In this chapter and the following Paul switches from the doctrinal mode to the practical, although in the first three chapters the practical application was always present and in these chapters there is a constant reference to the doctrine that supports the practice.
As he did in ch. 3:1, Paul refers to himself as a prisoner of the Lord Jesus Christ. What we have said there applies to this verse also. Paul's imprisonment is no accident. He is in a Roman prison because Jesus wants him there. As a bond slave of the Lord he is no longer the master of his own life, but he owes complete obedience to the One Who set him free.
Paul's imprisonment lends a lot of weight to his admonition. His life for the Lord speaks more loudly than his words. In vs. 1 he tells the church that their life, the way they live, should be the core of their testimony. The KJV puts it a little more penetratingly: "I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called," 'Walk worthy of the vocation." The KJV uses the expression "walk" seven times in this epistle. The NIV translates it six times with "live." The message of the Gospel has to be translated in our behavior. This is the message that James proclaims so forcefully in his epistle. There seem to be two sides to our being a new creation in Christ: the Holy Spirit generates new life in us, but it is our responsibility to live it. This responsibility can only be carried out in close fellowship with the Lord. Our walking consists of a series of acts of surrender. When we realize that our behavior is not consistent with the salvation we received, we have to confess and to ask Him to bring about in us the changes that are necessary. Our walk with the Lord will be worthy of the message only if we lean upon Him.
There is a lot of similarity between Paul's advise to the church in the verses 2 and 3 and parallel portions in Philippians and Colossians. The emphasis in these verses is upon unity. We understand what threatens to break up unity, if we turn Paul's words around. Unity will be disrupted if we have a lack of humility, gentleness, patience, and love. In any case of a church split, we will find this evinced. Unity has to be maintained, not organized. People who share the experience of salvation will find unity among themselves. The realization that we have been washed by the same blood and that we are loved by the same Person will automatically bond us together. The enemy of our souls will make every effort to disrupt this. And he does this by stimulating our pride, making us unkind toward others, impatient, and lacking love. As soon as we concentrate upon these points, his strategy will become obvious. Splits occur because people are blind toward the enemy's wiles.
Then Paul proceeds to show the foundation of our unity in a series of seven "one's": one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father. This is the reality we are facing. The body has started to fall apart, because we change the definitions. Some of the expressions of unity are doctrinal, such as "hope," "faith," "baptism;" others are experimental. The breakdown of doctrinal definitions occurs when there is a lack of humility, gentleness, patience, and love. When our behavior deviates from the text, we change the text. We see how important doctrine is. Unity does not mean uniformity. The use of the image of the body illustrates this. In Romans and I Corinthians Paul explains this in quite some detail. "Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, So in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others."[ 1 ] And: "The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, 'Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,' it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, 'Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,' it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I do not need you!' And the head cannot say to the feet, 'I do not need you!' And the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty."[ 2 ]
"One Spirit!" The unity of the body is the unity of the Spirit. Paul does not so much stress the singleness of the Holy Spirit here, as if he wants to say that there are not two or three Holy Spirits, but that it is the same Holy Spirit, who is in each one of us. Paul expresses this beautifully: "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body; whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free; and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."[ 3 ]
The unity of believers is a spiritual matter. True unity is found only among people who are filled with the Holy Spirit. The unity that modern Christians try to sell us in these days is a vague feeling of belonging, but it has nothing to do with the biblical concept of unity. Malcom Muggeridge said that it is easier now for Christians to become one, because there is less and less they have to agree about. But unity that is the result of an erosion of doctrines, is no unity. To the contrary, the only real unity is based on a clear understanding of the message of the Bible.
The word for "one hope" seems to have lost its meaning in the church. So few people are taking the "Parousia," the return of the Lord Jesus, seriously. At best we hope to die well. The comfort of the early church was that Jesus would return with their loved ones who had gone ahead of them. As Paul states in his letter to the Thessalonians: "Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words."[ 4 ]
And elsewhere Paul speaks of this hope as "the blessed hope," by which he means the return of the Lord. "While we wait for the blessed hope; the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ."[ 5 ]
"One Lord, one faith, one baptism" (vs. 5). The three terms refer basically to the same thing, the Person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ. It starts with the recognition of the lordship of Jesus. This implies submission and obedience. It is only if we accept His supremacy that our confession that He came to earth to take upon Himself our sins makes any sense. Paul condenses the faith to these three basic facts: Christ died for our sins, He was buried and raised on the third day. "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, That he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures."[ 6 ] The baptism, referred to, is not necessarily baptism in water or the mode in which this was done, but the baptism in the Holy Spirit, which is mentioned in the Corinthian epistle: "For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body; whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free; and we were all given the one Spirit to drink."[ 7 ] I suppose that in Paul's days there was no diversity of mode of water baptism, but I am sure that the reference here is not to the outward sign, but to the inner reality.
Ultimately all that Christ has done for us in salvation and regeneration leads to fellowship with the Father. "Who is over all and through all and in all." Of course Paul does not mean to imply here that God is the Father of all creatures in a universal way, regardless of whether they have repented or not. The topic is the unity of the church. We are only one in God, the Father, if we acknowledge one Lord, have one faith and are baptized in one Spirit. Only then will the love of Christ unite us, according to what He said in His prayer: "That all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."[ 8 ]
Paul never confuses unity with uniformity. Therefore he adds in vs. 7 and following that there is great diversity in the body. No two members are exactly the same. Christ apportioned different grace to each one of us. The gifts mentioned in this chapter are functions of leadership, as stated in vs. 11: "It was he who gave some to be Apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers."
The quotation in vs. 8 comes from the Psalms: "When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men, even from the rebellious; that you, O LORD God, might dwell there."[ 9 ] The reversal of "you received gifts from men" to "gave gifts to men" is due to the fact that Paul quotes from the Septuagint. Evidently, the Hebrew would allow either interpretation. The Holy Spirit takes great liberties with words and often exploits double meanings. A good example of this is in the Gospel of John: where Caiaphas unwittingly prophesied: "You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish. He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation."[ 10 ]
In Psalm 68 David describes a military victory, in which God intervened and received the tithes of the spoils, in a similar fashion as Abraham tithed after defeating the kings.[ 11 ] But in Ephesians Paul describes the Ascension of Christ. He elaborates on this in vs. 9 and 10 by alluding to the incarnation, the death, and resurrection of our Lord. All this is done for us, in rather veiled terms. It could be that he quotes from an existing hymn, and that the sound would be more familiar to the readers of his time than to us.
The Tydale commentary, quoting Bruce, suggests that this psalm was associated with Pentecost in the synagogue lectionary. In a footnote the commentary says: "The Targum on the Psalms, that may involve an interpretation going back to pre-Christian times, has 'Thou ascendest up to the firmament, O prophet Moses, thou tookest captives captive, thou didst teach the words of the law, thou gavest them as gifts to the children of men.' " Other commentators feel that either Paul changed the words, or used a changed version that was common to the readers of his time.
It is important to see the main thought, that is, that Jesus connected His Ascension with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit when He says: "But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you."[ 12 ] The coming of the Holy Spirit upon believers and their placement in the body of Christ as members with separate functions, is inseparable. The Spirit melts us together in love, but, at the same time, He brings out the distinctions that make us unique.
Quite a bit is made of the verses 9, and 10 where Paul backtracks and mentions the incarnation and death, and the descent into hell. ("What does 'he ascended' mean except that He also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.") I believe that Paul merely wants to emphasize the price that was paid for our unity and diversity in the outpouring to the Holy Spirit. Jesus could say easily: "I am going away." But what an exodus! It implied the agony of the crucifixion, the shame, the mockery and the rejection. It was the deepest point in the history of the universe, that had to be passed in order for us to be baptized in the Holy Spirit and to be made living members of the church of Christ.
I do not believe in the misinterpretation of the words of Peter: ("through whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water ...") as if Christ actually preached after His death to people who were in hell. The logical interpretation seems to be that it was the Spirit of Christ, who preached when Noah preached to the people of his time, the ones who are now in prison because of their disobedience.
In 4:10: "He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe," Paul is speaking about the gifts the Lord gave to the church on earth through His Ascension. But at the same time he links the church to the fullness of Jesus' glory in His Ascension. He fills the whole universe. In ch. 1:23 he calls the church: "The fullness of Him who fills everything in every way." Paul speaks in this chapter not only about the maturity of the church, although that seems to be the main purpose for the giving of the gifts, but also that the ultimate purpose of our maturity is the filling of the universe with the glory of God.
The gifts Paul mentions in vs. 11 are people whom the Lord appointed to certain functions in the church. "Some to be Apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers." They may be complemented by the gifts of the Spirit, such as are mentioned in the Corinthian epistle: "workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues,"[ 13 ] but they are not the same. In this context the emphasis is on the person, not primarily on his ability, although it is hard to separate the one from the other.
The "Apostles" form the first link between the Lord Himself and those who believed without having seen Him. From I Cor. 9:1 we may deduct that an Apostle was a person who had witnessed the resurrection of Jesus. Their testimony was proof of the truth of Jesus' victory over death, and as such they formed the foundation of the church. They are the fulfillment of Jesus promise: "on this petra I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it."[ 14 ] From this definition we conclude that there was only one generation of Apostles.
The second group mentioned are the "prophets." In the Old Testament the prophets were men or women upon whom the Spirit of God descended so that they could pass on God's Word to men. Although this kind of prophet has not completely ceased to exist in the New Testament, the establishment of the Canon has brought about fundamental changes. Probably the best definition of a prophet is: "everyone who prophesies speaks to men for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort."[ 15 ] This can mean speaking under the direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit, about things that are not mentioned in the Bible; it can also mean, and probably this is most applicable in our time, giving an exposition of biblical truth under the guidance of the Holy Spirit; that is preaching in the right sense of the word.
The word "evangelist" is also found in Acts where it is used of Philip, "one of the Seven."[ 16 ] He must be the Philip who was chosen to be a deacon.[ 17 ] Paul charges Timothy to do the work of an evangelist.[ 18 ]The Tyndale Commentary takes this to mean that the evangelists were itinerant preachers. Barclay calls them "the rank and file missionaries of the Church." According to Tyndale the words "pastors" and "teachers" are linked together by the same article in Greek. So we should read pastor-teachers. The commentary says: "It is possible that this phrase describes the ministries of the local church, whereas the first three categories are regarded as belonging to the universal Church." Jesus gives Peter three times the charge to feed His lambs and to take care of His sheep, and again to feed them.[ 19 ] The pastor is the shepherd of the flock, under the direct supervision of the Lord Himself, "the Good Shepherd" as He calls Himself;[ 20 ] and "that great Shepherd of the sheep,"[ 21 ] as the writer of the Hebrew epistle calls Him. The task of the pastor-teacher was to feed the flock by bringing the word of God home to them. Jesus says to His disciples: "If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you."[ 22 ] In order for the words of Christ to remain in us, we will have to be taught those words.
In summary, we can say that the Apostles assure us of the truth that Jesus defeated death for us all. The prophets speak to us in behalf of God and bring us into fellowship with Him. The evangelists travel around to bring the word to those who have not heard yet, and the pastor-teachers feed the local church. This last category does this by putting their lives on the line. As the Good Shepherd, Jesus gave His life for us. Any shepherd should be willing to give his life for his flock. This is what John says in his epistle: "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers."[ 23 ]
The purpose of these functions of leadership in the church are, according to vs. 12, "To prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up." In order for the church to start moving, to produce the "works of service," there has to be a celebration of Jesus' resurrection; there has to be prophecy, outreach and teaching, backed up be sacrificial love. Jesus builds His church in order to fill "the whole universe." The preparation on earth aims for spiritual maturity. In vs. 13, our goal is stated: "Until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ." If one observes the practice of the average church almost anywhere in the world, it seems like a caricature of what we read here. The church of God that is supposed to march like a mighty army, looks like a group of kids, playing war with toy arms. Very rarely, like during the Welsh revival, or in the church of Blumhardt in Möttlingen, or at the meetings with Herman Zaiss in Germany, do we get the feeling that there is a power within the church, that makes the devil tremble. We should be dissatisfied with the present in a holy fashion. We should protest against the social entertainment clubs, by, first of all, becoming mature members of the body and looking to the goal to achieve, the fullness of the universe, and by starting to claim territory for our Lord on earth.
Maturity consists of "unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God." The word love is written all over this. If we love the Lord with all our heart and our neighbor as ourselves, we cannot miss growing in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was Paul's passion, as he states in Philippians: "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, And so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
The mention of "the works of service" brings to mind also the parable of the talents Jesus uses in Matthew.[ 24 ] Our works of service are supposed to increase with use. What we do on earth has a bearing on what our occupation will be in heaven. In Luke Jesus uses a similar parable, which is slightly different in that every servant receives the same amount. To the servant that multiplied his "mina" ten times the master replies: "Well done, my good servant! Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities." To the one that gained five "mina" he says: "You take charge of five cities."[ 25 ] We learn more about the correlation between what is done on earth and the responsibilities in heaven from Jesus' remark: "Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches? And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else's property, who will give you property of your own?"[ 26 ]
Our functioning as members in the body of Christ is a small matter compared to our reigning with Christ in eternity. But what makes us think that we will be able to do the task then, if we are not faithful in the smaller things on earth?
4:13-16
In vs. 14 Paul refers in passing to the dangers of false doctrine and probably the alluring influence of Judaism. He warns against being "tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming." Functioning as members of the body involves being rooted in the truth of the Word of God. Sound doctrine is no luxury, and it is no matter of personal opinion. The Holy Spirit does allow for different shades of understanding in peripheral matters, but heresy in the basic matters is sin. It is also important to discern the spirits, as John says: "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world."[ 27 ] Behind "the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming" is the spirit of the enemy that tries to distract us from our vital and meaningful relationship with Jesus Christ.
In vs. 15 the words "speaking the truth in love" refers to the intimate and open relationship that should exist between believers. We should not be critical of one another, but if we see that our brother or sister has a problem that harms the fellowship with the Lord and with each other, the matter should not be left untouched. Truth and love do not exclude each other. Love may cover a multitude of sins,[ 28 ] but it does not ignore them. It accepts the sinner, but it rejects the lie. Jesus gives specific instructions concerning this point in Matthew on what to do if we are witnesses to the sin of a brother.[ 29 ] Again love should be written in fat letter over these words. Verse 15 implies that there is growth in confession, in uncovering of the truth. The lie makes sick, stunts growth, and eventually kills. Love stimulates health and growth. Growth is in Christ. "We will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ." This strengthening of intimacy with the Lord will inevitably result in the bonding together with one another. If love for the Lord does not demonstrate itself in brotherly love, we deceive ourselves into thinking that we love the Lord. If only we would realize how our exercise down below would benefit us eternally, we would make more of an effort to play our part as members in the body.
4:17-32
Beginning with vs. 17 through the end of the chapter, Paul compares these Christians with their heathen counterparts. Not too long ago they were in the same category, but we get the impression that not all the traces of the old life have disappeared. Especially toward the end of this chapter, Paul goes into quite some detail, and this makes us understand that the old heathen habits die slowly. It is good to realize how patient the Lord is with us. We are often so little aware of the gravity of things we do and how dishonoring our habits may be to the Lord. David's prayer: "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting,"[ 30 ] should be our constant prayer.
I believe that the purpose for painting the picture of the heathen in the verses 17-19 is not only to remind the believers where they came from, but also to have them mentally turn this negative into a positive, so that they can know what they should be. Paul calls the thinking of the Gentiles "futile," that is, it does not produce anything of worth. He calls them "ignorant" because they have no fellowship with God, and he says that lack of fellowship has caused a hardening of the heart. He also charges that their excessive preoccupation with sexual matters is caused by a loss of "sensitivity."
If we turn this negative picture around, we get a clear image of what a Christian is like. Contrary to the common concept, Christians are thinking people and their thinking produces tangible results. Fellowship with God produces knowledge and sensitivity. Atheists deny that man can have true knowledge. Francis Schaefer says that man does not have complete knowledge, but this does not mean that he does not have true knowledge. Paul confirms this by putting it in an indirect way.
It is beautiful that the word "sensitivity" is used in connection with sexuality. Paul does not use the word "sexuality" but sensuality, which means an uncontrolled or uncontrollable desire for sex. The word sensitivity in this connection implies that sex is meant to be experienced within the framework of love and commitment, such as in a marriage relationship. Sensitivity is the respect for the other person, his (or her) needs and desires. Sensuality considers the other party as an object upon whom one's desires can be satisfied, instead of a person with whom joy and intimacy can be shared. That is the difference between a believer and an unbeliever in this domain of life.
In the NIV vs. 20 says: "You, however, did not come to know Christ that way," and it speaks about a knowing that is more than getting to know a person. The KJV expresses it: "But ye have not so learned Christ." Paul speaks of the knowledge that is the result of the indwelling of Christ in our hearts. This is what happens when the words of Jesus become a reality in us: "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him."[ 31 ] The transformation is not automatic; love will not force obedience, but we will start to realize that if we really love the Lord, we cannot continue to live as we used to. The indwelling of Christ is no tyranny, but the conflict between His presence and the sin in our lives will become unbearable tp us. There are things we will not be able to change without His help, but He leaves the initiative with us.
That is why Paul puts it in a way that may sound awkward to us. "Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus." It is up to us to put the two and two together and to realize that the old and the new do not fit together and that we should do something about this. God has made us a new creation, but we have to start wearing the clothing that corresponds with this newness. Paul says the same in Colossians: "Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices. And have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator."[ 32 ] It is a matter of starting to behave according to what we are.
In vs. 24 the Apostle says that this "new self, [is] created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." The transformation of our self is a process that we develop more rapidly as our relationship with God becomes more intimate. Our vision of Jesus Christ will become clearer, and in the end the transformation will be complete, as John says in his epistle: "But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is."[ 33 ]
Having said this, Paul goes into quite some detail that may sound shocking to us. Few Westerners realize how much their culture has been influenced by Christian morals. Even atheists have notions about what is right and what is wrong. It is hard for us to imagine how difficult it is for people from a third world culture to make the break with things that were culturally acceptable to them. John Harvey told me of the shock Western Christians received when they heard how much Christians from former communist countries, people who love the Lord, would lie. Paul did not address a society steeped in Christian values. We are presently at the point in our Western society where many traces of Christian heritage have been lost, and we are discovering that there is a difference between "decency," "family values," and "holiness," based on an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Paul mentions five sins by name: lying, anger, stealing, dirty talk, and bitterness. Even in our Western society, where, as mentioned above, Christian values are still held as a norm, it is shocking to see how much of these five are well and alive, even in the church. Each point is worth individual consideration.
"Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body" (vs. 25). Each of the points is a hindrance to the normal functioning of the body. But not being open and above board is the first one mentioned. Often this is related to the fact that we are not open to ourselves. Nobody puts it better than Shakespeare in Hamlet, where Polonius says to his son Leartes: "This above all, to thine own self be true, and it must follow as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man." We do not have to tell everybody what we think of him or her, and we are under no obligation to proclaim the "four-square truth" in every case, but every lie draws us away from the Lord and brings us closer to the devil.
"In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry" (vs. 26). Not all anger is sin. God is angry. The word most commonly used in the New Testament about God's anger is "wrath." But in Hebrews we read: "So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'''[ 34 ] And in John's Gospel we find a demonstration of Jesus' anger, when He cleans out the temple with a whip.[ 35 ] There is such a thing as righteous anger. There is, however, anger that is sin. What is called "psychological anger" is a complex of signals, received in childhood, that have been wrongly digested. Psychologists may consider this as a sickness. If this is true, anger is connected with the fall. There may be a cause for our anger, such as was the case with Jesus when He cleansed the temple. But in sinful human beings even anger-with-a-cause will start a chain reaction of emotions and actions that are sinful. Psychological anger will often cause reactions that are way out of proportion to the thing that initiated it. I believe that this is what Paul means. He does allow for anger, but he warns against the duration of it. We should not let ourselves go and draw it out. Feeling angry and giving vent to our emotions may be experienced as a relief. But we should be careful in that condition, because the devil knows how to take advantage of us. Every evening we should clean our slate.
Our challenge to work is given in vs. 28: "He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need." Paul addresses Christians here! Even after regeneration, the habit of stealing may take a hard time to die. There are some sins the Lord convicts us of immediately at our conversion, but some will come slowly to the surface and will have to be dealt with as we become aware of them. Stealing does not always mean emptying the boss's cash box. It may consist of taking things that we consider too trivial to worry about. Sanctification will bring about honesty in detail. Evidently, Paul talks to people who made stealing there livelihood. Maybe we should put the stress more upon "doing an honest day of work" instead of the taking of other people's possessions. If we do not earn our own living, we live on other people's earnings. The context of this verse implies that this is a form of stealing. In modern welfare states, this mentality that believes that the world owes them a living, has taken a hold of Christians also. Paul clearly condemns this here. Elsewhere Paul says: "For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: 'If a man will not work, he shall not eat.' "[ 36 ] But Paul says more than that a man should support himself; the thrust of this verse is that we should make money so we can give it away! This is exactly the opposite of stealing. Stealing is taking someone else's goods for ourselves. Paul's definition of working is making money to benefit someone else. Very few people get this far, but the power of the Holy Spirit can and will transform us into humans that are unselfish and generous. He then makes us aware of the needs of other people.
Paul, vs. 29, continues with admonitions that we bless others in our conversation: "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." We characterized "unwholesome talk" above as "dirty talk," and that is probably the intent of the Apostle. The KJV calls it "corrupt communication." I do not believe that Paul rules out humor with this verse, but as Christians we have to be selective in our jokes. It certainly does not mean that we have to preach at each other. I can imagine that the Lord's table conversation with His disciples and the discussions during their travel on the road must have been entertaining to the highest degree. Nobody ever made more penetrating remarks than our Lord; His words hit the core every time. Pious talk can be a cover-up of inner insincerity, but if our hearts are full of the presence of the Lord, our conversation will be clean and sparkling. In Colossians brings Paul this out clearly: "Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone."[ 37 ] We should be fun to listen to. James exposes our duplicity clearer than anybody else. "Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be."[ 38 ]
It is in connection with our conversation that Paul says, "Do not grieve the Holy Spirit." The presence of the Holy Spirit in us, which is actually the presence of Christ Himself, should govern the things we say. It is comparatively easy to say the right things when we talk about spiritual issues, about the Bible, or about God. It is in our small talk that we so easily lose grip. I do not believe that the Lord objects to our talking about the weather, or other trivial things, but we have to be conscious of the fact that the Lord is the silent listener to our conversation. Some of the things we say make the Spirit of Jesus in us cringe. If we love Him, we will keep our mouths shut. David prayed: "Set a guard over my mouth, O LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips."[ 39 ] This prayer, uttered in sincerity, will keep us from grieving the Holy Spirit.
Isaiah records his experience in seeing the Lord: " 'Woe to me!' I cried. 'I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty,' " This is probably the best illustration of awareness of the presence of God and how He influences the way we speak.
Paul sums it all up in vs. 31: "Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice." Bitterness and anger are closely related to since their roots are usually the same. Bitterness is mostly anger against God, and it is easy to blame God for the wrong signals we received in our childhood. Unless we understand what happened to us, and why we feel the way we do, and tell God about our feelings against Him and ask Him to take them away, we will have a hard time overcoming bitterness. God is not responsible for the sinful environment in which we were born and grew up. What God said to Moses: "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering,"[ 40 ] can be applied to most of us. God loves us and is concerned about our suffering. Jesus came to earth and died on the cross, to forgive our sins and also heal us of the scars of our youth. Bitterness can be forgiven and taken away.
The KJV talks about "clamor" instead of "brawling." Probably the meaning of the word has to do with our being noisy, our shouting and ranting. Maybe even the slander fits the whole picture of blaming others for what happened to us. The problem is that we live in an environment created by the devil. And when we react wrongly to the things that happen to us, he turns the circumstances around and uses them as a weapon against us. He delights in our anger and bitterness. That is why he made the mess we are in to start with. He entices us into sin and then he turns around and accuses us before God. Seeing through his devices is a great help in getting out of our misery. There is healing for everything in the love of God.
Paul directs his followers in verse 32: "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." The sins mentioned in the previous verse govern our inter human relationships. The only antidote against lying, anger, stealing, dirty talk, and bitterness is the Holy Spirit, whom God has sent into our lives as a seal, a guarantee for the heritage that is waiting for us. The fruit of the Spirit will be kindness and compassion for our neighbor. The key in our relationship is our realization of being forgiven. If I understand what God has done for me in acquitting me of the guilt of my sin, I will never have much of a problem to forgive others.
There are several parables in the New Testament that elaborate upon this theme. Jesus tells Simon, the Pharisee, the parable of the two men who owe a money lender 500 and 50 denarii. Neither of them can pay and both are forgiven. Simon never got the point that he was as much forgiven as the woman, who poured ointment on Jesus feet.[ 41 ] Jesus tells another parable of the servant who was forgiven ten thousand talents, but who did not want to forgive a fellow servant, who owed him only 100 denarii.[ 42 ] It is amazing how much more alert we seem to be concerning other people's sin, than we are with our own. Again in Matthew Jesus asks: "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, `Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?"[ 43 ] This sums it all up. We will have to ask the Lord to remind us from time to time how much He has forgiven us, lest we have a tendency to forget. The sentence in the Lord's prayer: "Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors,"[ 44 ] should help to keep us on the right track. It is exactly the realization that our brother has been washed of his sin in the same blood as we were, that creates the strong bond between us.
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