Sermon Notes 3-5-2017

Ephesians Part 14

Self-sacrificial love, leads to holy living!

(getting down to the nitty gritty)

Ephesians 5:1–10 (NLT)

¹Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.

²Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

³Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people.

⁴Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.

⁵You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.

⁶Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him.

⁷Don’t participate in the things these people do.

⁸For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light!

⁹For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.

¹⁰Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. 

Our example to follow!

¹Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.

²Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

·      We are to be imitators of God (Jesus)

·      In everything we do

·      Not because we have to, but because we want to

·      And the greatest example he gave us was to love others!

o   The way he cared for others

o   The way he felt what others felt

o   The way he lived a life filled with sacrifice for others

·      This was Jesus greatest example

·      And the ultimate example was him sacrificing himself at the cross!

John 15:13 (NLT)

¹³There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

·      We do this not because we have to but because we want to

·      We feel loved, there for we show love

·      We try everyday to be more and more like him, because of the love he showed us first!!

And his greatest attribute was love, love for others, love for enemies, love for us even when we didn’t love him. If we grasp this one trait and work on it daily it’s a life changer.

·      When we love Jesus first, loving others falls in to place

·      When we love Jesus first we want to please him, to live like him

·      And we start to change our actions

·      But until we get the idea of doing things out of love for Jesus, everything we do will be short lived

o   Weather its big sin or life habits we can’t do it until we understand the concept of unconditional self-sacrificing love!

  

The laundry list!

Now we get into the laundry list of issues that plague society, and the preface is that the lack of love for Jesus and others drive this behavior!

The big one in any culture!

Ephesians 5:3 (ESV)

³But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.

·      Sex has been at the center of sin since the beginning of time

o   Adultery

o   Fornication

o   Adultery of the heart

o   Porn

·      It’s everywhere around us

·      We have justified it as an itch we can’t scratch

·      Like in every age before us it’s become “Socially acceptiable”

·      And it’s worse now, more ramped then ever

·      A desire we can’t control

·      I call BULL

We control a lot of desires, we just chose not to control this one

·      But if we let our love for Jesus over ride our desire for a quick self-pleasure it will make life a lot easier

·      I see more people where sexual problems are at the center of their misery!

·      The baggage that they carry

·      And its steams from sexual sin in their past

Covetousness!

Exodus 20:17 (ESV)

¹⁷“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

·      How rampant is this!?!

·      We see it everywhere

·      We are never satisfied, we are never happy until we get that next fix of stuff

·      And it quickly takes the pace of Jesus in our lives

·      We must be careful, we enjoy things, and serve God

·      Stuff can quickly become our God, and take it from me, nothing good come out of serving stuff

o   You left empty, frustrated, and alone with your stuff!!

And Paul says this is not the actions of saints!

And that tongue rears its ugly head!

Ephesians 5:4 (ESV)

⁴Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.

·      He is not talking about the occasional slip of the tongue!

o   We have all done it

o   Slammed our finger

o   Got mad and a word or two slip

o   Sometimes there are no other words to use to make your point

·      He is talking about just being nasty mouthed

·      Telling Jokes that’s demining

·      That make you look good and others bad

·      Singling out a group or individual

·      And being just vulgar!

·      It’s a form of idolatry, its self-serving, and it’s just wrong!

Paul used ugly words for the glory of God

·      He used it to show people their depravity

·      He used them to illustrate a point

·      And to show people just how far they had fallen

But what he is talking about here is a self-serving kind of talk

·      Its covetousness

·      Its idolatry

·      It’s you becoming God of your own world with no regard for others

And he says there is no place in the Christian life for it!

·      I was the worst at this

·      Used language that was vulgar

·      That was demining

·      And hurtful, with no regard for others

·      And God has shown me that there is no place for it!

But a person, that’s saved by Jesus grace finds thanksgiving in others

·      We are glad when they succeed

·      We are happy with what God has allowed us to be steward

·      We are not looking for the next fix

·      We only need Jesus to be happy

·      People that talk like this are not happy, always want more, and Paul says be happy with whatever your situation, because God placed you there!!

James 1:26 (ESV)

²⁶If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.

Are you truly a follower?

Ephesians 5:5 (ESV)

⁵For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

·      Actions speak louder than words

·      The way you act the way you conduct you self speaks to your heart and love for Jesus

·      And Paul says if you act this way and don’t repent and change, you have no inheritance

·      Because you have truly not given yourself to the love of Jesus and his work on the cross

James 2:18 (ESV)

¹⁸But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

·      You can’t have faith and no works

·      You can’t have faith and no change

·      You can’t have faith and no obedience

·      You just simply can’t!