How Should You Walk?

Ephesians 4:17-19 ESV

“Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.”

“Gentiles” is a biblical term used to describe non-Jews. It is also a biblical term used to describe the ungodly of this world. For in the Old Testament times, and in the times prior to Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, the non-Jews were considered to be the ungodly, although I believe there were some exceptions to that. Other translations will sometimes use the term “the nations” in place of “Gentiles,” again meaning “the ungodly of this world.” And another term used in place of “Gentiles” might also be “the heathen.” So this is speaking of those whose faith is not in Jesus Christ, i.e. the ungodly.

Nonetheless, it isn’t just those who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ who are the ungodly, but it is all who make ungodliness their practice, who are living ungodly lives. So we, as followers of Jesus Christ, are to no longer walk (in conduct, in practice) like those who make ungodliness their practice. We are not to be hardhearted toward the Lord Jesus, doing whatever our flesh dictates, regardless of what the word of God teaches us. Thus, we are not to be callous in heart, giving ourselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity, like the ungodly do.

Ephesians 4:20-24 ESV

“But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Now I really like what this says here! “But that is not the way you learned Christ!” Amen! It should NOT be the way we should have learned Christ, but sadly it is the way many are learning Christ. For the gospel message which is permeating the American church (not all congregations) makes no such requirements of believers in Jesus Christ, that they no longer walk (in conduct, in practice) like the ungodly, giving themselves up to sensuality, etc. But they are teaching you can “believe” (not defined usually) in Christ, have all your sins forgiven, be on your way to heaven, but still walk in sin.

Repentance (the forsaking of and dying to our sins daily) and obedience to our Lord (and to his New Covenant commands) are rarely being included in the gospel of our salvation anymore, and many people are deliberately excluding them, saying that is “works salvation,” or “Lordship salvation,” yet neither of these exclusions are biblical, but they are a creation of man. For all throughout the New Testament we are taught that we must die with Christ to sin and walk in obedience to his commands or else we do not have eternal life with God and we will not enter the kingdom of heaven.

So, we have to be careful to test what we are hearing other humans teach regarding the gospel, and to test what they are teaching against the Scriptures in their full context. For many lies are being spread based on Scriptures pulled out of their contexts and twisted and made to say what the Scriptures, as a whole, do not teach. For John 10:28-30 needs to include verse 27. And Ephesians 2:8-9 needs to include verse 10. And Romans 10:9-10 needs to be interpreted in light of the whole book of Romans. And John 3:16 needs to be studied in light of all of John 3, etc.

For the truth that is in Christ Jesus is not that we can just “believe” (not biblically defined) in Jesus, have all our sins forgiven (past, present, and future), and be guaranteed heaven for when we die, regardless of how we live. The truth that is in Christ Jesus is that we must be crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer living as slaves to sin but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. For if sin is what we obey, it will end in death. But if obedience is what we obey, it will end in eternal life (Romans 6:1-23).

And the truth that is in Christ Jesus is that we are to put off our old self, which belongs to our former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and we are to be renewed in the spirit of our minds, and we are to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. And Jesus taught the same thing, that we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin and to self) and follow (obey) him. For if we hold on to our old lives of living in sin, we will lose them for eternity. But if we die with him to sin and live to his righteousness, then we have eternal life in him (see Luke 9:23-26; cf. Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14).

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

My Sheep  

An Original Work / June 24, 2012  

Based off John 10:1-18 NIV

My sheep hear me. They know me.

They listen to my voice and obey.

I call them and lead them.

They know my voice, so they follow me.

They will never follow strangers.

They will run away from them.

The voice of a stranger they know not;

They do not follow him.

So, I tell you the truth that

I am the gate, so you enter in.

Whoever does enter

Will find forgiveness and will be saved.

Nonetheless whoever enters

Not by the gate; other way,

He is the thief and a robber.

Listen not, the sheep to him.

Oh, I am the Good Shepherd,

Who laid his own life down for the sheep.

I know them. They know me.

They will live with me eternally.

The thief only comes to steal and

Kill and to destroy the church.

I have come to give you life that

You may have it to the full… 

They know my voice, so they follow me.

https://vimeo.com/114938263