God longs to do supernatural things through simple people serving their Savior together.

What kind of man would God the Father choose to be the earthly father of His Kingly Son? Simple descriptions from Matthew 1 reveal the noble character of Joseph, who would otherwise be an obscure character in history. From his example, we can learn the nobility of simple service in our local church. Our chief end is not self-promotion but to give glory to God. The best thing we could ever hear is for our Savior to say that we glorified Him and allowed Him to work through us for eternal purposes. Anything else is only a temporary achievement and ultimately failure.

With loving devotion to each other, we remain a divine family with eternal purpose.

Becoming reliant on autopilot is as dangerous for Christians as it is for pilots. We must never become busy at the risk of endangering souls around us.

At the end of his letter to the Ephesians, Paul presents his friend Tychicus as a model for the whole book of Ephesians. He was not a superhero, just an ordinary man who made a profound impact through simple service. This is the message for us to take to heart: Nothing done in the local church is insignificant. Even simple tasks are necessary and count for eternity.

Spirit-filled Christians willingly and capably thrive in the fray of spiritual warfare.

There is no question in Paul’s mind that evil spiritual forces exist as the enemies of all souls. A truly saved soul, united and governed by the Spirit of Christ, is prepared to confidently endure spiritual conflict.

A Spirit-governed worker or boss will represent Christ in the workplace.

“Ordinary” Christians have no less responsibility to live a worthy walk than those in full-time Christian work. Our prayer in every setting should be that others will come to Christ because of us. We’ve learned about how the overflow of the Gospel influences our individual walk with the Lord, our domestic relationships, and now our public life. Paul tells employees and employers how to take the Gospel to the work place through our work ethic.

A worthy, Spirit-filled walk yields a warm and joyful relationship between parents and children.

Paul describes the reality of relationships between children and parents when both are in Christ and Spirit-filled. Saved people who desire to obey the Spirit will just live this way. Obedience to these instructions requires growth in Christ-likeness on both sides.

If the Christian home isn’t a warm and joyful place, then our culture is lost.

A worthy, loving walk in light provides a warm and joyful reality in the Christian home.

In this passage, we learn what marital and domestic relationships look like in Christ. When this passage is preached apart from its context, it can lead to bitterness, regrets, and disillusionment. We need to remember that all of us have been baptized into Christ and are brought into Light to live moral lifestyles (Eph. 4:1-6). Having already covered that ground, Paul assumes that his readers are being governed by the Spirit and living like Jesus in the home. As all members of a home live by the Spirit’s filling, there will be mutual submission to the direction of God. We are to respect, honor, reverence, and learn from one another. Outside of corporate worship, there’s no better place in the world than a Christian home.

Living as light in any culture entails having an acute understanding of spiritual wisdom.

The next few verses continue the application of our worthy, obedient, loving walk. Christians who are Light not only make wise choices but also embrace divine influence. This has a negative side and a positive – we are to avoid negative influences and instead be governed by the Spirit. The verbs of these commands are in the present active tense, which tell us they are to be continuous actions.

Living as light in any culture entails having an acute understanding of spiritual wisdom.

This section is the climax of Ephesians 4-6. We have just talked about black-and-white areas that a Christian, as Light, clearly avoids. Now we focus on Light’s desire to make wise choices in “gray” areas.

The worthy walk of a Christian is filled with light contrasting the spiritual darkness of the world.

God is light, and as we experience His work of dramatic transformation, we will find ourselves shining as lights in a world that loves darkness. The Bible knows nothing of a saved person who has a lifelong lifestyle of struggle with sin. God’s effective grace ensures you will grow more like Christ over time. These verses continue to describe what Light looks like.

The worthy walk of a Christian is filled with light contrasting the spiritual darkness of the world.

In these verses, Paul gives a pretty specific description of the lifestyle of darkness. The passage is not assuming that Christians are still living in the darkness described – rather, the Holy Spirit gives us a reminder of what we are not to go back to. It’s not worth going back! Our delight, as people transformed by His grace, is to live to serve Jesus.

As a church, our highest ethic is love.

In this passage, we find a unique command to be like God, a call to non-emotive love, and the ultimate example of both.

The church's ethical "body language" - Part 2

When we are owned by Jesus Christ, we no longer desire to communicate sinfully. The church ought to be known as the most ethical family in the community. Last week we learned how this plays out in two areas - speaking truth and addressing anger. Biblical anger can become unbiblical over time. Things in the body of Christ can disappoint you, but they need to be addressed. We are all fellow saints.

The church’s ethical “body language” – Part 1

This passage describes the spiritual “body language” of the church. The Holy Spirit through Paul’s pen gets laser-specific about what things the new nature does and should not do. These are instructions for how we behave within the local church. If they are not lived out, we grieve the Holy Spirit and hinder His ability to work among us.

The Third Race Reality: The joyful reality in the life of the genuinely transformed Christian

"Who am I? What am I here for? Where am I going? What should I do?" These are the questions that shape our personality and character. The unbelieving mind is always answering these questions with selfish, sinful, and worldly thinking. This old self is what we are able to lay aside once we are saved. Christ completely transforms us so we can mirror His character and tell others how he changed our lives.

The Third Race Reality: The joyful reality in the life of the genuinely transformed Christian

This week we begin looking at the four characteristics of our new lifestyle, in direct contrast to the characteristics of the unsaved we studied last week. When we have been saved, we think and live differently.

The Third Race Reality: The Contrasted reality of a true Christian life versus the sensual or traditional-religious lifestyles

In the next section of Ephesians 4, Paul continues his focus on individual Christian responsibility. He does this by contrasting the lifestyle of a Christian with two unsaved lifestyles - the Gentiles and the Jews. As dispossessed citizens of Heaven, we will no longer live in our old lifestyle. The worthy walk of Christians in our culture will be radically obvious and distinct.

Personal maturity is the substance of unity in the local church.

The 1999 U.S. women’s soccer team changed the face of women’s sports worldwide because they were well-trained and passionate about working toward their goal as a team. If we are functioning well as a church, we also will influence the world – for Christ.

In these verses, Paul’s focus changes to individual responsibility within the body. Each member is specifically gifted by God, and each part works together toward a glorious goal. God designed the team and empowers it to have divine influence.

Theme: Personal maturity is the substance of unity in the local church.

As the glorious church of a glorious Savior, we have a glorious opportunity to live His character in our culture. When unbelievers observe our interaction, they should be amazed at the love we display (John 13:35). Maturing saints will be able to maintain the unity produced by the Spirit in a way that pleases the Lord.