WALK WISELY

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EPHESIANS 5:15-21

Morning.

This Sunday is the third. Sunday marks the third week of Advent, and I would like today to focus on the theme of love. John 316 for this is how God loved the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him, God gave his only son to us specifically to save us, to save us from judgment, to save us from just punishment, to save us from condemnation, and to save us from his very own wrath.

Why did Jesus come? Why was Jesus born? God sent his one and only son to be born as a human being, to save us? This is what Christmas is all about. Yes. Jesus was born so that he could die. This is why Jesus had to be born as a man. God cannot die. God is eternal. God is self-existent.

God is I am. His name means I was and I am, and I will be who I will be. God cannot die and part of why God had to send His son to become a man was that so that he could die for us in our place for our sins? We must not forget this Jesus was born as a little baby so that he could die.

This is what Christmas is all about. If Jesus did not die, then there's nothing to celebrate at Christmas. The joy of Christmas, the hope we have at Christmas, the peace to be found at Christmas. All of these are ultimately about the love of God that was manifested at Christmas in the birth of Jesus. First John four. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only son into the world so that we might live through him.

In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. That means the wrath absorber for our sins. He took upon himself the wrath that we deserved for our sins. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us.

God is love and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. We love because he first loved us. We love because God first loved us. And he gave His Son to die for us. We give gifts at Christmas because of the greatest gift ever given. Namely, God gave us His Son Jesus. We can now have peace with God and peace with one another because of the peace that Jesus made for us by the blood of his cross.

When you see those lights hung in the trees, think about him. Remember him, the light of the world that God hung for all the world to see on that not so beautiful tree.

So I invite you this Christmas as we wait, as we reflect upon his coming, as we celebrate his birth, remember Jesus was born to die. And what will we do with his death? How will we respond to his death? What does the birth of Jesus and the death of Jesus really mean to me?

It is now time to light the candles.

Light the first candle for the hope that we have. Even in the waiting.

For the joy that we can choose. No matter our circumstances.

And for the love of God displayed for all to see.

In the birth and the life and the death of Jesus.

The advent reading for today comes from the book of Romans in Ephesians. Hear the word of the Lord. God shows his love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

What a gift! This is the word of the Lord. Let's pray.

Oh Lord, I ask that you would come now and. Speak through your words. Affect us, Lord, through your word. You know every heart. You know every mind. You know every life. And circumstance.

Every need and dream. You know how to speak to us. I ask that you would get me out of the way. Lord.

Get me out of the way.

So that Jesus would be exalted. So that Jesus would be seen. So that Jesus would be glorified.

You would make us more like him. In your name of Jesus. Amen. Please open your Bibles or mobile device, to the book of Ephesians thus far in the second half of the letter to the Ephesians, Paul has instructed them to walk in unity, walk in holiness, walk in love, and last week walk in light. And so today, Paul is going to use the verb walk for the last time in this letter, he is going to instruct us about walking in wisdom.

Please stand if you are able, for the reading of God's Word. Today's reading comes from the letter of Paul to the Ephesians, chapter five. I'm going to read verses 15 through 21. Hear the word of the Lord.

Look carefully, then, how you walk not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is, and do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always.

And for everything to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. This is the word of the Lord. You may be seated. Verse 15. Look carefully, then, how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise. Look carefully how you walk. Pay close attention to how you are walking.

Friends, we are to pay close attention to how we are walking, to how we are living, to how we are ordering and arranging our lives. It is our responsibility and we are to do this with wisdom. Let us define it. What is wisdom? Where in the Bible do you think we should look to learn about wisdom?

Perhaps we should look to the wisdom literature. There are three books in the Old Testament that have been uniquely classified as wisdom literature, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job. And today we're going to look at what many scholars think to be the oldest scroll in the Bible. The Book of Job, job chapter 28. He says, but where shall wisdom be found, and where is the place of understanding?

From where then does wisdom come, and where is the place of understanding? God understands the way to it, and he knows its place. And God said to man, behold the fear of the Lord. That is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding in other wisdom literature. In the book of Proverbs we read, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

So we see that walking wisely starts with a healthy fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord. This is reverence for God. This is an all of God. This is knowing his ways and his word and his will, and loving and honoring. What he says is to be the standard. This is understanding that there is a way to live that honors and pleases God, and then there is a way that does not.

As the Mandalorian say, this is the way. The fear of the Lord grounds us in the understanding that there is a right way, and that there is a wrong way to walk. And Paul here says, we are to walk wisely. This life, my friends, is filled with contrast. Just like this letter, Paul fills this letter with contrasts. He begins in chapter four.

He says, walk worthy, walk not like the Gentiles write. Then in chapter five, verse two, he tells us to walk in love, walk in love, self-giving, sacrificial love, not self-centered, self-seeking gratification. He contrasts the two. Then in verse eight he says, walk in the light, not in the darkness. And now, today in verse 15, he says, walk as wise, not as unwise.

Did you know that you should be asking God for wisdom? Do you ask God for wisdom every day, multiple times a day? You should. This may not occur to you. That's okay. That's what I'm here for. James one if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him.

God promises to give you wisdom if you ask him. Do you want wisdom? I do, I need it. I struggle.

We must ask him, and he promises that he will give to us wisdom, and he will be generous with his wisdom. But we must ask him without doubting, and we must ask him without an agenda. James continues, because he knows our hearts, and he knows if we want wisdom just to benefit ourselves, or if we really are after a life that is pleasing to him.

But let me encourage you ask him for wisdom.

The best wisdom I love this quote. The best wisdom is that which has been given by God for insight into the true nature of God's plan. Friends, the unwise over here, they do not care about such things, the unwise. They either despise the things of God or they just don't care about the things of God.

Because of their sinful negligence and rebellion, it's as if the wrath of God has has snuffed out all of the eternal things that are inside of us. They are unwilling or unable to see life beyond themselves. But friend, let me encourage you. If you are here today and you are skeptical, if you are still searching, if you're interested in Jesus, if you're interested in Christianity, if you're trying to figure out what you believe about all of this stuff, let me just say this is the right place to be.

You are here, and this means that God is doing something in your life. There are no accidents. The church should always be a place where people can come with questions and doubts and struggles and fears. This is the place to come and to hear the voice of Jesus say, come.

All of you who are weary and weighed down, all of you who are worried and filled with anxiety and fear, all of you who are tired of pretending, all of you who are tired of doing this life on your own because you weren't meant to do this life on your own. Jesus says to all of us, come, and I will give you rest for your souls.

Walk wisely, friends, this seems to indicate that the command is a continuous command. It doesn't happen one time. It is ongoing. This paying attention to how we walk. We as Christians are to make a habit of walking wisely and paying attention to how we walk. This is to be our lifestyle. King David provides some insight into this lifestyle in Psalms 25, verse one.

In you, Lord my God, I put my trust. I trust in you. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. David is acknowledging that he needs help in this. This is walking carefully. This is paying close attention to how he is walking. Leave that verse up, Jacob, would you? David understands that he has sins and he has frailty, and he has weakness.

He also knows that there are spiritual forces waging war against the people of God. Verse four. Show me your ways, Lord. Teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me. For you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. He doesn't say, help me to do this or help me to walk this or help me to.

He says, you got to do it. You got to show me. You got to teach me. You got to guide me all day, every day. You are my only hope. If I'm going to live this life in a way that pleases you. I need your help, Lord. I am dependent upon you, Lord.

Verse 12. Who then are those who fear the Lord? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose. When we learn to fear the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom, what is the promise? He will instruct us. He will give us more wisdom. He will give us more fear of the Lord, and he will give us the ability to even walk in a way that is pleasing to him.

Verse 20 guard my life and rescue me. Do not let me be put to shame, for I take refuge in you. May integrity and uprightness protect me, because my hope, Lord, is in you. Does this not sound like a man who fears the Lord?

Does this not sound like a man who longs to please God with his life? He is afraid to hurt the heart of his God, to offend him, to disobey him, to displease him, to lose intimacy with him. This is wisdom. If you ever need help with how to ask God for wisdom or how to pray in general, let me just encourage you.

Pray the Psalms. You don't need fancy words or to know how to put it all together, or what the right thing is to say. It's already written down. God loves to hear His Word read back to him. Let's continue. Look carefully then, how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time. Because the days are evil.

We must be intentional about how we are living our lives. Pay close attention then, to how you are walking. How are we spending our time? How are we spending our money? What are we participating in? What are we allowing our kids to participate in? Those relationships that develop based on what we participate in? What are we doing with those relationships that God has placed in his sovereignty in our lives?

Those people are there for a reason, and you are there in their life for a reason. How are we honoring him with those relationships?

Are we looking for opportunities to serve others, to encourage others? To help others? To pray for people?

Especially when they're in need. Friends, we should be a people marked by prayer. If someone share something with you, just can. I pray for you just right there. Just invite God into the moment to move and to act, and to make himself known to the people that God has placed in your life.

Are we speaking the name of Jesus with the people who need Jesus, or are we afraid to speak it because we'll be weird?

There is no other name that cuts the air out of the room, or that brings comfort and healing and peace. Like the name of Jesus.

What are we going to allow our life to be about? We cannot be passive in this, friends. We cannot just deal with life as it comes. We're going to be reacting. We're going to be responding. We're going to be up and down with all of the waves. Before you know it, life's going to be over. And we realize that we just wasted so much of it, and our life hasn't been able to make the impact that it could have.

You may have heard the quote, if you fail to plan, you should just plan to fail. Friends, I want us to live lives.

That reverberate into the Kingdom of God for generations.

That's my plan.

I'm in it to win it. So they say my assignment from Jesus as your pastor, for however long he allows me to do this, is to equip you and to teach you and to encourage you and to remind you. And when the Scripture presents it, to warn you, that's what admonish means to warn you. Because Paul says the days are evil.

We cannot be passive in these days.

We must make the best use of the time that we have, because there are forces of evil set against us, set against God, set against the kingdom of God, set against his ways, and his word and his will and clearly in Scripture he is set against the people of God. Our days are filled with opportunities for evil. The current of this world flows downhill toward evil.

If we are to live, otherwise, it's going to be uphill. It's going to be upstream. It's going to be intentional. We're not just going to float toward the kingdom of God doing nothing.

We're not walking through this life on level ground. It's not as simple as should I turn right? Should I turn left? It's hard.

It's much easier to just go with the flow.

Downhill toward the devil. The devil does not like a level playing field. He wants to stack all the cards so that he will win. The systems of this world are not neutral. The industries of the world are not neutral.

The spiritual forces pulling the strings are not neutral. My own sinful tendencies, my flesh is not neutral.

The world, the flesh, the devil. They are evil. Paul says these days are evil. Relentless warfare is being waged between the God of heaven and the God of this age, and we are commanded not to allow the God of this age to seduce us or to intimidate us. And we must take advantage of every opportunity given to us in the fallen environment of this world, because we are called to live a life that pleases God.

We are called to walk wisely. We must pay close attention to how we are walking. Walk wisely. We must ask for wisdom so that we can make the best use of the time, because the days are evil. How do we make the best use of our time? Let me give you a hack. Moses gives us a hack and Psalm 90.

So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. Friends, death is coming for us all. Here's the hack. You're going to die!

I'm going to die.

We don't like to talk about it these days. Generations before us. They thought about it all the time. It was all around them. And I tend to think that they walked with a little bit more wisdom than we had, because death was in front of them. They had seen it. It was a part of life. It was real.

They knew that their days were numbered. So teach us to number our days. That we may develop a heart of wisdom. Unless Jesus returns. Friends. We're all going to die. And he already knows how many numbers of days that all of us have. So what will we do with the days that he has given us? How will we use them?

We will live much more full lives, lives that are more pleasing to him. If we live our life every day like it's the last day.

Look carefully then. How you walk. Not as unwise, but as wise. Making the best use of the time. Because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. More contrasts. What's the opposite of wisdom? Foolishness. What's the opposite of the wise man? The fool. The foolish man lacks understanding. He despises knowledge.

But the wise man, he seeks understanding. He searches out the wisdom of God to know God's will.

Proverbs 28. Whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool. But he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. Verse 18. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the spirit. It is difficult to walk wisely while you are intoxicated.

Depending on how intoxicated you are. It might be difficult to walk at all, especially not wisely. We don't make great decisions when we're inebriated. This is just the fact. That's why there are laws prohibiting us from drinking while driving or while operating farm equipment.

Paul is not saying don't drink at all. He's saying do not make a habit of drinking to get intoxicated and do not drink to get intoxicated. That is not why we should drink. We should never have the goal to just be intoxicated or inebriated. I know for me, when I used to get drunk on purpose or get high on purpose, it was because I was trying to escape reality.

I wanted to not think about my life. I wanted to not think about my circumstances. I didn't like myself. I didn't like my world. I didn't like the things that had happened to me. And I wanted to take a break from that. I didn't want to be me. I wanted to turn into that other person that I could be.

That's debauchery.

That is the opposite of what it is to walk in the spirit. It is the opposite of being self-controlled, which is the fruit of the spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us, allows us to live in real, deep reality.

And yes, it hurts sometimes.

But when he's with us.

There's no other way. To walk wisely means we walk in step. And we walk under the direction of the Holy Spirit. And this requires a sober mind. Verse 19, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart.

I used to be a musician, so I'm a little biased, but I think that it's clear. Paul makes it clear in a couple letters something happens when we sing. When we sing truth. It's different than just reading it or memorizing it or quoting it. We are to do both. Don't get me wrong, I. We should study the scripture.

We should memorize scripture. But I think we should also sing. We should sing the truth of Scripture, truth about Jesus, truth about who he is and what he's done, or simply just sing to praise God. It's a command throughout the Scripture. Praise him.

Something is activated. Something is unlocked. Truth. Go down and land and live in places deep inside us. That that couldn't make it before. When we sing, there are images that get brought to mind. When we sing, there are memories and experiences. And then we sing together. Which takes it to another level. Because now we know stories of other people, and we know the victories that they have and the pain that they have and the loss that they've experienced and what they've been through.

And we sing together and we I watch people sing these words and it affects me. It encourages me. It spurs me on.

Colossians three he says it again. Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. Teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. Apparently he thought the Colossians needed to hear this, to sing that the Word of Christ would make its home in you and live there in abundance.

We should sing to God in our own personal life, and we should sing to God together corporately. When we gather together, there is power. When we sing together. Not all of us are musical, I get it. My wife's not musical, but she's a good. You know, she's a good match for me. I'm like, hey, how was that? It wasn't.

It wasn't very. It wasn't good.

Hey, how was the sound? Oh, the sound was. It wasn't loud enough because, like, I didn't want to sing because I sound horrible when I sing. There's other perspectives. Some of y'all sound real good, and you want to hear yourself sing, but we got to turn it up because of the people that don't want to hear you. Like, hear them sing.

They won't sing unless it's loud enough. It's a balance.

There's power when we sing. We bring our voices and we bring our stories. And we bring our victories. And we bring our struggles. And this corporate response together of what he has done and what he is doing in our lives. And then we just declare the truths of who he is together. And I think it pleases him. I know it does because he commands us to do it.

So let us sing verse 20, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ, no matter what comes our way, as we are doing our best to walk wisely. We are to give thanks. No matter what. Elsewhere, he says, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Life is not going to be easy. This is certain.

Especially for those that seek to do the will of the Lord. Remember what he just said. The days are evil.

But we can be thankful even in evil days.

We can give thanks always and for everything, as opposed to complaining as opposed to being downcast as opposed to being dissatisfied. Discontent as opposed to grumbling like they did in the wilderness. Let us not anger God or frustrate God, or test his patience with our grumbling. He does not like grumbling. When we are walking wisely filled with the Holy Spirit.

Thanksgiving will be our natural response.

And who is the recipient of our response of thanksgiving? God. God the Father. Because of Jesus, we are thankful to God the Father for the Lord Jesus Christ. All of our life is this worshipful response to God our Father, who is our father because of the gift of Jesus. We have a Heavenly Father because of Jesus. Another result of walking wisely under the power and direction of the Holy Spirit is that we will submit to one another.

We will yield to one another. We will honor one another because we honor Jesus. The world takes great pride in their individualism and in their independence, but it should not be so with Christians. Jesus said that the world would know that we are his disciples because of our love for one another. He said, who? Whoever wishes to be the greatest among you will become the like the least.

Whoever wishes to be the greatest among you will become the servant of all. Paul writes in Romans. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor toward one another.

Philippians two he says, do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Imagine a world. Imagine a subculture in which the people truly considered other people more important than themselves.

Man. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. This is mutual submission. This is humility toward one another. We're going to talk more about this next week and how it plays out. But we are to submit to those that God has put over us. And we do this not lip service, not eye service.

We do this out of reverence for our Lord Jesus. We do this because we want to honor Jesus. If we love Jesus, we want to be like Jesus. If you really love Jesus, then however he is. That's what I want to be like. That's what I want to look like. Because I love him. And this is how Jesus lived.

He submitted in everything to his father. He he did not lord over anyone with his power or his authority or his son of Godness.

He made himself low. He humbled himself. He took on the form of a servant. He honored others. He lifted others up. He was thoughtful. He was considerate. He was always compassionate. He was always focused outward on others.

He loved. And he associated with the lowly and the forgotten. Women and children and tax collectors and sinners and Samaritans and Roman centurions.

How are we to walk wisely? Look to Jesus in Colossians Paul writes, In Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. You want to find the hidden treasures that you're looking for. They are found in Jesus. In first Corinthians he says, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. We see that Jesus is the very wisdom of God.

Christ Jesus became to us wisdom from God. 700 years before the first Christmas before Jesus was born. Isaiah prophesied of Jesus who was to come, and he writes, and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord and his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.

Friends, Jesus possesses all wisdom. He is the source of all wisdom. He is the very wisdom of God. And Jesus knows how to walk wisely. He has proven it, and he knows that we can't do this by ourselves. He promises to help us walk wisely, to teach us and empower us, and to correct us when necessary, and to encourage us and lift us up when we fallen down.

And best of all, he promises that he will always be with us as we walk. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which means

God with us.