To Be Made New (Ephesians)

Appleton Gospel Church

To Be Made New: What does it mean to "put off your old self" and "put on the new self?" This hopeful calling is about experiencing the whole-life transformation God envisions for you. No longer having to follow our emotions and desires alone, anyone can learn this new way of life according to the truth that is in Jesus. Recorded on Jun 23, 2024, on Ephesians 4:17-32 by Pastor David Parks. Our series, Ephesians: The Gospel in Life, serves as an epilogue to Finding Life in Jesus’ Name from John’s gospel. The Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians reveals much about how the life found by faith in Jesus actually works. This series will touch on themes of grace, identity, purpose, family, the church, spiritual warfare, and more. If you’re considering the life of Jesus or if you’re ready to follow him today, this series is for you. Sermon Transcript We’ve been working through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians in a sermon series called The Gospel in Life. And today, as we finish Chapter 4, we’re going to consider the call of the Christian life to put off the old self and “to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” I remember when our kids were little. Some of you have little ones here today. Two out of our three kids are adults now. But when they were little, I could never really picture how they would be when they were all grown up. I could only ever picture the next phase of their life. When they were in preschool, I could picture them in second or third grade but not high school. As a parent, I had certain things I hoped they’d have in their future, but I just couldn’t really envision them in that future. But then they’d go from preschool to second or third grade, and by then, I could start to picture them in fifth or sixth grade…or even in middle school. But here’s the thing: my kids were going to learn/grow/change; they were going to be transformed as they grew up, whether I could picture it or not. And it turned out to be more than ok. I love the young adults they are today and am excited about their future, whatever it’ll look like. In our passage today, I hope you’ll see that you have a Father in heaven who has a vision for your future. But unlike me, he can see the end from the beginning. And his vision for your life is a vision of transformation for every part of your life. If you have your Bible/app, please take it and open it to Eph 4:17. We’ll read through this text and unpack it as we go. Ephesians 4:17–19 (NIV), “17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.” The first half of Ephesians is more on what the gospel is. The second half focuses more on what the gospel does or (to use his language) what it looks like to walk in a manner worthy of the calling they’ve received in Christ. Here, Paul starts by looking back at where his mostly Gentile friends in Ephesus came from before they became Christians. He says, “…you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.” Now, remember that most people in his audience are Gentiles. But Paul isn’t cutting them down here. He’s been clear that everyone, Jews and Gentiles, were on the same sinking ship, and both groups needed a savior in Jesus. What he is saying is that apart from Christ and the power of his Spirit, the life of unbelieving Gentiles flowed out of a futility or an emptiness in their ways of thinking. Again, this isn’t meant as an insult. He says they were darkened in their understanding of reality because they were separated from God. He’s not saying they’re not smart,