There is a father and son at the beach. The father is a couple of hundreds yards out to sea. The depth of the water is up to the father’s chest. The father beckons the boy to come to him. Yet the young boy is timid. When the boy does not come because of the apparent difficulty the father comes to where the boy is. As the father walks back the boy discovers that the several hundred yards that the father wanted him to walk was a sand bar that was merely a few inches below the water level. The father never asked his young son to do something that he couldn’t accomplish.
In this passage of Scripture, the Apostle Paul tells us of the Father’s call to holiness. This call is not something that is beyond our grasp because the Father has paved the way for us to follow and has given us the strength to live it out. The key idea of this passage is that we are called to live a life of progressive holiness that consists of shedding the corruption of the world and living in the righteousness available in Christ.
I. The Corruption of the World
The first section that Paul describes in our call to holiness is a reminder of what we were like in the world. We might entitle it, “the corruption of the world.” Now when Paul describes these Gentiles, or unbelievers, he describes everyone’s final state apart from the grace of God. What I mean is that just as a call to holiness in the life of the believer is progressive so is the corruption of the world. If God’s grace does not restrain an individual they will continue in this path apart from God. I can see from my own life previously as an unbeliever how I traveled this path. And had God not stopped me in my tracks by His grace I can see how I would have continued in this very way. I will describe my personal path, to give you an example of that which Paul is speaking, as we look at each of the characteristics of the corrupt world. The question that Paul answers is, “What is the typical unbeliever like?” And he says they are characterized by:
A. A darkened mind
First, by a darkened mind. Paul describes the thinking of those in the world as being darkened. Their understanding is hidden from the light of God. It is not surprising that someone in this condition cannot understand spiritual truth. We are all born in this state because we are born as descendents of Adam. We have inherited the same sin nature that Adam had. Paul notes this darkened mind we possess in other places as well. In 1 Corinthians 2:14 Paul says, [The] “natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” Without the Spirit of God working in us we have no spiritual light. Anything that we discern spiritually is due to the Spirit of God. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4, “For the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.”
So when Paul says that their minds are darkened he is referring to understanding and applying spiritual truth. This is why we must be careful that we don’t get the cart before the horse in how we use spiritual truth with unbelievers. Jesus said it in this light, “Do not cast your pearls before swine.” He is not saying that we do not share biblical truth with individuals but if someone is not receptive to it they will simply, “turn and tear you to pieces.”
I could begin to see this progression into corruption in my life from around age 12-14. I don’t know if this began what some might term, “an age of accountability” for me but this is where I saw the principles Paul lays out here to begin to come to pass to work out my corruption. There was no real gospel centered teaching in my life and so to pursue religion (for we are all religious creatures, that is, we all desire God in some way) I began dabbling in meditation as a road into finding God. Unfortunately because of the darkness of my understanding I didn’t realize that meditation was simply a road into demonic deception not spiritual enlightenment. This is what Paul is describing. This darkness of our mind leads us to pursue wrong avenues in spirituality. Instead of pursuing God we pursue our own thoughts of who God is and our own way to get to God. And unless God, in His grace, pursues us we will pursue folly and futility.
B. An alienated soul
The second characteristic that Paul says these individuals have is an alienated soul. This is what he means when he says that they are, “excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart.” Paul says that we have an alienated soul. We are cut off from the life of God. There is no life of God in us. There is no divine spark in us. The opposite is the case. As Jesus puts it, “We are from our father the devil.” This is probably the hardest pill to swallow. Many people who have grown up in church respond that they don’t remember life being this way. Their heart had been directed by their parents most of their life to follow and love God. The truth is that parental influence may be a means of God’s restraining grace in the life of an person to keep them from running hard away from God. But if they do not come under the influence of the Spirit of God to convert them they are still an alienated soul separated from God.
And Paul says that in each one of us two factors were working in this alienation. They are ignorance and hardness of heart. There is an ignorance of the fact of this separation from God. “I’m a very good person.” But God’s standard isn’t “very good” it is perfection. “You don’t know how hard I try to do right.” Effort isn’t what God requires but perfect effort. And it is an affront to God to hold up this half-baked attempt to please Him when what He is asking for is complete righteousness. This is ignorance.
The second part is hardness of heart. Someone who might recognize the sin in their heart will minimize it. They will refuse to humble themselves and agree with God just how much of a wretch they are before Him. If we don’t admit our wretchedness it is because of our hardness of heart. “But I’m such a good wife, husband, father, mother, worker, etc.” The issue is, however, what a good sinner we are. There is a hardness of heart that prevents us from experiencing the life of God. We are alienated because of our ignorance and hardness of heart.
So about age 14, my brother came to know Christ as his Savior while he was in the Navy. He began to bring Christian books and tracts home. I read many of them. I remember reading one of his Christian books during a summer while I caddied (or while I was waiting to caddy). But my ignorance of spiritual truth and my hardness of heart (my unwillingness to repent) allowed me to remain in a state of alienation from God. And I continued the downward descent into corruption.
C. A calloused conscience
Paul says that the next characteristic they possess is a calloused conscience. Paul describes it in verse 19. He says, “and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.” In a person’s darkened mind and alienated soul, sin looks inviting. It looks inviting because it appears as that which will lead to the satisfaction they desire. For in their darkness they cannot see God as their true satisfaction. And so they begin first to participate in this sin that brings them some measure of limited satisfaction. As they practice it, their conscience reproves them. But as they continue to sin in this fashion their conscience becomes calloused so that Paul says they give themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. They run headlong into worse and worse sin becoming more and more self-focused and less and less concerned with God. This passage fits very well with Romans 1. In Romans 1 Paul says that God gave people over to do what they wanted and gave them up to all kinds of wickedness. Here in Ephesians Paul looks at the human side of it and says that these individuals gave themselves over to it. God simply gave them the desires of their heart.
This process in my life took its course over the next several years. I found sin that began to covet my attention. And as I began to practice these things, it started in, as I might call it, “blinded ignorance,” until what I chose to practice became for me no longer something my mind called evil. At first I sought the practice of these things with loopholes. I knew they were wrong and my conscience told me so. But because I liked the experience my conscience began to become calloused to that voice inside that had said this was wrong. The more I practiced the quieter the voice became. And soon I found myself delving deeper into these practices. What I had chosen, initially, to be private because of my guilt now became open shamelessness in my calloused conscience. Oh there were some to whom I would not reveal these things because I knew what they would say. But my general circle of friends shared these practices because they too had the same calloused conscience I had.
D. An abused body
And this leads to the final characteristic of the people in the world. This is an abused body. They have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. When the progression of corruption in a person’s life comes to this point they have reached the place where the following after their sin becomes abusive to their bodies. And although they may know it they either do not care or have become so trapped by their sin that despair that rules their life even while they practice it. They have come to an end of themselves and may make an end of themselves.
Now remember that this is a progression. God may, by His grace, keep people from going this far. But if He doesn’t, this is the end of the road for the person. They look in all places for relief from their trap of sin. They may even become involved in other kinds of sin to find relief for their sin. But they will not find relief until God grants them relief.
I came to this place in my sin. Sin clutched me by the throat while I was in college. But it was all my fault. For little by little I allowed myself to follow the pattern of corruption. It was in many areas of my life but let me give an example of one area. When you drink until you cannot walk you have come to the point of an abused body. When you drink until you are so sick the next day you can’t do anything you have come to the point of an abused body. When you drink until you can’t remember what you did, you have come to the point of an abused body. When you drink until you do things you never would have otherwise, you have come to the point of an abused body.
There were also other areas in my life in which I experienced this progression of corruption but it didn’t come overnight. It started in the darkness of my mind, years before, and continued because of my ignorance of God and hardness of heart and progressed into a calloused conscience and ended in an abused body.
Let me say this with all seriousness. There is no hope for someone like this. This is no reasoning with someone like this. There is no light at the end of the tunnel for someone like this UNLESS GOD BREAKS INTO THEIR LIVES! And this is the beauty of what Paul describes in verses 20-24. But before we look at these verses let me say that if you don’t think you are that bad or aren’t capable of anything like this you need to be reminded that it is only the grace of God that has held you from this very thing. If you do not humble yourself in recognition of this you will be here. Maybe you are there in some fashion but are blinded to it. This is what I mean that unless God breaks into your life you will miss His grace and be condemned anyway.
II. The Contrast with the Transformation through Christ
In verses 20-24 we see the contrast with the transformation through Christ. There is a difference between the corruption of the world and the transformation available in Christ. Oh friend if you are struggling today with sin in which you have been trapped for years through the corruption of the world there is freedom in Christ! And Paul says that the transformation available in Christ is not like the corruption of the world. In verse 20 he says, “But you did not learn Christ in this way.” The transformation of Christ does not lead to debauchery and depravity. It does not become a horrible sickening obsession with sin. It is freedom.
But how are we to overcome this sin in which we have been trapped? Paul is going to describe it in verses 22-24. But before we do let us look at some of the characteristics of this transformation through Christ. We could call this transformation through Christ practical holiness. We have already seen that God makes us positionally holy at salvation. He clothes us with the complete righteousness of Christ. But this doesn’t mean that we are holy in practice. And so God gives us a means of acquiring practical holiness or the application of living holy lives. So by practical holiness I mean holiness that is practiced.
First, practical holiness is progressive. That means it is a process of transformation. It takes time. God in His grace will pull an individual from a horrible condition and radically transform them. And although that may happen initially, there is still the ongoing process of being conformed to Christlikeness. There were a lot of things that took place in my life when I repented and trusted Christ as my Savior but there was much more to come. And it came by continually applying the principles that Paul lays out here in this passage. In the same way that the slide into corruption occurred over time through the darkened mind and alienation from God so practical holiness becomes more and more evident over time through an illumined mind and reconciliation with the life of God through Jesus Christ.
Secondly, practical holiness is based on a standard. Jesus Christ is that standard. Who are we to become? We are to become just like Jesus Christ. The example of Christ’s perfection of love, holiness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control are to be lived out in our lives. And this is the ONLY standard. We cannot say that such a standard is too high for that is the only standard we have. Our goal isn’t to become a good person but a supernatural person through God’s means with which He has equipped us. And if you are despairing of attaining such a goal, good! Because this is where you need to start. If you think that you, in any way by yourself, are going to accomplish this you’ve lost already.
Which brings us to the third truth about this. And that is practical holiness is only possible through grace. God’s grace is His undeserved favor. And when we look to the impossible task of Christlikeness we must see it for what it is: impossible apart from God’s work in us. And so as we look to the three steps that He has given us to accomplish in attaining practical holiness do not look at it like some exercise program in which we do 3 sets of these and 5 sets of these and move onto something else. God doesn’t work that way. We must do this in utter dependence upon Him. And that means calling out to Him in recognition of the fact that we don’t even have the strength to put these into place without His sustaining work in us. So with that let us look at the practice by which God has called us to holiness.
A. Put off our old self
First, Paul says that we are to put off our old self. In verse 22 he says that, “in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit.” Our old self, is our nature under which we had lived before we trusted Christ as our Savior. It is this old self that does not cause us to embrace Christ and His saving power but brings us to trust in and live for ourselves as we have seen previously.
Now Paul says practically, that we are to put it off. We are to treat it like the dirty, stinking, foul garment that it is and peel it from us. We are not to allow it to feel comfortable on us any longer like a really cozy shirt that we have been used to wearing. We are to recognize our old self for what it is, our enemy, and discard it as such. Now why are we able to do this in a practical way? Because Christ has already done it for us when He died on the cross. The apostle Paul said in Colossians 3, “for you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God… therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed.”
We can put off the old self because Christ has defeated it on the cross. So stop living in it. Recognize it as the enemy within. Would you allow Osama Bin Laden to stay in your house and have access to your family? This is what you do when you passively allow your old self to have control of your body. You need to throw it out the door. Let’s look at its description. Paul mentions three ways in which it is described.
1. former
First, he says that it is former. It belongs to our former manner of life. It is no longer for us today. It was part of our lives. It is no longer. So stop sleeping with the enemy. Put off your old self. Stop dwelling on it. Stop feeding it. Stop obeying it. Christ died for this very reason. He put your old nature on the cross. Stop allowing it to come down.
2. corrupting
Second, Paul says that your old self is corrupting. The middle of verse 22 says it is being corrupted. Your old self continues to grow worse and worse. This is why if you do not continue to put off the old nature you will be capable of doing what you had previously. When you start getting cozy with your old nature you will find yourself in the same path as before. Recognize what your old nature is and put it off. Make no compromise. Make no excuse. Put it off. This is the most serious thing I can say. Unless you want to be trapped once again and fall under the chastening hand of the Lord do not put yourself under the decaying old person in which you used to live.
Paul says in Romans 6, “Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
3. driven by deceitful lusts
Third, Paul says that they are driven by deceitful lusts. The old desires of our heart are deceitful lusts or desires. These desires will lie to you to get you to obey them. But they are the enemy. They are liars. Do not listen to them. This was what you were like before Christ. They try to trap you by causing you to turn from the truth that is in Jesus. The truth is in Christ. But there is only lying from these deceitful desires of your old self. This is why we need to put them off. Do not listen.
So how do we put them off? We acknowledge them as such. You know what it is with which you struggle. Acknowledge it to God. Acknowledge that Christ has already killed that in your life by the work of the cross and refuse to put it back on.
B. Refresh your mind
Second, refresh your mind. In verse 23 Paul says, “And that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind.” OK now you know what is wrong. The Spirit makes it clear to you but what is right? Your mind needs to be taught what is that good and perfect and acceptable will of God. You need to refresh your mind with the Word of God.
To be renewed is a passive verb. You must let God renew your mind through the cleansing power of His Word. We must be filling our minds with the Word of God. We must be thinking on the Word of God and we must be asking God to accomplish His purpose through the Word of God in our lives. He is the author of the book. He is the one who can do its work in you. But if you are not renewing your mind through the Word then your mind is simply going to become corrupted through that corrupting process.
In 2 Corinthians, Paul says that we need to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. I am convinced more and more of the need that I have to be in the Word of God for my sanctification. God uses His Word and His Spirit as the change agent in our minds. Be renewed in the spirit of your mind. If you are not consistently in the Word of God I can say that you are not consistently growing. Take portions of Scripture with you that you need to think on as you go throughout your day. Put them on cards or on tape or in your mind and think on them. Be renewed in the spirit of your mind. The Word of God will break the fallow ground of your heart. Let the Spirit do His work through it. Set your heart to listen to it and obey. If you harden your heart to it, it will not profit your life. So stop making excuses for not being in the Word as you should.
C. Clothe yourself with Christ
Finally Paul says, clothe yourself with Christ. Verse 24 says, “Put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.” We have been made new. We must simply put on the nature that God has given us in Christ. We have been made a new creation. Are you going to believe it and live it out?
We are not trying to live up to become something that we are not. God has made us new creations in Christ. We have been given the nature of Jesus because of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. And we can live in accordance with this.
I remember first getting hold of this truth in college after I became a Christian. I don’t remember how I came across it unless it was through reading the Scripture because I don’t remember hearing a sermon on it. I remember praying as I would be driving or walking, “God put the anger out of my life and put in gentleness. Put the lustful thoughts out of my heart and put in pure thoughts.” And as I began to see things in my life that was sin I would seek to find the biblical opposite and ask God to replace it with that. Most recently, as I recognize temptation in my life I have been turning away from it by admitting that all my satisfaction is in Christ. All my desire lies in Him. This is what it means to put off the old self and to put on the new. Righteousness and holiness are the products of God’s new creative work in each one of us.
Will you put off the old self, commit yourself to allow God to renew your mind through His Word and put on the new self that God has created in you through Christ?