Reflections on Ephesians 5:15-17

Here is an excerpt from a sermon I delivered on Ephesians 5:15-17. This is quite possibly my favorite passage of scripture! Enjoy...

If we just read Eph 5:15-17 again it states:
Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is.
I. Our time is limited.Interestingly enough, Paul did not use chronos in the greek which means continuous clock time: hours, minutes & seconds, but he used kairos which means "a measured , allocated, fixed season or epoch" of time. He is saying that God has set certain boundaries to our lives. God has predetermined the days of our lives, and that is it.

1 Peter 1:17 "And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning [here] in fear:"

James 4:13-15 "Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what [shall be] on the morrow. For what [is] your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye [ought] to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that."

II. Our time needs to be effectively used.“Making the most of every opportunity” can also be translated “redeem the time” in the greek. “Redeem" means to "buy back" or to "buy up all that is anywhere to be bought" God through Paul says we are to "buy up the time" we have here on the earth. He means not to allow any suitable moment to go by and not live for God. How do we do this?A. By walking/living carefully (v. 15)The greek word for careful (akribos) = be accurate and exact with, to examine with great care, to pay close attention to something, thus to be careful how you live. Also, by not living like a fool (v. 15)- So, how can we avoid being fools? A person is a fool when he doesn’t believe there is a God.The Bible says in Ps. 14:1 "The fool hath said in his heart, [There is] no God." One is a "fool" if they deny the existence of God. One is also a "fool" if they live like there is no God.

Also, believer is a fool when he does not believe God completely.Luke 24:25 "Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:"

A believer is a fool when he adds to the gospel message.Gal. 3:1-3 "O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?"The Galatians knew that salvation was by faith alone, but they fell prey to the heresy that a Gentile must become a ceremonial Jew before he could become a Christian." This was wrong, unscriptural and foolish.

A believer is a fool when he desires the wrong things.For example, 1 Tim. 6:9-10 "But they that will be rich fall into temptationand a snare, and [into] many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." Brothers and sisters, we must effectively use all of our allotted time to serve God. We must repeatedly shun sin, draw near to God and follow all that which is godly.

III. It is not going to be easy to use our time wisely. (the days are evil) This world is the enemy of God and opposes the things of God. Satan often brings about persecution on the church. We have to contend with the flesh. There are temptations to be greedy, dishonest, immoral, etc….

IV. It is essential to use our time wisely. (the days are evil). This world is lost. Many will not be saved. Mt 7:13 "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide [is] the gate, and broad [is] the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in "there at:It is because this world is evil, and in desperate need of salvation that we need to redeem the time.

Conclusion: Since we have converted to our modern calendar, there are 8,760 hours in a year (24 x 365 = 8760). If the Lord tarries, and gives us health to make it through another 12 months; how are we as disciples, as Christ followers, going to spend those 8,760 hours?
We are to make Him our life song. He wants to be are all in all. He wants us to follow Him and represent Him 24/7.

A quick thought worth remembering!

Exodus 14:14 states,"You need only remain calm. The Lord will fight for you."(NCV). As short a verse as this is, and as easy as it is to commit to memory, I think it would serve us well to recall it regularly. No matter how busy, hectic, crazy, frantic life can get, we need only remain calm. The Lord will fight for us!!

Meditations on Meditation

"...when I remember you upon my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night;" (Psalm 63:6)

Meditation does not always mean sitting in a "lotus" position, burning incense, and saying "Ohm, Ohm..." over and over again. Scripture tells us to meditate on God's perfect Word. Meditation is an essential ingredient to a mature Christian walk with Christ. The Christian who is not meditating(spending significant time reflecting on) on God's word regularly cannot be walking in a manner consistent with maturity in the faith. And as we all are called to grow up in the faith, meditation needs to be present in us to do so.

All Christians should be meditating on the Word of God, and God and His attributes. It is not a matter of "if" but "when" we meditate. Remove from your mind any idea that you, as a believer in Jesus Christ, should not be meditating on God.

There are no formulas to follow. There are no set times we are to meditate. We are called to do this all the time.

Let's turn to Scripture for direction:

"Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day." (Psalm 119:97)

If you are not in the habit of meditating, then pray that the Lord would instill in you the heart to utilize this godly practice. It is the declaration of God that His people meditate day and night on Him. (Psalm 1:2)

So what exactly does this mean? Biblical meditation, or Christian meditation is the remembrance of, the contemplation of, the pondering of, the questioning of and the wonderment over God, His nature and His works. It is not the emptying of the mind, which many other forms of meditation require, but rather the filling of the mind with something specific. As we meditate as Christians, we fill our minds with something specific about our Lord. It is the concerted focusing on an aspect or a Word of the Lord and spending time on it.

What should we meditate upon?

Generally, there are three things we should meditate upon as Christians. We should meditate on God's nature, God's works and God's word. Who is God? What has God done? What has God said (or commanded)?

We should think about the nature of God, His characteristics and attributes.

"I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands." (Psalm 143:5)

We should meditate upon the works of God.

"I will ponder all your work, and meditate on your mighty deeds." (Psalm 77:12)

We should meditate on God's words (including His commandments).

"I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation." (Psalm 119:99)

Now, meditating regularly on these three will keep us busy enough, but there are two more things to remember when meditating on God.

Our meditations should be focused. In other words, be disciplined in your meditation of God. Pick an aspect and focus on that one aspect. Consider one attribute, one work or one law of God and stay fixed on it for a while. Think about it. What does it mean? What are its implications? What impact should it have on your life? Ask God to give you knowledge and wisdom from it. Pray over it.

A friend of mine told me this story once: If you are in a class and you are struggling, and it's time to pick a study partner, you always want to pick the best student in the class. Because, by spending time with the person that knows the subject best, you will perform better. So it is with the Lord. We are the subject, and no one knows us better that God. It only stands to reason that the more time spent with Him, the better our life will be.