The Vanity of Success

The Vanity of Success

Pat Kappenman

The Vanity of Success

Ecclesiastes 2:1-11; Mark 8:34-38

In this passage, the author lays out his experiment in seeking happiness “under the sun” by pursuing success. The structure of the experiment follows standard scientific methodology:

1. The Hypothesis: Can attaining success “under the sun” result in happiness ? (v. 1a, 3)

2. The Experiment: A robust catalog of enjoyments and achievements attained. (v. 4-10a)

3. The Conclusion: Did the enjoyments and the achievements produce lasting happiness? (v. 1b, 10b-11)

As we walk through the experiment with the author, we’ll think about:

1. The LOGIC of success as a life-defining pursuit.

2. The LIMITS of success as a life-defining practice.

3. The Successful LIFE according to Jesus.

I. The Logic of Success as a life-defining pursuit.

Here is the logic behind the hypothesis that drives the Preacher’s experiment:

1. I like feeling good 

2. It feels good to indulge/win/enjoy 

3. Therefore, the more I indulge/win/enjoy, the better I will feel 

In short, if I succeed in life, I will be happy and I will disprove the Preacher’s conclusion that all is vanity.

Here is the point of the experiment: If anyone ever achieved the kind of success that would provide a steady, sustainable stream of the finer pleasures of life, Solomon did. If anyone held onto the ability to remain scientifically objective about the whole thing, Solomon did.

The Preacher merely observes that he knew the most successful man of the day and this is the conclusion he reached after decades of success and the pleasures that go with it:

“Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.” (2:11)

II. The Limits of Success as a life-defining practice.

First, it is extremely Individualistic. 

Did you notice how many times in these eleven verses that the personal pronouns I, me, my, myself were used?  39 times in 11 short verses!! 

At least two nasty consequences tend to follow this individualistic self-obsession:

1. Selfward skew. 

2. Social isolation. 

Second, it is arrogantly Exclusive. 

The Preacher brags that he undertook this experiment for the noble purpose of discovering what “was good for the children of man to do under heaven during the few days of their life.” (2:3)  But two realities are immediately obvious:

1. There simply is no way that the broad sweep of “the children of man” were ever going to be able to achieve what Solomon achieved! 

2. Solomon’s outrageous success actually came from the labor and was built on the backs of thousands of “children of men” who did not fare all that well from his brilliant success.

Lastly, this kind of success is ultimately Corrosive.

1. This kind of success destroys its owner.

2. This kind of success pollutes downstream. 

Dismissing the pursuit of success and pleasure would not be solving the problem. If Solomonic success cannot lift us out of the conclusion that everything under the sun is vanity, REDUCING the definition of what I call my own personal success will not do that either.

• My own smaller definition of success is no less limiting than Solomon’s and no more able to beat the label of vanity than was his.  It is just as individualistic and isolating, just as exclusive and arrogant, just as corrosive and destructive, just as much chasing the wind, but only on a smaller scale.

Here is the secret we learn from Jesus on this mystery: It is not the PURSUIT of success and subsequent pleasure that is the problem, but rather our DEFINITION of success that is the problem. As it turns out, the success we seek - even to Solomonic proportions - is not too large, but rather, too small!

III. The Successful Life according to Jesus

In Mark 8:34-38, Jesus articulates a better logic of success. He lays out a better path to success, and endorses hard pursuit of a far better reward.

…If we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak.  We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by an offer of a holiday at the sea.  We are far too easily pleased.

~ C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

The Vanity of Wisdom

The Vanity of Wisdom

Ian Thomas

The Vanity of Wisdom

Ecclesiastes 1:12-18, 2:12-17

Main Idea: ​​​​Wisdom under the sun is limited, so we must pursue wisdom from above in the fear of the Lord.

I. The Quest of Wisdom

In light of the ‘vanity’ (1:2; lit.: smoke) of life, the Preacher begins a quest “by wisdom” to search out “all that is done under heaven.” He has a unique privilege to explore why our experience in this world is the way that it is.

“Imagine someone with the wealth of Warren Buffet, the business sense and savvy of Jay-Z, sprinkled with the prestige of Oprah, and topped off with the power and respect of your favorite president. He's all that and more. And this rings true of the Teacher in Ecclesiastes. Not only does he have great wisdom, but he has access to anything and everything under the sun.” ~ John Onwuchekwa

The allure of this quest is a kind of wisdom and knowledge that grasps for control, able to explain away the vanity we experience. This quest has its roots in the fall of Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden (cf. Gen. 3:5). 

This pursuit ends up being an “unhappy business” and a “striving after the wind.” God “gives” this kind of pursuit to mankind not so that we might gain control over the world or solve all of its problems, but rather that we might embrace the vanity of life under the sun. 

II. The Limits of Wisdom

Ecclesiastes (and the rest of the Bible) consistently affirms the value of true wisdom. But although there is “more to gain in wisdom than folly” (2:13), the Preacher runs into 3 limitations on his quest: 

1. Wisdom can’t change the curse (1:15)

2. Wisdom can’t explain the enigma (1:16-17)

3. Wisdom can’t defeat death (2:14-16)

In the face of these limitations, the Preacher comes to an honest place of lament. As his wisdom increased, so did his vexation and sorrow with the world (1:18); as he saw all the grievous things under the sun, he hated life itself (2:17). Though this language might make us uncomfortable, it is an expression of true wisdom.

“The wise learn not to fear revealing what is true about their despair or hatred. God’s character and covenant anchor their voice and make every feeling and thought, no matter how beautiful or foul, a matter of prayer for God to enter… The wise learn to manage life, not by frantically trying to glue together the knocked-over vase, but by gathering all the shattered jagged pieces and powdered dust from the floor and bringing them to God.” ~ Zack Eswine

III. The Enjoyment of Wisdom

When we realize the vanity of wisdom for wisdom’s sake alone, we are in a position to pursue and enjoy a true wisdom that lasts. This is marked by: 

• The Fear of the Lord (cf. 7:16-18; Prov. 1:7). 

• Embracing Limitations & Enjoying Life

“Living under the sun, believers are happy to take comfort in knowing that they do not know. We learn, perhaps through great pain, to be deeply content with not knowing. To know all there is about everything there is to know, to know it in all ways and at all the right times so that I have every bit of relevant data in front of me, well, that is the kind of control over the world that Ecclesiastes has been teaching me to surrender. I cannot know, and so I don't have to know… The wisest thing you can do is to realize that not even being wise will tell you everything you want to know.” ~ David Gibson

• Pursuing Wisdom from Above (cf. James 3:13-18). This kind of wisdom that is “pure, gentle, peaceable, and open to reason, full of mercy, sincere, and impartial” is seen supremely in the wisdom of God incarnate, Jesus Christ (Mt. 12:42).

Life Under the Sun

Life Under the Sun

Ian Thomas

Life Under the Sun

Ecclesiastes 1:1-11

“If Proverbs is like math, mostly dealing in equations in which one thing adds up to equal another, then Ecclesiastes is like music, all mood with melody and tone. If Proverbs is like meteorology giving us indicators so as to predict certain outcomes, then Ecclesiastes is like the actual weather, fickle and unpredictable in its ability to rant with storms or breathe easy with a mid-morning breeze.”

~ Zack Eswine

Main Idea: ​​​​Life under the sun is fleeting and elusive, inviting us to humbly embrace this reality before the Lord.  

I. The Preacher (1:1)

Though there is debate over the author of Ecclesiastes, it is clearly written in the “Solomonic” tradition after King Solomon, the “Son of David.” Whether he is the author or not, we are to read this book in light of his kingship, wisdom, wealth, and extravagance.

Within Ecclesiastes, we hear from two distinct voices:

1. The “Preacher” (Heb. Qoheleth), sometimes translated as the “teacher, philosopher, or quester.” His name literally means ‘one who speaks to the congregation.’

2. The Author (cf. Ecc. 12:9ff), who remains anonymous and comments on the preacher’s wisdom.

II. The Message (1:2-3)

Thesis statement 1A: “Vanity of vanities! All is vanity.” 

“Vanity” (Heb: hebel) lit. means smoke, breathe, or vapor. This multifaceted metaphor teaches us two realities:

1. Life is short & fleeting (cf. Ps. 144:3-4, Jas. 4:14)

2. Life is elusive & enigmatic

“Ecclesiastes is a meditation on how life seems to elude our grasp in terms of lasting significance. If we try to gain control of the world and our lives by what we can understand and by what we can do, we find that the control we seek eludes us.”

~ David Gibson

Thesis statement 1B: “What does man gain by all his toil at which he toils under the sun.” 

The Preacher’s vantage point is human experience here in this world ‘under the sun,’ not beginning with divine commandments or prerogatives. Looking ‘under the sun’ for ‘gain’ - something leftover of value or permanence - will net us nothing. 

III. The Reality (1:4-11)

To prove his thesis, the Preacher poetically tells us:

1. Nothing really changes (1:4-7)

2. Nothing really satisfies (1:8)

3. Nothing is really new (1:9-10)

4. Nothing (and no one) will really be remembered (1:11)

​​“The horror of the Same Old Thing is one of the most valuable passions we have produced in the human heart - an endless source of heresies in religion, folly in counsel, infidelity in marriage, and inconstancy in friendship.”

~ C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

IV. The Hope

The Preacher is inviting us to consider life under the sun in a different way: what if we stopped looking at life as ‘gain’ (1:4), and instead receive it as a gift? 

Because life under the sun is ‘vanity,’ we should simultaneously enjoy it and embrace it for what it is. As we embrace the fact that life is short and elusive, we are freed up to enjoy its simple pleasures with thanksgiving for what it is, not what we wish it might be. 

Mark 8:36: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”

Romans 8:18–21:  For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

The glory and hope that awaits us is rooted in the eternal work of Jesus Christ.

• Jesus really changes things 

• Jesus really satisfies the deep longings of our soul (Ecc. 3:11)

• Jesus really will make all things new

• Jesus really is remembered

Spiritual Warfare

Spiritual Warfare

Rob Lourcey

Spiritual Warfare

Ephesians 6:10-24

“There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.” 

-C.S. Lewis

Main Idea: To fight against the enemy, we must rightly equip ourselves for battle.

1. Lines are drawn: Who is the enemy? Where is our strength found? (6:10-12)

2. Suit up: How do we ready ourselves for battle? (6:13-17)

3. The work: What is the mission? (Are there reinforcements?) (6:18-20)

4. Help is always on the way. (6:21-23)

   • How are your battles going?

   • Who are you fighting with?

   • Who are you fighting for?

   • Who are you trying to free?

Our Heavenly Master

Our Heavenly Master

Ian Thomas

Our Heavenly Master

Ephesians 6:5-9

Main Idea: ​​​​We must treat others and approach our work in relationship to our Heavenly Master.

I. The Gospel & Slavery 

Slavery and servitutde were a massive part of the structure of the Roman Empire, with some estimating there were upwards of 60 million slaves (or ‘bondservants’) at the time of Christ. In a city like Ephesus, a full ⅓ of the population may have been bondservants.“Paul could no more envisage a world without slavery than we can envisage a world without electricity.” ~ N.T. Wright

Though the practices of slavery varied throughout the Roman Empire, the practice during the time of the NT was different than slavery in the American South in some important ways:

• It was based more in economics than race.

• It was (usually) not lifelong; bondservants would work for compensation and could gain their freedom through release or payment.

• Bondservants were a part of the structure of society at nearly all levels, often serving in roles like teachers, secretaries, and doctors.

Paul teaches Christians how they should live within this existing and culturally unquestioned structure without condoning it. The gospel itself undermined the very institution of slavery, creating a community of equality and justice in the church that helped lead to the end of this practice. 

“While we cannot defend the indolence or cowardice of two further Christian centuries which saw this social evil but failed to eradicate it, we can at the same time rejoice that the gospel immediately began even in the first century to undermine the institution; it lit a fuse which at long last led to the explosion which destroyed it.”

~ John Stott

II. The Gospel & Bondservants (6:5-8)

Bondservants are to render their service and their work ultimately to Christ. Paul directly connections their work and their position four times to the Lord. They are to serve their earthly masters in a way that honors their Heavenly Master.

This gives them three new realities for their work:

1. New Motivation: purity and sincerity of heart (“wholeness”)

2. New Work Ethic: not for people-pleasing, but good honest work before the Lord

3. New Reward: working for treasures in heaven and a reward from their Heavenly Master 

With these exhortations in mind, Christians today ought to approach treatment of others in authority and our work in the same way (cf. Col. 3:23-24). Our motivations for work should not be worldly, but instead Spirit-filled (5:18), reflecting our greater calling to the Lord in every area of our lives.

 “Christians have been set free to enjoy working. If we begin to work as if we were serving the Lord, we will be freed from both overwork and underwork. Neither the prospect of money and acclaim, nor the lack of it, will be our controlling consideration. Work will be primarily a way to please God by doing his work in the world, for his name’s sake.”

~ Tim Keller

III. The Gospel & Masters (6:9)

Paul’s exhortations here would have been revolutionary in this culture; he assumes that within the church there is an equality and reciprocal treatment between master and bondservant (“do the same to them”). Like bondservants, masters must treat those under their authority as they would treat Christ (cf. Col. 4:1). 

For those in positions of authority, they are compelled by the gospel to use their authority in a way that resembles Christ, embracing that they are “fellow-servants” of the same Heavenly Master who shows no partiality. They must not threaten or intimidate those under their authority, but treat them with dignity and respect. 

As we draw our attention to our Heavenly Master, we are reminded that Jesus “came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk. 10:45). He came in his incarnation “by taking the form of a servant” and counting others as more significant than himself (Phil. 2:3-7). The pattern of our Heavenly Master must be the foundation and source of strength for how we treat others and our work.

Family Matters

Family Matters

Andrew Lovette

Family Matters

Ephesians 6:1-4

Main idea: We glorify God by living together in Gospel-shaped families. 

Matthew 19:14: “but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.””

Ps 127:3–5: Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. 

“From God you receive them. To God you lead them.”  ~Dietrich Bonhoeffer  

1 Samuel 1:26–28: 26 And she said, “Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the Lord. 27 For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to him. 28 Therefore I have lent him to the Lord. As long as he lives, he is lent to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there. 

John 14:18–21: “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

“One's heart goes out to the children of such fathers, and those of us who are fathers ourselves know that we too are far from perfect. ButGod the Father is not called Father because he copies earthly fathers.He is not some pumped-up version of your dad. To transfer the failingsof earthly fathers to him is, quite simply, a misstep. Instead, things arethe other way around: it is that all human fathers are supposed to reflect him--only where some do that well, others do a better job of reflecting the devil.” ~James Miller

Hebrews 12:7–11: 7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. 

Deuteronomy 6:7–9: 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 

The Mystery of Marriage

The Mystery of Marriage

Ian Thomas

The Mystery of Marriage

Ephesians 5:22-33

Main Idea: ​​​​Marriage is a profound mystery pointing us to the ultimate marriage of Christ and the church.

I. Appreciating the Mystery (5:30-32)

Marriage is a “profound (lit. ‘mega’) mystery” that reveals to us something of eternal significance. We must appreciate both the design and the destination for marriage if we are to understand this mystery. 

1. The Design of Marriage (Gen. 2:18-25)

In the Garden of Eden, God sees that “it is not good” that Adam is alone, so he creates Eve, a “helper fit for him” (2:18)

• “Helper” does not imply inferiority; this term is most used of God himself in the OT and the Holy Spirit in the NT. The original marriage had a design of “head” (Eph. 5:23) and “helper.” 

• “Fit” speaks to the complementary relationship between the man and the woman; they were equal but not equivalent or interchangeable. Adam and Eve needed one another as essential partners to fulfill the mandates from the Lord.

Ultimately, the design of marriage was not meant to culminate with Adam and Eve, but with Christ’s love for the church. We must think of marriage today in light of the eternal love story of Christ for his bride.

“Every time a bride and a groom stand there and take their vows, they are reenacting the biblical love story, whether they realize it or not. The Son of God stepping down out of eternity, entering time, taking on flesh, pursuing and winning his bride as his very heart and body with his inmost, sincerest love so that he can fit her to be with him forever above – that dramatic super-reality is the breathtaking reason why human marriage exists.” ~ Ray Ortlund

2. The Destination of Marriage (Rev. 19:6-9, 21:1-2) 

“The echoes of Genesis 2 are unmistakable. Again, we see God bringing a bride to her husband, only this time the husband is Jesus and we are the bride. In that first marriage, Adam failed to step in and help his wife when she needed him. But at the end of time there will be another wedding, the wedding supper of the Lamb, and its purpose is also to fill the world with children of God. It will succeed where the first marriage failed because, while the first husband in history failed, the Second Husband did not. The true Adam, Jesus Christ, will never fail his spouse, the Second Eve, his church.” ~ Tim Keller

II. Inhabiting the Mystery (5:22-29, 33)

With the foundation of this “mystery” revealed to us in Christ, we can make more sense of the exhortations Paul gives to both wives and husbands: 

1. Wives (5:22-24): submit to your own husbands as to the Lord

3 notes on this exhortation:

• This is not based on “traditionalism” or cultural constructs, but is consistently affirmed as God’s good design for marriage (cf. Col. 3:18, 1 Pet. 3:1)

• This is voluntary posture, not under compulsion, for a specific context: wives to your own husbands, not women (in general) to men (in general) 

• This is an expression of obedience to the Lord (“as to the Lord”) and respect (5:33) for her husband

Philippians 2:3–7: Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves… Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

2. Husbands (5:25-29): love your wives (3x)

Paul gives two analogies to explain what this love should look like:

• Love your wife as Christ loves the church (5:25-27); this posture is marked by 4 verbs: give yourself up, sanctify, cleanse, and present. Husbands should love their wives in such a way that they are more like Christ, preparing for the day when we will be glorified in splendor. 

“How does Christ love and lead his church? He does so by laying down his own life to the point of crucifixion. A husband’s leadership is about a special accountability for sabotaging his own wants and appetites with a forward-looking plan for the best interests of his wife and children. Headship is not about having one’s laundry washed or one’s meals cooked or one’s sexual drive met, but rather about constantly evaluating how to step up first to lay one’s life down for his family.” ~ Russell Moore

Love your wife as you love your own body (5:28-29), marked by nourishing & cherishing this one-flesh union. Husbands ought to love their wife in both action and affection. The covenant nature of marriage creates the environment for the connection of intimacy.

Walk It Out

Walk It Out

Andrew Lovette

Walk It Out

Ephesians 5:1-21

Main Idea: In Christ, we imitate God by walking in love, light, and wisdom. 

I. Walk in Love (5:1-2)

a. Imitate the love of the Father (1)

“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.” (Ephesians 5:1)

“ In love, he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, (Ephesians 1:5)

b. Imitate the love of the Son (2)

“And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:2)

“but God shows (demonstrates) his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  (Romans 5:8)

“a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:2)

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”  (Romans 12:1)

II. Walk in Light (5:3-14)

8 For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. (Eph 5:8)

a. Sex, Greed, Speech  (5:3-5)

3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. (Ephesians 5:3-5)

"With some (Christians) the last part of their nature that ever gets sanctified is their pockets." ~ Charles Spurgeon 

5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. 6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 7 Therefore do not become partners with them; (Ephesians 5:5–7)

“18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”  (2 Corinthians 3:18)

b. Goodness, Righteousness, Truth (5:9-10)

9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. (Ephesians 5:9–10)

c. Expose and Transform (5:11-14)

11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, 

“Awake, O sleeper, 

and arise from the dead, 

and Christ will shine on you.” 

(Ephesians 5:11–14) 

III. Walk in Wisdom (5:15-21)

15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.” (Ephesians 5:15–21)

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16)

New Life in Christ

New Life in Christ

Ian Thomas

New Life in Christ

Ephesians 4:17-32

Main Idea: ​​​​Our new life in Christ empowers us to live in a transformed way.

I. A New Identity (4:17-24)

The “once… but now” pattern of Ephesians shows up again here. Paul urges the church to no longer walk as the ‘Gentiles’ (speaking morally, not ethnically) do. He compares their old and new selves:

1. The Old Self (4:17-19)

Their mind was futile and darkened, their hearts were hardened and callous, and their actions were impure, immoral, and insatiable. The totality of who they were (head, heart, and hands) was ‘alienated from the life of God.’

2. The New Self (4:20-24)

Paul reminds these Gentiles that they have been taken to the “school of Christ” (4:20-21), where they have learned him, heard him, and taught him who is himself the truth. Because of Christ, we have a new way of thinking, a new way of responding, and new behaviors.

“If a man becomes Christ’s disciple by conversion, he must remain Christ’s disciple, throughout the rest of his life, by sitting at his Master’s feet, and receiving instruction from him; for it is only as we are taught of God that we shall be able to keep up the high spiritual distinction between ourselves and the rest of mankind. We are under the tutorship of the Holy Spirit; he has taken us into his school; he has taught us something already, he is teaching us more now, and he will keep on teaching us more and more till we shall know even as we are known.” ~ Charles Spurgeon

Just as we get dressed and put on clothes each day, we are to “put off the old self” and  “put on the new self,” which is Christ himself (Rom. 13:14, Col. 3:9-10, Gal. 3:27). This putting off of the old and putting on of the new has already happened decisively at salvation, and we now live out this new reality daily. 

2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

The bridge between this “putting off” and “putting on” is to “be renewed” in the present. This is the work of the Spirit who is conforming us into the image of Christ (2 Cor. 3:18). This is the sanctification process of the Christian life, where we become functionally who we already are positionally in Christ. 

II. A New Way of Living (4:25-32)

Paul now practically applies this new identity to a new way of living, marked by ongoing repentance, faith, and gospel transformation. “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said “Repent,” he intended that the entire life of believers should be repentance.” ~ Martin Luther

This new way of living is described in the same pattern in these verses:

• Repentance (negative: stop doing this…)

• Faith (positive: instead, do this…) 

• Theological / gospel motivation

1. Truth-telling (4:25)

Repentance: Put away all falsehood

Faith: Speak the truth with our neighbor

Theological: We are members of one another; the body is strengthened and united by truth, not falsehood (Eph. 4:15-16)

2. Anger (​​4:26-27)

Repentance: Turn from unrighteous anger

Faith: Live with righteous anger

Theological: Do not give an opportunity to the devil, who is the Father of lies and a murderer from the beginning (Jn. 8:44)

3. Work (4:28)

Repentance: No longer steal or work dishonestly

Faith: Work hard and honestly

Theological: We work hard in order that we might be generous toward those who are in need

4. Speech (4:29-30)

Repentance: No more corrupting speech (cf. ‘rotten fruit of Mt. 7:17-18)

Faith: Edifying speech for building up, full of grace

Theological: Do not grieve the Holy Spirit, who has sealed us and is transforming us from the inside-out

Luke 6:45: The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

5. Attitudes (4:31-32)

Repentance: Bitterness, wrath, (unrighteous) anger, clamar, slander, and malice must be put away

Faith: Be kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving to one another

Theological: Christ has forgiven us and acted toward us in this very way

When we realize that Christ has treated us in all of these ways out of his grace, kindness, and mercy, we begin to realize the power to change and be transformed. The gospel does not call us to a list of moralistic activities, but to a new life and a new way of living marked by Christ himself (5:1-2).

The Resurrection of Christ | Easter

The Resurrection of Christ - Easter Sunday

Ian Thomas

The Resurrection of Christ

John 20:1-18

Main Idea: ​​​​The resurrection of Christ means the curse is reversed and we have hope.  

I. The Tomb is Empty (20:1-10)

Sunday morning begins with Mary Magdalene going to the tomb early in the morning while it is still dark on the “first day of the week.” John presents the resurrection as being the beginning of a new creation, with the “darkness” being pushed back by a glorious light. 

Mary is presumably traveling to the tomb to mourn the death of Christ. Despite Jesus’ predictions that he would be raised, no one is expecting or looking for a resurrection. This did not fit into either the Jewish or the Greco-Roman worldview. Mary assumes a grave robbery has occurred. 

As Peter and John show up at the tomb, they realize the burial linen cloths and the face cloth are both neatly folded up. Peter and John begin to “theorize” what has happened, and John himself “believes” as he steps foot in this empty tomb.

Acts 2:24: God raised him [Jesus] up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

Isaiah 25:7–8: And he will swallow up on this mountain

the covering that is cast over all peoples,

the veil that is spread over all nations.

He will swallow up death forever;

and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces,

and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,

for the Lord has spoken.

Though they do not realize it yet, Christ “must  rise from the dead.” Everything hinges upon the resurrection, and the empty tomb is an invitation for us. “The reason the stone was rolled away on Jesus's tomb was not so that Jesus could get out, but so that we could get in.” ~ Tim Keller

“The truest fact of the universe is an empty tomb. The Resurrection is the only evidence that love triumphs over death, weakness prevails over strength, and beauty outlives ashes. If Jesus is risen in actual history, with all the palpability of flesh, fingers, bone, and blood, there is hope that our mourning will be comforted, and that death will not have the final word.”

~ Tish Harrison Warren

II. The Curse is Reversed (20:11-18)

This resurrection encounter shows us that the curse of sin and its impact on the world is being rolled back. We see this in three categories:

1. The Setting: Jesus is buried in a “garden tomb” (19:41); gardens have great significance in the Scriptures from the Garden of Eden all the way to the “Garden-City” of the New Heavens and the New Earth (Rev. 21-22)

2. The People

• Angels: In the Garden of Eden, angels were placed by the Lord to prevent anyone from entering & accessing (Gen. 3:24); in this garden, the angels are welcoming Mary into the empty tomb

• “The Gardener”

“Mary’s intuitive guess, that he must be the gardener, was wrong at one level and right, deeply right, at another. This is the new creation. Jesus is the beginning of it. Here he is: the new Adam, the gardener, charged with bringing the chaos of God’s creation into new order, into flower, into fruitfulness. He has come to uproot the thorns and thistles and replace them with blossoms and harvests.”

~ N.T. Wright

• Mary:
  Unlike Adam and Eve who hide from the presence of the Lord and his call in Genesis 3, Mary’s eyes are opened and her faith is ignited as the “Good Shepherd” calls her name. John 10:27: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
  
  Eve is deceived in a garden by the serpent, and sin enters the world and spreads to all of creation. Mary, who had felt the full weight of the serpent’s schemes (cf. Lk. 8:2), is the first to encounter the risen Christ in a garden, and is commissioned to announce the gospel that will spread to all of creation. 

3. The Message

Jesus did not want Mary to “cling” to him because his presence was going to come to be with them in the Holy Spirit. Christ’s followers would have an even greater intimacy and relationship with him through the indwelling Spirit, our great “Helper” (Jn. 16:7).

The alienation of the Garden of Eden between humans and God and humans with one another has now been solved because of the finished work of Christ: “go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
All of humanity is living in one of two story lines: we either walk out of a garden into a tomb, or we walk out of a tomb into a garden. By God’s grace and in the power of Christ’s resurrection, we are being invited to new life and into a “living hope” (1 Pet. 1:3).