Identity 4 - I Should Be

I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling wherewith you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with all longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:1–3)

If your identity is found in Christ, then how should you then live?

The Dilemma of Morality Without God

Today we come to the ethic of the Christian—the person whose identity is found in Christ. For those who hold a modern or postmodern worldview, there are serious problems surrounding morality and ethics. If you hold a modernist worldview—that everything came into being through billions of years of random chance, mutation, and evolution—then you have no foundation for morality, no basis on which ethics are established. If you hold the postmodern position, then any moral statement is subjective and relative; everything reduces to situational ethics, with no absolute standard for right and wrong.

This causes a serious dilemma, and these are the predominant worldviews of Western civilization today. It was perfectly illustrated about a week ago on a television show in the United Kingdom called The Meaning of Life, in which interviewer Gay Byrne sits down with prominent thinkers and celebrities and asks them about their worldview.

Stephen Fry and the Borrowed Ethic

In one interview, Byrne sat down with the British comedian and actor Stephen Fry, who is an atheist. Byrne asked him: suppose it's all true, and you walk up to the Pearly Gates and are confronted by God—what will you say? Fry's answer seemed to stop Byrne in his tracks. He answered:

"I'll basically say to God, bone cancer in children? What's that all about? How dare you. How dare you create a world in which there is such misery that is not our fault. It's not right. It's utterly, utterly evil. Why should I respect a capricious, mean-minded, stupid God who creates a world that is so full of injustice and pain?"

The problem is that Fry's answer makes no sense whatsoever. His answer borrows from the moral ethic of Christianity. To stand as one who denies the existence of God—the moral lawgiver—you have no basis on which to say, "How dare you, it's utterly wrong, it's evil." In his moral declarations against God, Fry was admitting that he believes in an objective morality. As an atheist, he tipped his hand: he cannot possibly live in a world that has no objective moral standard. When he accuses God of being capricious and evil, he is saying, "I believe there is a moral law"—and therefore there must be a moral lawgiver.

He fell into one of the classic blunders—right behind never getting involved in a land war in Asia. Philosophers have pointed this out for a long time. In Mere Christianity, written 70 years ago, C.S. Lewis addresses this very thing in the first chapter: "Whenever you find a man who says he does not believe in a real right and wrong, you will find the same man going back on this a moment later." The moment someone transgresses against him, he will say, "How dare you"—and in that he admits there is a right and wrong.

A Better Framework

This is why I've stated over the last three studies that the Bible presents a better and more compelling answer. We here at Cross Connection believe the Bible gives a narrative that proposes a better framework through which we can answer questions of morality and ethics. The person who holds a modern or postmodern view has no basis for morality and ethics—even though they still hold people to moral standards. For the Christian, it's not a problem.

When I talk about morality and ethics, I'm talking about what is right, what is wrong, and what one ought to do. A very large segment of people in the Western world don't have adequate answers to these questions. They also don't have good answers to the questions of identity, origin, and destiny that we've examined over the last few weeks. God gives solid answers to all of these.

We should admit that both Christians and non-Christians alike fail to live perfectly according to any moral standard. We all fall short of the moral right and wrong, which is why we are in need of the grace of God. Inside us we have this understanding that we should—God has hardwired a conscience into us that reveals there is a moral law and a moral lawgiver, that certain things are right and certain things are wrong. But we all fail at it, and so we are in desperate need of God's grace. The Bible reveals that God is gracious.

Where We've Been: Origin, Identity, Destiny

In Ephesians 2 we saw that we were dead in trespasses and sins—not only dead, but enemies of God, walking according to the dictates of the devil, the spirit at work in this world. There is more to this cosmos than science can see; there is a spiritual realm, which we'll see clearly in Ephesians 6. We were governed and directed by the enemy, led about by our lustful desires and passions, and therefore subject to the wrath of God. That was our origin.

But that's not who we are anymore. In Ephesians 1 we saw that the Christian has a new identity, seated with and found in Christ. We are blessed with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places—chosen, predestined, adopted, accepted, redeemed, forgiven, given revelation, given an inheritance and an eternal future. All of this is by grace.

In our last study we considered our destiny—not just heaven, which is our ultimate destiny, but a destiny right here and now: to experience the power and presence of God. We have the Holy Spirit resident within us, Christ dwelling in our hearts, which gives us the hope of glory. We have wisdom and revelation, enlightened understanding to comprehend how wide and long and deep and high the love of Christ is.

What We Should Be

So from understanding that we were dead in trespasses and sins, but are now redeemed and forgiven, given revelation, and shall experience His power and presence—how does that affect the way we live? How does it affect our purpose? We come now to what we should be as recipients of this grace. Consider these verses:

[God] chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love. (Ephesians 1:4)

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:10)

...that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro... (Ephesians 4:14)

...that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk... (Ephesians 4:17)

...that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man... and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:22–24)

For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. (Ephesians 5:8)

In these verses we have the foundation for the ethic of the Christian. But it must be stated that these things are based on God's strength at work in us. He has enabled us to do what He calls us to do. In the next study we'll get very clear, practical counsel, and to the natural mind those things may seem impossible. But I was reading in Mark again last night: that which is impossible with man is possible with God.

A New Morality and Ethic

The life of the Christian is to be characterized not only by a new comprehension—our eyes have been opened, we were blind but now we see—but also by living out something new. Our lives should be changed: the way we live, the way we interact with others, the way we respond to people. Point two: they that are identified with Christ ought to live according to a new morality and ethic.

The Christian life is not merely an ethereal mindset; it is a very practical reality. A lot of people think Christianity is just a change of mind and thinking, but it is actually a transformation of the way we live. If your identity is found in Christ, then you should be identifiable by Christ's likeness. The people you used to run with should think it's strange you don't run with them anymore. That difference shouldn't be that you shun them, but that they see a practical change in your life. If that's not there, then there hasn't truly been the new birth.

As I said in our study in chapter 2: you must have an "I was" and an "I am," or you are not saved. Ephesians 5:5 says, "no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God." A person continuing to live as they lived before is an indication that they have not truly found their identity in Christ.

Holy and Without Blame

The Christian ethic—"I should be," the title of this message—first appears in Ephesians 1:4: we should be holy and without blame before God in love. Some translations render this "without spot" or "without blemish." People in the first-century Greco-Roman or Hebraic culture would have understood this immediately, but it may not connect for us today. They regularly offered actual bloody sacrifices. In Ephesus you might offer an animal to Diana, Apollo, or another god; in Jerusalem you'd offer a sacrifice to God for your sins. That sacrifice had to be without spot or blemish, inspected by the Levites, and it had to be holy.

Holy here does not mean perfect; it means consecrated, set apart for temple worship and sacrifice. Consider a savings account. Many of us have saved for a big purchase—a vacation, a new car. When you put part of your net pay into that account, that money is consecrated. It's set apart; it's not to be used for anything else. Because of how my finances work, I have to self-withhold my taxes. Throughout the year that money sits in a savings account—it looks like a lot, but I can't touch it. It says "U.S. Treasury" on it. It's consecrated.

Paul says that as a Christian, your identity in Christ means you should be holy, consecrated, without spot or blemish before God. "Without spot or blemish" means nothing else is holding on, nothing else depleting the resource—you are fully consecrated to Him. This is what Paul begs in Romans 12:1: "I beseech you... that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service." It's the only right response to being redeemed, forgiven, accepted, and adopted.

The interesting thing is that God doesn't force it. Twice here Paul pleads with the Christian to willingly do it. God has redeemed us and we are His possession, not our own—and yet He still maintains your free will. So throughout the New Testament we see Paul, Peter, and James pleading with the Christian to willingly offer what is rightfully God's back to Him.

Walking in Good Works

In Ephesians 2:10, Paul reveals that as Christians offered to God in Christ Jesus, we should walk in the good works that God ordained before the foundation of the world. Before God created you, He had a plan for you and prepared good works for you to do.

Why should we do this? First, because it's pleasing to God. Colossians 1:10 says, "that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work." Second, because it's glorifying to God. In Matthew 5, Jesus says, "You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world... Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven." It exalts Him when we do what we were created to do.

Practical Holiness, Not Ritualistic Righteousness

What does this practically look like? Point three: the worthy walk is practical holiness, not ritualistic righteousness. There are certain rituals and sacraments Christians do, as the Jewish people worshiped God through rituals at the temple. But through Samuel, God told Saul in 1 Samuel 15 that He desires obedience more than burnt offering and sacrifice—obedience is better than sacrifice. David echoes the same thing in the Psalms.

Because of our fallen nature, we all love religious ritual, because it makes us feel holy—especially acts of penance and repentance. But God has a greater desire to see obedience, practical holiness in our lives. So how does Paul describe the worthy walk in Ephesians 4:1–3? Not with prayer and fasting—though those are good—but "with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

There are five things here. First, lowliness—a deep sense of your moral littleness, coming into a humble position our culture doesn't like. God loves humility; the Scriptures say He draws near to the one with a humble heart. The best way to come into a sense of your moral littleness is to behold how great God is, for then you see yourself in light of Him. Paul grasped this—in Ephesians 3:8 he called himself "less than the least of all the saints." It's striking that his name changed from Saul, which means "one who is desired," to Paul, which means "little." There should be such a transformation in the life of every Christian.

Second, gentleness, also translated meekness—a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:23) and a characteristic of Jesus, who said, "Blessed are the meek." Third, longsuffering—patient endurance and steadfast constancy. No one wants to suffer, especially for a long time. Fourth, forbearance—bearing with one another in love. There's a subtle difference: longsuffering is enduring difficult circumstances, while forbearance is bearing with difficult people. And it's easier to suffer difficult circumstances than difficult people.

Endeavoring to Keep Unity

Fifth, such forbearance is done in pursuit of unity—"endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Why? The following verses answer:

There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. (Ephesians 4:4–6)

One, one, one—seven times. There is one body in Christ, and there are to be no schisms, factions, or divisions. The problem is that more than one individual makes up the one body, which means if we're not careful, we become free radicals causing schism. Let's be honest—there are some people in this room you probably just don't like. But they're part of the body, so forbear with one another, even their weaknesses and problems, endeavoring to keep unity. That is a worthy walk, pleasing and glorifying to God.

Grow Up

As Christians, we should also grow up. Ephesians 4:14 says "that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro, carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men." This maturing process should be evident in our lives. Verse 17 tells us we should no longer walk as the Gentiles walk. Paul wrote to people who were formerly pagan Gentiles—they're still Gentiles, but now Christian Gentiles, and he makes a distinction: don't walk as the rest of those who don't believe.

How do they walk? In verses 17–19 he describes it: in the futility of their mind, with darkened understanding, separated from God by ignorance and blindness, fully engaged in lewd, unclean, greedy behavior. That's not how you are to walk, because while their understanding is darkened, your understanding has been enlightened. That's who you were; that's not who you are.

The Mental Makeover

So we must consciously and intentionally put off the old ways like a garment—put off the old man and put on the new man, which is created in holiness and righteousness. Next week we'll get into the specifics. But how does this happen? It begins with the renewal of the mind. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove"—or display—"the perfect will of God."

How does that renewal happen? Ephesians 5:25–26 gives a clue. Christ's aim is to "sanctify and cleanse her, the church, with the washing of water by the word." Jesus prayed in John 17:17, "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth." So this practical holiness begins—point four—with a mental makeover, an extreme makeover of the mind. It doesn't end there, but it begins there.

As we move into the next section, we'll see what we can be in Christ by His power: we can be angry and not sin, those who stole can steal no more, we can let no corrupt communication proceed out of our mouths. That's just a trailer of where we're going. We can be that in Christ because it's His power at work in us—but it begins with the transformation of the mind.

We Must Be What We Are

Why is all of this important? Ephesians 5:8: "You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light." Final point—we must be what we are in Christ. That may sound grammatically strange, but here's the awesome thing: because of the righteousness of Christ and His work on the cross, God in heaven sees you—if you're in Christ—as positionally holy and without spot. "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).

So God sees you as positionally holy and blameless. But how many of us recognize that we are not yet practically holy and blameless? So we need to be what we are in Christ. You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord—so walk as children of light. That is the Christian ethic.

In our next study we'll consider that we can be that. We can lay aside every weight and sin that so easily ensnares us. We can put off the old man and put on the new. Will we ever fall and trip up? Yes—and He is faithful and just to forgive us when we come to Him. But He has called us to live in a way that is excellent, so that others look on and say, "They're different"—not because we use funny language, but because we are completely transformed. May God make us what we should be.

Closing Prayer

Father God, I thank You for Your word; it is clear. We have a moral inclination in our hearts because You have given us a conscience that bears witness with who You are, that accuses or excuses us, showing us the areas of our lives that are inconsistent and incongruent with Your nature. I pray that as we come into contact with those things, we would confess them to You, and that You would make us new. If anyone is in Christ they are a new creation; all the old things have passed away. Make that true in my life and the lives of my brothers and sisters here. Lord, I know there are people standing here today with life-dominating sins, things that make their practical life before You not holy and without spot. I pray that You would enable them, by Your power, to consecrate themselves to You and to experience the transformation of Your word by the work of Your Spirit. For Your glory, that You would be pleased with the offering of our lives, we ask this in Jesus' name. And all God's people said, amen.