A series of homilies on Ephesians 5 & 6
A homily is “a short talk on a religious or moral topic; a usually short sermon; a lecture or discourse on or of a biblical theme.”
I am sharing a verse-by-verse series of short messages on Ephesians 5 & 6 (as well as other passages of Scripture) specifically targeted at reviving families and encouraging and exhorting husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, and children to do what God has commanded them to do, for if the church is to be revived and the country is to be awakened, the family must be revived first.
Ephesians 5:8-10:
8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light.
9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
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Adrian Rogers said, “The same Jesus Who turned water into wine can transform your home, your life, your family, and your future. He is still in the miracle-working business, and His business is the business of transformation.”
Leonard Ravenhill said, “One of these days some simple soul will pick up the book of God, read it, and believe it. Then the rest of us will be embarrassed.”
Today, we continue looking at the things we ought to be doing as Children of Light. Our lives ought to be starkly different from the lives of those who are still in darkness, who still belong to this world and the prince of this world. We will be of no help to the world if we cover our light or hide it under a bushel as Jesus said.
We should show forth the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We saw that part of our fruit is “goodness” — moral uprightness in heart and life. Then, Paul adds, “righteousness.” Strong’s Lexicon defines the Greek word as the “state of him who is in a condition acceptable to God.” We will not be acceptable to God with sin in our lives. That is why He sent Jesus to save us; we could not be made righteous on our own. We are made righteous before God because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Thus, we ought to be obedient to God — to live as one who has been made righteous.
Another fruit of the Holy Spirit living inside of us is “truth.” This is more than just speaking the truth, but, as John Gill said, it is to be “opposed to lying, to hypocrisy, to error, and to falsehood.” Not only must our words be true, but our lifestyle must be true, transparent and authentic. As children of the Light, we ought not to live in the shadows, hiding things from others and trying to hide things from God. The Christian life is one of truth and light.
We ought to seek to please God and have all of our actions be acceptable to Him. Verse 10 reads, “Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.” The Greek word for “proving” means “to recognize as genuine after examination, to approve, to deem worthy.” Our actions as Christians ought to be genuine. When we do good, we ought to do it out of a Godly heart and spirit, not with hypocritical motives. God is not just looking on the outside — at what we do and say — but on the heart, and He will judge us accordingly. Just as a child seeks to please his or her parents, we ought to seek to please our Heavenly Father.
To walk in the light is to be good, righteous, and true.
Daniel Whyte III has spoken in meetings across the United States and in over twenty-five foreign countries. He is the author of over forty books. He is also the president of Gospel Light Society International, a worldwide evangelistic ministry that reaches thousands with the Gospel each week, as well as president of Torch Ministries International, a Christian literature ministry which publishes a monthly magazine called The Torch Leader. He is heard by thousands each week on his radio broadcasts/podcasts, which include: The Prayer Motivator Devotional, The Prayer Motivator Minute, as well as Gospel Light Minute X, the Gospel Light Minute, the Sunday Evening Evangelistic Message, the Prophet Daniel’s Report, the Second Coming Watch Update and the Soul-Winning Motivator, among others. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Theology from Bethany Divinity College, a Bachelor’s degree in Religion from Texas Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Religion, a Master of Divinity degree, and a Master of Theology degree from Liberty University School of Divinity. He has been married to the former Meriqua Althea Dixon, of Christiana, Jamaica for over twenty-seven years. God has blessed their union with seven children. Find out more at www.danielwhyte3.com. Follow Daniel Whyte III on Twitter @prophetdaniel3 or on Facebook.
BCNN1 WP 