the Lord, through seeing their gentleness and kindness; not insisting on every right of letter of law or custom, but by yielding and being gentle and tolerant.  Aristotle described the gentle person as ‘one who by choice and habit does what is equitable, and who does not stand on his rights unduly, but is content to receive a smaller share although he has the law on his side’. And this gentleness should be reserved not only for family, friends, or fellow Christians. It should be evident to all, as the verse above declares.

Taking this a little deeper, we read in the next verse, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:6. This can only take affect if we truly believe that God is with us and will bring us through whatever is happening to us. He is admonishing us not to be anxious about anything. Instead of worrying about situations, lift them up to the one who loves and cares for us.  We must understand that prayer is truly the antidote for anxiety. We are called to lift up our needs humbly to God. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:6-7. God cares for us, and He wants us to by anxious for nothing. Therefore, instead of worrying, we should tell God what we need. And not to demand or beg, but as verse 6 says, “but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Philippians 4:6b.

And if we do this as stated in verses 4-6, God will give us peace. As our focus verse states, “And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7. After his instructions on prayer, Paul presents the promise of the peace of God that goes beyond anything we could ever imagine. And one other thing to note here.  The condition for experiencing God’s peace is not that God grants all of our requests but that we have made known all our requests to God with thanksgiving. God’s peace is not the result of the power of our prayers or the effectiveness of our prayers. Prayer is our openness about our needs before God, our emptiness in his presence, our absolute dependence upon him with an attitude of constant thanksgiving and complete trust. And it is this trust that God hears us that gives us the peace we need. He may not answer us in the way we would want, but we must trust that what He does is for our good.

So, if you find yourself feeling anxious about something, get on your knees and in humility present your needs, that are causing anxiety, to God. Leave it with Him, trusting that He knows what is best and though it is not what you want, it is what is best. Through this, we receive peace that passes all understanding, and then we can proclaim, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say, rejoice!” Philippians 4:4.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.