Let's read from the verse 1 of Ephesians chapter 5. Be ye therefore followers of God as dear children. Walk in love as Christ also has loved us and has given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour. But fornication and uncleanness or covetousness, let it not be once named among you as becometh saints. neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient, but rather giving of thanks. For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no man deceive you with vain words, for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. Be ye not ye therefore partakers with them, for ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord. Walk as children of light, for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth, proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret, but all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light. For whatsoever doeth, doth make manifest his light. Wherefore, he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore, be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is, and be not drunk with wine wherein is excess. but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. We'll end at the verse 19, our public reading of God's precious Word. It's a wonderful thing to be a Christian, to know that your sins have been forgiven, to know that you're no longer under the condemnation of a broken law. It is so thrilling and so liberating to be united eternally to Christ. to be delivered from the bondage and the misery of our sin, to be rescued from hell, and to be made ready for heaven, to be at peace with God, and now a member of God's family, are blessings that money can never buy, to be justified, to be reconciled, to be the recipient of all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus, are matters that ought to lift you from the doldrums and to bring you up the mountain, chosen by Him, loved, by him ransomed, by him forgiven, by him kept, by him empowered, by him prayed for, by him. I say it again, it's a wonderful thing to be a Christian. With the blessings of being a Christian, however, there comes with it certain responsibilities. God requires each of his children to live lives according to the teaching that is found within the Word of God. God doesn't make that requirement of us to make us miserable, but rather he does that because he knows how we will come to enjoy living as a Christian as we align our lives with how the Word of God tells us how we are to live. The blessing and the enjoyment in Christian living comes about whenever we walk in the light of God's revealed will. These B statements that we've been considering over the last little while is one way in which we can know what God expects of us as His children. I don't want you to look at them as a millstone to hang around your neck, but rather I want you to look at them as wings that will help you soar above the world. and will also cause you to get the greatest blessing out of Christian living. We need to remember, whilst we give ourselves to obeying these commands that we've been thinking about, that the Savior's yoke is easy, and that His burden is light, and that His commandments are not grievous. And that the thoughts that God thinks towards us are thoughts of peace and not of evil to give us an expected end. Now we've considered already, I think it's three, four of the B statements that we find in the book of Ephesians. And last week we looked at those three B statements. Be ye holy, be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and be ye angry and sin not. And so we're back again in Paul's letter to the Ephesian believers and tonight we want to at least close out his teachings with regard to these B statements and so we're looking at a number of others that we find in the epistle tonight. The first of them is obviously found in the opening verse of the chapter that we read this evening where we read these words, be ye therefore followers of God as dear children. Now to understand in what area, what sphere we are to be followers of God, we need to look back to the chapter number four, because the word therefore points us backwards to what has come before. Anytime you see the word therefore in scripture, always think to yourself what comes before. therefore equals what comes before and that'll help you to understand contextually what God is trying to communicate to you at that particular moment of the inspired record. Contextually we see that we are to be followers of God in the area of kindness and in the area of forgiveness because if you look back to the verse 32 there we read these words and be kind one to another tender-hearted forgiving one another even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you be ye therefore followers of God as dear children you'll remember the chapter breaks come in an archbishop of Canterbury a man by the name of Stephen Langdon introduced the chapter breaks in AD 1227 and so you really can read from verse 32 right into the verse number 1 of Ephesians chapter 5 to get the context of and showing you where we are to be followers of the Lord Jesus Christ and of God himself. Paul is exhorting the believers that they are to exhibit kindness and to exhibit a spirit of forgiveness, and they are to imitate God who himself showed kindness and who himself exhibited a spirit of forgiveness. God has shown us kindness, and we are to show kindness to others. It was kindness on the part of God that saw to our salvation. Titus 3 verse number 4 and 5. But after that the kindness and love of our Savior toward man appeared not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his mercy he saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. The kindness and the love of God was exemplified in God when he showed us and brought us to salvation. And so God is showing us a pattern, an example of kindness that we are then to exhibit to others. Not only that, but God has forgiven us. And he continues to forgive us on a daily basis. And therefore, we should be ready to forgive others. He is born with our faults, and so we should bear with the faults of others. I was interested to read what Albert Barnes said about this verse. I want you to listen to the comment speaking about the followers of God, especially in this area of forgiveness. Albert Barnes, the commentator, he said this, what a simple rule this is. And how much contention and strife would be avoided if it were followed? If every Christian who is angry, unforgiving, and unkind would just ask himself or herself the question, How does God treat me? It would save all the trouble and heartburning which ever exists in the church. We are to be followers of God in the area of kindness and in the area of forgiveness. The word followers is the Greek word mentes, mentes. We get an English word from it, and it's the word mimic, mimic, or the word, sorry, mime, the word mime. I'm sure you have seen a mime artist. A mime artist is someone who acts a part with mimic gestures and actions. And there's something very obvious about someone who is a mime artist. They don't say anything. They don't say anything. And really what we have here is the thought, the truth that there's many and they talk the talk, but really they don't walk the walk. What we're really speaking of here at the end of the verse five, isn't it a beautiful expression? It's only two words in length, but you may miss it, but how so thrilling it is, because there we are called dear children. Not just children, but dear children. The word is beloved. And every Christian, every Christian, regardless of where you are in your Christian journey, you are a dear child of God. One who is greatly beloved, as was spoken about Daniel. That's how God addressed Daniel, a man greatly beloved. And child of God, that's what you are. Your one is loved, greatly loved. You're a dear child of God. Not just a child of God, but a dear child of God. You're loved by Him. And maybe we lose that in the simplicity of the very thought and the very words that we're employing tonight, that tonight I am loved of God, that I am a dear child of God. Did you go to your school or your place of work with that thought in your mind this morning, that I'm one who's dearly loved of God? If you didn't, let me encourage you to go into your place of education or employment tomorrow with that truth thrilling your heart and your soul, that you are one who is loved by God. Maybe not loved by your work colleagues, maybe not loved by the manager, but you're loved by God, dearly loved. A dear child of God, that's what you are. Loved as Christ is loved. Loved eternally, loved everlastingly, loved enduringly, loved emphatically. You're loved of God. This is what we are. And as his children, we are then to resemble him. in these areas of kindness, being tender-hearted and forgiving one another, as God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven us. The second B is found there in Ephesians 5, in the verse number 8. And we'll read the context, the verse 17, because it says, Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine wherein is excess, but be filled with the Spirit." Really, you've got three B's in those two verses. Two negative, one positive. The first negative B is, be ye not unwise. Be ye not unwise. In evil days, such as the days that we are presently living in, the child of God is not to live foolishly, but rather they are to understand what the will of the Lord is for them, both at a collective corporate level and also on a personal level. Those who live their lives unwisely are those who live their lives according to their feelings. I feel that I should do that. Or maybe with regard to their instinct. Well, it's just my instinct. I believe I should do this. Believe the Lord would have me to do it. I just have this kind of instinct with regard to... Or maybe it's their desire. Their desire being a good desire, no doubt, I'm sure. And so they think, well, the desire, well, that's the reason, that's the motivation why I should do certain things. Or maybe it's on the advice of others. But the wise believer live their lives according to the revealed will of God as he has set forth for us in the scriptures. Decisions should never be taken on some kind of hunch. Some kind of chance happening that aligns itself with maybe your well. We all know what happened with regard to Jonah. That boat just waiting for him. and a place on the boat. As it were, it seemed to be just reserved for him, and it was going in the direction that he was going. Surely this must be God's will. But it wasn't, for it was contrary to God's revealed will. You mustn't make decisions on hunches or chance happenings or some feeling that you have, but rather on the clear direction that God has given you in His word. The unwise person will not understand what the will of God is, but rather they will go against his revealed will. They will not seek what the will of God is on the particular matter. That is the person who is unwise, and God says, be ye not unwise. Don't be unwise. Be a wise believer. Understand what the will of God is in every area of life. From relationships to job and career and church and places to live and all of those things and raising a family and ministry and full-time service. All of those things. Understand what the will of God is. And where you'll find that is obviously within God's precious word, where he has revealed his will to us all. And so be not unwise. And then there's another negative. It says here, be not drunk with wine. Be not drunk with wine. Modern psychology has prescribed alcoholism as a disease, sickness. But the Bible calls it a sin. That's a sin. We are not to get drunk with wine. That's what it says, be not drunk with wine. Medical science tells us that the effect of alcohol reaches the brain within one minute of its consumption. When taken, alcohol passes from the stomach into the small intestine, where it is rapidly absorbed into the blood. And as a result, it can be detected within the blood within three minutes of the first intake. Research has proven that there is a 5% to 15% decrease in response time after drinking, just after the minimal amounts of alcohol. And I'm reminded of what Solomon and his warning with regard to wine in Proverbs 23 verse 29 to 32. Let me read the verse to you. Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? who hath babblings, who hath wounds without cause, who hath redness of eyes, they that tarry long at the wine, that they should go and seek mixed wine. Look not, thou, upon the wine. 6 and 8, 1 Peter 1, 13, 1 Peter 4, verse 7, 1 Peter 5, and the verse 8. The word sober in the Bible literally means wine-less. Wine-less. Not under the influence of intoxicating liquor. Vine's expository dictionary defines the Greek word nephro, sober, as to be free from the influence of intoxicants. To be free from the influence of intoxicants. Whenever you collate the many Bible references that speak about being sober, you'll find that everyone in the church is exhorted to soberness. You'll find that ministers are exhorted to be sober. 1 Timothy 3 verse 2, Titus 1 verse 8. Deacons wise are exhorted to be sober, 1 Timothy 3 verse 11. Older men are exhorted to be sober in Titus 2 verse 2. Older women are exhorted to teach the younger woman to be sober, Titus 2 verse 3 and 4. And young men are exhorted to be sober in Titus 2 and the verse number 6. To have one's mind brought under the influence of intoxicating liquor, even in the earliest stages of intoxication, is inconsistent with the sober, vigilant, watchful mindset that we are called to have as a believer in the word of God. Charles Hodge wrote that to get drunk with wine is an example of folly, a lack of sense, especially inconsistent with the intelligence of the true believer. I remind you that every alcoholic began with the first drink. My counsel to you is never have the first drink. Never have it. Thomas Watson said, there is no sin which more defaces God's image than drunkenness. Be not drunk with wine. And then it says, but be filled with the Spirit. Be filled with the Spirit. Here is how you'll enjoy Christian living. Living your life under the influence of the Holy Spirit. In case someone quickly edits Puts out there, there's the minister telling them that people need to be under the influence. Under the influence, under the control of God the Holy Spirit. Just as an intoxicated person's behavior is under the control of alcohol when they're filled with drink, so the Christian filled with the Holy Ghost will have a life completely under the control of the Spirit of God. Such a filling of God the Holy Spirit comes about when we ask God for it. Look 11, 13. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? That's it. Asking him. being right and pure before God, and then asking Him. And the present tense, this filling, be filled with the Spirit. This indicates that our filling is to be of a continual nature. We are to be continually filled with the Spirit of God. We are to be continually controlled by the Spirit of God in our mind and in our emotions and in our world. To be filled with the Spirit is not to have the Holy Spirit somehow progressively adding to your life until you're full of Him, but rather it is to be under His total dominion and control moment by moment. Be filled with the Spirit, child of God. It'll make your worship enjoyable and pleasing to God. and beneficial and profitable to you. It'll make the work that you do on a daily basis, it'll make it enjoyable to you and you'll be able to do it to the glory of God. Begin every day and ask God to fill you with His Spirit. He will then enable you and He will empower you to meet the challenges of the day. and He'll help you to triumph over the world and the flesh and the devil, and He'll enable you to witness, and He'll enable you and assist you in prayer. Oh, for God's people, to be filled with the Spirit of God. Be ye filled. This is the command. This is the injunction of God, the direction of God, the counsel of God. Be filled with the Spirit of God. Be under His control. Obey His promptings and His leading in your life as He guides you in His Word, by the Word. And as you obey Him, then you'll come to enjoy your Christian living. Be filled with the Spirit. Do you know anything about it? Do I know anything about it? Oh, to have a ministry full of the Spirit. Oh, to be a man full of the Spirit of God. Make the home. A lot easier to live in. Make the church a lot more beneficial to this community and to you. To have your minister to be filled with the Spirit. You pray. Pray that I might know the infilling of the Spirit and that you would know the infilling of the Spirit. Day by day. Day by day. Well, there's two others. Let's quickly look at them. Ephesians chapter 6 and the verse number 5. Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling and singleness of your heart, as unto Christ, not with thy service as men pleasers, but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. To those who find themselves in some kind of employment, we are here commanded to be obedient, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, as much as what they ask of us is compliant to the teaching of scripture. You can't be obedient to your master if your employer is asking you to be involved in things that are fraudulent and things that are illegal. You can't obey them in that. Then you'll break scripture, the commands of God. You'd be better to get another job, confront the boss, tell him you're a Christian. You're not going to be involved in that type of stuff. And if he sacks you, so be it. Find another job, and God will bless you for it. And so it's not a carte blanche, as it were. Well, we are obedient, and if he asks me to steal or to fiddle the books, Well, I need to be obedient. No, not so. You need to be wise with regard to those things. How are we enabled to obey our employer? Well, we're able to obey our employer because we come to realize that we are serving the Lord Jesus Christ as we serve him or her. Remember, behind every human master, there is a higher master. And all our work is done under his watchful eye. He sees it all. God sees it all. Matthew Henry said to have an eye to Christ is to remember that he sees them and is ever present with them and that his authority obliges them to be faithful and conscientious and conscientious discharge of the duties of their station. We are to be faithful. And as we serve our earthly masters, we do so remembering that we serve Christ. We serve Christ as we serve them. I wonder how obedient were you at work today? Did you comply with the reasonable directives of those who are in management? Or were you non-compliant? I found in my short time in the workplace that some Christians were the most non-compliant when it came to reasonable orders from management. And that ought never have to been the case, but sadly it was. And to be honest, they had terrible testimonies in the place of employment. look at your work simply as being secular in nature. It's sacred. You are to work for your earthly employer as servants of Christ and doing all duties of employment as unto the Lord and not to men. In the Reformation, there was what was known as the rediscovery of the Protestant work mindset. And that's where we need to get back to. giving of ourselves to the duties that lie to our hand within secular employment and doing it as unto the Lord. A Christian Protestant work ethic was one of the great discoveries, rediscoveries of the Protestant Reformation. May God help us in these days to be obedient even unto our earthly masters. And then in Ephesians 6 in the verse 10, and with this I quickly close, it says, finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his life. Strength and power to live the Christian life. Strength and power to fulfill our duties as husbands, wives, children, employees, and employers. Strength and power to face down our many foes. is not found in ourselves. You should know that by now. The Christian is naturally weak. The Bible reminds us that without God we can do nothing. however there is strength that is outside of ourselves that is available that we might live for Christ and do warfare for Christ and that strength is found in the Lord according to Philippians 4 verse 13 God strengthens us so that we are enabled to do all things through him I can David was strong in the Lord when he met Goliath. Daniel was strong in the Lord when he went to stand before the king, refusing to stop praying. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were strong in the Lord. All naturally weak men But God strengthened them for the hour and for the time of testing and where to be strong in the Lord, knowing who he is and what he is able to do, child of God. William Gouge said, the strength and valor whereby we are enabled to fight the Lord's battle is hid in the Lord and to be had from him. And so let's ask him. Maybe you have something meeting you tomorrow and you feel so weak about it. Ask the Lord for strength, strength to go in to work, strength to go in to school, having been there today, and all that you face there, and all of the scorn and the mockery that you face there, and all of the disappointment that you face there. Ask the Lord to strengthen you. Ask him to empower you. Ask him to help you. Oh, that God would help us and empower us in order that we might discharge our duties and war a good warfare for Him. And so may God help us to be followers of God. And may God help us to be filled with His Spirit. May God help us not to be unwise. May God help us not to be drunk with wine. May God enable us to be filled with His Spirit. May we be obedient employees, servants. May we be strong in the Lord. just some more bees in this great hive of bees that we have in the Scriptures. May God help us to fulfill all of these, even in our lives, by the help and by the grace of God. May the Lord bless His Word to our hearts for Christ's sake. Amen. Let's stand for prayer briefly. Our Father, our God in heaven, we thank Thee for Thy Word, again reminding us of our responsibility. Yes, what a blessing to be a Christian. Oh, we enjoy the blessings, we thank thee for them, but oh, help us to understand with every blessing there is a duty, there is a responsibility for us to live as God would have us to live. Help us in these areas if we haven't been following thee. Maybe in the area of forgiveness, someone has hurt us. Someone has said something about us. Oh, help us with this. And kindness. Oh, help us to show kindness. And Lord, if we've been living according to the flesh, oh, help us to live in the power of the Spirit. And may we not go out in our own strength tomorrow. May we go out strong in the Lord. And Lord, help us. In these areas, help me to be obedient. God to my employer, as it were, help me to fulfill my duties as God would require of me, as unto the Lord, doing my work as if Christ was standing over me, as if I was fulfilling that service or doing that particular job for Him. Oh, help us to live in such a way. Oh, help us to give our best. not just some half-heartedness with regard to our employment, but giving our best will help us with this, we pray. So guide us by your Spirit, apply the Word, will help us to be practical in our preaching and in the imbibing of it and the living of it out in our lives. help us all we pray for we pray these prayers in Jesus name amen and amen thank you may be seated just to remind you quickly off the announcements things to pray for please pray for the work of God pray