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Well, you can turn with me in 
your Bibles to Ephesians chapter five. That's Ephesians chapter five. Tonight we're gonna look at verses 
one through 21. When I preached on Ephesians 
chapter 1, we looked at some more doctrinal or more theological 
ideas. Tonight we are going to look 
at some practical applications of that covenant of redemption 
that we looked at in Ephesians chapter 1. So let's look at Ephesians 
chapter 5, verses 1 through 21. I'll read the whole text. Therefore, 
be imitators of God as dear children, and walk in love, as Christ also 
has loved us. and given himself for us, an 
offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. But 
fornication in all uncleanness or covetousness let not even 
be named among you, as is fitting for saints, neither filthiness 
nor foolish talking nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, 
but rather giving thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, 
unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has 
any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one 
deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the 
wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore, do 
not be partakers with them. For you were once darkness, but 
now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. For 
the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, 
and truth, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have 
no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather 
expose them. For it is shameful even to speak 
of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things 
that are exposed are made manifest by the light. For whatever makes 
manifest is light. Therefore, he says, awake you 
who sleep, Arise from the dead and Christ will give you light. 
See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming 
the time, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be unwise, 
but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be 
drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with 
the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual 
songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving 
thanks always for all things to God the Father, in the name 
of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of 
God. Amen. Well, let us pray. Dear 
Heavenly Father, we thank you for this Lord's Day, God. Father 
God, we thank you for Christ, who was that perfect sacrifice. 
Father God, we thank you that we can approach you, Lord God, 
because of his work. And Father God, we thank you 
that you accept our works through what Christ has done, through 
the lens of Christ Jesus. Father God, we know that this 
is a high charge that the Apostle gives us, to be imitators of 
you. How greatly we stumble, Lord 
God, which is why we praise you so much. for Christ Jesus. Father 
God, I pray that you'd send your Spirit today, Father God, that 
your Spirit might be in this place. I pray that you would 
give me strength and aid, Lord God, for I know I am tired and 
I am weary, Lord God, yet I know that you can give great strength, 
Lord God. I pray that I would decrease 
and, Lord, that you would increase overall and that I would be a 
no-name. I pray, Father God, that the 
saints here would be edified by what the Apostle Paul is saying 
in Ephesians chapter 5. Father God, I pray if there are 
any here who have not believed on Christ Jesus, I pray that 
today would be the day of salvation for them, Lord God. And Father 
God, again, we thank you for the work of Christ. We thank 
you that in your plan, in your covenant, before the foundation 
of the world, you were pleased to set forth to give a people 
to Christ Jesus, who then offered himself up on behalf of his people, 
Father God. And we thank you for your spirit, 
who is that seal and guarantee of our salvation, Father God. 
Now I pray that by your spirit you help those who are saints 
walk in sanctification, that we might walk more and more unto 
the image of Christ Jesus, doing what is acceptable in your sight, 
Lord God. I pray that you would be glorified. 
In the name of Christ Jesus, amen. Well, as I said already, 
Ephesians 1, verses 3-14, when we looked at that, we looked 
at a theological idea called the covenant of redemption. In 
that covenant, the father covenanted to give a people to the son, 
and the son willingly offered himself up on behalf of his people. We saw great blessings that the 
Apostle Paul praises God for. He praises God the Father for 
predestination in love before the foundation of the world. 
He praises God the Father for adoption. He praises God the 
Father for the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. And he praises 
God the Father for the work of the Holy Spirit who is our seal 
and guarantee of the inheritance that we will one day receive. 
Now, that was more of a highly theological, highly doctrinal 
type of text, but today we're looking at the practical implications 
of that text, so the practical application of that covenant 
of redemption. If we have believed, and we have 
been redeemed, and we have been adopted, the Apostle Paul gives 
us this charge to be imitators of God. That is, we're not talking 
about how we earn acceptance with God, But because we have 
been saved by Christ, we have been redeemed, we have been adopted, 
we need to walk as imitators of God. To walk as children of 
God. Now, this section falls within 
a larger context, namely that which people... the proper response 
to the Gospel. In Ephesians chapter 4, the Apostle 
Paul says, I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk 
worthy of the calling with which you were called." And then in 
Ephesians chapter 4 verse 17 he says, "...this I say therefore 
and testify in the Lord that you should no longer walk as 
the rest of the Gentiles walk in the futility of their mind, 
having their understanding darkened." So the Apostle Paul is calling 
the Ephesian church to forsake what they once were, to stop 
walking in the way in which they once walked and now walk in a 
manner consistent with the Gospel, being imitators of God. Now, in the ancient world, the 
primary currency of the day wasn't necessarily money. That wasn't 
necessarily the primary thing people sought after. It wasn't 
power, it wasn't wealth, but what it was, was honor and shame. That is, you must do what is 
acceptable to the society. And so the Apostle Paul here 
masterfully takes what was once, what is once and still is acceptable 
to the Ephesian church and shows them how it's shameful before 
God Almighty and then he teaches them what is right and acceptable 
for God. That is the historical background 
we need to remember, this idea of what is acceptable before 
God and what is acceptable before men. So in Ephesians chapter 
5 verses 1 through 21 Paul charges these believers to do what is 
honorable in the sight of God by being imitators of God, walking 
in love, walking in light, and walking in wisdom. We must do 
what is acceptable in the sight of our Father, not what is acceptable 
in the sight of the world. And we will look at what is acceptable 
in the sight of God under three main points. First of all, we 
will look at walking in love. chapter 5 verses 1 through 7. 
Secondly, we will look at walking in light, chapter 5 verses 8 
through 14. And then thirdly, we will look 
at walking in wisdom, chapter 5 verses 15 through 21. So walking 
in love, walking in light, and walking in wisdom. So let us 
first of all look at what it means to walk in love. Notice in verse 1, Therefore, 
be imitators of God as dear children." Now, this is an extremely high 
charge, is it not? Be imitators of God Almighty. Now, what does that mean to be 
an imitator of God? He's going to flesh this out 
for us. But notice what he says. He says, 
be an imitator of God as dear children. Remember the idea we 
talked about, about adoption. That is, you're taken from what 
you once were, and you're brought into a new family. And the idea 
is now that since you've been brought into this new family, 
we must walk in love, or be an imitator of God our Father. Kind of like how little children 
imitate their parents, for the good or for the worse. Nonetheless, 
Paul is saying, don't imitate the world, but imitate God Almighty. as dear children. That is, we 
are considered children of God, if you believed on Christ. We 
are sealed with the Holy Spirit, who is that sign and guarantee 
of our inheritance that we will receive. Now, walk Ephesians 
in that. Be imitators of God because of 
the work of your Heavenly Father. We are set apart We are set apart 
as children of God. Now, notice the charge in chapter 
5 verse 2. Walk in love. There are a lot 
of imperatives in chapter 5 verses 1 through 21. Imperatives are 
commands, things that we must do. But notice in chapter 5 verse 
2, he says, walk in love as Christ also loved us and given himself 
for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling aroma. You see, we don't engage in commands. We don't follow imperatives simply 
because they are imperatives. But indicatives always precede 
imperatives. An indicative is a truth statement. That is, just as Christ set himself 
up and offered himself as a holy sacrifice, which was a sweet-smelling 
aroma to God, as a way to redeem us, therefore, walk as Christ 
did. Walk in love. Walk in love. Now, what does it mean to walk 
in love? What does love actually mean? 
Last Sunday morning, in our consecutive scripture reading, we looked 
at 1 John chapter 4. Remember, God is love. And the greatest, the ultimate 
example of love was Christ giving Himself up on behalf of His people 
to save them from their sins. He was sacrificed Himself on 
behalf of His people. Now, remember how the Apostle 
Paul defines love in 1 Corinthians 13. Patience, kindness. It does not envy. It does not 
boast. It's not self-seeking. And my 
favorite, love does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in 
the truth. bears all things, believes all 
things, hopes all things, and endures all things. We live in 
a day and age with a faulty definition of what love is. Love today is 
really accepting someone for who they are. But what does the 
Apostle say? Love does not rejoice in iniquity, 
but it rejoices in the truth. And really, the Apostle Paul 
really describes for us Christ Jesus, who actually did walk 
in love, who really was those things. And we see in chapter 
5 verse 1, this therefore, and that ties us in to chapter 4 
verse 32, being kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one 
another, even as God and Christ forgave you. Remember when God 
proclaims his name to Moses in Exodus 34. The Lord, the Lord, 
a God gracious and merciful. abounding in steadfast love for 
thousands, forgiving iniquity, but who will by no means let 
the guilty go unpunished." Christ is really the only one who epitomizes, 
or is the ultimate example of what love actually looks like. And love can also be defined 
as loving God and loving neighbor, namely the first four commandments, 
loving God, and the second six commandments, loving neighbor. 
Christ is the only one who did that. Therefore, He is the only 
perfect and acceptable sacrifice. And that is what this offering 
and a sweet-smelling aroma means. It means that His offering was 
acceptable to God Almighty. And He really is the only one 
who presents us with something that is acceptable. John Eady, 
describing what love is, he says, that love which is set before 
us was noble ardent and self-sacrificing, eternal, boundless, and unchanging 
as its possessor. More to him than the possession 
of visible equality with God, for he veiled the splendors of 
divinity. More to him than heaven, for 
he left it. More to him than the conscious 
enjoyment of his father's countenance, for on the cross he suffered 
the horrors of a spiritual eclipse and cried, Why hast thou forsaken 
me? More to him than his life, for 
he freely walked on earth, and especially as he bled on the 
cross, for he loved us." Because Christ is the ultimate example 
of what love truly looks like. But the Apostle Paul is telling 
us here to walk in love just as Christ did. Now, we will not 
do it perfectly. We will fail at loving God in 
a right and appropriate way. Nonetheless, we need to seek 
and strive, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to put off the old 
self, put on the new, seek to live in a manner consistent with 
the Gospel. And this sweet-smelling aroma 
idea, this sweet-smelling sacrifice, is also found in Leviticus, in 
Leviticus, the book of Leviticus. When the people were to offer 
up sacrifices That is the idea that there was sweet-smelling 
aroma which is acceptable unto the Lord God Most High. Now, the other time that this 
term is used in the New Testament is Philippians chapter 4 verse 
18. The Apostle Paul says, Indeed, I have all and abound. I am full, 
having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling 
aroma and acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. So there 
is this idea, yes, Christ is the only acceptable sacrifice, 
but when we seek to live in a manner consistent with Him, and the 
God the Father looks at our works through Christ Jesus, there is 
some idea where our works are acceptable unto God, that they 
are sweet-smelling aroma. When we actually are merciful 
and kind and forgiving, God does accept those things and sees 
them as acceptable. Remember, the main point of this 
whole text is what is acceptable to God. What is acceptable to 
God? Now, in verses 3 through 7, we 
see what was honorable before men. And there, and by implication, 
shameful before God. Notice verse 3. But fornication 
and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not even be named among 
you, as is fitting for saints. Neither filthiness, nor foolish 
talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather 
giving of thanks." The idea is that there are blatant sexual 
sins that should not be prevalent, should not be applauded in the 
Church of God, because we are set apart. We are a different 
people from the rest of the world. We are not to imitate the world, 
but imitate God Almighty. We must walk in the ways that 
He has set forth. Now, one scholar says that sexual 
sins were just as prevalent in the ancient world as they are 
today. These things were just as common 
as the things that we see today. The things that we see here, 
fornication, that is this word pornea, we looked at that when 
Pastor Butler opened up Matthew chapter 19, that covers a multitude 
of sexual sin outside of marriage. We see this word uncleanness, 
probably carries the idea of being unnatural, sodomy, incest, 
bestiality, things that were disgusting and vile, that were 
practiced in the ancient world. This idea of coveting, that is, 
having more desire for things than you were necessarily due. 
That is, if you have something that you've been given, there's 
no need for that. If you've been given a wonderful, 
loving wife, don't go seeking other areas of gratification 
that are not due unto you. And so he's really saying, Paul 
is saying, these things are what's honorable in the sight of men, 
but they are shameful before God Almighty. In verse four, 
we have filthiness, foolish talking. Again, they carry the idea of 
sexual vulgarity, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, 
but rather giving thanks. Twice he says fitting. It's not fitting for the saints 
to engage in these things. And in verse 3 he says, let it 
not even be named among you. But then he says, then he has 
a proper and right, then he gives us a positive aspect. That's 
negative, what we shouldn't do. But notice the end of verse 4, 
but rather giving thanks to God Almighty. What's the antidote 
for coveting. That is, thanking God Almighty 
for the things that He's given us. That is, if He's given us 
a loving and kind wife, a loving and kind husband, praise Him 
for that. If He gives us food each and 
every day, if He gives us jobs And if He protects us when we 
are struggling to find jobs, we must give thanks to Him for 
the things that He has given us. And how much more so if we 
have salvation in Christ Jesus. If we've been adopted, we have 
an inheritance like no other. We must give thanks to God Almighty 
and not engage in any licentious, unrepentant acts. You see, notice we see the reason for 
it in chapter 5 verse 5. For this you know, that no fornicator, 
unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has 
any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. The Apostle Paul also talks about 
this in 1 Corinthians chapter 6 verse 9. Or do you not know 
that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do 
not be deceived. Neither the sexually immoral, 
nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, 
nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, 
nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were 
some of you. But you were washed, you were 
sanctified, You were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus 
Christ and by the Spirit of our God." This is a serious thing. There 
is going to be just retribution for blatant, unrepentant acts 
of disobedience. That is, we will not, that those 
who do not believe on Christ, who haven't believed on Christ 
and engaged in sinning against a thrice holy God will receive 
the just punishment. That is, they will not inherit 
the Kingdom of Heaven. They will not receive that blessed 
inheritance of eternal life. Instead, they will receive eternal 
punishment for their acts. These acts very much fall under 
not only the First Commandment, but the Seventh Commandment as 
well. They fall under God's holy law, and they are unacceptable 
in the sight of God, and they are unacceptable in the sight 
of Christians. Unfortunately, it's even sad 
today in the Christian world that things like these that are 
going on here are accepted and applauded in so-called Christian 
churches. That's not right. But nonetheless, 
we need to be careful, even in Reformed churches, that we watch 
and guard that we do not engage in these sorts of things. Our 
hearts are still vile. And as Pastor Butler pointed 
out, when we fall into apostasy, it starts with little things, 
little steps. That is, maybe we engage in some 
small act of looking at something inappropriate on the Internet. 
But pretty soon, that could escalate into engaging in all sorts of 
other wickedness. We need to be careful. We need 
to watch. Clearly, as believers, we need 
to be careful that we're not engaging in these sorts of things. Edi says, this idea of kingdom 
is that this kingdom is under the special jurisdiction of its 
king. And no one can or dare enter 
without His sanction. That is, there are certain rules, 
certain regulations, certain laws that God has set forth for 
His Kingdom. Thankfully, Christ has fulfilled 
those laws, that those who believe on Christ will have an inheritance 
as well. But look at what the apostle 
says in chapter 5 verse 6. Let no one deceive you with empty 
words. For because of these things the 
wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. These empty 
words mean they don't have any spiritual warrant to them. And the reality is that there 
are teachers and preachers who preach licentiousness. That is, 
we can engage in any manner of... Because the Lord God has saved 
us, because we are considered righteous before God Almighty, 
because our sins are forgiven, therefore we can lead unrepentant 
lives. That's not true. The Apostle 
Paul deals with that in Romans chapter 6. What shall we say 
then? Shall we keep on saying that 
grace may abound? May it never be. But there are 
unfortunately men who preached it and taught it at the time 
of the Apostle. And there are men who preach and teach it in 
our time as well. We must be on guard to do what 
is acceptable in the sight of God. Because the wrath of God 
will come upon those who do not repent. The wrath of God will 
come upon those who do not believe in Christ Jesus. That's what 
he says in verse 6. The wrath of God comes upon the 
sons of disobedience. Remember what he said in Ephesians 
chapter 2 verse 1, And you he made alive, who were dead in 
trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to 
the course of this world, according to the spirit of the power of 
the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 
that is, disobeying the commandments of the Lord God Most High. Now, 
the only way to enter into the kingdom is to believe on the 
one who actually fulfilled these laws. The one who actually lived 
the law in perfection and died as that perfect sacrifice. The 
one who actually obeyed. Notice in chapter 5 verse 7, 
do not be partakers with them. Now, this doesn't mean that you 
have to flee from the world, nor does it mean you necessarily 
have to separate from non-Christian friends. Gill summarizes it this 
way. He says, in their sins and acts 
of disobedience, by keeping needless company with them, by abetting 
and encouraging sinful practices, by conniving at them and not 
reproving them, or by committing the same things. That is, we 
must be careful not to fall into the same things our friends may 
or may not fall into, but we must reprove them, teach them, 
shine as a light in a crooked and perverse generation, sharing 
the gospel with them, that they might know what is acceptable 
to the Lord, that Christ is the only one who fills that and makes 
that, and is the only one who is that acceptable offering. 
Therefore, that they can live in a manner acceptable with the 
Lord God Almighty as well. Now one application we can take 
away from this section, walking in love, is this. Honor before 
God is far more important than honor before men. That is, the 
proper authority of what is acceptable comes from God Almighty. That 
is, He has set forth His standard in His law, in those Ten Commandments. He has set forth His holy standard. He is the only one who dictates 
what is honorable in His sight. And unfortunately, the world 
does not do that. the world dictates what's honorable 
in their own sight. And we need to be careful that 
we don't dictate and teach what is honorable in our own sight 
as well. But we must seek to follow in what is honorable in 
the sight of God Almighty. So we've seen this idea of walking 
in love. We've seen Christ who is that 
sweet-smelling aroma. We've seen the filthiness and 
the blatant sexual sins that characterize not walking in love. Now let us look, secondly, at 
walking in light. Chapter 5, verses 8 through 14. Two sub-points. We will look 
at honor before God, and the second sub-point, we will look 
at the honor before men. Let us first look at honor before 
God. He says in chapter 5, verse 8, 
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the world. 
Therefore, walk as children of light. Light and darkness was 
primarily used to contrast between what was evil, morally evil, 
and what is morally good. The Apostle John uses this frequently 
throughout his writings, comparing and contrasting what is light 
and what is darkness. And notice there's this reminder 
of what they once were. For you were once darkness, but 
now you are light in the Lord. Therefore, walk as children of 
light. And then notice in chapter 9 
he explains what that looks like. For the fruit of the Spirit, 
in some translations it says fruit of light. is in all goodness, 
righteousness, and truth. That is, this is the fruit of 
light. That is, goodness, things that 
are morally excellent. Righteousness, what is morally 
acceptable. Truth, opposing any sort of insincerity 
concerning what is right and acceptable before God. And this very much ties in with 
the fruits of the Spirit. Galatians chapter 5 verse 22. But the fruit of this... Actually, 
I'll read in chapter 5, verse 19. Now the works of the flesh 
are evident, which are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 
idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousy, outbursts of wrath, 
selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, 
revelries, and the like, of which I tell you beforehand, just as 
I also told you in time past, that those who practice such 
things will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the fruit of the 
Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 
gentleness, self-control, Against such there is no law. And those 
who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and 
desires. If we live in the Spirit, let 
us also walk in the Spirit as well. That is, we must seek and 
pray to the Lord God to send His Spirit to help us walk, to 
demonstrate fruits of light, to demonstrate these fruits of 
the Spirit. Not, we won't be perfect, but 
nonetheless we still must strive, we must fight on, especially 
when everything around the world says not to do what God says 
we should do. So we've seen that with children 
of light must yield, we've seen what's honorable before God, 
that is walking in light. Notice in verse 10 of chapter 
5, finding out what is acceptable to the Lord God. We must discern 
what is acceptable before God Almighty. So we've seen what's 
honorable before God under walking in light. Now let's look at what's 
honorable before men, or shameful before God, in chapter 5 verses 
11 through 14. Verse 11, And have no fellowship 
with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak 
of those things which are done by them in secret. Now, what 
he's probably referring to here is what's called secret cults 
that occurred in the ancient world. Now, one scholar says 
that these mystery cults were a secret kind of rite that had 
some sort of secret involved to it, that it was special, it 
was inconspicuous, that people would engage in, probably at 
night. Now, it could be any type of 
secret, a certain philosophical club, maybe engaging in all sorts 
of magic, and even as well, sexual intercourse in inappropriate 
and lewd ways. But sometimes it could also be 
nothing more than a figure of speech. But nonetheless, there 
were these mystery cults that engaged in disgusting acts with 
the cover of darkness. So what's he saying here? Expose 
those acts. expose those things. Now, the 
implication and the analogy for us is that there are secret and 
blatant sins that people keep. Now, when it comes to exposing 
them, we need the work of the Holy Spirit to expose them. We 
also need brothers and sisters to rebuke us as well when we 
engage in those types of sins. That is, these types of sins 
that are secret and hidden and that are unrepentant must be 
exposed. must be seen. And we see, and 
that's what he's saying in verse 13, but all things are exposed, 
are made manifest by light. For whatever makes manifest is 
light. Now, trees need light. Trees need light to grow. And 
when light shines on a tree after the sun has come up, it exposes 
those dead branches or dead roots. And it's important that when 
you see those dead branches and dead roots, to take them out. 
Otherwise, disease is going to creep in within that person. The same thing is true here. 
We need to expose these things. Christ does it through His Word. 
The Spirit does it through the Word. but also saints, by the 
work of the Spirit, must expose these secret sins as well. I think it's important as believers 
to watch ourselves as well, that we don't engage in any type of 
secret sin. Now, would we ever sin, blatantly 
sin, against the Queen of England if she were to come in this room? 
Would we engage in any of these types of filthy practice that 
we see in chapter 5, verse 3 and 4? Probably not. Why would we 
do it in private, before the High King of Heaven, before God 
Almighty? God does see. He is the all-pervading 
eye, and He is the one who does expose our sins, and He sees, 
and He knows. So there is a place to watch 
ourselves, but there's also a place for proper rebuke for brothers 
and sisters as well. And then we see in verse 14 this 
quote, he says, he's quoting, he gives this quote, Awake you 
who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light. Now, where do these verses come 
from? Probably Isaiah 26 and Isaiah 60 as well. In Isaiah 26, it talks about 
how the dead shall live. Kind of like we saw in Ephesians 
chapter 2 verse 1. The dead were raised up by the 
work of the Holy Spirit. And in Isaiah chapter 60, it 
highlights the inclusion of the Gentiles as well, who would arise 
and who would bless Zion. And so what these verses are 
trying to highlight for us is this is a reminder of our once 
previous condition. That is, before we believed on 
Christ Jesus, we were dead in our trespasses and sins. And 
by the work of the Holy Spirit, He brought us out of darkness 
into marvelous light. He redeemed something that was 
dead and made it alive. Something that is dead cannot 
make itself alive. Only the work of the Holy Spirit 
can do that. Now, one application we can take 
away from walking in light is this. Our public life should 
be a mirror of our private life. That is, the things that we do 
in public should represent the things that we do in private. 
Our thoughts, our words, our sayings. That is, we must do 
what is right in the sight of God, even when no one else is 
seeing, no one else is looking, because God sees. Christ sees, 
the Holy Spirit sees, the High King of Heaven sees those things 
that we do when no one else is looking. And thanks be to God 
for Christ Jesus, who did not engage in any sort of secret, 
inappropriate sins, nor did He engage in public sins as well, 
but He died as that perfect sacrifice. And brothers and sisters, we 
do have the Spirit as our weapon, as our aid, as we fight on, press 
on, as we watch and pray and fight. We have the Holy Spirit, 
who is the ultimate weapon. He is the ultimate piece of ammo 
in our artillery. We need Him to help us and give 
us strength and aid to watch and pray and fight. Not as if 
He's our genie or anything, but nonetheless pray to Him, asking 
Him for aid, because we need Him, even in our private lives, 
even in our private walks, not only private, but public as well. Let us look, finally, at our 
third point. We've seen walking in light. We've seen that we 
were once dark. We've seen what the fruits of 
the Spirit look like, what the fruit of light is, what is shameful 
in the sight of God that must be exposed. Now let us look, 
thirdly and finally, walking in wisdom. Chapter 5, verses 
15 through 21. The two set points will be the 
same as the last point. We will look at honor before 
God And the second sub-point will be honor before men. So 
let's look at the honor before God. Chapter 5, verse 15. See then that you walk circumspectly 
or carefully, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, 
because the days are evil. So what does this idea of walking 
in wisdom look like? The Apostle says here that we 
must not be foolish but wise, but in verse 16 he says we must 
redeem the time, or probably it means making the most of the 
time. Now what that means is, it means 
in reference to Ephesians 5 verse 16, it refers to the avoidance 
of anything that interferes with the understanding of the Lord's 
will. That is, we must discern what 
is acceptable in the sight of God Almighty. Not in what is 
acceptable to men, but what is in the sight of God Almighty. 
Why do we need to do this? Why do we need to discern these 
things? Because in a culture where shameful acts are honorable, 
a believer needs wisdom to navigate these waters. That is, we have 
many different sins pressing and crushing down on us. We have 
some people saying some things, even Christians saying false 
things. Nonetheless, we must know what 
is right and acceptable, discern what is right, so that we can 
walk in a manner consistent with the Lord's will. And when I say 
will, theologians distinguish between what the hidden will 
of God and the revealed will of God. The hidden will of God 
refers to God's plan in eternity to save sinners, but also how 
He unfolds, guides and governs the world in His providence as 
well. So everyone is within that will 
of God, but there's also what theologians call the revealed 
will of God, that is what we must do. And there are times 
when we do not walk in that will of God, but we must discern what 
that will actually is. John Eady says, "...wisdom, not 
in theory, but in practice, wisdom and not mere intelligence, was 
to characterize them, that wisdom which preserves in rectitude, 
guides amidst temptations, and affords a lesson of consistency 
to surrounding spectators." That is, we must not be unwise, we 
must do what God has said. So what's foolish in the world? 
breaking the Lord God's commandments. What's wise in the world? Walking 
according to the manner that He has set forth in His law as 
a pattern for living for believers. That's what's honorable before 
God. Doing what He says of us, or doing what He says to us, 
doing what He requires of us. But notice what's honorable before 
men. That is, there's certain wisdom 
before men that is not right. The Apostle Paul says in chapter 
5 verse 17, Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what 
the will of the Lord is. That is, wisdom before men is 
foolishness before God. And it pertains to the idea of 
lack of judgment, being ignorant, without discerning what is right 
and true. And we get a further indication 
of this in 5 verse 18. Do not be drunk with wine. Now, 
what this drunkenness refers to is being unrestrained. That is, having this wasteful, 
reckless abandon. That's what it's referring to. 
That's what dissipation means. That is, not being controlled. What's one of the works of the 
Spirit? Being self-controlled. What's the Apostle Paul saying? 
Do not be filled with wine, but be filled with the Spirit. Be filled with the Spirit. Now, the Apostle Paul gives us 
further indication of what the will of God actually is in chapter 
5 verse 18 until the end. He says, be filled with the Spirit. In chapter 5, verse 19, he says, 
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, 
singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving 
thanks always for all things to God the Father, in the name 
of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submitting to one another in 
the fear of God. Last Sunday night in Colossians, 
Pastor Butler talked to us about what a participle is. It's a 
verbal noun. And we see these participles 
here in 19, 20, and 21. Speaking, singing, making melody, 
giving thanks, submitting. Now all these words tie in with 
the command, that is, to be filled with the Spirit. And what these 
participles are, they talk about the result of being filled with 
the Spirit. So you could translate it with 
the result of speaking to one another, with the result of singing 
and making melody. with the result of giving thanks 
always and with the result of submitting to one another out 
of reverence for Christ." But notice he says, being filled 
with the Spirit, one result of it is speaking to one another 
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. One commentator says, 
Their mouths will be filled with words which build up the lives 
of others and bring glory to the living and true God." That 
is, what is acceptable before God Almighty, what is honorable, 
is speaking, singing, and speaking to one another, building one 
another up in the truth. teaching others what is right 
and true concerning the gospel, what is right and true concerning 
proper conduct as God's children, when mainly speaking to one another 
for their edification, speaking psalms, probably referring to 
the Old Testament psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, probably 
contemporary songs that had spiritual content to them, that is, being 
filled with the Spirit. We see also singing and making 
melody to God in our hearts because of what He's done. Because He 
is the one who actually did what... because Christ is the one who 
did what was acceptable before God the Father. We must give 
thanks to Him and sing melody to Him because of His great work. 
We must praise His name. What's man's chief aim? To glorify 
God and to enjoy Him forever. Another result in chapter 5 verse 
20. giving thanks always for all things to God the Father 
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's the second time 
he's mentioned giving thanks. And in chapter 5, verse 5, he 
talks about how covetousness is idolatry. And what's an antidote 
to covetousness is thanking the Almighty God for what he has 
done. Notice it says, for all things, that is, for salvation, 
for predestination, for adoption, for the Spirit, for Christ's 
redemption, for sustaining us each and every day, for being 
with us and helping us put off the old man and put on the new 
man, for giving us brothers and sisters, for giving us men to 
the church who faithfully preach the gospel. We must give thanks 
to God Almighty for these things. In the name of our Lord and Lord 
Jesus Christ, who is our covenant Lord, that's how we are to pray, 
right? In the name of Jesus Christ, 
in the name of Christ, amen. So an antidote to covetousness, 
to idolatry, to desiring things that are past our due, is thanking 
God for the things that he has given us. both spiritual and 
physical as well. And the last participle, the 
last result found in 5 verse 21 is submitting to one another 
in the fear of God. Now the Apostle Paul will flesh 
out what this submission actually looks like in chapter 5 verses 
22 to chapter 6 verse 9. We see husband-wife relationship. We see parent-child relationship. and we see also master-slave 
relationships as well. But those who are characterized, 
those who've been saved by God, those who've been called to be 
imitators of God, will submit to one another out of reverence 
for Christ. Wives will respect their husbands. 
Husbands will love their wives. Children will obey their parents. 
Parents will not provoke their children to wrath. Servants will 
be obedient to their masters. and masters will do the same 
things to their servants as well. That is, they will treat them 
fairly as well. So this idea of submission is 
very much a mutual aspect. The Apostle Paul fleshes out 
what those things actually are. That is, submitting to one another, 
notice, out of the fear and reverence of God. That is, we must know 
who God is and what he requires of his people. Now, one application 
we can take away from this section is, namely, we must be filled 
with the Spirit. We do need that Holy Spirit with 
us. We do need the Spirit to help us, to give us strength 
and aid each and every day, to do what is required of us, because 
God is our Father. We are His children, and He's 
called us out of darkness into marvelous light. We must not 
walk as the Gentiles do, but we must speak, sing, give thanksgiving, 
and submit, among many other things as well. So, in conclusion, 
we must remember that the Apostle Paul is calling Ephesians and 
believers as well to do what is honorable in God's sight. 
Now, we'll close with several applications that I've already 
mentioned. First of all, we must do what is acceptable in the 
sight of God and what is not acceptable in the sight of men. 
The world preaches and teaches something that is falsely acceptable 
in the sight of God, but they see it as acceptable in the sight 
of men. Therefore, it's appropriate and right. Nonetheless, we must 
do what God requires. A second application is this. 
Our public life must mirror our private lives as well. When we 
come into church, people don't always see our vile thoughts, 
our vile ideas, our vile thinkings, how we act at home sometimes. 
Nonetheless, it's easy sometimes to get a little bit more angry 
with your spouse than you would with other people. Nonetheless, 
I know that we need to watch those things. We must have our 
public life be mirrors of what our private life is. actually 
looks like. And thirdly, we must be filled 
with the Spirit. That is, we must be giving thanks 
to God the Father, and we must submit to one another, and we 
must have the Spirit as our sign and seal. Now, that's several 
applications. I'm going to close with, for 
those here who are not believers in Christ Jesus, The reality 
is that there is sin in this world, and these sins that we 
see here teach us of the vileness, the disgustingness of what sin 
actually is. That is, if we have not believed 
on Christ Jesus, even if we don't necessarily engage in these types 
of things, we still have sinned against God's holy law. We have 
broken God's law, therefore committing sin. Therefore, if you have not 
believed, I encourage you and implore you now to believe on 
Christ Jesus. Otherwise, you will not inherit 
the Kingdom of Heaven, and you are still under the wrath of 
God, and if you die, you will meet the wrath of God in a terrifying, 
terrifying way. I encourage you to believe on 
Christ, the only acceptable sacrifice to God Almighty. He is the only 
one where God the Father smelt that aroma and said, that is 
pleasing to me. Believe on Him and you shall 
be saved. Christ can save not only our 
public sins, but our private sins as well. That there is no 
sin too great, no hour too late, that Christ cannot save your 
soul. Believe on Christ now, otherwise you will not inherit 
the kingdom of heaven. And you are, and you will fall, 
and you will be under the wrath of God for eternity. Believe 
on Him and you shall be saved. Amen. Well, let us pray. Dear 
Heavenly Father, we thank you for this day, Lord God. We thank 
you for your grace and your goodness. Father God, this is a high charge 
and a high calling for your people to be imitators of you. Father 
God, we thank you for Christ Jesus, who really was the only 
one who imitated you properly, the only one who really walked 
in love and light and wisdom, Lord God. We thank you that he 
died as that perfect sacrifice, Lord God, upon Calvary's tree. Father God, we pray that those 
who believe on Christ Jesus, that we would walk in a manner 
consistent with the gospel. We would walk in a way that is 
honorable and acceptable in your sight, and not in what is acceptable 
in the sight of men, Father God. Father God, we thank you for 
the work of your Holy Spirit, how the Spirit continually ministers 
to us, Father God. We thank you for giving us strength 
and aid each and every day. We thank you for helping us and 
enabling us to be imitators of you, albeit imperfectly, Lord 
God. Forgive us when we sin, Lord 
God. Forgive us when we fall. Help us to repent, continually 
repent, and cast our worries and fears on Christ Jesus. And 
for those, Father God, that have not believed on Christ Jesus, 
I pray that today would be the day of salvation, Lord God, that 
you might be glorified in all things. Father God, may you be 
glorified this day in the name of Christ. Amen.