Identity 5 - I Can Be

This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind... 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. Therefore, putting away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor... Be angry, and do not sin: do not let the sun go down on your wrath... Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good... Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth... And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God... Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:17–32)

The Bible's "should be" commands are actually "can be" promises for the Christian who knows where the power comes from.

Peter Banning and a Forgotten Identity

It was the hit blockbuster of the Christmas season in 1991. The late comedian Robin Williams played Peter Banning, a corporate lawyer so absorbed with his job that he had forgotten his true identity. His true identity was Peter Pan. In the movie Hook, he goes back to Neverland to rescue his two children, Maggie and Jack, who have been kidnapped by his nemesis, Captain Hook.

In their first meeting after Pan is all grown up, Hook lifts the two children high above the deck of the Jolly Roger and says, "I'll make you a deal, Mr. Chairman of the Board. You just fly up there and touch the outstretched fingers of your frightened children, and I'll let them go." Banning looks at him incredulously and says, "I can't fly." He has forgotten who he is. He even whispers to Hook that he's afraid of heights. Yet just a few days later in the movie, Banning realizes his true identity—and Peter Pan flies high, doing what he thought was utterly impossible.

What We Should Be in Christ

In our last study in Ephesians, we considered the ethical responsibility of the Christian—what we should do once we grasp our true identity in Christ. We were dead in trespasses and sins, living in open opposition and disobedience to God, enemies under His wrath. But now we are in Christ, and we have not only a new identity but a new destiny: to be with God in eternity, with an inheritance that is incorruptible and that fades not away.

Because we are in that position, we have a new responsibility. Paul says in Ephesians 4 that we should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk—in the futility of their minds, with darkened understanding, separated from God by ignorance and blindness, given over to lewd and unclean behavior. Instead, we should walk worthy of the calling with which we have been called: a walk characterized by humility, meekness, patience, and forgiveness—forgiving others as we ourselves have been forgiven by God.

Point one: If your identity is in Christ, then your way of life should be different. He or she who is in Christ ought to be Christlike in conduct. The way we live, talk, and respond to people should make it evident to those who don't know the Lord that we are different. We should no longer be as we once were.

A Crystal-Clear, Street-Level Holiness

You couldn't get any more clear and practical than Paul does here. When the Bible says we are holy and blameless, this is what holy and blameless looks like. Many people think of holiness as religious, ritualistic—going to church, praying, performing some ritual. But Paul talks about street-level, on-the-street Christianity.

In verse 25 he says: stop lying and speak the truth. In verse 26: be angry, but don't sin. God recognizes that anger is one of our emotional responses; when we see wicked and unjust things, we will be angry. But be angry for the right reasons, respond in the right way, and don't let it linger—don't let the sun go down on your wrath.

Verse 28 may be one of my favorites. Put simply, he says: stop stealing, get a job, and give—labor with your hands so that you may have something to give to those in need. Verses 29 and 30: don't use foul language, but instead speak gracious words that lift people up. Why? Because corrupt language grieves the Holy Spirit. Jesus said it is out of the heart that evil things proceed, so corrupt speech originates in the heart. And if you're a Christian, 1 Corinthians 3 and 6 tell us you are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Your corruptness crowds Him out and grieves Him.

In verses 31 and 32 he gets even more practical: get rid of bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor (arguing), evil speaking, and malice. Malice is a word we don't use much—it means having ill intent toward someone, wishing them harm. Have any of us ever done that? Someone cuts you off on the freeway and you wish them harm—be honest. Put it away, and replace it with three things in verse 32: kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness, as Christ forgave you. Then in chapter 5, he says the believer should not be involved in fornication, uncleanness, covetousness, filthiness, foolish talking, or coarse jesting.

Called to Practical Holiness

Point two: We are called to a practical holiness, not just a religious ritual. We go to a church that sometimes prides itself on being non-traditional—I like to say we're traditionally non-traditional, because we still have patterns and rituals. Communion, baptism, praying before meals—those things are good, not bad. But they are not what makes us holy, and they are not the only thing Christianity is about. Christianity is a practical way of living.

The Bible constantly commends practical holiness, because obedience is better than sacrifice. In 1 Samuel 15:22, Samuel says to Saul:

Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.

Something in our nature really likes religious ritual—sacrificing, acts of penance, praying prayers to atone—because they give us something tangible to hold onto and point to. But God delights more in our obedience. Solomon writes in Proverbs 21:3, "To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice." Micah 6 says God has shown you what is good and what He requires: to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly. And Peter writes in 1 Peter 1:15-16, "As He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct... because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'" Not just your conduct on Sunday morning from 8:30 to 10:00—in all your conduct.

The Honest Struggle: "I Can't Fly"

If you've been a Christian for any length of time, you know these verses, and you have an inner desire to do them—a compulsion that came when you put your faith in Christ. But if you've tried to be practically holy, you know it's about as easy as Peter Banning flying up to touch his children's fingers. When God says, "Be holy, for I am holy," you stand on the deck of the Jolly Roger and sheepishly say, "I can't fly. I can't do that."

You find yourself mirroring Paul in Romans 7:19: "For the good that I want to do, I do not do; and the bad things I don't want to do, that's what I practice." I know my identity—I am in Christ. I know my destiny is set with Him in eternity. But right now, my "should be"—I struggle with that. I know I'm supposed to, but how to do it, I don't know.

I'm here to tell you this morning that your "should be" is actually a "can be." I can be what God has called me to be. The immediate question is: how?

His Grace Enables My Obedience

The answer is found here in Ephesians and throughout the New Testament. We've hit on Ephesians 2:8-10 every single week: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

Point three: His grace enables my obedience. We constantly need to come back to this. Over the years, when I share this, people respond, "So are you saying I don't have to do anything and God does everything?" To that I say: no and yes. That may seem like Christian schizophrenia, but there's truth to it. To see how it works, let's look at two stories from Jesus's life.

The Paralyzed Man and the Withered Hand

In Luke 5:17, Jesus is teaching and the Pharisees and teachers of the law are sitting by. Picture the most religious person you can imagine—that's the Pharisees. They aren't there because they're interested in following Jesus; they're trying to trip Him up and remove Him, because He's like a vacuum pulling the people toward Him and away from them.

The room is so crowded you can't get in. Then four men bring a paralyzed man on a stretcher. They have a genuine problem, but the religious crowd around Jesus keeps the truly needy from getting to Him—sound familiar? So these ingenious, determined men carry the man up onto the rooftop, break through the tiles, and lower him down right in front of Jesus. Talk about a distraction. And when Jesus saw their faith, He said, "Man, your sins are forgiven you." But he can't walk—that's not the issue, is it? Apparently Jesus thinks it is.

The scribes and Pharisees reason in their hearts, "Who can forgive sins but God alone?" Their theology is right; their application of it to Jesus is wrong. Perceiving their thoughts, Jesus answers, "Which is easier to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or 'Rise, take up your bed, and walk'? But that you may know the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"—He says to the paralyzed man, "Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." And immediately the man rose, took up his bed, and went home glorifying God.

Turn one page to Luke 6:6. On another Sabbath Jesus enters a synagogue to teach, and a man is there whose right hand is withered. The scribes and Pharisees watch closely to see if He'll heal on the Sabbath—in their book, that's work—so they can accuse Him. Again, the religious keep the truly needy from getting to Jesus. Knowing their thoughts, Jesus tells the man, "Arise and stand." Then He asks the Pharisees, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?" Then He says to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he did, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.

With the Command Comes the Power

Why highlight these two stories in answering, "Do I do anything, or does God do everything?" Yes and no. Here is a man with no ability to get up and walk—he's paralyzed, inoperable. And another man whose withered hand cannot move. Jesus commands them both to do something they have no power to do. The paralyzed man had no power to rise; the man with the withered hand had no doubt tried many times to stretch it out without success. Yet both obeyed—and were healed.

What's happening here? With Jesus's command came the enabling power to fulfill it. Jesus is working, but these men still need to obey. They need to take the initiative of faith—to begin to sit up, to stretch forth the hand—beyond everything telling them it's impossible. He has saved us apart from our works, but He has saved us unto good works that we should walk in.

He has commanded us to put away lying and stealing, corrupt communication, bitterness, wrath, and clamor, and not to be sexually immoral or unclean. He has commanded us to be tenderhearted, gentle, meek, humble, and forgiving. None of these things can we accomplish in and of ourselves—we've all tried and failed time and again. Yet He still commands them, and with the command comes the enabling power.

Walk by Imitating God and Walking in the Spirit

Notice the verses I skipped earlier. In Ephesians 5:1-2, after telling them to walk worthy of their calling, Paul says, "Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us." Verse 8: "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), proving what is acceptable to the Lord."

(That phrase "finding out what is acceptable" in the New King James is better rendered "proving what is acceptable.") Verse 14: "Awake, you who sleep, arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light." Then verse 15: "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time... do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is... do not be drunk with wine... but be filled with the Spirit." Following this, Paul addresses husbands and wives, masters and servants, and children—and embedded there, in 5:25-26, he says Christ loved the church and "gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word."

A Balance of His Work and Ours

Point four: Practical holiness is a balance of His work and ours. How much of a balance? Is it 40% His and 60% ours? 25/75? 50/50? I don't know the exact proportion, but Scripture reveals that walking this walk is a balance of His work and ours.

The best verse to illustrate this is Philippians 2:12-13. Paul writes, "Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." You obeyed when I was watching, and you still obey now that I'm not. So work out your own salvation with actual energy engaged. Then verse 13—remember, the verse divisions weren't original; this is the same sentence—"for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure." Another translation: it is God who works in you to desire and to do what is good and pleasing to Him.

So who is working—God or you? Yes. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for God is working in you to give you both the desire and the ability to do what brings Him pleasure. And how do we know He's keeping up His end? Philippians 1:6: "Being confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will complete it."

The question, then, is whether we are working out our salvation, or just sitting back saying, "If God wants me to change, He'll have to come and change it." Sadly, many Christians live like that—defeated for twenty, thirty, forty years, never growing to maturity, remaining infants in Christ. He is saying, "Rise, take up your bed and walk." You say, "I can't." He says, "No—I commanded you, and with the command I give you the enabling power to do it." He is faithfully keeping up His end. Are we keeping up ours?

Be Saturated, Be Sanctified, and Soar

Point five: Be saturated by the Spirit and sanctified by the Scriptures, and you will soar. Like Peter Pan, who did the impossible. In Luke 1:37, when people doubt, the angel says, "For with God nothing will be impossible." And lest we think God is limited by our limitations, Luke 18:27 says, "The things which are impossible with men are possible with God." He is able to enable you and me to do what He's called us to do.

If you're falling and not flying, maybe it's time to say, "God, fill me, refill me, enable me, help me recognize Your enabling power by Your Spirit in my life." Ephesians 5 says the fruit of the Spirit in your life is all that is acceptable to God; Galatians 5 says it is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, and kindness. So ask God to help you recognize His power by His Spirit.

Then test whether the Scriptures are true—whether He really does sanctify us by the washing of water by His word (Ephesians 5:26), as Jesus prayed in John 17:17, "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth." Test whether God's word can transform you by the renewing of your mind. Spend more time studying, reading, meditating on, memorizing, and doing the word of God.

The Word Doesn't Work by Osmosis

Nearly every time I sit down with a believer living a defeated life—unable to conquer some sin that has conquered them, whether anger, drunkenness, immorality, or pornography—I ask one simple question: "How often do you read the Bible?" Coming to church and saying, "God, I'm here; fix me," is like Achan standing there waiting. God says, "I've given you My word, living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword. By it I cleanse you—and you never apply it."

The word of God does not work by osmosis. Leaving it on the nightstand is not sufficient. And this is not The Matrix—nobody plugs it into your head so that in five seconds you know Kung Fu. He has commanded you to stretch forth your hand: by faith begin to apply His word. David said in Psalm 119, "Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You," and "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." If you're constantly ensnared by sin and not soaring, it likely has a great deal to do with the fact that you're not taking hold of the word of God and letting it take hold of you.

So there is a balance—His work and yours. The "should bees" of the Bible are "can bees" for the Christian, because He has enabled you by His power, given you His Spirit, and given you the Scriptures, and by them we are transformed. Next week in Ephesians 6 we'll get into the task of the Christian: I fight to be. I was dead in trespasses and sins; I will be with Him in eternity; I should be holy and walk worthy; I can be—therefore I fight to be.

Closing Prayer

God, thank You for Your word. It is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword. Lord, by it Your servant is warned; through it You transform us, cleanse us, and make us new. I pray that our lives would so illustrate Your grace and goodness that people would see we are walking in a way pleasing to You—not that we would be glorified or puffed up, because that would be sin, but that You would be glorified, and people would say, "They have a good God who is real." God, I pray that Your reality, who You are, would be seen in our lives today and this week. We ask this in Jesus' name, and all God's people said, amen.