Long ago, God chose you to be Holy and different—to think different and to act different. Thoughts and actions go hand in hand. The way you think changes the way you act. But sometimes, the way you act can change the way you think.
Today, I want to share how God's Holy people should act different than the rest of the world. Listen to what the Word of God says.
Ephesians 4:17-32
17 With the Lord’s authority I say
this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly
confused. 18 Their minds are full of darkness; they wander
far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened
their hearts against him. 19 They have no sense of shame.
They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
20 But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. 21 Since
you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from
him, 22 throw off your old sinful nature and your former
way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. 23 Instead,
let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put
on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.
25 So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth,
for we are all parts of the same body. 26 And “don’t sin
by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still
angry, 27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.
28 If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands
for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. 29 Don’t
use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so
that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.
30 And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you
live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be
saved on the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and
slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead,
be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God
through Christ has forgiven you.
Our passage lists some characteristics of ungodly people. It uses the word "Gentiles", but in the context Gentile means anyone who doesn't follow Jesus. Gentiles are the ungodly and the passage begins saying they have dark minds.
Our world is full of senseless violence. We see it too often in mass shootings in our times. We don't understand why someone would do such a thing. Whether it’s a terrorism, hate, or just a mental illness, it’s clear these acts come from a dark mind.
We say, "How can anyone do something like that? I
would never do that!" We don’t understand, but know this: the
same darkness lurks in every human heart. We are sinful, fallen creatures. We may never pick up a gun and shoot
someone, but we do other things that hurt people because we are broken inside. Christians are those who admit we are broken beyond repair and desperately need
Jesus to heal us and save us.
The ungodly have a dark mind and hard hearts and they have closed their minds to God. They refuse to let Him be Lord and continue to seek their own selfish designs. Ephesians says they have no sense of shame, live for pleasure, and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.
Paul’s not just saying how bad the ungodly are. His point is: that’s how bad we all are without God. That's how we all used to be before Christ saved us. But now, Christians shouldn’t be like that anymore. We should be different.
Ephesians tells how Christians should to act different. Christians are to stop telling lies. We have to be honest with each other, even when the truth is awkward or difficult or goes against generally accepted beliefs.
And the passage says, "Don’t let anger control you.” Notice, it doesn’t say don’t get angry.
It says don’t let your anger control you. Anger is a natural emotion—especially in the face of evil and injustice, like when someone murders innocent children. Anger can motivate you to act when you need to act, but don't let anger control
you. Don't lose you temper and let anger make you do or say something you shouldn't.
And the passage says, “quit stealing.” Work hard and give. Notice, it's not enough to just stop stealing. Christians act
different by going even further and being generous, which is
actually the opposite of stealing.
Christians should be different because we don’t use foul or abusive language. Now, if you've grown up in church or among polite people, you might nod your head in agreement. Don't cuss. But Christian differentness is so much more than just refraining from profanity.
I have an old F350 rat rod pickup truck I call "Dry Bones." A few years ago, I was on my way to a car show. I stopped by a hardware store to pick up something to shine the tires (The tires are the only thing on the truck capable of shining.)
Anyway, as I checked out, the cashier asked if that was my truck
outside. "Yes ma'am," I said.
"Do you mind if I come out and take a look at it?"
"Sure." I said and we went out and she looked it over. She
immediately exclaimed, "Man! That's cool as heck!"
(Only, she didn't say heck.)
So we were walking around it and got to the back tailgate where there is this big wooden cross and she repeated, "Man! That is cool as heck!" (Only she didn't say heck.)
Then she looked over at me and saw I was wearing a Christian t-shirt and a
cross necklace.
And she said, "And your a Christian."
"Yes ma'am."
"And you go to church." "Yes
ma'am."
"And I just cussed in front of you."
And I said, "Yes ma'am, but don't you worry about it. I'm not
offended and God loves you."
I’m not too worried about that lady for her choice of words. On the other hand, I knew of a Christian who was a member my church at that time who frequently made abusive remarks on Facebook about politicians she didn’t like. The ironic thing is she considered herself an ultra-devout Christian. In fact, she made some of her vicious comments because she thought being Christian meant she was supposed to. The truth is, I think God is more disappointed in her vitriol than He is about the lady at Ace Hardware who used a 4-letter word to express her admiration of my truck.
Act different. Speak life and hope as verse 29
says: “…Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words
will be an encouragement to those who hear them.” Verse 31 hints at what real foul language is. It
says, “Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior.”
We have all acted like ungodly people at one time or another (Rm 3:23). However, the Word of God teaches us to let the Holy Spirit of God invade our hearts and change us so we act different.
Verse 32 says, “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one
another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” Christians
act different. We are kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving.
Some will say, "Yeah, but I know some non-Christians who are kind,
tenderhearted, and forgiving." The difference is why Christians act
this way. We are different because Jesus Christ acted that way
toward us first. Christ was kind and gracious to us even when we didn't
deserve it.
Good people will eventually run out of goodness. Christians don't have to run out because our source of goodness is not us—it is beyond us; it is in our eternal Lord, Jesus.
In Christ, there is always hope. The symbol for Christianity is the cross. The cross is not a decoration or piece of jewelry. The cross is an instrument of torture and death. Our Founder was crucified on it. And everyone—including Jesus' closest followers—thought all hope was lost. They saw him die and put in a tomb. But then on the third day, Jesus rose from the grave.
There is always hope! And every time we look at a cross, we are reminded—the is always hope! Never give up! The Holy Spirit works within Christians to change us and make us act different. You may have a long way to go, but you don’t have to change all at once. Don’t be overwhelmed. Remember, following Jesus is a journey. You make it one step at a time.
Don’t give up. Let the Holy Spirit change you
little by little, day by day, and soon you will start to look back and see just
how far you’ve come. Trust Jesus to take you from the person you are now to the person God wants you
to be.
Spend time talking to Jesus. Is He your Lord? Your all in all? Is He the most important priority in your life?
When Jesus is your all in all, you think different and act different. When Jesus is your all in all, there is a fire down deep in your bones that drives you to love God and love your neighbor.
You might get tired sometimes, but then the Lord fills you with new energy, and renewed drive, and bold courage, and relentless ambition, and Holy Ghost power, and Spiritual energy, and you go out and change the world!
Following Jesus is a journey, and none of us has arrived yet. But maybe today God is showing you a next step—something He wants to change in you, something you need to let go of, or some new way He is calling you to live. You don’t have to have it all figured out, but spend some time praying to Jesus and say, “Lord, here I am. Keep changing me. Help me take my next step and act different.”
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