Last time
together we began looking at the process of Spiritual transformation. We are commanded to be transformed by the
renewing of our mind so that we no longer think like the gentiles.
Our thinking
is to be changed as we submit to the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.
Today I want
to go to Ephesians 4 and look at some very practical principles to illustrate
how this change needs to take place as we renew our mind.
Ephesians
4:25 (ESV) 25Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of
you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.
We must
“put-off” lying. As we renew our mind,
lying should have no part in the Christian life and within the body of
Christ. In the place of lying we
“put-on” speaking the truth” or truth telling.
One person asked the question,
“When is a liar no longer a liar?”
It is not when they stop talking.
A liar is no longer a liar when the speak the truth. The cognitive change or the transformation
of the mind that must take place in this passage is that we must realize that
we are “members one of another”. To lie
to a brother or sister in Christ is to attack the body of Christ of which I am
a part. That has the same common sense
of my right hand taking a hammer and attacking another part of my body. It will affect the body as a whole. Therefore, as members of one another, we
don’t want to lie to ourselves.
Ephesians
4:26–27 (ESV) 26Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down
on your anger, 27and give no opportunity to the devil.
Rather than
living a life in continued anger we must have settled relationships. If I go to bed angry, I wake up angry. In waking up angry I give the devil
opportunity as I start my new day. I
Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be diligent for your adversary the devil walks about
as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.”
When we go to bed angry it is as if we are telling a lion who is ready
to pounce, “Wait right here, I will be
by in a little and you are welcome to get me.”
Maybe this is a little simplified, but I hope you get the picture. We must deal with our anger as soon as
possible. In Matt. 5:24 Christ when
challenging us not to worry about tomorrow told us “sufficient for the day is
its own troubles.” If tomorrows
troubles will be enough for one day then I surely don’t want to save over
today’s troubles for tomorrow.
I hope that
you will begin to renew your mind and allow your thinking and your life to be
transformed so that you can lead a Christ honoring life.
No comments:
Post a Comment