Here is my commentary on Ephesians 5:10. I am publishing these once or twice a week, but you can read all of the available articles at our web-site, http://www.new-life.org.au

Ephesians 5:10

“Find out what pleases the Lord.”

The children of light do not just sit back and let the light flow through them as passive vessels, like a window. In all parts of the Christian walk, we have a partnership with the Holy Spirit. We do things in cooperation with God.

So Paul tells us now that we must “find out what pleases the Lord.”

The word translated as ”find” has a sense of continual testing and proving – as a metal or alloy might be tested. This suggests an experimental approach, a continuing testing of where the Lord is leading us.

There are some boundaries laid down for us in the Bible. We can find out some general expressions in the Ten Commandments and in the ministry of Jesus. These supply, if you like, the boundaries for what pleases the Lord.

Within these boundaries there is infinite scope for discovering what pleases the Lord. And as the word “ test” indicates, there may be times when in our creative approach to serving the Lord, we may fail, finding instead what displeases God . But that’s not a bad thing, as it helps to define where the boundaries are.

Each of us has been called and created to serve the Lord and to fellowship with the Lord in a unique way. Our spiritual DNA is unique, so our own way of pleasing the Lord may be different to others .

Religion prescribes only one way, the “Appropriate Way”, to worship God. But in our creativity and in the way we are created, we should all find a way to worship and serve that is designed just for us .

Prayer is the starting point in this. if I do not talk to the Lord about what pleases Him, then I’ll never find out what He wants.

Even our way to pray needs to be set free from the confines of religious practice. Some people pray sitting down, others walking, still others lying prostrate. All of these ways of praying are pleasing to the Lord.

When we give generously to a person in need, that pleases the Lord.

When we pray for healing or for a really big miracle and we believe that God can do it and wants to do it, that is pleasing to the Lord. Whenever we do something in faith, the Lord is pleased.

When we talk to our neighbours about Jesus, just from the sheer joy of loving him and not out of the sense of duty, then the Lord is pleased.

When we speak up for the oppressed and downtrodden, then the Lord is pleased.

There is so much that pleases the Lord because he is proud of his children.

Each day there will be opportunity to discover what pleases the Lord. Every day will bring us chances to pray and praise, to love our neighbour, and to be like Jesus.

Each day I need to ask the Lord “what will I do that pleases you today?” Each day it will be different, because God is always taking us into new places, with new people and new tasks.

This is not duty, this is joy! it is not “I have to please the Lord,” but “ I get to please the Lord!”

This process starts with Scripture, the word of God, but it is completed in prayer and relationship with the Holy Spirit.

Key points in this verse:

• Finding out what pleases God is an ongoing process
• We each have a unique way to delight the lord
• It is relational not religious

Here is my commentary on Ephesians 5:9. I am publishing these once or twice a week, but you can read all of the available articles at our web-site, http://www.new-life.org.au

Ephesians 5:9

“For the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true.”

A note on translations:

All the modern translations of the Bible translate this verse as “ the fruit of the Light.” The King James version and New King James Version translat it as “the fruit of the Spirit.”

In Greek, as in English, the words are quite different in sound and in meaning, so how did we get to this point of two very different translations possibilities?

There are many ancient manuscripts of the various Scriptures still available to us. There were no printing presses or other mechanical means of copying text back at the time when the Scriptures were written and copied. It was all by hand. Also, the scriptures of the New Testament were in great demand, and so a lot of copying was being done.

Sometimes people make mistakes. Sometimes people made “ improvements” as they went.

Somewhere along the line, somebody appears to have changed “ fruit of the light” to “ fruit of the Spirit” perhaps confusing this verse with Galatians 5:22.

Even though this change crept into some very early manuscripts,the overwhelming majority have “the fruit of the light.”

The KJV. and New KJV have opted for the “ fruit of the Spirit”, based on the best evidence from 500 years ago. Most modern translations think “ the fruit of the light” is the more likely form of the original words written by Paul.

Whichever version we follow, the meaning is basically the same whether attributed to “the light” or to “the Spirit.” What is important is that various translators can come to different conclusions from the best of motives.

The light is God. in Christ we are light ( see previous verses). The fruit of the light, then, is the outworking of God in our lives. Just as fruit grow naturally on any healthy plant, the light should produce certain fruit in our lives.

Paul has written at some length about the lives of the people who live in darkness. There is a fruit of this kind of living that christians must avoid if they are to walk with the Lord.

Now he tells us three qualities of the fruit of the light .

Firstly, the fruit of the Light is found in all that is good.

The word “good” here means virtuous and profitable. It suggest a moral dimension to our lifestyle.

To say that the fruit of the light is found in goodness means that the christian is to live a life that is morally upright and which is good for the person and also for those around him. The light shines in the darkness and is shown by the good life of christians.

For all that our society increasingly opposes the church’s teaching, it is equally amazed at acts of unimaginable forgiveness exercise by christians towards those who hurt them

Secondly, the fruit of the light is found in what is right.

The word here is the same as that often translated righteous. In other words we are to be seen as without corruption or sin.

Some Christian see the fact that God forgives our sins and makes us righteous in Christ as an excuse to continue to sin. If we have the light in us, then the fruit of the light will make us righteous in nature as well as in our status before God.

Thirdly, the fruit of the light is found him what is true.

Truth is a very under-valued concept in our post- modern culture. By redefining truth to be purely subjective, we have deleted the meaning of the word.

Some objective truths remain. Even if you are certain that it is not your truth, gravity will accelerate you to the ground at 9.8 metres per second squared .

This fluidity of truth that says what is true for you may not be true for me is an undermining of any basis for society. If we cannot count on 2 + 2 is always equal to four, then science, engineering, construction, business, agriculture, relationships, and law will all collapse.

Paul says that as children of light, the fruit of light will be seen in what is true. We will be people of integrity who do what we promise and live by the values we espouse.

Key points in this verse:

• Bible translations can vary without being deceptive or false
• Christians are to grow the fruit of light in their lifestyle
• Fruit, spiritual or natural, come as a result of a healthy plant or person.

Here is my commentary on Ephesians 5:7-8. I am publishing these once or twice a week, but you can read all of the available articles at our web-site, http://www.new-life.org.au

Ephesians 5:7-8

“Therefore do not the associated with them, for once you were darkness but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of the light.”

We must have nothing to do with disobedient people on whom God’s wrath is coming down. (Ephesians 5:6)

This does not mean that we should try to separate ourselves completely from the world. How can the light shine in the darkness if the light shuns the darkness?

It does mean that we need to be careful about our friendships. We must ensure that the people who are disobedient to God are not the people who are influencing our thoughts and our values.

This is always a delicate balance for christians who are called to be “in the world” but not “of the world.”

We were once darkness but now, in the Lord, we are light.

This is a binary state – we are either light or darkness, for Christ or against Him. There are no grey areas.

Before we were united with Christ, we lived in the darkness. We shared the nature of darkness – the sin and depravity of the world.

As children of darkness, we set our own destiny and lived by our own values. We were headed for eternal judgement, which is the fate of all who choose the darkness over the light.

Then Jesus came into our lives. The darkness was overtaken by the light. We made a quantum leap, a leap of faith. We crossed over from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light.

All of this was by the grace of God. We had little say in it except to agree that we needed salvation.

In Christ, we are now light. The light of Christ shines from us into the darkness. The darkness cannot overcome light.

Some people feel that they are not very good at being light in the darkness. It is true that some seem to have a brighter light than others, in that they live an exemplary Christian life.

If you had ever been in a pitch black space, such as a cave, where there is literally no light, you may have seen a match or candle lit. What would seem to be a very weak light in the middle of the day, has great brightness in perfect darkness.

Even the weakest of christians shine as beacons in the darkness of the world. As long as we are trying to be faithful to the Lord, His life will shine through it.

This light is “in the Lord.” He is the source of light that flows from us and shines in the darkness. The brightness of the light, the amount of light that shines, is proportional to the power of the presence of Christ in our lives.

Sin can dim the light. Sin is like a film of grease on a lamp. It does not extinguish the light, but it does make the light less clearly seen. It may blur the focus, making the light of Christ less distinguishable. It might add colours that are not meant to be there.

Therefore, Paul tells us that we must live as children of the light. It seems odd that many who have crossed over from darkness into light still live by the laws and customs of the kingdom of darkness.

If we have truly been born of the Spirit then the works of the Spirit will grow in us. For some this is a rapid process, but for many it is a long, slow process of daily turning to the Lord.

Over time, we will see the fruits of darkness diminish in our lives, and the fruit of the Holy Spirit should increase.

Like many things in the walk with the Lord, this is both the grace of God together with hard work on our part. We have to decide to walk as children of the light, while also remaining humble to receive the power to change.

Key points in these verses:

• We must not allow the people of darkness to influence our own attitudes and deeds
• We were once darkness, but God lifted this up into the kingdom of light
• We must live as children of the light
• Do not be discouraged if you feel that your light is inadequate. Keep trusting the Lord.

Here is my commentary on Ephesians 5:6. I am publishing these once or twice a week, but you can read all of the available articles at our web-site, http://www.new-life.org.au

Ephesians 5:6

“Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient.”

Paul wants us to beware of those who seek to deceive with empty words. The wrath of God will be poured out on those who are disobedient and continue to practise the various sins he has previously listed .

Empty words are words that have no substance to them. They are soothing phrases or comforting words, which ignore the reality of sin in the Christian community.

We can be deceived in matters of doctrine or lifestyle by outright lies. There have been many of these in the history of the church, and the church has had to deal with them vigorously. For example, early heresies about the nature of God, and of Jesus Christ were debated at great lengths in the councils of the church before definitive decisions were made.

If a preacher comes along and says that Christ was not truly human, then we know that they are trying to deceive us. If a pastor proclaims that it is acceptable to have two wives or be unfaithful to your spouse, we know that this is deception.

Empty words are different because they are seductive rather than obviously untrue. At times they may be true in general, but the application might be twisted. “ God wants the best for you” is true, but this does not mean He wants you to have the best houses, cars, or clothes.

Some preaching is little more than inspirational speaking in a christian disguise. The so-called “ feel good message” or “ seeker sensitive sermon” is deceptive because it does not address sin, redemption, or fellowship with the Lord.

In contrast to “ empty words” Paul told the Corinthians that he did not come to them with mere words alone but with the preaching of the Cross and with the power of miracles (1 Corinthians 2:1-5).

The danger of fairy floss preaching is that it lulls believers into thinking that they are leading a godly life while continually walking in habitual sin.

The wrath of God will fall on those who are disobedient.

Does this mean that God may judge his children? How can anyone be sure that they are saved?

The original Greek of this verse says “ he wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience.” In other words, there are people who might portray themselves as children of God who are in fact children of disobedience.

When we continue to walk in habitual sin that the Spirit of God and the Word of God have brought to our attention, then it is possible that we are not truly born again. This is not referring to the occasional stumble, but to a whole- hearted embrace of sin that we have carved away from the life of righteousness .

Jesus said that there will be people who worked miracles in His name, prophesied or cast out demons yet he never knew them. (Matthew 7:21-23).

This point is crucial. We live in an age when many people have been raised in church or who have prayed a prayer at a meeting to receive Jesus, but they have never entered a life of surrender to Christ. Consequently, their life is as sinful and rebellious as any non- christian. Our deeds reflect our hearts. A good tree produces good fruit, and a heart surrendered to Christ will produce spiritual fruit.

Those who have not given their hearts to the Lord, in the deepest sense of that phrase, are subject to the wrath or judgement of God. They will not be saved unless they repent and ask God for forgiveness in the name of Jesus and then live entirely for Him.

Do not be deceived by empty words and improper promises. God will not be mocked.

Key points in this verse:

• Deception can come through bad or false teaching
• Empty words deceive by offering false comfort and a sense of security that is not warranted.
• If we are truly saved, our lives will grow to be more and more like Jesus