Title: How to Live / Ephesians 5:15-21
How to live / Ephesians 5:15-21
On the other hand, there was a servant named Onesimus, who betrayed his master and fled to Rome. This man also met Paul, heard the gospel, accepted Jesus, and repented. The letter Paul wrote to his master Philemon is the book of Philemon. This book of Philemon emphasizes that we must forgive Onesimus and wrap it with love. The letter written with Philemon at that time is Ephesians. The church in Ephesus was a representative church in Asia Minor, but it was a church with many problems. Because Jews and Gentiles lived together in faith, they had different lifestyles, different ethnicities, and different philosophies and colors of life, so Paul realized that there was a potential for division. So, when Paul wrote the book of Ephesians, he was centered on ecclesiology.
The book of Ephesians has six chapters. Chapters 1 to 3 in the first half emphasize doctrine, and chapters 4 to 6 emphasize practice. In the Doctrine section of Chapters 1 to 3, the doctrine of soteriology is about how we can be saved, and the ecclesiology of what kind of church is the gathering of the saved saints. Chapters 4-6 emphasize that the church must all be one.
Among believers today, there are those who hurt the faith of others because of their differences in their words and actions, their beliefs and their lives. It is wrong to give up faith because of people, but it is realistically possible. In that sense, the text of the text emphasizes how Christians should live in a harsh world.
Verse 15 says, “Therefore, be careful what you do.” Here, “therefore” serves as an important conjunction connecting the first half and the second half of verses 14 and 15. Verse 14 says, “Therefore, it is said, Awake, you who sleep, and rise from the dead, for Christ will shine upon me.” Here, the sleeping people are the members of the Ephesian church, meaning those who formally believe in Jesus, and the dead means the unbelievers who do not believe in Jesus living in Ephesus and sin. Therefore, this word refers to the saints of the Ephesian church who practice sins and live a life of faith among unbelievers who worship idols.
Next comes the words, "Be careful what you do." These words contain the meaning of living accurately. The word “attention” is the word “buleppo” in the original Greek, meaning “to see”. It refers to the state of being able to see things that were invisible because of darkness, and when translated, this word means “beware.” Ultimately, this word means that our saints who have been saved by the Christian gospel are Christians when we live in a dark and difficult world. It is to be careful and live accurately.
A man named Benjamin Frank said not to live to eat, but to eat to live. This means to live a life worthy of life. If you waste your life pursuing something, not pursuing something for your own life, it is not a true life.
So Jesus said, Don't worry about what you will eat or what you will wear. In Ecclesiastes 9:10, it says, 'Do whatever your hand finds to be done, for there is no work in Hades, there is no commandment, neither knowledge nor wisdom, into which you are going.'
A poet named Baran said, “The best life is just to be drunk.” Are you living in this world and completely intoxicated with your life? If so, you are a happy person. But intoxicated with your own life. If you spend that day without being successful, no one is as unhappy as that person.
Our lives have quality and quantity. A sheep-based life is a life that thinks about how to satisfy a hungry stomach. It is a one-dimensional life. The beasts will belong here. However, human beings cannot live satisfied only with this one-dimensional need. When you are full and wear warm clothes, you will now have a desire for what to eat and what kind of clothes to wear. This is life based on quality.
If you look at the job of a spouse preferred by many single women today, it is said that it is a job that allows you to enjoy life with some economic power rather than a person with excellent economic power. Here we can see that today's young people put a lot of weight on their lives.
However, the life emphasized in the text is not the kind of life mentioned above. Ephesians 5 says that true believers in Jesus Christ, who have been saved from sin and death through the blood of Jesus Christ on the cross, must live the world correctly. It is teaching us that we must live our lives accurately enough to say, like Paul, at the end of a life lived, 'I have run my course and have fought the good fight, and from now on, the reward of the crown of righteousness awaits.
Guys, ask yourself. 'How am I supposed to live in the world? Are you going to chase after money? Will you pursue and be satisfied with a quality life? The text emphasizes that the most appropriate and correct life for us Christians to live is the following three lives.
1. It is to save time and live.
Verse 16 says, “Save the time, for the days are evil.” This means to make good use of the time given to me. Don't waste your time on useless things, and use your time wisely.
In Psalm 90:12 we find the following prayer: “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” Gentlemen, we need to know that God has given us an appropriate time, not a long time. Therefore, wasting time is against the will of God. What is success and what is failure? People think materialistically. If you make a lot of money and have power, then you are successful. But those things are part of living in this world, not the process of success or failure. Those who use their time are successful, and those who waste their time in vain are failures. Why should we make good use of our time? In verse 16, Paul says that the times are evil. The times are evil, so if you waste your time in this evil world, you will end up surrendering yourself to the evil times.
To make good use of your time, you must first be diligent. Second, you must lead a regular life. Third, be on time. Fourth, we must cherish the opportunity. Fifth, we must give tithes of our time to God.
2. Living according to the will of the Lord.
Verse 17 says, “Therefore do not be fools, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” What do I need to understand? It is the will of the Lord.
A man named George Truet said, 'The greatest knowledge a man can possess is to know the will of God, and the greatest achievement a man can do is to do God's will." You can become a person, achieve your purpose, and go to heaven The only way to know God's will is to pray.
There are two things in God's will. One is 'Bl '. This means the sovereign will of God. It means the absolute will of God that is not moved no matter how much we pray. Therefore, if you feel that it is not God's will while praying, you must learn to change your prayers.
The other is the 'dilemma'. It denotes a wishful meaning, an acceptable meaning. Although God has a will, it means that He hears our prayers, has compassion on us, and grants our prayers. When God told Abraham that he would destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, he asked Abraham to forgive him if there were only 50 righteous people. It was then that God allowed Delema.
3. Living by being filled with the Holy Spirit.
The reason Paul said, "Do not get drunk, for this is debauchery, but be filled with the Holy Spirit." is. If you lead a debauched life, you will eventually have to go to the place of sin, but if you receive the filling of the Holy Spirit, you can overcome such sins. It is not necessary to receive the filling of the Holy Spirit once in order to defeat sin. Only when we continue to be filled with the Holy Spirit and fill our hearts with the Holy Spirit will we have the strength to overcome sin. When you receive the filling of the Holy Spirit, you will lead a life of praise. You will live a life of gratitude. Obedience will lead a life.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have been thinking about how to live in this evil world today. There are three philosophies of life we should have. It is a good use of time. It is obedience and obedience to the will of the Lord. It is living a life filled with the Holy Spirit. May these three philosophies always be with you in your life, in the name of the Lord.