Paul, now goes on to talk of our walk as reborn, restored people among the unbelieving of the world orders and systems of deception in darkness. These are the forces of evils levels, as spoken of in opposition to those ranks and management's team levels in the LORD body, my introduction to Ephesians 3:14. Paul by the use of his own words as given by the Spirit of Holiness builds a restrictive cohesiveness into these passages, so lesson closely to them, to see if you can pick them up as i just did. These section is more easily separated than the last, so it will be shorter.
Ephesians 4:17-24 "This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles(G1484) walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." (KJV)
Ephesians 4:17-24 "Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles(G1484) do, in the futility of their minds. They 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. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." (ESV)
Ephesians 4:17-24 "My most urgent appeal to you in the LORD is this: you have nothing in common with the folly of the empty-minded [1]masses; the days of conducting your lives and affairs in a meaningless way are over! (The Gentiles, [1, G1484 comes from the verb G1486] ethnos, the masses of people who are walking in the vanity of their own minds The word, G1486, ethō, means to be used, by habit or conventionality.) The life of their design seems foreign to them because their minds are in darkness through a hardened heart ruled by ignorance. They are blinded by the illusion of the senses as their only reference point, as in stubbornly wearing a blindfold in broad daylight. (Hardness of heart is the result of a darkened understanding; a mind veiled through unbelief, look at 2Corinthians 4:4.) Having become conditioned to a life distanced from GOD; they are calloused in spirit, and are lust and greed driven; they have completely abandoned themselves to outrageous shameless living practices. (Look at Romans 1:19-23) Of what total contrast is Christ! Truth is defined in Christ! It is not possible to study Christ in any other context; he is the incarnation; hear him resonate within you! The truth about you has its ultimate reference in Jesus. (He did not come to introduce a new compromised set of rules; he is not an example for us but of us!) Now you are free to strip off that old identity like the filthy worn-out grave garments they are. Lust corrupts you and cheated you into wearing them. (Just like an actor who wears a cloak for a specific role he has to interpret; the fake veneer identity is no longer appropriate!) Be renewed in your innermost mind. (Ponder the truth about you, as it is displayed in Christ; begin with the fact of your co-seatedness in the heavenly place.) This will cause you to be completely re-programmed in the way you think about yourself! (Notice that Paul does not say, "Renew your minds!" This transformation happens in the spirit of your mind, awakened by truth on a much deeper level than a mere intellectual or academic consent. We often thought that we had to get information to drop from the head to the heart; but it is the other way around! Jesus says in John 1:37, "'When you believe that I am what the scriptures are all about, then you will discover that you are what I am about, and rivers of living waters will gush out of your innermost being!'" The spirit of humanity was never contaminated; just like the watermark in a paper note! The lost coin never lost its original inscription and image [see also James 3:]; it was the mind that was veiled by darkness; we were darkened in our own understanding! Our thoughts were reduced to the soul realm reference, knowing ourselves, and one another merely after the flesh. Isaiah 55:8-11, "There is nothing wrong with our design or our redemption; we were thinking wrong! In order for our thoughts to be rescued from the dominion of darkness, Jesus as the incarnate image and likeness of GOD, has gone into our darkest hellish nightmare, and faced our cruellest judgment and fears, and died our death! This is the mystery that was hidden for ages and generations, for our glorification! We were co-crucified, to bring absolute closure to every reference we have had of ourselves as a result of Adam's fall! When this glory was perverted or lost. And while we were dead in our sins and trespasses, GOD co-quickened us and co-raised us, and co-seated us in Christ! Now, we all with unveiled faces may behold the glory of the LORD as in a mirror! And be radically transformed in our thinking in order to rediscover his image (GOD) and likeness (Christ) redeemed in us!) Immerse yourselves into this GOD-shaped new person from above! You are created in the image (GOD) and likeness (Christ) of GOD. This is what righteousness and true holiness are all about." (The Mirror)
More is come in our next visit until then may the LORD GOD of our being give you and yours understanding as light in our inner-man.
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