I invite your attention to Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 25 to chapter 5 and verse 2. Ephesians 4 verse 25 to 5 verse 2. This will be a small address on a very, very big subject. But however long I spoke on this subject, I'm afraid I would not do it justice. This passage conveys to us, speaks to us, reveals to us, opens to us such a glorious prospect that I feel utterly inadequate to do it justice. Let me just try to indicate what the Apostle is doing here as I see it. He's in the section in Ephesians now from chapter 4 verse 1 is in the section now dealing with sanctification the outworking of all the glorious doctrine he has set before us in the first three chapters and whatever else I say about this passage here before us 425 and on I say this we must never forget the first three chapters of this letter All the duties, all the practical outworking that he speaks of, all the consequences flow intimately, powerfully, connected with this glorious doctrine. It's not just a list of rules here. In fact, it's not a list at all. Everything flows out of the doctrine that he has set before us in the first three chapters. and the first three chapters shows us the glory of the new covenant the glory of the gospel the triune God working out everlasting salvation for the elect forming one glorious body to the praise and honor of God and the good of all the elect the everlasting good of all the elect planned and decreed by God the Father accomplished by Christ the Son of God and worked out by the Holy Spirit in the lives and experience of the believers, of the elect, bringing them to faith, making them believers. Now this passage here is to do with this question of sanctification. As I say, from chapter 4 verse 1 the apostle is applying his doctrine and saying it must show in your lives he's saying to the believers as we saw yesterday he opened the section i looked at yesterday with this in verse 17 so i tell you this and i insist on it in the lord that you must no longer live as pagans but you must live now as you are christians He carries on in this theme here, verse 25, therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor. I will briefly run through the practical outworkings of this sanctification that he is speaking of here, but they are self-evident and they stand clear. The Apostles' meeting stands very clear here. We must put off lies. We mustn't lie to each other. He's speaking about believers. in that great church but in the local assemblies and the manifestation of the great one body we saw that the day before yesterday when we looked at the one body of Christ worked out in the local ecclesia the local churches of Christ the one body, the whole body ministry there must be no falsehood we must speak the truth, verse 25 to our neighbors I think we've already seen we speak the truth in love For we're all members of one body. In your anger, don't sin. Don't let the wrath, the sun go down while you're still angry. Don't nurse a grudge. Don't bear a grudge. I know this verse is capable of other interpretation, but I think the point here is clear, at least in this respect. Don't go on nurturing grudges. Don't bear grudges. Don't go to bed and sleep on wrath. decide, put it aside, deal with it each day. Don't give the devil a foothold, verse 27. Those who've been stealing must give up their stealing and we can apply this right across the board. Our former way of life must be stopped. Sharing with each other. John speaks about loving in word, yes and in deed, not just simply in word. Verse 29, the way we talk to each other must be profitable. no filthy jokes, no evil communication, no lies, deceit, unhelpful, unwholesome things. Let it all be, verse 29, profitable, beneficial, helping, encouraging, maybe reproving, rebuking at times, but in every way wholesome and edifying. Verse 31, get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, slander, malice in every form of malice, be kind and compassionate to one another, live a life of love, verse 2 of chapter 5, and so on. There's negative, don't do this. There's positive, do the other. This is the way the Christian should live, this is the way the Christian will live. No malice, no spite, no pilfering, no stealing, no lying, but wholesome, profitable, spiritual edification, not nursing grudges, but a life of love lived out for the glory of God. Now what's the difference between this and that which I have criticized so often namely sanctification by the law? Remember I've said that so many people are under Calvin's system and they vehemently argue that we should put believers under the law and they should be driven by the width of the law driven like lazy asses Calvin said believers are lazy asses driven to obey and the motive must be fear and we look at the law as the standard and we're driven by this whip the motive must be fear now what's the difference between that and what we see here well where's the law here well I'm silent but you can answer but even if you were sitting in the room with me here you couldn't answer there is no law here what is here? grace gospel salvation the father the son and the spirit the great new covenant salvation all the doctrine that we have had in the first three chapters let me show you as he says In verse 32, he mentions God. God the Father there. God the Father forgave you. Verse 1 of chapter 5. The imitators of God. And again in verse 2, a sacrifice to God. You can see God the Father here. Can you see God the Son here? Can you see Christ? Well, I certainly see Him in verse 32, just as in Christ God forgave you. Verse 1 of chapter 5, be imitators of God therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love. Verse 2, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. And is the Spirit mentioned here? well verse 30 do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption what am I trying to say? there are commands to believers Paul says I insist on this therefore he says as a consequence of all I taught you you must each of you you must put off falsehood and so on verse 25 but the difference between this New Covenant way of sanctification and recipe preaching and law preaching is this. This is grace preaching. This is gospel preaching. From first to last, it's to do with God's electing love, Christ's accomplishment of salvation for his elect, and the Spirit's working in the elect. And the standard is not the law. The standard is Christ, just as God in Christ forgave us, just as Christ lived We must live just as God forgave, just as God has mercy upon you. Live a life of love just as Christ. Notice the just as. It comes in verse 2 of chapter 5 and it comes in the last verse of chapter 4. Twice. The standard of this sanctification is not the law. It is just as in Christ God forgave you. It is, in verse 2 of chapter 5, live a life of love just as Christ loved us now these are not throw away words this is dismissed as soft woolly sentimental gush that's blasphemous virgin on the blasphemous this is what Paul says this is what the doctrine Paul sets out and the standard is not the law it is Christ himself the motive is not fear It is the great salvation that Christ has wrought for us, and the love that He has for us, and the love we have back for Him, because He has been merciful to us, because He has loved us in this way, we want to please Him. now I said I would fail to convey what this passage is about I know I'm failing but the difference between law sanctification and grace sanctification old covenant I might call it sanctification and new covenant sanctification between fear and love between gospel law works and grace the difference is I can't say how vast the difference is they are poles apart Contrary to each other The spirit is in us brother and sister. I speak to those of you who are believers We are members one of another we are in this great body of christ He has formed us into one now. I said before I shall never meet most of you who listen to me Are you in africa? Are you in china? But we are one in christ my brother and sister Of course, it has to be worked out in the local ecclesia. That's where it's most apparent to be shown. And the brothers and sisters have to love each other and care for each other. Why? Because each of us is forgiven by the same Christ and by the same fragrant sacrifice offered to God. A pleasing sacrifice and a sweet, fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. The Spirit indwells us and He has sealed us. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption, verse 30. We saw that in the first chapter. He has sealed us, he has marked us. The seal is a guarantee of the genuineness of the article. It's a hallmark. It says this is real, this is not counterfeit. And of course in the first chapter we link this with the deposit, the guarantee that we should get all the inheritance that Christ has laid out for us in his sacrifice and work. And, of course, the witness of the Spirit and the anointing of the Spirit. I'm referring, of course, to Romans 8 and 1 John, several verses. This is all the same. God's Spirit within us, sealing us, anointing us, bearing witness with us, confirming us, giving us assurance, joining us to Christ, linking us to each other in Christ. There must be no malice, no bitterness, no lying, no stealing, no anger, no brawling. but love and kindness and compassion towards one another an edifying conversation what a picture I know I have failed and I'm very sorry that I have failed I could go on talking all day and I still wouldn't convey it the picture is Christ what Christ is what Christ has done what Christ is doing in us and what is laid up for us and surrounded by this wealth of truth this whole system of gospel salvation, this should move and melt our hearts, not in fear, perfect love casts out fear, but in love to Christ and his love to us, love to the Father, the love of the Spirit within us, this should move us and melt us to a holy and spiritual life. It's not recipe preaching, it's not conformity, it's not fear and whips. It's the love of God in Christ and the standard is not law but Christ himself. Romans 8 Paul tells us that the purpose of God is to conform us to Christ. I'm reminded of that woman in the Gospels, Luke 7 where she bathed Jesus' feet and wept over them and wiped them with her hair and the people were angry Notice that in Luke 7 where Christ links her loving much and her forgiving much. Brother and sister, Christ has forgiven us all our sins, let us forgive one another's offenses. Christ has loved us with an everlasting love, let us love each other. May we so live that the unbeliever should say, look how those disciples love each other. may we live to the glory of God holy lives because we love him who first loved us unbeliever you're outside of all this you see you look at the church and you say that we're full of hypocrites we're hypocrites well you're dead right we are hypocrites yes but so are us so is the world outside one thing i'm very i like to read from now and again i like to read political memoirs and what um strikes me about the memoirs is this the difference The vast difference between what these men and women were saying when they were in office and when they're out of office and they write their memoirs. When they're in office, oh, we're all buddies together in this party and in this cabinet, we're all one together. But as soon as they get out of office and write their memoirs, they show the spite, the hatred, the conspiring, the planning, the climbing over each other, trying to climb the greasy pole, the malice, the bitterness, there is, even amongst these political cabinets and parties and so on. In public, they show a wonderful face, but in their hearts there is malice and hatred. It must not be in the church, my brothers and sisters. Unbeliever, you're outside of all this. If you want to know, a society like this, I shall read it to you in a moment. If you want to know this society, you have to come into this society and the way you come into it is through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. You won't get it down the public house. You won't get it in the worldly parties. You won't get it in social life outside of Christ. It's only in Christ that you'll have this. Only in Christ. Well, I apologize for failing to even scratch the surface of what is here. I know there's a wonderful realm, a wonderful life, a wonderful society, a wonderful body here, and it's all in Christ. I wish I could have made it clear to you. Perhaps Charles Wesley will get nearer to it. Can I read a hymn by Charles Wesley to you? Lord, from whom all blessings flow, perfecting the church below, steadfast may we cleave to thee love the mystic union be join our faithful spirits join each to each and all to thine lead us through the paths of peace on to perfect holiness move and actuate and guide divers gifts to each divide he's taking us back now to chapter four when we saw the whole body ministry Placed according to Thy will, let us all our work fulfill. Never from our office move, needful to each other prove. Use the grace on each bestowed, tempered by the art of God. Sweetly, may we all agree, touched with softest sympathy. there is neither bond nor free, great nor servile Lord in thee, love like death hath all destroyed, rendered all distinctions void, names and sex and parties fall, thou, O Christ, art all in all." I believe Charles Wesley has got closer to this passage than I have. Let me just read Paul again. Unbeliever, this is nothing to do with you, but you can have it if you come into Christ. Come now by faith and repentance. Believer, this is yours. Aspire to it. Let it melt and move your heart. May it move mine. May we reflect the glory of this passage in our lives, brother and sister. Therefore, each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. Don't let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.