Ephesians 81-82_23a Ephesians 4:17-32
Ephesians 1981-82 Corps Teachings. Lesson 20 Part 1: Ephesians 4:17-32. EPHESIANS 4:17-32 April 5, 1982 I’d like for you to take your Bibles and go to Ephesians please. I’m going to teach Ephesians tonight beginning where I left off last Wednesday night. So Ephesians chapter 4 tonight we begin with verse 17. Ephesians 4:17 This I say therefore [King James], and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, Speaking of Gentiles, there are nine different states of the Gentiles mentioned in this verse and the following verse…verses through verse 19. I will give you all nine of them. Number one—this is the state of the Gentiles. [1.] Number one: Vain in mind—verse 17. [2.] Darkened in understanding, number two—verse 18. [3.] Three, Alienated from God’s life—verse 18. [4.] Number four: Ignorant of God—verse 18. [5.] Number five: Blind in heart—also in verse 18. [6.] Number six: Past feeling—verse 19. [7.] Number seven: Lustful—verse 19. [8.] Number eight: Homosexual—verse 19. And finally… [9.] Number nine is: Greed—in verse 19. This word “vanity” describes any thought or action not directed toward pleasing God or building the truth of His Word. Now that is a great definition of vanity. It’s different than most likely Webster says or some of the rest, but that’s what vanity is. It’s any thought or action, people, not directed towards pleasing God or building the truth of His Word. The way out of, the way out of this bleak existence is beautifully and powerfully and dynamically set forth in Ephesians 4:25-31 which we will be at, but it’s also given in Ecclesiastes. And I’d like to go to Ecclesiastes with you in chapter 12 of Ecclesiastes. That’s the last chapter. Verse 13 of the last chapter of Ecclesiastes. Ecclesiastes 12:13 Let us hear the [what?] conclusion of the whole matter: [reverence God, respect,] Fear [love] God,…keep his commandments: for this is the whole… of man. This is the wholeness of man. Verse 14. E
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it. Do it! Take your clothes off, you change clothes, so this is a change of clothing. From your former, or old man, way of life—“former conversation.” And you would all know “the old man” has to be a figure of speech, Hypocatastasis figure. See. “…which is corrupt”—You could literally say “the corrupted old man.” I put down here: the old man of former behavior corrupted according to the lusts of deceit. The lust of deceit, and that is…those words “deceitful lusts” are a figure of speech, it’s a Metonymy of Effect, in which deceit, the effect, is put for the cause, the Deceiver. Literally, it is the passionate desires of the Deceiver, passionate desires, you know, got his tongue hanging out, passionate desires. That ought to communicate to you young people [audience laughter and Dr. Wierwille chuckles]. Twenty-two, literal. Ephesians 4:22 Literal translation according to usage Now you st