Put Off, Put On
Ephesians 4:22, “That ye kput off lconcerning the former mconversation nthe old man, owhich is corrupt according to oothe deceitful lusts; 23 And pbe renewed in the spirit of your mind; 24 And that ye put on qthe new man, which rafter God sis created in trighteousness and ||true tholiness.” [1]
I. Put Off
A. Former
B. Fault
II. Put In
A. Fellowship
B. Family
III. Put On
A. Fruitfulness
B. Faultlessness
Introduction: Back many years ago there was a comedian who would sum up how the world explains evil. Does anyone else remember Flip Wilson? Flip was the right name. He was flippant in his explanation for why he did the wrongs that he did. “The devil made me do it.”
Last week we used text for our responsive Bible reading that will be the focal text for the message today. A professor used this particular text as the basis for his Christian Counseling course. “Put Off, Put On” is the title of today’s message. It is what that professor started out every class with. It is the basis for repentance.
Clinical Counselors delve deep into a person’s past to find the reason for emotional problems. When a licensed clinical counselor discovers the person at the root cause of their client’s problem they have found the cause to blame. It is as if nobody has self-sufficiency to move on or responsibility to accept personal ownership to accept the thing. Someone else is to blame.
To believe that God is sovereign and nothing happens that God either; does not cause, or allows; that is one of the hardest lessons for a Christian. Why would a loving God allow hard things to happen? Is Romans 8:28 really true? How can all things work out for good for those who are called by God and how can a person continue to love God even through persecution?
Without having the Holy Spirit working inside a person, it would be impossible to love a God like that. Jesus went through exactly that. Yet it hurt Jesus so badly that just thinking of not feeling His Father’s presence for those few hours on the cross was nearly overwhelming.
To go through life believing that everything that is wrong with you is somebody else’s fault must be terrible. To go through life never being able to accept past hurts as things that a loving God allowed in your life to make you strong enough to help others would be terrible. To think that everybody is out to get you must be torture. Jesus knew His fate but His love was enough.
Put Off the pain and the torment. Put On the love of Jesus.
Is that person who did the wrong in your mind still calling your shots? As a corporate chaplain, I would visit employees that were only on the job because they needed money. There was no happiness in doing what they felt equipped to do. They would give the same excuses for not attending church. Somebody made me mad. They felt the same about work but they worked. Some were bitter and would have quit their jobs if there would have been some way to pay for what they wanted and needed without showing up for work.
Well thank you Covid-19! That is exactly what has happened now. The governments who created the virus paid people to stay away from each other. Those who have collected from the governments don’t seem to want to give it all to the job anymore. This is not to blame any particular government but at least one government in this world allowed this particular virus to happen.
Everybody used to agree with that the old adage, “The customer is always right.” That has left the building now. Employers seem now to be happy just to have someone filling the position instead of employees being happy in their profession.
Who is to blame when the person that caused your problem is gone? Is there never anything that you can change?
Scripture: Today’s focal text is Ephesians 4:22-24
Prayer: Let us pray. Be seated.
Message: There is an expression in the Bible about one being “Beside himself or herself.” An example is Acts 26:24, “And as he thus yspake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, zthou art beside thyself; much alearning doth make thee mad.” [2]
We do have conversations with ourselves all the time. Flip Wilson said that he had conversations with the devil. Could be! When we are deliberating whether to do a thing or not we all have conversations with our consciences. We reason things out with ourselves.
So who speaks to your conscience? If you are not a Christian there may be many sources that affect your conscience. Most are not good. Clinical Counselors take people to the source of the conflict so that they can meet it and know where to lay blame. Once they bring the client to that point of finding reason the client can feel OK about themselves and move on to the next blame.
It is OK to talk things over with yourself. Just be careful who hears you if you answer yourself. There might be a Festus there to tell you that you are losing your mind. We Christians have always been accused of being crazy.
Paul said that when we receive the Holy Spirit that we should not concern ourselves with the old conversations that we had with our former corrupt fault filled selves. To be able to do that before something is in you to replace the deceitful lust is not possible. You must put off before you can put on something else.
Paul spoke about deceitful lust. Lust does not always mean the wanting of physical sexual pleasure that is aside from marriage. Lust does however always mean cheating. It is that which the last of the Ten Commandments in Deuteronomy 5:21warns against.
When we waste our thoughts on things that God has not given us; that is covetousness. That is lust. That is deceitful. That is not anybody else’s fault. That is my fault. That is your fault. Nobody else is responsible for my covetousness but me. Nobody else is responsible for your covetousness but you. Paul also mentioned the former conversation. It can be the former only if you are willing and ready for it to be in the past and nobody else can do anything about that either. Only you! Put it OFF.
The next point of the outline is something that you cannot do. If you are a Christian then somebody else has already done this for you. Jesus came here and took what was preventing me from having the ability to have fellowship with God. Jesus put me in His family. Jesus allowed the Holy Spirit to come when He left this earth. Now I can allow the Holy Spirit to renew my mind. This is my part of step two. I must allow the Holy Spirit to be put in. Otherwise the Holy Spirit can and will be quenched if I don’t allow Him in.
Can a Christian say no? We have millions of Christians who are pitiful. They have left the fellowship of the local church because someone has told them that they have no fault. Somehow they got it in their minds that somebody else made them mad and that is reason enough to carry hatred and allow that mean person to make decisions for them.
If you have no fault there is no repentance for you. You are headed in the direction that you think you should be going and nobody can turn you around. We must warn Christians that just because they once said a thing does not make it truth. If the Holy Spirit has not replaced that corrupt conscience then that person was not saved. If they are still drawing breath then there is still time but it is a decision that nobody else can make.
If a person is truly a Christian that person has within them the ability to take responsibility for their relationship with God and other Christians. We cannot do this by attempting to continue to blame those in our past. Put OFF and let Jesus Put IN so that you are IN; In fellowship and In The Family of God.
Verse twenty-four is the last point. Only you can do it. Once you have put OFF that old you, once you have allowed the Holy Spirit IN; then you must put ON the new person that God has created you to be.
That person is created after God in righteousness and true holiness. That person will not be the old person anymore. That person will not look at everything and everyone else to find fault with anymore. That person will bring others to Jesus and that will be the fruit that brings more fruit. Fruitfulness will replace faultfulness and the new person will become newer each and every day as Jesus grows within and replaces the fear of others that has overwhelmed you in the past.
There are people in the world that have adversely affected each and every one of us. Are they to go free? Who will judge them if we just let what they have done to us slip from our minds? It has taken several weeks to get here. Let’s go back to the beginning. John 20:21-23, “Then said Jesus to them again, “ePeace be unto you: has imy Father hath sent me, even so send I you.“ 22 And when he had said this, khe breathed on them, and saith unto them, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost: 23 lWhose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.” [3]
We can do nothing to change others. We can carry hatred so that what they have done has affected us but that won’t change them one bit. It will only change you. Then the only thing that will change you is to PUT OFF, allow God to PUT IN, and then you PUT ON that which God initially created you to be. That is the basis for Christian Counseling. It is the way to contentment.
Prayer:
Invitation: This morning we have listened and contemplated the message and there have been names that have come to your recollection. There is nothing that you can do to change those folks. Unless someone is willing to do what we have heard today there will be no change in you either.
Unless a person has allowed The Holy Spirit in to change them no hatred or ill feelings that you harbor will make any difference at all. It is a waste of your time and energy. No fruit will ever come from hating someone in your past.
What will make a difference? I have heard so many times here at Merry Oaks that prayer changes things. Well that is not quite right. God changes things! He so much likes to hear from us that when we pray that He listens. When His thoughts become our thoughts, then things happen. Is He waiting for you to pray for that one that you can’t get out of your mind?
If you have truly PUT ON that new person that God created you to be then the one thing that will change that person is prayer. If it is your thought then you have the power to change that person only if you pray for that person. God is the judge. You are the Christian.
As we sing our song of invitation let us pray. Let us pray for those who have not PUT ON. This altar is a place alterations are made. Change happens here. It is open for prayer. Maybe you need to come and offer yourself before you can pray for that one. Only God can speak His will for you. Only you can PUT ON that which God has for you to do. Consider as we sing…
k Col. 3:8. So ver. 25. Heb. 12:1. James 1:21. 1 Pet. 2:1 in the Gk. So Col. 2:11. & 3:9.
l See ver. 17.
m See Gal. 1:13.
n Rom. 6:6. Col. 3:9.
o So Rom. 8:13.
oo So Heb. 3:13.
p So Col. 3:10. See Rom. 12:2.
q See ch. 2:15. So ch. 6:11. Col. 3:10.
r See 2 Cor. 7:9 marg.
s See ch. 2:10.
t See Luke 1:75.
|| Or, holiness of truth.
t See Luke 1:75.
[1] The Holy Bible: King James Version (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Eph 4:22–24). (2009). Logos Research Systems, Inc.
y ver. 1.
z ver. 25 (Gk.). See 2 Kin. 9:11. So 1 Cor. 1:23. & 2:14. & 4:10.
a John 7:15 marg.
[2] The Holy Bible: King James Version (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Ac 26:24). (2009). Logos Research Systems, Inc.
e See ch. 14:27.
h ch. 17:18. Comp. Matt. 28:18–20. 2 Tim. 2:2. Heb. 3:1.
i See ch. 17:3.
k See Gen. 2:7 (Heb. & Gk.).
l See Matt. 16:19.
[3] The Holy Bible: King James Version (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Jn 20:21–23). (2009). Logos Research Systems, Inc.
