Title: Put away falsehood (Eph 4:25)
Contents
Sunday Worship Sermon - Throwing away lies (Ephesians 4:25)
“Therefore, putting away falsehood, let each one speak the truth with his neighbor.
for we are members of one another” (Ephesians 4:25).
The salvation of Christians does not end only at the level of individual salvation.
We are all saved as members of the body of Christ.
The word saint itself does not exist in the singular.
However, there is an exhortation that we must put our best efforts into in order to keep the unity of the Holy Spirit.
That is today's text.
The text speaks of a fatal element that breaks the unity of the Holy Spirit.
It is lies and deeds.
Lies and deeds are many.
It refers to disguising, deceiving, pretending not to know, exaggerating, etc.
Falsehood is a principle that governs all aspects of our lives.
It is also the most characteristic element of a sinful life.
It can also make life unhappy and miserable.
Today the apostle urges us to forsake lies.
You must try to get rid of lies.
Because that is the essential Christian identity.
“But be renewed in your spirit and put on the new man, which after God was created in righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:23-24).
A Christian is a new person who has been transferred from the kingdom of lies to the kingdom of truth.
The new person is not a person who has been properly modified, but a person whose fundamentals have changed.
He is a man of God and a man who resembles God.
It is a lie that you cannot coexist with a new person.
God does not lie.
“This eternal life was promised by God, who cannot lie” (Titus 1:2).
There is one thing Almighty God cannot do.
You can't lie.
“He who says, I know him, and does not keep his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4).
Therefore, knowing God and enjoying fellowship with Him is a work of truth and truth.
Saints Church wants to be true believers.
Excellent and talented too.
But it can never precede truth.
The church's priorities are clear.
Become a true believer and spread the gospel to the ends of the earth!
No matter how urgent evangelism is, being a sincere believer must come first.
Humans can deceive people.
Close friends, co-workers and even family members can be deceived.
But you cannot deceive a God who does not lie.
David met the God who was not lying and he prayed like this because he knew that God.
“Behold, the Lord desires sincerity of heart” (Psalm 51:6).
On the other hand, the devil is a liar, and lies and deceit are the essence of the devil.
"You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and cannot stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own, because he is a liar and a lie. I became this father” (John 8:44).
You may be aware of the death of Ananias Sapphira and his wife as a shocking event in the early church.
The early Jerusalem church was filled with the Holy Spirit, and members who sold all they had and gave it as a common fund began to form.
It happened entirely voluntarily.
In the midst of this, a couple named Ananias and Sapphira also joined the church.
They, like Barnabas, must have been amazed at the amazing challenges, shocks and beauty of seeing them sell all their possessions and give them to the community.
And he must have been very envious of the respect and blessed life that Barnabas received as a result of such devotion.
So they also wanted to imitate such a life.
But the problem was that they remained greedy for material things.
They had to forsake lies and speak the truth.
He had to honestly confess his spiritual level and condition.
But they lied.
Not only material greed but also spiritual greed must have played a role here.
There was greed like Simon the magician who tried to buy the power of the Holy Spirit with money.
They finally went so far as to deceive God.
It's far beyond the line that should be crossed.
“Peter said to him, Ananias, why is Satan so full of your heart, that you have deceived the Holy Spirit and concealed the price of the land. When the land remained as it was, it was not yours, and after it was sold, you could not do what you wanted. Why did you do this? You did not lie to men, but to God. When Ananias heard these words, he fell on his face and lost his soul, and all who heard it were greatly afraid” (Acts 5:3-5).
Man's first sin was also the result of a lie.
“For as the serpent deceived Eve with its cunning, so lest your hearts become corrupt from the truth and purity toward Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3).
Satan lied to Eve about the existence and character of God.
"The serpent asked the woman, "Did God really tell you not to eat from any tree in the garden?
The serpent said to the woman, “You will never die, for God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:1, 4-5).
You can unravel it like this.
“God is pretending to be good to you, pretending to love you, and pretending to care about your interests. In reality, he is against you. He is consuming you for his own gain. He knew that if you ate the fruit of knowledge, you would become like God, and he gave that command. Eat it and you will find your right. You will never die!"
The hallmark of a fallen world is full of these lies.
Even now, Satan is sowing the seeds of lies by exchanging the truth of God with lies, and using all his tactics to worship and serve the creation more than the Creator.
There are many plausible gatherings that seem happy on the outside.
But in their hearts they are brimming with resentment towards each other.
Lies make life very complicated and twisted.
Lies are the cause of all suffering and misery in the community.
Therefore, in order to keep the unity of the Holy Spirit, the first thing we must strive for is to cast away lies.
It is a lie to show the nature of sin.
Sin manifests itself as self-centeredness, selfishness, and self-love.
Lies appear when you try to show yourself upright and exalt yourself in front of people.
Manipulating and exaggerating facts to impress people, to be important and to be praised.
Sin is indeed cunning and terrifying.
Although I hate and despise lies, there are many times when I actually commit lies.
We must not forget that as we grow spiritually, our sins become much more cunning and deep.
Nothing hurts you like a lie.
Lying is ultimately about hurting yourself.
"Speak the truth, each with his neighbor, for we are members of one another."
Lies destroy friendships.
The moment friendship is destroyed, you are put into a state of spy politics that casts a watchful eye on the members.
It can be really painful.
Dear saints,
Now I would like to close the sermon with a few applications.
① Refrain from using words that promote lies!
Refrain from hypocrisy, deceit, and exaggeration.
Please remember that silence and bystander can also promote lies.
Uncertain information should never be spread.
If it's really a problem, you'll have to go face-to-face personally to verify that it's true.
In order to have fellowship with God who does not lie, the problem of lies must be dealt with.
② Actively speak the truth!
It means to confess and hold onto the truth in love.
There should be no hidden parts of life.
We have fellowship with the gospel, and we must have finances, families, and transparency.
③ Remember that we are members of each other!
We are saved as one body.
A tear in the body is a pain for everyone.
Man cannot share what God has joined together.
The body of the Lord must not be arbitrarily separated
In one prayer and one work, God's work is revealed, God's glory is revealed, and there is true satisfaction, benefit, and happiness in my soul and life.