“A Spiritual Makeover”
Ephesians 4:17-32
Sermon Series: “New”
Introduction: How can we be new in Christ but still sin and struggle so much? That is an intellectual and spiritual tension that we wrestle with. I often am frustrated with myself because I am not living up to who I know I am in Christ (however, that frustration is not necessarily a bad thing though). The reality is that we need a spiritual makeover. We have seen in this series that we become new by being saved by grace through faith. We have seen that we live like a new person through living a Christ-centered life and by changing the way that we think. We are going to add to that this week by seeing that we have to live a lifestyle of ongoing repentance in order to live like we are new.
1. Principle: We are made new by salvation, and then we are to live like we are new through an ongoing lifestyle of repentance. Verses 22 and 24 sound like commands in the New King James translation, but they really speak of what Jesus did in us at salvation that we are then to apply daily in the process of our sanctification. James Boice writes, “Believers are to follow certain Christian standards precisely because God has already made them new creatures in Christ by putting away the old nature and putting on the new. This is an important point. The apostle is not merely urging a new and higher standard on people. That is an utterly futile thing… Rather, Paul is demanding a high form of behavior precisely because something decisive has already taken place. We have already been made new in Christ. That is why we should and must act like it.” Kent Hughes writes, “We received the old man at birth, and we were given the new man in our heavenly birth. The new man is not our work-it is God’s creation and gift. Our task is not to weave it, but to wear it. Paul is commanding a daily appropriation of that which we already possess.”
2. Process: How do we actually live an ongoing lifestyle of repentance? Repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of heart that results in a change of action. Here are some steps that are included in genuine repentance:
A. Renew our minds (v. 23)-This change begins in the way we think. The renewing of our minds is what enables us to put off sin and put on holiness. This includes a change of mind about our sin. Rick Warren says, “Behind every sin we commit, there is a lie that we believe.”
B. Have genuine sorrow for our sin (2 Corinthians 7:10, Hebrews 12:16-17). True repentance involves taking personal responsibility and being broken over our sin. It is not being sorry about being caught or because of the circumstances we are experiencing but sorry because we sinned against the Lord.
C. Confess our sin (1 John 1:9). Confession is agreeing with God (and sometimes other people) about our sin. It is naming it and calling it what it really is without excuse.
D. Turn from our sin and look to Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-2).
E. Surrender to Jesus (Romans 6:13-16).
F. Live under the control of the Holy Spirit so the Christlike fruit of the Spirit is what comes out of us (Galatians 5:16-25). This is how we positively live in a righteous way.
Conclusion: The old man is growing corrupt, which indicates a pattern of decay that ultimately leads to death (James 1:14-15, Romans 6:1-10). The predictable outcome of a lack of repentance is destruction. Will we repent and live like we are new? If you are not a Christian, will you trust Jesus and His death on the cross so He can cleanse you and make you new? Christians, will we use what we have been given and live like we are new?
