Ephesians 4:20-24

Ephesians 4:20-24

But you all did not learn Christ in that manner!  If indeed you all heard about Him and were being taught in Him – just as truth is in Jesus – to lay yourself aside according to former behavior of the old man that is being morally corrupted according to the evil desires of deception and to be renewed by the spirit of your mind and to put on the new man that was being created according to God in righteousness and holiness of truth.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

In the opening line there is a neat and subtle place of translational note.  Notice that Paul doesn’t say, “learn about Christ.”  Rather, Paul says “learn Christ.”  Paul is not speaking about some academic exercise!  Paul is not speaking about gaining facts and figures about Jesus’ life.  Paul is talking literally about learning Christ.  He’s talking about living like Christ.  He’s talking about thinking like Christ.  He’s talking about becoming more like Christ every day!

Do you learn about Christ or do you learn Christ?  What is the difference to you?  Who in your life likewise understands this difference?

Second Thought:

So how do we learn Christ?  There is a first step.  We lay aside ourselves.  We put away our own agendas.  We put away our human behavior that is by definition naturally corrupted.  We put away deception.  To learn Christ means to be willing to accept our human depravity and intentionally get away from it.

Where are you with respect to step one?  Where is it easy to give up your humanity?  Where is it difficult?

Third Thought:

The second step in learning Christ is being renewed in our spirit by putting on the new man.  What is this new man?  This new man is a person of God’s creation.  It is God that makes us who we are in Christ.  It is God that imparts His righteousness.  It is God that imparts His holiness.  Once more we see that with respect to salvation and righteousness, it is God that gives and we who receives.

Where in your life have you put on God’s righteousness?  Where have you put on God’s holiness?  Why is it important to remember that it comes from God?

Passage for Tomorrow: Ephesians 4:25-32