Hey, podcast listeners! Thanks for streaming today's podcast, From Pathway to Victory. Pathway to Victory is a nonprofit ministry featuring the Bible teaching of Dr. Robert Jeffress. Our mission is to pierce the darkness with the light of God's word through the most effective media available, like this podcast.
To support Pathway to Victory, go to ptv.org slash donate or follow the link in our show notes. Now, here's today's podcast, From Pathway to Victory. And what Paul is saying is, now that we have been raised to a newness of life, we need to get rid of that stinking clothing, that behavior that was a part of our old self. And in this particular section of Ephesians, I call it Paul's five fashion tips.
He's going to tell us five garments that we need to remove and replace with new clothing. Welcome to Pathway to Victory with author and pastor, Dr. Robert Jeffress. As Christians, we are called to put off our old selves and put on a new identity in Christ.
But what does that look like in our day-to-day lives? Well, today on Pathway to Victory, Dr. Robert Jeffress takes us to Ephesians chapter 4 to explore five specific behaviors we need to remove and five new behaviors to replace them. Now, here's our Bible teacher to introduce today's message.
Dr. Jeffress. Thanks, David, and welcome again to Pathway to Victory. This coming May, Amy and I will be leading the Pathway to Victory Journeys of Paul Mediterranean Cruise. This is a once-in-a-lifetime vacation to one of the most beautiful locations in all the world. Plus, it's the epicenter of our spiritual heritage, tracing the travels of Paul to places like Ephesus, Rome, and the Greek Islands. The dates for the trip are May 5th through 16th, 2025.
In addition to stopping at stunning Mediterranean ports such as Santorini and Mykonos, we'll spend our time aboard a luxury cruise ship, enjoying meals together and special entertainment from world-class musicians. So please go to ptv.org, take a look at the wonderful details and itinerary, and most importantly, reserve your spot today while there's still room. I've written a brand new teaching series called Holy Living in an Unholy World, and there's only a few more days remaining to take advantage of an exclusive offer from Pathway to Victory. I've written a full-length book that complements this teaching series, and when you give a generous gift to support the growing ministry of Pathway to Victory, I'll make sure a copy of this new book is sent to your home right away. Again, it's called Holy Living in an Unholy World. Well, when it comes to fashion, most of us have a favorite style or look, but did you know that the apostle Paul has some fashion advice for Christians? He wasn't talking about literal clothing, but about the way we behave. Today, we'll explore five behaviors that believers should lay aside in order to put on new behaviors that represent our new self.
I titled today's message, Five Fashion Tips from the Apostle Paul. My friend Bob Beale tells the story of a day he decided to go to work at a circus, just for the day, just for the fun of it. And while he was on break, he went over to where they kept the elephants, and he said to the elephant trainer, how is it you're able to stake down these giant animals with a little flimsy chain around their ankle and a stake in the ground? And he said, well, it's really easy when you remember two things about elephants. Number one, they're not very smart, but number two, they have great memories. And when these elephants are little babies, only 400 pounds, we tied them down with this stake, and they may try 10,000 times to break free, and they can't do it, and that's when their memory takes over. When they get to be large, and they could remove the stake with one yank, when they remember that, and they remember their past failures, they don't even try to break free.
They've given up to defeat. And I thought, you know, that's a great picture of what happens to so many Christians. We remember how our life was before we came to Christ. All the times we tried to break free of sin and addictions in our life, and we did so unsuccessfully. And even though now we have the power of the Holy Spirit in us as believers in Christ, we don't even try to live in victory. We live as victims of our past.
What a sorry way to have to live. Paul writes about that in Romans 6, verses 6 and 7. He says, know this, that our old self, that is the part of us opposed to God, was crucified with Christ in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin. For he who has died is freed from sin. When you're a Christian, you become a Christian, you die to your old way of living. You've become a new person in Christ. You say, well, so what? What does that mean to me?
Glad you asked. That brings us to Ephesians 4, 22. That reality that sin has no more power over us than we choose to allow it to have, that reality ought to leave to a change of life. And that's where we are in our study of Ephesians. We're talking about the walk of a Christian. And Paul says in Ephesians 4, 22, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lust of the deceit.
Remember that phrase, lay aside, literally means to take off a garment. Remember old Lazarus, when Jesus raised him from the dead, he came stumbling out of that tomb and he came into the bright light. He had clothes on, grave clothes that had started to stink after four days. He could have chosen to keep his clothes, his grave clothes for sentimental reasons, but he didn't. He had new clothes that befitted new status as a raised individual. And what Paul is saying is, now that we have been raised to a newness of life, we need to get rid of that stinking clothing, that behavior that was a part of our old self. And in this particular section of Ephesians, I call it Paul's five fashion tips. He's going to tell us five garments that we need to remove and burn forever and five new garments that we need to put on and replace them with.
Five behaviors to remove and replace with new behavior. Now folks, this isn't deep theology, but this is practical living. This is where we are.
If you want to enjoy life as God intended you to enjoy it, take this seriously. First of all, we need to take off false speech and put on truth. Taking off false speech and putting on truth.
Look at verse 25, therefore laying aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you with his neighbor for we are members of one another. I was reading this week about a pastor who came upon a group of boys in the church parking lot causing quite a commotion. He said, what's going on here? And one of them said, well, mister, we found a puppy and we all want the puppy.
And so we're having a contest. Whoever can tell the biggest lie gets the puppy. And the pastor was indignant. He said, I can't believe you are having a lying contest.
That's terrible. I never told a lie when I was your age. And the boys looked at each other, started to fidget it.
And one of them looked up and said, okay, mister, you win the puppy. Let's be honest. We all lie. All of us lie. In their landmark book, The Day America Told the Truth, James Patterson and Peter Kim revealed the studies of what happened when they surveyed 2000 Americans about their morality.
And in the chapter American Liars, this is what caught my attention. They said, just about everyone lies. 91% of us lie regularly. The majority of us find it harder to get through a week without lying.
One in five can't make it through a single day. And we're talking about conscious premeditated lies. And maybe you're like that self-righteous pastor. You say, well, that's not me. Pastor, I don't lie.
Well, think for just a moment. There are different ways to lie. You don't have to just tell a right out whopper to be guilty of lying. Paul is saying, lay aside falsehoods.
That word is pseudos. And it contains an idea of several different variations of lying we all engage in. For example, exaggeration is a form of lying. Twisting the truth, expanding the truth.
60% of resumes, it is said, have some kind of exaggeration on them, inflating our experience or educational degrees. Exaggeration, that's lying. Another kind of lying is flattery, telling somebody what they want to hear in order to serve our own agenda. I read somewhere, I don't know where, the difference between gossip and slander. Gossip is saying something behind somebody's back you would never say to their face. Flattery is saying something to somebody's face you would never say behind their back. Proverbs 29 five warns against flattery.
A man who flatters his neighbor is spreading a net for his own steps. A third way of lying is through silence, by saying nothing when you know the truth. If you hear gossip about another person and you have information that disproves what is being said about them, yet you say nothing, that is a type of falsehood. A friend of mine has said, to stand by and do nothing in the face of evil is to do something to approve of evil. To say nothing in the face of lies is to say something to approve of lies. Why aren't we to engage in falsehoods? Again, verse 25, Paul gives two reasons.
One is implicit, one is explicit. The implicit reason is found in the word falsehoods, pseudos. The word literally means the lie.
Lay aside the lie. Now, here's a pop Bible quiz. Who in the Bible is called the chief liar of all time? The liar in chief, Satan. John 8 44, Jesus said Satan is a liar and he is the father of all lies. Whenever we as Christians lie, we're behaving more like a child of Satan than a child of God.
That's the implicit reason, but there's an explicit reason. He says in verse 25, we are not to lie because we are members of one another. What in the world does that mean? Remember, when we become a Christian, we become a part of the body of Christ. We're joined to Jesus, the head, but we're connected to one another as well. And for the body of Christ to operate effectively, truth needs to be told, one to another. Secondly, Paul says, in addition to laying aside falsehood, we need to take off uncontrolled anger and put on patience. Ephesians 4 26 says, be angry and yet do not sin. Do not let the sun go down on your anger. Is anger wrong?
Well, it depends. It depends on what you do with anger. Being angry in and of itself is not a sin. Paul said, be angry and don't sin. You see, the reason we get angry, did you know the reason we get angry? It's because we're made in the image of a God who gets angry, but God knows how to handle his anger.
We need to learn how to handle anger. And to help us understand, in this section of scripture, there are actually three Greek words that are all translated to anger. There's the word thumos, which means an explosive anger, like Mount Vesuvius. That's the word used at verse 31, let all anger be put away. Then there is paragusmos, which refers to a seething anger that refers to bitterness. That's the word that is used at the end of verse 26.
And then there is the word orge. And that's the word used at the beginning of verse 26, be angry, orge. Orge can be a righteous anger if it's done the right way.
It is unrighteous if it's dealt with in the wrong way, like an explosion, thumos, or a seething bitterness, paragusmos. The key is when you feel angry, deal with it, and deal with it quickly. Be angry, but don't sin. Don't let the sun go down on your anger, and don't give the devil an opportunity. Make sure you resolve your anger in 24 hours. If you go to sleep angry, you have the devil as a bed partner, somebody said.
There is a third item of clothing in order to take off. Verse 28, we need to take off theft and put on diligence. Verse 28, he who steals must steal no longer, but rather he must labor performing with his own hands what is good so that he will have something to share with one who has need. When Paul wrote these words, one third of the world were slaves. And so it was common for slaves, even Christian slaves, to feel like they were being mistreated and to compensate, they would steal from their master. Paul said, no, you are not to steal any longer. Now again, this may be one thing you would say, well, pastor, I'm guilty of a lot of things, but I'm not a thief. Well, think about it.
Is that really true? Have you ever patted an expense report at work? Have you ever underreported income to the government? Don't steal in any way, taking something that's not yours. What's the antidote to stealing?
Well, he says it right here. Let him labor, let him labor performing with his own hands what is good. We're living in a generation that wants something for nothing, but we need to teach our children and grandchildren that it's hard work that leads to accumulation. They can't have something for nothing. Warren Wiersbe notes that Jewish rabbis had a saying, if you don't teach your children a craft, you teach them to be a thief.
We need to teach our children to do something. And not only that, be generous. That's an antidote to thievery. So that he will have something to share with one who is in need. If we hoard money and don't ever give it away, we're teaching ourselves or our children to become self-focused rather than others focused.
We need to take off theft and put on diligence. Fourthly, Paul says we need to take off unwholesome speech and put on edifying speech. Look at verse 29. Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification, according to the need of the moment so that it might give grace to those who hear. That word unwholesome is a word in Greek that literally refers to the rotting of fruit. Fruit that's rotting.
Remember the old adage, one rotten apple spoils the whole apple barrel. It's the same way with unwholesome speech. It has a way of infecting other people, causing other people to rot. And that's why we need to be sure that we don't have any unwholesome rotting words coming from our mouth. Now, what is he talking about specifically? What kind of speech is rotten speech that contaminates other people? Well, I think he's talking about crude speech, dirty, off-color speech.
He's going to deal with that later, and so we'll deal with it in another message. Crude speech. But I think he's also talking mainly about critical speech.
And the word unwholesome helps us understand that. This is critical speech. He said we're to replace it with edifying speech. Such a word as is good for edification.
Listen to me. That word edification means to build up somebody. And what Paul is saying is don't let speech come from your mouth that tears down people. Critical speech. But have speech that builds up another person.
Now, let's be honest. All of us have times we need to correct somebody. It may be an employee. It may be a family member. We have people we have to correct.
But Paul said be very careful how you do it. Do it in such a way as to build up that person rather than to tear down that person. You know, our executive pastor, Ben Lavorn, is very good at that. He gets the job of correcting the staff.
I just get to pat him on the back and love on him. But he has to correct the staff. But I've heard this in feedback from other staff members. They said Ben is very good about praising them for the good things they're doing before he corrects them for the things that need to change. And that's the way we ought to be. Don't tear down people. If you have to correct them, build them up first. Make them feel good about themselves.
Praise the good things they're doing. You know what's interesting to me about this? This is not a minor issue because in verse 30 Paul says, do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Why did he insert that there? Why didn't he save it for talking about theft or other sins?
Why did he say that here? Because God is saying to us when we tear down another person, it grieves God. When we attack, tear down somebody who's been made by God himself and the image of God, it grieves the heart of God.
And that's why we need to abstain from unwholesome critical speech. Finally, Paul says there's one last behavior that we need to take off, and that is unresolved bitterness. We need to take off unresolved bitterness and put on forgiveness. Look at verse 31.
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you along with all malice. Have you ever heard the saying, you can't tell what's in somebody's heart? How many of you have heard that before?
That's a lie. There are many times you can tell exactly what is in somebody's heart. I mean, think about it this way. If somebody's carrying around a mug and it's filled with a liquid, you can't see what's in that mug until you bump into them. Because when you bump into them either intentionally or unintentionally, that liquid is going to splash out of that mug. And whatever is in that mug becomes evident. If it's coffee, you're going to get a splash of coffee.
If it's orange juice, you're going to get orange juice. It's the same way in our heart and our words. Jesus said in Matthew 12, 34, for out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
We reveal in our speech what is really inside of us. And when you accidentally bump into somebody, figuratively speaking, you offend them either intentionally or unintentionally, what comes forth from their mouth tells you what's in their heart. And Paul says, if it's bitterness, wrath, clamor, slander, if somebody is always responding with words like that, you can guarantee what's in their heart. Something, some offense they have refused to forgive. Unforgiveness, bitterness manifests itself in how a person speaks. There are some of you listening to me right now. You've been hurt and hurt by somebody deeply.
Your words are going to show that. You know what I have found in more than 40 years of pastoring is we can't control what happens to us. We can't control what other people do to us, but we can control how we respond to those offenses. We can either hang on to them until they metastasize into a tumor of bitterness, or we can choose to let go of that offense. Not deny it, but let go of it.
Let God deal with it so we can be free to get on with our life. The antidote to bitterness is forgiveness. And that's what he says in verse 32. You may wonder, well, why should I forgive somebody? Why shouldn't I seek vengeance instead?
Well, notice what he says in verse 32. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ has forgiven you. Forgiveness is the obligation of those who've been forgiven. If you're constantly saying, I will not forgive, I cannot forgive, it may be because you've never truly received God's forgiveness. For you see, when you understand the great debt from which God has forgiven you, you'll find it relatively easy to forgive other people.
C.S. Lewis said it this way, to be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable in others, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in us. Maybe I'm speaking to someone right now who's struggling with unresolved anger towards a friend or colleague. Whatever the offense, forgiveness is the obligation of those who have truly been forgiven. This is one of the many practical issues I address in my brand new book, Holy Living in an Unholy World, based on Paul's letter to the Ephesians. Remember, time is running out to request your copy. It's a great choice for your personal devotions or for your small group Bible study.
There's even a group study guide that's available as well. Ask for a copy of my new book, Holy Living in an Unholy World, when you give a generous gift to support the ministry of Pathway to Victory. In a moment, David will explain how you can receive the audio CDs and video DVDs prepared for this study in Ephesians. All these resources are making an impact on our listening family. For example, sometimes when I'm traveling through an airport, somebody will approach me with their story of life change, and we receive notes, phone calls, and letters every single day. I'm always delighted when our listeners and viewers describe how God is using Pathway to Victory to help them navigate the challenging days in which we live.
The truth is, we couldn't do this work without friends like you. Families across our country desperately need direction, and our nation is polarized and needs the guiding light of God's Word. When you give today, you'll be used by Christ to change lives. So, thank you for your generous gift today, David. Thanks, Dr. Jeffress. When you get in touch with Pathway to Victory and give a generous gift, you're invited to request Holy Living in an Unholy World. That's the brand-new book by Dr. Robert Jeffress.
Just call 866-999-2965 or visit our website at ptv.org. And when you give $75 or more, you'll also receive 19 of the original unabridged messages in this teaching series, Holy Living in an Unholy World. Now, they come on both DVD video and MP3 format audio discs, so don't miss out on that.
You can watch them with a small group Bible study or listen to them in your car. And by the way, you'll also receive the companion study guide. But time is running out to take advantage of this offer, so please get in touch right away. Again, call 866-999-2965 or visit our website, ptv.org. Now, if you'd prefer to write, address your letter to P.O. Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222. That's P.O.
Box 223-609, Dallas, Texas, 75222. I'm David J. Mullins. As Christians, we're called to a higher standard of living, one that reflects the very nature of God Himself. But how can imperfect people possibly imitate our perfect Creator?
Learn how to emulate your Heavenly Father. That's Tuesday on Pathway to Victory. Pathway to Victory with Dr. Robert Jeffress comes from the pulpit of the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas. You made it to the end of today's podcast from Pathway to Victory, and we're so glad you're here. Pathway to Victory relies on the generosity of loyal listeners like you to make this podcast possible. One of the most impactful ways you can give is by becoming a Pathway Partner. Your monthly gift will empower Pathway to Victory to share the gospel of Jesus Christ and help others become rooted more firmly in His Word. To become a Pathway Partner, go to ptv.org donate, or follow the link in our show notes. We hope you've been blessed by today's podcast from Pathway to Victory.
