Lesson 525

(Lesson 525)(01-23-13) Ephesians 4:17-32, "This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another. Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."

This is yet another one of the most important lessons in the New Testament in regard to the "security of the believer".
We should note that Paul was writing to born again believers in Jesus Christ, saved people, yet he was encouraging them step away from their evil ways and to live lives that reflected the will of Jesus Christ. Therefore, what Paul says herein, as he encourages the Ephesians to turn away from the everyday sins of everyday people, applies to all of us who have been redeemed, and directly implies that saved people may still commit sins in the flesh and remain saved.
Paul makes it pretty clear that the Ephesians were still doing things that are contrary to the will of God, just as we do today. Those contrary actions, however, did NOT terminate their salvation, nor does the evil acts we commit today terminate our salvation, as some claim to believe.

You might ask how on earth could I say such a thing? Remember, whatever we, (those who believe) do in our daily life is "justified" by faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and does NOT appear as sin before God. Everything we do is filtered through the righteousness of Jesus and cannot be counted as sin, Romans 4:8, "Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin." John 3:9, "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God."

Although those of us who have placed our faith in Jesus cannot be charged with sin, we should live lives that reflect the purpose of Jesus. We should do our very best to fulfill the two commandments Jesus left us with, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself."

Even though our souls are eternally secure, just as Jesus said, if we believe in Him, and abide by these two commandments, we will have done what He asked of us.~