Matt used this video during his talk:

Continuing in this series through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Andy Evans looks at how the gospel call is a call to live and a call to act.

In the third part of a new series entitled, Dwell, Ronnie Evans examines how God now dwells in us.

Continuing in this series through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Andy Evans continues to look at how Paul exhorts us to live and walk like Jesus.

During the Monday’s Bible Study we are currently working through an 11 part series based on John Piper’s Desiring God. The handout notes (which pertain to the Chapter Three: Worship: The Feast of Christian Hedonism) are posted below. Please note that this handout is adapted from Desiring God Study Guide and Desiring God Study Guide for Groups which can be accessed directly from the Desiring God site (here).

The introduction to the 11-week study can be read here.

DESIRING GOD: MEDITATIONS OF A CHRISTIAN HEDONIST

Chapter 3 – Worship: The Feast of Christian Hedonism

The How and Whom of Worship

The author writes,

The woman raised the issue of where people ought to worship. Jesus responds by saying, “That controversy can’t compare in importance with the issue of how and whom you worship.” (p. 81)

1. Read John 4:1-32 and consider what Jesus has to say about the how and the whom of worship. How does verse 23 help us identify the how and whom of right worship? Why is the how and whom of worship more important than the where? What happens when either the how or whom is missing from one’s efforts in worship? (pp. 81-82)

Fuel, Furnace and Heat

The author writes,

Perhaps we can tie things together with this picture: The fuel of worship is the truth of God; the furnace of worship is the spirit of man; and the heat of worship is the vital affections of reverence, contrition, trust, gratitude, and joy.

But there is something missing from this picture. There is furnace, fuel, and heat, but no fire. The fuel of truth in the furnace of our spirit does not automatically produce the heat of worship. There must be ignition and fire. This is the Holy Spirit. (p. 82)

2. Consider, again, John 4:1-32 and read John 3:6 (it would be helpful to read verse 3 through to 8). What evidence to we find here to support the author’s analogy of fuel, furnace and heat?

3. In the author’s analogy, what is God’s role and what is our part in stoking the heat of worship?

An Affair of the Heart

The author writes that,

…worship is a way of gladly reflecting back to God the radiance of His worth. (p. 84)

4. Read Psalm 33:1-3, Psalm 47:1-2, Psalm 66:1-4, Psalm 96:6-13 and Psalm 100. What evidence do we find in these passages to support the author’s definition of worship? What else do these passages tell us about the kind of worship God desires?

5. Consider again the author’s definition of worship. What possible misunderstanding could the word gladly cause? What possible worse misunderstanding could be caused by not using the word gladly? (pp. 84–85)

6. Read Matthew 15:8-9 (cf. Isaiah 29:13) and consider what it is that might make an act of worship vain? What are some motivations besides genuine affection for God that might lead a person to perform an act of worship? (pp. 85–86)

Worship as an End in Itself

The author writes,

This is what keeps worship from being “in vain.” [...]

If God’s reality is displayed to us in His Word or His world and we do not then feel in our heart any grief or longing or hope or fear or awe or joy or gratitude or confidence, then we may dutifully sing and pray and recite and gesture as much as we like, but it will not be real worship. We cannot honor God if our “heart is far from him.”

Worship is a way of gladly reflecting back to God the radiance of His worth. This cannot be done by mere acts of duty. It can be done only when spontaneous affections arise in the heart. And these affections for God are an end in themselves. They are the essence of eternal worship. Saint Augustine said it like this: The highest good is “that which will leave us nothing further to seek in order to be happy, if only we make all our actions refer to it, and seek it not for the sake of something else, but for its own sake.” (p. 92)

7. Explain what the author means when he writes that ‘worship is an end in itself’? How does this phrase relate to the notion of ‘spontaneous affections’? If worship is an end itself, does it ever lead to anything else? If so, how is this possible, and what might it lead to? (pp. 90–92)

8. Respond to the following objection: “In making the joy of worship an end in itself, we make God a means to our end rather than our being a means to His end. Christian Hedonism, therefore, is man-centered.” (Cf. pp. 94–96.)

Authentic Worship

Read the following passages,

Psalm 46:10, Habakkuk 2:20, Psalm 33:8, Isaiah 8:13 and Psalm 5:7

Psalm 51:17, Isaiah 57:15

Psalm 42:1-2, Psalm 73:25-26, Psalm 63:1

Psalm 30:11-12

Psalm 42:5-6, Psalm 130:5

Psalm 27:4, Psalm 16:11, Psalm 37:4

9. Reflect upon the statement, “Where feelings for God are dead, worship is dead” (p. 88). Consider two of the affections presented in the passages above and contemplate what it is about God that should cause these affections or feelings to arise in our hearts. Examine your own self to see whether these qualities of God cause such emotions to swell in your heart.

Worship: The Feast of Christian Hedonism

The author writes,

Misguided virtue smothers the spirit of worship. The person who has the vague notion that it is virtue to overcome self-interest, and that it is vice to seek pleasure, will scarcely be able to worship. For worship is the most hedonistic affair of life and must not be ruined with the least thought of disinterestedness. The great hindrance to worship is not that we are a pleasure-seeking people, but that we are willing to settle for such pitiful pleasures.

The prophet Jeremiah put it like this:

“My people have changed their glory for that which does not profit. Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for them- selves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.” (Jeremiah 2:11–13) (p. 98)

10. What is the danger of ‘disinterestedness’, the misguided virtue which the author identifies in the passage above? Why is this misguided virtue most dangerous? How does the notion of Christian Hedonism help us avoid such wrong thinking?

Response

The author suggests that the hedonistic prayers of the Psalmist instruct our prayer life and fuel our prayers for the Church of Christ. As we read Chapter 3, in preparation for the next Monday Bible Study, it would be good if we allow the following Psalms to guide us in our prayer and devotional times,

You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound. (Psalm 4:7)

Let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. (Psalm 5:11)

I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. (Psalm 9:2)

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness. (Psalm 17:15)

I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart. (Psalm 40:8, NASB)

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me…. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. (Psalm 51:10, 12)

O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. (Psalm 63:1–3)

Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (Psalm 73:25–26)

In the second part of a new series entitled, Dwell, Ronnie Evans examines how we are called for a purpose.

Continuing in this series through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Andy Evans examines the practical ways we can put on the new self, outlined by Paul.

In the first part of a new series entitled, Dwell, Phill Marsh examines God’s desire to be with His people.

Continuing in this series through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, Andy Evans looks at how we should respond to the Lord’s command to delight in Him.

These are the notes of a sermon preached by Andy Evans on the morning of the 25 September 2011 at Firwood Church. Click here to stream or download the sermon audio.

EPHESIANS 4:17-24 – PUT ON THE NEW SELF

Ephesians 4:17–32

¹⁷Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. ¹⁸They 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. ¹⁹They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. ²⁰But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, ²²to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, ²³and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

²⁵Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. ²⁶Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, ²⁷and give no opportunity to the devil. ²⁸Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. ²⁹Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. ³⁰And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. ³²Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

1. PUT OF THE OLD SELF

a. The Call to Die

The call to Christ is a call to die.

We find affirmation of this truth everywhere in the New Testament,

Galatians 5:24

And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

Galatians 6:14

But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

And,

Romans 6:3

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

Indeed, Jesus, himself, makes this call to death explicit,

Mark 8:34

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

This is precisely where the Apostle Paul took us last week with his exhortation to ‘put off the old self’,

Ephesians 4:22

…put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires

The gospel calls those who would trust in Christ to ‘put off’ the old way of living, the ‘former manner of life’. We are called to renounce sensuality and ‘every kind of impurity’ (Ephesians 4:19). The gospel call requires sacrifice: we are called to abandon the way we once lived. We are called to relinquish the people we once were. We are called to depart from the path we once walked,

Ephesians 4:17

…you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do…

The Christian walk requires sacrifice, self-denial and death. We are called to crucify the passions of the flesh. We  are called to crucify the priorities and futile mindset of this present fleshy and rebellious world. We are called to embrace the death of Christ. We are called to take up the cross of Christ each day.

In this sense, the Christian walk is both violent and bloody. As we have been considering during the sermon series running during the evening services, Make War, the crucified Christ demands that we make war on sin in our lives. We are called to kill our old way of living, our old loves and our old priorities; we are called to kill sin stone dead. This is what it means to put off our old self.

The Christian walk is, in fact, a bloody battle against me, I and mine.

b. Half-a-Gospel

But this is not the totality of the gospel. Indeed, this half-a-gospel distorts and falls appallingly short of the true gospel. The true gospel goes so much further. Consider again the passages we have just surveyed above,

Galatians 5:24–25

²⁴And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Yes, the call to crucify the flesh is very real, but Paul goes further. The Christian walk is a call to die, but it is also a call to walk in accordance with, and empowered by, the Spirit of God. We turn our back on sin and instead received the Spirit of God as our Counsellor, Comforter, Encourager and Advocate. We kill sin dead and we embrace a Spirit-filled life.

Or, again,

Galatians 6:14–15

¹⁴But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. ¹⁵For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.

We crucify the delights, demands and distortions of this present world. We abandon the old way of living and thinking and feeling. But that is not all. The gospel is more than this. We exchange the fleeting, vain and futile promises of this world for the reality of new life in Christ Jesus. We kill our worldly, fleshy ways confident in the truth that, in Christ Jesus, we are a new creation (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:17). Moreover, we persevere in the promise that, on that day, he will make all things new. As such, we are, in fact, the first fruits of his new creation (Romans 8:18-25).

Consider,

Romans 6:3–4

³Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? ⁴We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

The gospel demands that we join with Christ Jesus in his death. The gospel demands that we die and baptism is the picture of this reality.

But this is not all.

We die that we might live. We join in his death that we might join with him in his resurrection.

We die that we might walk in newness of life.

We take up our cross that we might live fully, completely, eternally and in such a way that Christ Jesus might be magnified in us,

Mark 8:34–35

³⁴And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ³⁵For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.

We take up our cross and die for his sake and he saves us.

c. We Trade Up

And we find this same death-to-life dynamic in Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus. Paul exhorts believers in Ephesus (and, by extension, believers at Firwood Church this morning),

Ephesians 4:22-24

²²to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, ²³and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

We are to put off our old self and instead put on the new self. This is the exchange to which all believers are called, no, required, to participate in.

We are commanded to take off the old self which is corrupt, characterised by futility, blindness, hardness of heart and impurity. We are instead called to put on the new self, ‘created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.’ (Ephesians 4:24).

Believers, know this, when we put off the old self and put on the new self, we trade up. Unbelievers, equally know this, the call to die to self is a call to live a Christ-empowered, Christ-like, Christ-exalting and Christ-enjoying life.

We trade up.

2. PUT ON THE NEW SELF

a. Learn Christ!

i. Taught in him

The question we must then ask is how do we put on the new self?

Paul warns believers of the dangers of walking like unbelievers and then reminds the church in Ephesus, and believers everywhere, precisely how the gospel of Christ Jesus took hold,

Ephesians 4:20

But that is not the way you learned Christ!

Paul instructs the church that the walk of the believer must not be characterised by futile thinking, blindness, ignorance, sensuality , corruption and impurity, for this is not the way we learned Christ. Paul then proceeds to remind these believers that they,

Ephesians 4:21

…were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus

Firstly, Paul is referring to a historical event. In the Autumn of 53AD, the Apostle Paul arrived in Ephesus for the second time and began to preach the gospel.[1]

We read in Acts, that Paul began in the Synagogue and, when the Jews tired of the gospel of the crucified and risen Son of God, he moved next door to a school hall. As a result of Paul’s persistence, the gospel spread to such a degree that Luke concludes,

Acts 19:10

…that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

Paul explicitly references this work missionary work in Ephesus in this passage,

Ephesians 4:20-21

²⁰But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus

The gospel took hold in Ephesus because the gospel-truth was taught and men and women learnt about Christ.

This is possible because the gospel is grounded upon fixed presuppositions and objective historical events and, as such, the gospel can be taught and facts about Christ can be learnt. The gospel begins with a God who acts in human history. Indeed, historical events, the incarnation, crucifixion and resurrection of the God-man Christ Jesus, stand at the very centre of the gospel proclamation.

Elsewhere, Paul describes these historical events as the most important thing,

1 Corinthians 15:3–4

³For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, ⁴that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures

The incarnation, death and resurrection of the Son of God are the most important things in the universe and this is what Paul taught and this is what the believers in Ephesus learnt.

It is vitally important that we remember this truth in our day. Programmes, activities and events will avail us none without a clear presentation of gospel truth. Relationships, social action and acts of charity are, alone, incapable of saving the souls of unbelievers without a clear explanation of Jesus, his crucifixion and resurrection. Paul makes this very point elsewhere,

Romans 10:14–15

¹⁴How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? ¹⁵And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

The proclamation of the gospel is necessary to the advance of the gospel. Your unbelieving relatives, neighbours, friends and work colleagues need you to tell them about the gospel. The Gospel of Jesus must be taught and the Gospel of Jesus must be learnt.

But Paul goes further,

Ephesians 4:20

But that is not the way you learned Christ!

The implication is clear. These believers learnt Christ in a particular way and are now exhorted to persevere in their obedience to Christ with this same attitude of heart and posture of humble obedience.

It is important that we remember this. We never outgrow the gospel of truth. The gospel continues to be relevant, helpful, vital and necessary.

We need to continue to be reminded of the gospel, continue to learn Christ and continue to cling to truth.

ii. Know Christ

Moreover, Paul envisages that this ‘learning Christ’ extends beyond mere intellectual comprehension.

Paul asserts that these believers ‘learned Christ’, an unusual phrase apparently unique in both the New Testament and pre-biblical Greek literature. [2]

These believers did not simply learn about Christ, they learnt Christ. To learn Christ is to move beyond learning about him. To learn Christ is to enter into relationship with Jesus. To learn Christ is to embrace him as King, Lord and God. To learn Christ is to receive him as Saviour. To learn Christ is to accept him in such a way that the knowledge of him penetrates our hearts and minds to a point where his heart becomes our heart, his desires become our desires and his will becomes our will.

To put on Christ is to learn Christ and, yes, this necessitates that we learn about him, but, to learn Christ requires so much more than mere information.

The putting on of the new self begins with learning, knowing and accepting Christ Jesus. The putting on of the new self begins with relationship.

iii. Know the Truth

And the implications of learning Christ are profound,

Ephesians 4:20-21

²⁰But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus

This is why the counterpoint to Christ-like living is futile ignorance, blindness and deceit. Truth is found in the person of Christ Jesus, consequently, the rejection of him is the rejection of truth.

Moreover, consider that Paul here, for the first and only time in this letter, refers to the Son of God as ‘Jesus’. These believers learnt Christ and received the truth which is in Jesus. In so doing, Paul reminds us that the cosmic Christ who has ‘ascend[ed] on high’ and ‘fill[s] all things’ (Ephesians 4:8, 10) and the historical Jesus who ministered throughout Judea are, in fact, one and the same. The implications of this truth is profound. As we read, meditate and reflect upon the incarnation, person, work, death and resurrection of the Galilean peasant, Jesus of Nazareth, we see God. The incarnate and cosmic Christ are one and the same. In Jesus of Nazareth we see, meet and come to know God.

And because Jesus is the God-man, the Son of God made flesh, in him we find the truth of God displayed and revealed. Jesus is the personification of truth.

b. Put off the Old Self

Consider, now, Paul’s flow of thought,

Ephesians 4:20-24

²⁰But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, ²²to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, ²³and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

Paul writes, ‘But that is not the way you learned Christ… to put off your old self…’ [3]

The heart of the gospel is the historical/cosmic Christ who is truth personified. The application of the gospel, or, in Paul’s terminology, the learning Christ, necessitates the putting off of the old self.

As we considered last week, the killing of sin and the putting off of the old self are fundamental gospel responses. All believers think this way. All believers respond this way.

c. Be Renewed

There is, therefore, a similar connection between the reception of the gospel and the renewing of the mind,

Ephesians 4:20, 23

But that is not the way you learned Christ… to be renewed in the spirit of your minds

Here is a glorious truth and somber exhortation: the gospel must effect us at the level of our inmost being. Paul has already shown us the necessity of this change. The depth of our depravity apart from Christ is such that it effects the way that we think, feel and act. Only a supernatural intervention at the level of the spirit could possible effect the necessary changed.

Renewal of the mind is necessary.

However, Paul is exhorting us to act. It is we who are urged to ‘be renewed in the spirit of [our] minds’.

It matters how we think. Our imaginings and fantasies matter. Paul is urging us to address the activity of our minds. Moreover, Paul is urging that we pursue mind-renewal. But, again, this activity cannot be separated from (and is only possible because) of the teaching of Christ.

Believers, mind-renewal is only possible when we feed our minds and hearts with the glorious truth of Christ as revealing the gospel. As we expose ourselves to glorious, wondrous and marvellous truths, the Spirit of God moves and we are transformed in our inner being.

d. Put on the New Self

Again, there is an intrinsic connection between the reception of the gospel, learning Christ, and the putting on of the new self,

Ephesians 4:20, 24

But that is not the way you learned Christ… and to put on the new self , created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

In this exhortation we see the summation of the gospel at work in the lives of believers. We put on the new self which means that we pursue righteousness and holiness, the very qualities which characterise God.

Practically speaking, this means that, as we receive the gospel truth, we are astonished and captivated by the glory of Jesus to such a degree that we seek to be like him. We put on those qualities which he displayed. We do the things that he did and does. We shun the things that he would not do. We put on the likeness of God.

This is biblical Christianity.

Those who are Christ’s seek to be imitators of Christ.

This, then, elevates the teaching and receiving of the gospel beyond mere listening and learning. The listening should produce admiration, affection and action. These three cannot be separated. Christ demands our worship, love and obedience. These three cannot be separated.

And all of this comes with the teaching and reception of the gospel.

3. GOSPEL CONFIDENCE

a. New Creation

All of this begins with the glorious intervention and activity of God. Now, consider carefully Paul’s thinking,

Ephesians 4:20, 24

But that is not the way you learned Christ… and to put on the new self , created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

We are urged to put on the new self, but from where does this new self originate? Paul tells us that the new self has been created. We see, then, that Paul is returning to the language of new creation. We are taught and receive the gospel and, in the reception, we act by putting of sin and fleshy things and instead embrace the new self which is characterised by holiness and righteousness. But in this God is supreme and at work. It is he who creates the new man and we are simply called to respond.

He acts. He saves. He creates. We respond. We wear the clothes which he has made.

God acts. We respond and, even in the responding, God is initiating, empowering and acting.

b. Confident

This, then, explains the peculiar exclamation we find in verses 20 and 21,

Ephesians 4:20, 21

²⁰But that is not the way you learned Christ!— ²¹assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him

Paul writes, ‘assuming that you have heard about him’. There are two ways this could be understood.
It could be that Paul is questioning the authenticity of the faith of those in the church in Ephesus. It could be that Paul has heard of their troubles, tribulations and backsliding and, as such, concludes that their faith is insubstantial and, perhaps even, insincere.

Although Paul is certainly implying the necessity of self-examination, there is altogether more to this statement than mere skepticism. Consider the way in which the NIV translates this passage,

Ephesians 4:20–21 (NIV)

²⁰You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. ²¹Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.

Where the ESV seems to question, the NIV appears to affirm the authenticity of the faith of the believers in Ephesus. The question, then, is which translation most accurately captures Paul’s intention?

Harold Hoehner argues that both meanings are present in the text. [4] Certainly Paul challenges believers to reflect upon the authenticity and solidity of their faith. However, Paul places an emphasis upon affirmation. Paul is confident that these believers have learned Christ and, as such, are putting off the old man and are engaged in putting on the new man. [5]

The application, then, is clear. On the one hand, we who believe must constantly test ourselves. We must reflect on our walk in Christ thus far. We must ask whether the gospel has truly taken hold. We must examine ourselves for evidence of spiritual fruit.

Believers, we must test ourselves.

However, there is a danger that this self-reflection might lead to doubt, uncertainty and weak Christian living. Therefore, the challenge to reflect is also an affirmation in the confidence that is found in the gospel.

Paul wants us to reflect, to respond and to act. He wants us to examine ourselves that we might hunt out any hidden and begetting sin that would seek to cripple and hinder us. Paul wants us to reflect and kill sin in our lives.

But, as we put off sin and fleshy worldly ways and clothe ourselves in the new self he wants us to have absolute confidence in the triumph of King Jesus and his Gospel.

c. The Infinitive Clause is not and Imperative Clause 

And the grounding of this confidence is found in the three infinitive clauses which we considered earlier, specifically,

Ephesians 4:20, 22

²⁰But that is not the way you learned Christ!— [...] ²²to put off your old self…

Ephesians 4:20, 23

But that is not the way you learned Christ… to be renewed in the spirit of your minds

And,

Ephesians 4:20, 24

But that is not the way you learned Christ… and to put on the new self , created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

The infinitive clauses are not imperative clauses. What I mean by this is that these clauses are not, primarily, imperatives: Paul is not, directly at least, calling us to action. Rather, Paul is outlining who we are in Christ. He is setting out the nature of those who have learned Christ. We are the ones who have put off the old nature, we are the ones who have been renewed in the spirit of our minds and we are those who have put on the new nature.

Paul reminds us who we are made to be in Christ Jesus.

However, contrariwise, this entire passage (running, in truth, through towards the end of Chapter 6) is one great imperative. Paul has and is still exhorting us thus,

Ephesians 4:1

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called

And, later,

Ephesians 4:17

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.

Paul is exhorting us to walk like this and not walk like that. What like a believer do not walk like an unbeliever. This is the great exhortation which now runs throughout the remainder of this letter.

However, Paul is confident. He is confident in the gospel at work among believers. He is confident that, as we received Christ transformation began. Putting off the old way of living, thinking and feeling differently and putting on a new nature, a new way of living.

If you are a believer, God has already acted decisively.

However, these are infinitive clauses which means there is an implied imperative.

And so, were we to ask the question, how should I walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which I have been called, Paul would perhaps answer that we should continue to put off the old self, pursue mind-renewal and put on the new self. Paul would certainly exhort us to continue to learn Christ and to continue in our pursuit of Christ, righteousness and holiness.

This then makes the application incredibly clear for believers and unbelievers alike.

Unbelievers, learn, receive, accept and embrace Christ as King, Lord and Saviour knowing, as you do so, that you will be radically transformed and changed.

Believers, continue to learn Christ Jesus and, as you see him as he truly is, this will deepen the intensity and purity of your walk. As we see his glory afresh, we are increasingly awakened to the glory of our calling. This must have an effect.

But in all of this comes a great confidence. This is why Paul is confident, and this is why we must be confident. The triumph of Christ is displayed and made available through the triumph of the gospel. God is at work in Christ. God changes us. God transforms us. God renews us. God brings life from death. God brings about new creation.

And we are the beneficiaries of this most glorious grace.

[1] Harold W. Hoehner, Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2002, 2007), p. 90-91.

[2] Peter Thomas O’Brien, The Letter to the Ephesians, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1999), p. 324.

[3] This is the first of three infinitives which should read, ‘But that is not the way you learned Christ… [you] were taught in him [that you should] put off the old self’ and then, later, ‘be renewed in the spirit of your mind’ and’ put on the new self’. See Hoehner, p. 599.

[4] Indeed, Hoehner’s translation reads, ‘inasmuch as you heard about him’. See Hoehner, p. 594-595.

[5] O’Brien, p. 325.