Author: Will

Ephesians 4:24 – It’s Your Choice

Posted on by Will

and that you put on the new man which, according to God, was created in true righteousness and holiness.

Truth to Learn

We have a choice in how we live our lives.

 

Behind the Words

The words “put on” are the translation of the Greek verb enduō, which is made up of en, meaning “in” and a derivative of dunō, meaning “to sink.” So, literally, enduō means “to sink into,” in the sense of sinking into a garment. It means “to invest” with clothing, or “to put on” clothing, as we have in our translation here. It is expressed here in the middle voice, indicating action which we are to do to ourselves.

The word “new” in this verse is from kainos, which means “new” in the sense of being fresh or “brand-new.” There is another Greek word translated “new.” It is neos, which means “new” with respect to age. Neos is often translated as “young” or “younger.”

“Holiness” is from the Greek word hosiotēs, which refers to “being pious” or “being holy.” It is a reference primarily to the outward conduct and performance of religious duties. In the original Greek, the end of this verse actually reads: “in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”

 

Meaning Explained

The Apostle Paul has some clearly identifiable characteristics in his writing and teaching. He is very fond of using a word repeatedly in different forms to drive home a point. He also is very careful in teaching what to do directly after he has taught what not to do. It is good for us to learn what we shouldn’t do, but it is even more important for us to learn what we should do instead. We are not supposed to focus on the bad, but on the good. If we were told not to think of an elephant, we would immediately think of an elephant. If, however, we are told to not think of an elephant and, instead, to think of an eagle, we can easily transfer our thoughts to the new object of focus.

That’s how Paul is teaching us in this verse. Two verses back he told us to “put off” our old man (our sin nature) and in today’s verse he tells us to “put on” the new man. Instead of us focusing on what we shouldn’t be doing, he instructs us to focus on what we should do. This new man that we are to put on is not just a cleaned-up version of our old man, and it’s not our old man before he got so old and corrupt. The new man is a completely new creation. Paul told the Corinthians:

So that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)

This new creation is our new nature, it is our spiritual nature which was created in Christ and, therefore, is Christ-like. Those who are not saved do not have this new nature; they are still under the control of their sin nature (their old man). We, on the other hand, have a choice; we can choose to let our sin nature control our thoughts and actions, or we can choose to live in a Christ-like manner because of our new man. And, in the current verse we are told the two primary characteristics of this new man: righteousness and piety (holy living).

 

Application

As a Christian you have a choice. You can choose to live like all of the unsaved people around you. Or, you can choose to live like Christ, as a witness to all those around you. How do you want to live your life?

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:23 – Christians Growing Young

Posted on by Will

and to be renewed in the spirit of your mind,

Truth to Learn

God expects us to use our mind to become more like Christ.

 

Behind the Words

“Be renewed” is translated from the Greek verb ananeoō, which appears nowhere else in the New Testament. It is made up of ana, meaning “again” and neoō (from neos, meaning “new”), which means “to make new” or “to make young.” Thus, ananeoō literally means “to make new again” or “to make young again.” This particular Greek word implies “a continual renewal of youthfulness,” whereas a similar Greek word anakainousthai implies a singular “renewal from the old state to a new state.” Ananeoō is expressed here in the middle voice indicating action done by the subject (you) to the subject (you). Paul says we are to continually renew ourselves.

The word “in” does not specifically appear in the Greek text here as it does elsewhere (such as Ephesians 4:17). Nouns in Greek have different forms depending on how they are used. The form of the word “spirit” used here indicates that it is used as an indirect object. Therefore, it could just as accurately be translated as “in the spirit,” “to the spirit,” “through the spirit,” or “by the spirit.” We have to determine which it is by context. Since Paul is instructing us to take specific action here, “by the spirit” seems to be the best choice.

“Mind” is from the Greek word nous, which is probably derived from the base of ginōskō, meaning “to know.” Nous refers to “the intellect” or “the mind,” that is, the part of our being which is involved in learning and knowing truths.

You may wonder why we get so “caught up” in the various word meanings and grammatical forms of the original Greek. It is because we believe that the entire Bible is verbally inspired. In other words, we believe that the Holy Spirit worked through the human authors to write God’s message even in the use of the specific words and word forms. Thus, understanding more precisely what the words mean allows us to better understand exactly what it is that God is communicating to us.

 

Meaning Explained

In the previous verse God (through the pen of the Apostle Paul) told us that we are to “take off” our old man, that is, our sin nature, and now we are told to continually make ourselves young again by the spirit of our minds. In Titus 3:5 we are told

not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

From which we learn that at the moment of our conversion we were “renewed” by the Holy Spirit. Now we see that in addition to that once-for-all renewing by the Holy Spirit, we are to continually renew ourselves (remember, the word is in the middle voice) by that renewed spirit of our intellect.

In other words, Paul is teaching us that salvation secures our eternal destiny, but we still have an ongoing responsibility to resist the desires of our sin nature and to do all that is in our power to learn how God wants us to live.

 

Application

We are not to waste our lives trying to stay saved (Paul teaches that once we are saved, we are eternally saved). Instead, we are to use our intellect to learn how to be more Christ-like and how to more completely surrender to God, for His glory.

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:22 – Lose the Old Man

Posted on by Will

that you put off, concerning your former behavior, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,

Truth to Learn

Christians need to deny the desires of their sin nature.

 

Behind the Words

The words “put off” are translated from apotithēmi, which is made up of apo, meaning “from” or “away from” and tithēmi, meaning “to place” or “to put.” Thus, it literally means “to put away from.” Since this is grammatically coupled with enduō (to put on a garment) in verse twenty-four, it is most reasonably a reference to taking something off, like a garment.

“Former” is from proteros, a comparative form of protos, meaning “first.” Proteros refers to something prior or previous.

“Behavior” is translated from anastrophē, which is made up of ana, meaning “up” or “again” and a form of strephō, meaning “to turn.” The noun anastrophe, therefore, refers to “a turning around again.” Metaphorically, it is often a reference to one’s behavior or manner of life. It is similar to peripateō (to walk around) which we saw back in verse seventeen.

“Grows corrupt” are from the verb phtheirō, which means “to waste away, to become rotten, or to become corrupt.”

“Deceitful” is translated from apathē, which refers to “that which is deceptive or seductive.”

 

Meaning Explained

This particular train of thought of the Apostle Paul started back in verse seventeen where he said, “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.” His reason for saying this was given in the previous two verses: because we have been taught the truth which is in Jesus Christ. He now gives some of the details of the truth that Christ teaches, which include, “quit behaving like you used to.”

In order to make his teaching even clearer, Paul introduces us to something that he calls “the old man.” He makes other references to this “old man” in Romans 6:6 and in Colossians 3:9. In the Romans passage, Paul tells us that our old man was crucified with Christ. Then, in Galatians 5:24, he tells us that it is our “flesh” with its passions and desires that has been crucified with Christ; thus, we see that our “old man” is equated with our “flesh.” And, in the eighth chapter of his letter to the Romans, Paul teaches a great deal about our “flesh.” There we learn that it is our “flesh,” our “old man,” sometimes referred to as our “sin nature” that draws us into sin and away from the righteousness of Christ.

In today’s verse (as in Colossians 3:9) we are told to take off the “old man.” Since Paul is talking to Christians, those who have previously professed Jesus Christ to be their Lord and Savior, it is clear that he teaches that Christians still have a sin nature. And, unfortunately, we will continue to possess the “old man” until that day when God will make us perfect (in Heaven). Even the Apostle Paul wrestled with his sin nature (see Romans chapter seven) and it frustrated him too!

 

Application

Don’t be alarmed that as a Christian you still commit sin. You haven’t lost your salvation. It is the old man you’re wearing. Whenever you find that you’re wearing him, confess your sins and lay him aside. Then focus again on serving your Savior.

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:21 – Living The Truth

Posted on by Will

if indeed you heard Him and you were taught by Him, as truth is in Jesus:

Truth to Learn

Christians know the truth and should live as such.

 

Behind the Words

“If indeed” is the translation of the Greek word eige, which is made up of ei, meaning “if” and ge, meaning “indeed.”

The Greek verb akouō, meaning “to hear” is translated here as “you heard.” It is expressed in the aorist tense and the indicative mood, indicating real action which occurred at a point in time in the past. Some translations have this as “you have heard,” but a more accurate translation of this word is “you heard.”

“You were taught” is from the verb didaskō, meaning “to teach.” It is expressed in the aorist tense, passive voice, and indicative mood, indicating past completed action done to the subject (you). Thus, the proper translation is “you were taught.”

“Truth” is from the Greek word alētheia which means “that which is real and true.” In the New Testament it is translated as “truth” or “reality.”

 

Meaning Explained

In the opening part of this verse, it may appear that Paul is questioning whether or not the Christians in Ephesus are really saved. The expression “if indeed you heard Him” seems to imply that they may not have. However, if we look at the Greek grammar of this expression, we learn something entirely different. In Greek there are four types of conditional clauses; however, only three of them appear in the New Testament. They are referred to as first class conditional, second class conditional, and third class conditional clauses. In the first class conditional clause there is an underlying assumption that the “if statement” is true. An example might be, “If you want to live, you have to keep breathing.” The assumption is that you want to live. In the second class conditional clause there is an underlying assumption that it is false. An example of this might be, “If I were you I wouldn’t do that.” The assumption is that I am not you. The third class conditional makes no assumption about the truth of the “if statement.”

Based on the grammatical structure of the “if statement” in this verse (ei used with a verb in the indicative mood), it is a first class conditional clause. In English a close approximation of the first class conditional clause would be to replace “if” with “since.” If we apply this and the translation suggestions mentioned above, this verse would read, “Since indeed you heard Him and you were taught by Him, for the truth is in Jesus.”

We who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior have heard the truth, and we have believed the truth. Therefore, as Paul said in verse seventeen, we should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk. We are not in the dark, and we are not blinded by Satan; therefore, we should live our lives in accordance with what God desires from us.

 

Application

When I was a young Christian, I heard a question that really made me think about how I live my life. It is this: “If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” How about you, would you be found guilty?

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:20 – Learn By Faith

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But you have not so learned Christ,

Truth to Learn

We can only know Christ by faith.

 

Behind the Words

“So” is translated from houtōs, which literally means “in this manner.” It is a comparative word which, when used with the negative article ou as it is here, indicates a sharp contrast.

“Have … learned” is translated from the Greek verb manthanō, which means “to learn.” It is applied primarily to intentional learning that comes as a result of listening to teaching. It is expressed here in the Aorist tense indicating past completed action. Thus, we could translate this verse as: “But you did not learn Christ this way.”

 

Meaning Explained

In the opening part of this chapter we pointed out that in the first three chapters of this letter to the Ephesians Paul focuses on doctrine, whereas in the last three chapters he focuses on duty. Early in this chapter he spoke of the special gifting that every Christian has been given. We are to use these gifts to serve and strengthen our brothers and sisters in the church. As we do so, we become more and more a united body.

In verse seventeen Paul then introduced a new topic with regard to our duty in Christ. He told us not to live our lives in the way that the unsaved people of this world do. Because of sin, these people are in the dark regarding spiritual truth. As a result, they live their lives intellectually rather than spiritually. And – because the unsaved live their lives intellectually, they put great emphasis on education and learning, but because they refuse to acknowledge God, they stay in the dark. Here’s how Paul said it to the Romans:

because, knowing God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were they thankful, but they became vain in their reasonings, and their unintelligent heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, (Romans 1:21-22)

In verse eighteen of our current chapter Paul told us that they don’t understand God’s truth because of the hardness of their hearts. In his second letter to the Corinthians Paul explained why they continue to have such spiritual blindness:

But also if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whom the god of this age has blinded the thoughts of the unbelieving, so that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine on them. (2 Corinthians 4:3-4)

Not only are they deprived of the light of God’s truth as a result of sin, Satan has blinded them to the truth of the gospel.

Paul now tells us that we have not learned Christ in the manner that the world learns. Notice that he did not say “learned about Christ.” There are many people in the world who have learned about Christ but who have never submitted to His lordship. We did not learn Christ intellectually but through belief in the sacrificial death of Christ, the Son of God, as payment for our sins. We learned Christ by faith, not by intellectual means.

 

Application

Just because we learned Christ by faith doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t apply our intellect to learn how to serve Him better. The more we learn about Him and the more we grow our relationship with Him, the better we can serve Him.

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:19 – Numb, Uncontrolled, and Unclean

Posted on by Will

who, being past feeling, have surrendered themselves to lewdness, to the working of all uncleanness with greediness.

Truth to Learn

The unsaved are in a hopeless state. Offer them hope!

 

Behind the Words

The words “being past feeling” are from the Greek verb apalgeō, which is made up of apo, meaning “from” or “away from” and algeō, meaning “to feel pain.” Apalgeō means “unable to feel pain” or “to be numb.” It is expressed here in the perfect tense, indicating “having lost feeling at some point in the past so that they are now unable to feel.” Based on the context, this is not referring to physical feeling, but emotional or spiritual feeling.

“Have surrendered" is from the verb paradidōmi, which is made up of para, meaning “to the side of” and didōmi, meaning “to give.” It is a picture of surrendering self or possessions to someone of greater power.

“Lewdness” is translated from aselgeia, which literally refers to “the inability to control oneself.” As it is used in the New Testament, it refers to “the absence of restraint, especially with regard to pleasure, sexual or otherwise.”

The word “uncleanness” is from akatharsia, which is made up of the negative particle a, and a form of kathairō, meaning “to cleanse.” Thus, akatharsia refers to “that which is unclean, either morally or physically.”

“Greediness” is translated from pleonexia, which refers to “covetousness” or “greediness.”

 

Meaning Explained

Two verses back Paul told us not to walk as other Gentiles (unsaved) who spend their lives living by their intellect instead of their spirit. He went on to say that because of sin these unbelievers have a heart that is hardened and they are unable to acknowledge or understand the salvation that God offers. As a result, they do not participate in the spiritual life (eternal life) that God offers to them.

Now he tells us a bit more about the unsaved mind. These people, he says, are unable to feel. This may be a reference to their inability to feel hope. They are like the Israelites described by the prophet Jeremiah:

And they said, "That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one obey the dictates of his evil heart." (Jeremiah 18:12)

As a result of their hopelessness they have stopped even trying to control their physical desires. Instead, they give in to their desires and perform all kinds of unclean acts, doing so focused only on satisfying their own sinful desires.

Even a cursory look at the world today will tell us that Paul is spot on with this description. Not only do the unsaved behave exactly as he has described, but they are getting more so with each passing day.

 

Application

It would be easy to get discouraged and to develop a feeling of hopelessness when we see all that is going on around us in the world today. However, we are not hopeless. We have a hope and a glorious future because of our faith in Christ. Instead of feeling down, lift your spirits and proclaim the Gospel message of hope and salvation to those around you. And – give God all the glory!

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:18 – Darkened, Alienated, and Ignorant

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having their intellect obscured, being alienated from the life of God, through the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart;

Truth to Learn

The unsaved are the way they are because of unbelief caused by a lack of spiritual enlightenment.

 

Behind the Words

“Intellect” is translated from the Greek word dianoia, which is derived from dia, meaning “through and a form of noeō, meaning “to exercise the mind,” that is, “to think, to consider, or to understand.” Dianoia refers to a person’s intellect or understanding.  

The word “obscured” is from the verb skotidzō, meaning “to deprive of light,” that is, “to darken” or “to obscure.” In today’s verse it is used figuratively to mean “deprived of the light of understanding.” It is expressed here in the perfect tense indicating past completed action with an ongoing effect, the emphasis being on the effect. In other words, Paul is saying that at some time in the past they were deprived of the light of understanding and as a result they are now in a condition of not understanding.

“Alienated” is from the verb apallotrioō, which is made up of apo, meaning “from or away from” and allotrioō, meaning “to make a stranger,” “to separate from,” or “to make a non-participant.” This word is also expressed in the perfect tense.

The word “ignorance” is translated from agnoeō, which literally means “lacking knowledge.”

The word “hardness” is from pōrōsis, a form of pōroō, meaning “to harden, to petrify, or to make insensitive.”

 

Meaning Explained

In the previous verse Paul instructed us not to live our lives like unbelievers do. He said that they live their lives intellectually instead of spiritually. He also said that their intellect is worthless. Now he explains why their thinking is so bad. He tells us that the intellectual understanding of the unsaved has been obscured, deprived of the light of understanding. As we discussed in Behind the Words, the tense of this verb indicates that the darkening occurred at some point in time in the past. That point in time referred to is when Adam and Eve sinned by eating the forbidden fruit. From that time onward, mankind has been alienated from God with a mind that is deprived of the light of knowledge, the knowledge of God.

That enlightenment can be regained, however. It is given by God through His Holy Spirit. It can be gained by learning the teaching of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, as Paul will tell us later. Here we are told that one of the results of the intellectual darkening is separation from the life (spiritual life) that is in God. We are also told here that one of the reasons that the unsaved don’t have spiritual life is because they lack knowledge (the knowledge of what Christ did for them on the cross). And finally, Paul tells us that they lack knowledge of the work of salvation because of the hardness of their hearts.

So, we can summarize this by saying that sin leads to a hardening of the heart, which prevents the acknowledgement of God’s gift of salvation, which produces alienation from the spiritual life that God offers us all.

 

Application

If you believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross to save you from your sins, your heart is not hardened, you are not ignorant of God’s truth, and you have eternal life. Hallelujah!

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:17 – New Way of Living

Posted on by Will

Therefore, I say this, and testify in the Lord, that you no longer walk like the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,

Truth to Learn

Don’t live your life like the unsaved people of this world.

 

Behind the Words

“Testify” is translated from marturomai, a form of martus, meaning “a witness.” The verb form that we have here means “to give a testimony of that which has been witnessed.” This is the word from which we get our English word martyr, meaning “one who gives his or her life as a witness of his or her faith.”

“Walk” appears twice in this verse. In each case it is the Greek verb peripateō. This word is made up of peri, meaning “around” or “about” and pateō, meaning “to walk.” Thus, it literally means “to walk around.” Paul uses it as a metaphor for the manner in which a person lives his or her life.

Loipos is the Greek adjective that is translated “rest.” It is derived from the verb leipō, meaning “to leave” or “to be absent.” Loipos refers to “that which remains.” In today’s verse, it is a reference to “the rest of the Gentiles,” that is, those who are not part of the body of Christ. Although this word does not appear in the best Greek texts, the concept is still valid as an implication.

“Vanity” is from mataiotēs, which refers to “worthlessness” or “moral depravity.”

The word “mind” is translated from nous which refers to “mental perception and intelligent understanding.” Thus, it means “the intellectual part of man” or “the mind.”

 

Meaning Explained

Paul has just instructed us as to why we should all be at work in the church, serving each other and building-up each other. In doing so, we experience the growth that God provides for the entire body. Each of us is specially gifted for our service and, like stones perfectly fitted together, we are an integral part of the body. Also, as we serve each other, we grow together as a unit, a single body whose head is Christ.

Therefore – Paul cautions us that we should not conduct our lives the way those outside the church do. Paul refers to these people as “the rest of the Gentiles.” If you look carefully at how Paul uses this expression, you will recognize that there are three groups of people in Paul’s teaching: Jews, Christians, and the rest of the Gentiles. Everyone who is alive right now, who has ever lived, or who will ever live is in one of these three categories, Jews, Christians, and Gentiles. Jews and Christians worship the same God, Jehovah, the Creator of heaven and earth. The rest of mankind rejects God. These, instead of living their lives by faith, live their lives by intellect. They think they understand the source of all things (they call it “The Big Bang”) and they think they understand how they got here (by evolution). Paul will talk a little bit more about their thinking in the next verse.

Before we leave today’s verse, however, note that Paul says that we should “no longer” live our lives like they do. That means that there was a time when we did live like that. In fact there are many Christians today who still live their lives intellectually instead of faith-fully. To them Christianity is an intellectual pursuit or it is a set of rules to live by. Paul says, however, that Christians are not to live their life that way because the Christian life is a life characterized by faith, not intellect.

 

Application

Does your life resemble a member of the world system more than a disciple of Christ? Are you living by a set of rules in hopes of pleasing God? Or, are you living each day in humble submission to God, walking by faith and giving Him all the praise and all the glory? Which do you think He wants?

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:16 – Growth At Work

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from whom the whole body, having been closely joined together and united by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working in the measure of every single part, produces the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

Truth to Learn

Growth of the body depends on all parts doing their part.

 

Behind the Words

The word “from” is translated from ek, meaning “out of.” This word indicates the source from which something is derived.

“Closely joined together” is from sunarmologeō, which is made up of sun, meaning “together,” harmos, meaning “an articulation (a joint), and logos, meaning “a word spoken.” Actually, the original meaning of logos was “to lay forth,” which is the sense in which it is used in this word. Sunarmelogeō means “to be laid-out closely together.” It is a picture of blocks of stone which are laid down together, fitting perfectly because they have been shaped into a perfect fit.

“United” is translated from the Greek word sumbibadzō, which is made up of sun, meaning “together” and bibadzō, meaning “to uplift.” Thus, sumbibadzō means “to knit together” or “to unite together.” This is a picture of two bushes planted close together which grow into each other so that they form the appearance of a single bush.

The word “joint” is haphē, which refers to “that which connects or joins two things, like a ligament.”

 “Growth” is translated from auxēis, which is based on auxanō (which we saw in yesterday’s verse) meaning “growth as a result of an outside power.”

“Building up” is from the Greek word oikodomē, which is made up of oikos, meaning “a house” or “a dwelling place” and the base of demō, meaning “to build.” Oikodomē refers to the edifying, or building up of a structure, an organization, or a person.

 

Meaning Explained

This verse starts out with “from whom.” This is a reference to Jesus Christ who is the head of the body. The words from “joined” to “every single part” are parenthetical. So to understand the base meaning behind this verse, we could temporarily exclude the parenthetical expression. Thus, we have “from whom the whole body … produces the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.” In other words, it is Jesus Christ working through the church which causes all the body to grow. Keep in mind that the word “growth” refers to that growth which is caused by an outside power. So, the source of growth in the body of Christ is God, but the process of growth is through all the various parts of the body, with each one doing his or her part.

In the parenthetical expression we are told a little about how the body is put together and how it functions. The words translated “closely joined together and united” tell us that every part of the body is specially formed and gifted by God to be perfectly joined to the other parts of the body. But it doesn’t stop there. As we are joined together in service to and with our brothers and sisters, we actually grow together. We become so united that we become an inseparable unit (that’s the unity that Paul has been talking about for most of this chapter).

The final point to learn is that the growth of the body depends on every part doing its share. If part of the body is not working, it becomes like a cancer sucking the life out of the church.

 

Application

From these last few verses we see how important it is for members of the church to be growing. In order for that to happen, though, we all have to be working, performing the function for which God has gifted us. Let’s all get to work and build up the body together!

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved

Ephesians 4:15 – Lovely Body Building

Posted on by Will

but, speaking the truth in love, that we may grow up unto Him in all things, who is the head—Christ—

Truth to Learn

We need to be truthful and loving as we minister to our fellow Christians.

 

Behind the Words

“Speaking the truth” is translated from the verb alētheuō, which is derived from alēthēs, meaning “truth.” Thus, alētheuō means “to be true, not counterfeit.” The word “speaking” is not in the Greek text, so the opening part of this verse should probably be translated as “but, being true in love …”

The word translated “love” is agape which refers to “perfect, self-sacrificing love.”

“May grow up” is from auxanō, meaning “to grow” or “to increase.” This word implies growth as a result of an outside power acting through the element of life within. This is different than the growth implied by the verb prokoptō, which indicates growth as a result of personal effort and achievement.

The words “unto Him” are translated from eis auton. The word eis means “into” or “unto” implying movement from outside to inside or movement from a separated position to a united position. The word auton is the second person, singular pronoun (him). In Greek, word order is important and in the Greek text of this verse, the words eis auton immediately follow the verb auxanō. This implies that the emphasis of growth is to grow “unto Him” and that “in all things” is a secondary characteristic of this growth.

 

Meaning Explained

In verse eleven Paul described some of the spiritual gifts given by Christ (specifically, church leadership gifts). He told us that these gifted people were given so that we, church members, would be equipped to do the work of the ministry, building-up the body of Christ (the church). One purpose of our building each other up is to develop unity and a complete experiential knowledge of Jesus Christ, our Savior and our God. The other purpose is that we might be fully grown, mature Christians not misled by false doctrines and the persuasive words cleverly crafted to mislead us.

In contrast to the deceitful methods used by those who teach doctrinal error, we are to be truthful and we are to do so in love, considering the good of others to be more important than our own. I am reminded of a time in my own ministry when I didn’t do this. I was worship leader in a church leading choir rehearsal. The accompanist, an accomplished pianist, did not follow my lead regarding the tempo of the songs we were singing. After rehearsal I took her aside and explained to her how her lack of following my lead was making it difficult on all of us. My intent was to improve the way we all worked together, but my delivery was not done in love. The result was not unity but further dissention.

Everything we do within the church should be done in such a manner that it encourages and builds-up others so that we all might become more Christ-like.

 

Application

Are you using your spiritual gifts in your church? If not, you are being disobedient to our Lord. If you are, are you doing everything with the goal of making others more Christ-like and are you doing it in a Christ-like manner?

In God's service, for His glory,

Copyright © 2015 Will Krause. All rights reserved