“Pray On My Behalf”
“Pray On My Behalf”
Blessings folk!
Pray at all times.
Be on the alert.
Do so for the saints..
Now, read the balance of the sentence.
Eph 6:18-20
With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit,
and with this in view,
be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,
and pray on my behalf,
that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth,
to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,
for which I am an ambassador in chains;
that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly,
as I ought to speak.
Paul asked them to pray for him.
Note what his request was.
Not avoidance of prison.
Not release from prison.
Not avoidance of persecution.
Not for provision.
Etc. etc.
He wanted utterance.
Utterance from the Most High God.
Utterance that when he opened his mouth the mystery of the gospel would be proclaimed with boldness.
Paul wanted the bold Word of the Lord.
Paul was in literal chains when he wrote this, yet he chose to describe himself as an ambassador - and emissary - of the Kingdom.
He wanted to speak the mystery of the gospel…even in chains.
He wanted the boldness of the Lord.
What do we request from others as to prayer?
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“Prayer. Alert."
“Prayer. Alert."
Blessings folk!
The Spirit continues to give us instruction.
Eph 6:18
With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit,
and with this in view,
be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,
This verse tells us to do two things.
- Pray
- Be alert
We are to pray…
- With all prayer
- With petition
- At all times
- In the Spirit
“In the Spirit” is important.
We are not to pray in the flesh.
We are not to pray in a soulish way.
We, as Believers, are to pray in the Spirit.
Led by the Spirit.
Seeking the Mind of the Lord through the Spirit.
With this understanding…
We are to be on the alert…
- With all perseverance
- With all petition
- For all the saints
“Alert” connotes something of which we are to be aware.
Something related to the saints…Believers.
Is this your status?
Praying…
Alert…
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“Sword of the Spirit”
“Sword of the Spirit”
Blessings folk!
Stand firm!
Gird yourself with Truth!
Put on Righteousness!
Prepare your way with the Gospel of Peace!
Take up the shield of faith!
Put on the helmet of salvation!
And…
Eph 6:17
And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION,
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
The sword of the Spirit!
We are told what it is.
The Word of God.
Heb 4:12
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword,
and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow,
and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
The Word judges our thoughts.
The Word judges the intention of our heart.
The Spirit uses the Word as He desires.
That is the reason that it is so important to know the Word.
2 Ti 2:15
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.
One more thing.
Note what we are to do.
We are to “take” the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God.
We have a role to learn.
We have a role to use.
Are we?
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“Helmet of Salvation”
“Helmet of Salvation”
Blessings folk!
Saints!
This is Who we are!
This is how we are to live!
Stand firm!
Gird yourself with Truth!
Put on Righteousness!
Prepare your way with the Gospel of Peace!
Take up the shield of faith!
But wait!
There is more…to coin a phrase. LOL
Eph 6:17
And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION,
and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
The helmet of Salvation.
The protection of salvation.
The “head-knowledge” of salvation.
Isa 59:17
He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.
1Th 5:8
But since we are of the day, let us be sober,
having put on the breastplate of faith and love,
and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.
Salvation is our hope.
Put it on.
Walk in it.
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“Shield of Faith”
“Shield of Faith”
Blessings folk!
Stand firm!
Gird yourself with Truth!
Put on Righteousness!
Prepare your way with the Gospel of Peace!
Then…
Eph 6:14-16
Stand firm therefore,
HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH,
and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS,
and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;
in addition to all,
taking up the shield of faith
with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Take up the shield of faith!
Faith!
Believe!
Believe the Lord!
Faith is a defensive shield.
Faith is an offensive shield.
The Word speaks much of faith…humm…maybe we need to chase that around soon?
Look what faith does.
It extinguishes the flaming arrows of the evil one.
The evil one shoots fiery evil at us constantly.
Walk in faith.
Live in faith.
Take up the shield of faith!
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“Gospel of Peace”
“Gospel of Peace”
Blessings folk!
Stand firm!
Gird yourself with Truth!
Put on Righteousness!
Then…
Eph 6:14-16
Stand firm therefore,
HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH,
and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS,
and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;
in addition to all,
taking up the shield of faith
with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Prepare yourself with the Gospel of Peace.
Our feet are “shod” with the Gospel of Peace.
As we go…
Everywhere we go…
We are to manifest the Gospel of Peace.
Know who we are as Believers.
Know what we are to do…
Isa 52:7
How lovely on the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who announces peace
And brings good news of happiness,
Who announces salvation,
And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
Rom 10:15
How will they preach unless they are sent?
Just as it is written,“HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!”
2Co 5:18-21
Now all these things are from God,
who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation,
namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.
Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
We bring Good News - the Gospel.
We bring Peace.
We bring Happiness.
We bring the Truth that Our God Reigns!!
We are reconcilers.
We are ambassadors.
We proclaim that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself.
Think on that!
Proclaim it!
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“Put On Righteousness…”
“Put On Righteousness…”
Blessings folk!
Stand firm!
Gird your loins with Truth.
Next…
Eph 6:14-16
Stand firm therefore,
HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH,
and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS,
and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;
in addition to all,
taking up the shield of faith
with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Put on Righteousness.
Hear the Word of the Lord!
2 Co 5:21
He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
In Christ we are the Righteousness of God!
Phl 1:9-11
And this I pray,
that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment,
so that you may approve the things that are excellent,
in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ;
having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ,
to the glory and praise of God.
True Believers are filled with the fruit of righteousness through Jesus.
This filling is “to the glory and praise of God”.
Walk in the filling/fullness of His Righteousness.
Do not “take it off”.
“Put it on” with every breath.
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“Truth. Free.”
“Truth. Free.”
Blessings folk!
The armor of God…
Put it on…
Eph 6:14-16
Stand firm therefore,
HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH,
and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS,
and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;
in addition to all,
taking up the shield of faith
with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
We must know the Truth…
Psa 119:160
The sum of Your word is truth,
And every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting.
John 17:17
“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.
2 Ti 2:15
Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.
Jas 1:18
In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth,
so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
1Jo 3:18
Little children,
let us not love with word or with tongue,
but in deed and truth.
We must learn the Truth.
We must live the Truth.
The Truth will…
John 8:31-32
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him,
“If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
Knowing His Truth…
Walking/Living His Truth…
Evidence you are a disciple…
Will make you free!!
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“Stand Firm Therefore…”
“Stand Firm Therefore…”
Blessings folk!
Take up the full armor of God.
Resist evil!
Stand firm!
The Word tells us that “having done everything, stand firm”.
What is “everything”?
It is taking up the full armor of God.
How?
Read…
Eph 6:14-16
Stand firm therefore,
HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH,
and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS,
and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE;
in addition to all,
taking up the shield of faith
with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
This is what we do.
This is what we “put on”.
Truth!
Righteousness!
Gospel!
Faith!
Note the protection.
Loins girded with truth.
Chest covered with breastplate of righteousness.
Feet prepared with the gospel of peace.
The shield of faith to extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one.
We are not alone.
We are not defenseless.
We are not without offense.
The Lord has granted us all we need.
Use it.
Live it
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“Take Up the Full Armor of God”
“Take Up the Full Armor of God”
Blessings folk!
Therefore…
In light of all the Lord has instructed…
Eph 6:13
Therefore,
take up the full armor of God,
so that you will be able to resist in the evil day,
and having done everything,
to stand firm.
Believers are to take up the full armor of God.
Not to take off.
Not to put down.
Take up.
Apparently we can choose to do so or not.
The full armor…more later on this.
Why?
So that we will be able to resist in the evil day.
Resist what?
Evil!
In all its forms.
In all its strategies.
Resist, armored by God.
Then…
When we have done everything…
Stand firm.
We often forget this.
We think that we must be “victorious” as understood by man.
No.
We are called to “stand firm”.
Armored by God.
Empowered by God.
To the praise of the glory of His grace…
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“Mein Kampf…My/Our Struggle”
“Mein Kampf…My/Our Struggle”
Blessings folk!
Put on the full armor of God.
Stand against the schemes of the devil!
Eph 6:11
Put on the full armor of God,
so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
Schemes?
What?
Yep!
Eph 6:12
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
but against the rulers,
against the powers,
against the world forces of this darkness,
against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.
Our struggling, our wrestling, our fighting is not with flesh and blood.
Not with the body.
Our struggle is with something else.
We struggle against…
Rulers - elementary rulers/principles, specifically within this context - demons
Powers - authorities, powers that act, within this context evil powers, demons, Elohim
World Forces of this darkness - Greek is “kosmokratōr” - ruler of this world, epithet for the satan (From “kosmos”=world and “krate”=to hold. Used to describe the satan as ruler of the world)
Spiritual force of wickedness in the heavenly places - means exactly that.
This is our struggle.
This is the venue.
Not flesh and blood.
Rejoice!
We are victorious in the battle against the unseen realm.
Fear not!
Stand strong in the Lord!
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“Put On…”
“Put On…”
Blessings folk!
We are told to be strong in the Lord and the power of His might!
We are then given another instruction.
We are told why…
Eph 6:11
Put on the full armor of God,
so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
We are told to put on the full armor of God.
We are told what this armor is a few verses later.
For now, note that we must “put on” the full armor
Not just part of it.
Not just what we like.
Not excluding what we do not like.
The full armor.
Note that it is the armor of God.
Not the armor of man.
Not my personal armor and strategy that I think will work.
Why?
So that we can stand firm!
Stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
The devil has schemes.
He has strategies that he plans against each believer.
We are to stand firm…in/by the armor of God…against these schemes.
We are able to do so in the Lord.
The question is, “will we?”
Put on His full armor.
Stand firm!
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“Finally!”
“Finally!”
Blessings folk!
So, let’s look at the balance of the instructions/commands in Paul’s letter to the church at Ephesus.
It begins with a strong word…”Finally”!
Eph 6:10
Finally,
be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might.
Finally!
With all that the Spirit has led Paul to say to this point, the conclusion is this.
Be strong in the Lord.
Do not be strong in the flesh.
Do not be strong in spirit.
Do not be strong in knowledge.
Do not be strong in…etc. etc.
Our strength is only in the Lord.
Be strong in the strength of His might.
His strength.
His power.
The word “strong” in the Greek means “to be empowered”.
We are empowered by the Lord.
We are to live in and manifest His power.
The word “strength” in the Greek means “strength”, especially “manifest power, dominion”.
We are the very manifestation of the power of God.
We are to manifest His power in all things.
This is who we are as True Believers.
This is how we are to live.
Manifest His Power!
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“Masters…”
“Masters…”
Blessings folk!
We today have a hard time with the thought of slaves.
Slavery has been a reality of mankind since Genesis.
There are those enslaved.
There are those free.
Many are the quotes about such…here is one of the more famous and poignant…
"None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free."
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Most of us believe that we are free…in a political sense.
We are not.
We are actually more enslaved than those upon whom we look back and call slaves.
(Learn true, accurate history)
We have seen what the Lord said to slaves.
They were to live “as unto the Lord”.
Now, read the next verse…
Eph 6:9
And masters,
do the same things to them,
and give up threatening,
knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven,
and there is no partiality with Him.
The Lord now speaks to “masters”.
He tells them to…
- Give up threatening
- Know that both master/slave have the same Master in heaven
- Know that there is no partiality with the Master in Heaven.
I intentionally skipped the first command.
“Do the same things to them…”
We will look at that next time.
For now, whether master or slave, do all unto the Lord.
Know that we serve the same Master.
Know that there is no partiality in the Kingdom.
We are OneAnother.
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“With Good Will…”
“With Good Will…”
Blessings folk!
Reread the passage.
Note what slaves are to do…
Eph 6:5-8
Slaves,
be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh,
with fear and trembling,
in the sincerity of your heart,
as to Christ;
not by way of eye-service, as men-pleasers,
but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.
With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men,
knowing that whatever good thing each one does,
this he will receive back from the Lord,
whether slave or free.
Slaves, be obedient to your masters according to the flesh.
Slaves, be obedient with fear and trembling, in sincerity of your heart.
Slaves, be obedient as to Christ.
Slaves, do not be “obedient” as in “eye-service”…obedient only when someone is looking, etc.
Slaves, do not be “men-pleasers”, only doing what is right when men are looking, or for an agenda.
Rather, obedient as a slave of Christ.
From the heart.
Doing the will of God.
We are to render service with good will.
We are to do so as unto the Lord.
Not as to men.
This is a major thing.
This goes against our fleshly nature and patterns of society.
Slaves are to do so knowing that whatever good thing one does, he will receive back from the Lord.
Whether slave.
Whether free.
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“Slaves!”
“Slaves!”
Blessings folk!
The Lord, writing through Paul, speaks to the Body as to how we are to live out our faith - together and in the world
He has spoken to…
Men
Women
Husbands
Wives
Children
Fathers
Now, read this…He is speaking to slaves!!!
Slaves?
Yep!
Eph 6:5-8
Slaves,
be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh,
with fear and trembling,
in the sincerity of your heart,
as to Christ;
not by way of eye-service, as men-pleasers,
but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.
With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men,
knowing that whatever good thing each one does,
this he will receive back from the Lord,
whether slave or free.
Much here.
I want us to see one truth today.
The Body of Christ is diverse.
It consist of all stations of life.
Some are rich.
Some are poor.
Some are free.
Some are slaves.
All are equal in the eyes of God as to salvation.
Think on that.
When they gathered together as the Body one was not “above” the other.
…to be continued…
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“No Provocation”
“No Provocation”
Blessings folk!
The Lord had/has given instruction to His Body.
To men.
To women.
To husbands.
To wives.
To children.
The Lord give another instruction for a specific portion of men - fathers.
Eph 6:4
Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger,
but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Fathers are told to not “provoke”…means “provoke to anger”.
To irritate.
To build resentment.
Rather, Fathers are told to…
Bring children up in the discipline of the Lord.
Bring children up in the instruction of the Lord.
“Bring them up” means to “nourish to maturity”.
No provocation.
Nourishing in the Lord.
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“Obey. Honor.”
“Obey. Honor.”
Blessings folk!
Let us continue with the Lord’s instruction on how-to-walk-the-walk-we-talk.
We have seen that we as the Body are to give thanks in all things.
We as the Body are to honor and be subject to OneAnother.
Wives are to be subject to their husbands..
Husbands are to love their wives.
Now…
Eph 6:1-3
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.
HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER (which is the first commandment with a promise),
SO THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH YOU, AND THAT YOU MAY LIVE LONG ON THE EARTH.
Children are to do two things.
- Obey their parents in the Lord
- Honor your father and mother
Why?
We obey because it is right.
That is simple!
We honor so that it may be well with us, that we may live long on the earth.
Note the Word gives us parenthetical insight…
This is a commandment…to honor.
This is the first commandment with a promise.
The promise?
That it may be well with you.
That you may live long on the earth.
We see it here…
Deu 5:16
‘Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you,
that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you on the land which the LORD your God gives you.
Here’s a question - is there an “age limit” for “children”?
Does a 65 year old child obey/honor the 85 year old parent?
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“Leaving. Cleaving. Weaving."
“Leaving. Cleaving. Weaving."
Blessings folk!
As we have seen, the husband is to love his wife.
Love her as Christ loves His Church.
Love her as he loves his own body.
Now, read the next verse…
Eph 5:31
FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH.
A quote of Genesis 2:24.
Think on this for a moment.
It is the man that is told to love.
Love his wife.
How is this manifest?
The man is instructed.
The man leaves his father and mother (his family).
The man is joined to his wife.
The man and woman become one flesh.
It was stated many years ago by someone that there is a …
Leaving
Cleaving (joining)
Weaving (one flesh)
This is a useful thought.
It is the man that does this.
In most of our societies the woman is viewed as “leaving her family”.
That is not exactly correct.
“For this reason”…for love…the man sets aside all and becomes husband to his wife.
Such would change much…
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“…As Their Own Bodies.”
“…As Their Own Bodies.”
Blessings folk!
We saw yesterday that husbands are to love their wives.
Love them as Christ loved the church.
The Lord continues…
Eph 5:28-30
So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies.
He who loves his own wife loves himself;
for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it,
just as Christ also does the church,
because we are members of His body.
Husbands are to love their wives as Christ loved the church.
Husbands are to love their wives as their own bodies.
No one hates his own body/flesh/self.
We nourish our bodies.
We cherish our bodies.
We take care of our bodies.
Some interesting nuances here.
The wife is part of the body of the husband.
(Echos of Genesis 1-3 here&hellip
How then should the husband love her?
Just as Christ loves the church.
Just as he loves his body.
Why?
Because we are one.
Husband/wife are one.
Members of the the Body of Christ are One.
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“Husbands. Love Your Wives…”
“Husbands. Love Your Wives…”
Blessings folk!
The next instruction is to husbands…
Eph 5:25-27
Husbands,
love your wives,
just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,
so that He might sanctify her,
having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory,
having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
Husbands are instructed/commanded to love their wives.
They are to love their wives as Christ loved the church.
How did Christ love the church?
He gave Himself up for her (church).
He sanctified her.
He cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.
He presented the church to Himself…
- A church full of glory
- A church having no spot
- A church having no wrinkle
- A church having no defect (…any such thing)
- A holy church
- A blameless church
This is what the Lord did.
Husbands are to do likewise for their wives.
Think it through.
Husbands are told to love their wives.
Wives are told to submit to their husbands.
Submitting will be the response to a husband who does as Christ did.
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“Be Subject…”
“Be Subject…”
Blessings folk!
Let us continue with the instructions/commands that the Lord is giving in Ephesians 5.
Hang on!
The next one is…
Eph 5:22
Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
NASB
A much abused and misused passage.
Read another translation…
Eph 5:22
Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.
ESV
Well, yeah…sounds declarative.
Sounds rather “rude”.
Read another translation…
Eph. 5:22
—wives to their own husbands as to the Lord,
Lexham
Wait!
What is going on here?
The first two examples are cut-n-dry statements…complete sentences.
The Lexham translation is a thought.
Something was said before.
Something was said after.
This is important.
The verses/sentence before said…remember them?
Eph 5:18-21
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
We are to be “subject to OneAnother”.
Now, watch how the Lexham handles the thought.
I think it is more accurate.
Eph 5
18 And do not be drunk with wine (in which is dissipation), but be filled by the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and singing praise in your heart to the Lord,
20 giving thanks always for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ
to the God and Father,
21 being subject to one another ⌊out of reverence for⌋ Christ
22 —wives to their own husbands as to the Lord,
23 because the husband is the head of the wife,
as also Christ is the head of the church (he himself being the Savior of the body).
24 But as the church is subject to Christ,
thus also wives should be subject to their husbands in everything.
Harris, W. H., III, Ritzema, E., Brannan, R., Mangum, D., Dunham, J., Reimer, J. A., & Wierenga, M. (Eds.). (2012). The Lexham English Bible (Eph 5:18–24). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
We are subject to OneAnother.
Wives are to be subject to their own husbands as to the Lord.
The church…all true Believers…are subject to Christ.
Christ is the Head of the church.
The husband is the head of the wife.
The wife is the head of the house.
Let all be subject in Love.
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“Be Subject to OneAnother”
“Be Subject to OneAnother”
Blessings folk!
Ok, one last look at the passage.
Reread…
Eph 5:18-21
(18) And do not get drunk with wine,
for that is dissipation,
but be filled with the Spirit,
(19) speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
(20) always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God,
even the Father;
(21) and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Do not be drunk with wine…nor food!
Be filled with the Spirit
Speak to OneAnother with…
Always give thanks for all things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father.
Then this last instruction.
Be subject to OneAnother.
Subject?
The word means “to place or to rank under”, “to submit”.
The idea is that we walk humbly before OneAnother.
We walk in humility before OneAnother.
It does not mean that we humiliate OneAnother.
We walk in submission, honor, deference to OneAnother in the fear of Christ.
“Fear” means “reverence”, “respect”, “honor”.
In the same way that we walk before the Lord, we walk before OneAnother.
This makes sense.
Why?
True Believers are the Presence of the Most High God.
God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit resides within us.
How then should would behave toward OneAnother?
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“Give Thanks”
“Give Thanks”
Blessings folk!
This is a really important portion of the Word.
Reread…
Eph 5:18-21
(18) And do not get drunk with wine,
for that is dissipation,
but be filled with the Spirit,
(19) speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
(20) always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God,
even the Father;
(21) and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Verse 20 tells us to give thanks.
We are to give thanks always.
We are to give thanks “for” all things.
We are to give thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We are to give thanks to God the Father.
1Th 5:16-18
Rejoice always;
pray without ceasing;
in everything give thanks;
for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Heb 13:15
Through Him then,
let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God,
that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.
A continual sacrifice of praise and thanks to the Lord God.
Let us do so.
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“Sing. Make Melody”
“Sing. Make Melody”
Blessings folk!
Do not be drunk with wine/food.
Be filled with the Spirit.
Speak to OneAnother in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.
Reread the passage…
Eph 5:18-21
(18) And do not get drunk with wine,
for that is dissipation,
but be filled with the Spirit,
(19) speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
(20) always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God,
even the Father;
(21) and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
“Singing” means exactly that…to sing with the voice unto the Lord.
“Making melody” refers to “plucking”…as in plucking the string of an instrument, striking to make a sound.
We are to sing and make melody “with your heart”…with your will, mind, emotions, etc.
We lift up our heart to the Lord.
Think on that.
Observe what we see as we go through our lives.
To what do people “lift up their hearts”?
Far too many true Believers lift up their hearts with more power/energy to sporting events and other endeavors than they do unto the Lord.
If anything…anything…lifts up your heart more than the Lord, then it is an idol.
Yep.
An idol.
One last thought.
Some portions of the Body of Christ use this verse to seek to defend their “denominational distinctive” teaching that the Lord does not allow instruments in worship of Him.
They use the “singing” phrase.
They are wrong.
Wondrously, many of these churches are beginning to realize this and are making adjustments - according to the Word of the Lord.
May we do likewise in all things!
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“Speak to OneAnother”
“Speak to OneAnother”
Blessings folk!
Read the passage again…
Eph 5:18-21
(18) And do not get drunk with wine,
for that is dissipation,
but be filled with the Spirit,
(19) speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
(20) always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God,
even the Father;
(21) and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Again, these four verses are all one sentence - a thought.
Read verse 19 again.
How do we relate to OneAnother?
We speak to OneAnother.
There is no room in the Body of Christ for silence, for “stand-off-ish”, for the rudeness of silent rejection.
What do we speak?
We speak psalms.
We speak hymns.
We speak spiritual songs.
Great!
What are those?
Psalm - Greek is “psalmos” and means “striking” as in striking the strings of a musical instrument. It means a “sacred ode”…a song unto the Most High.
Hymn - Greek is “humnos” and is a song/ode of praise to gods, conquerors, especially the Most High God. It declares the wonder and glory of God. Often strong teaching and theology.
Spiritual song - Greek is “pneumatikos ode” - a chant/song of the Spirit.
The short of it is this.
We are to speak/encourage/exhort OneAnother with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs..
We use the psalms, hymns and spiritual songs that we find in the Word.
We also use the psalms, hymns and spiritual songs that the Lord releases in our lives.
He gives songs/psalms of praise to Him.
He gives hymns of declaration/teaching of Who He is.
He gives spiritual songs - songs of the Spirit - often spontaneous and extemporaneous.
Are you a willing vessel to received such?
Are you a willing vessel to speak what you receive?
Trust the Lord.
Do it.
Watch what He does!
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“Be Filled…”
“Be Filled…”
Blessings folk!
Do not be foolish.
Know and understand the will of God.
Now, the next several verses are all one sentence.
Look at them as a whole…and we will discuss slowly…
As
Eph 5:18-21
And do not get drunk with wine,
for that is dissipation,
but be filled with the Spirit,
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
Verse 18 gives us two instructions…
- Do not be drunk with wine…why?…because it is dissipation.
What is dissipation?
The Greek means “debauchery”, “wastefulness”, “excess”, “extravagant squandering”.
We are not to do so with drink nor food (gluttony).
Rather, we are to…
(2) Be filled with the Spirit.
The Greek means “complete”, “be filled”…in this context it means “impart richly”, “imbue with”.
We are to be filled with the Spirit.
We are not to be filled to excess with food nor drink.
Be not be drunk with drink/food.
Be filled to overflowing with the Spirit of the Most High God!
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“Do Not Be Foolish”
“Do Not Be Foolish”
Blessings folk!
Are you making the most of your time?
Are you redeeming the days?
That “redeeming the days” is important.
It does carry a meaning of making the best use of what we have now and in the future.
It also speaks to the fact that the Lord will redeem the days of the past lost to sin and unrighteousness!
Since the days are evil…
Since we are to redeem the time…
Since we are to be careful to walk as wise men…
So then…
Eph 5:17
So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
Two more instructions.
In light of all this…
- Do not be foolish
…but…
(2) Understand what the will of the Lord is
The conjunction “but” is important.
To not seek to understand the will of the Lord is foolish.
A fool does not seek to understand the will of the Lord.
Knowing the will of the Lord will keep us from playing the fool.
Know His will.
Understand His will.
Live His will.
Be not a fool.
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