SEPTEMBER 25, Ephesians 4:17,22-25

Paul was concerned for the Ephesian Christians because they were not living their lives according to the teachings of the Scriptures. After we become Christians, we must “put off ” the way of living which we had before we accepted Jesus. We are to stop doing the wrong things we did. And instead of the “old man or self ”, we are to put on the new man at conversion.

Christians must be different from their old selves for they now have given their lives to Jesus. Every believer is to speak only truth. No lying is allowed. Do you lie? Lying is not just telling something untrue, it includes exaggeration, half-truths and white lies. Child, do you have the tendency to lie?

Paul tells us the reason that we are not to lie. What is the reason? It is ‘we are _______________ one of another’ (Ephesians 4:25b). A minister once explained it like this – if the eye sees a snake, does it deceive the foot? If the tongue tastes something bitter, does it deceive the stomach? When the eye sees a snake on the ground, it does not lie to the foot which is about to step on it. It does not say that it is just a walking stick. It tells the foot to turn away and run the other way. What happens if the eye tells lies? The snake bites and the person is hurt. Let’s switch to the tongue. If the tongue tastes poison but then tells the stomach that it is a sweet snack, both the stomach and tongue will suffer. What is the lesson for us here? Every time we are untruthful, we destroy not only the person we are talking to, but ourselves too, for we are members of one another – assuming we are all Christians.

Besides putting away lying, we must also put away other types of wrong behavior. What are they?

• A                      (Ephesians 4:26)
• S                      (Ephesians 4:28)
• C                    C                       (Ephesians 4:29)

After a person has received Jesus Christ, his life is changed. He is a new person and must live a different life.

Thought: Are you a new person?

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me put off the “old man” and put on the “new man”. In the name of Jesus, Amen.