GO BACK TO THE SCRIPTURE!

Some of Paul’s converts in Ephesus deviated from the way of Christ. Paul then cautioned them to go back to what they had been taught of Christ Jesus from the beginning. He reproved them and reminded them of what scripture had approved by God’s Holy Spirit in Ephesians 4: 20-30 as follows;

We must learn scripture in Christ 

Paul wrote at Ephesians 4: 20 for surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. Being taught about Jesus is not the same as being taught in Jesus. Being taught about him gives us knowledge, whereas being taught in him gives us understanding with truth. Not all we hear always comes from God. 2 Corinthians 11: 14 says Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Satan corrupts scripture. 2John 1: 7 says  many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh; such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. 

Only the Holy Spirit can teach us in Christ Jesus. Matthew 24: 27 says false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. We must take personal interest to examine what we hear and read. Acts 17: 11 says these Jews were more receptive than those in Thessalonica, for they welcomed the message very eagerly and examined the scriptures every day to see whether these things were so. Unless we personally examine scripture by the Holy Spirit, we will be guilty of teaching human precepts as God’s doctrine. Do we examine scripture? 

We must repent from our ways

Paul wrote in Ephesians 4: 22-24, you were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your mind. We must change and reform from our former lifestyles because before God, life without repentance in Christ is corrupted and deluded by lusts of the world and is unworthy of the Kingdom of God. 

Jesus said in Luke 13: 3, 5, no, I tell you, but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. Repentance is a spiritual exercise which enables us to renew our minds by the Holy Spirit and thereby bear fruits of the Spirit. The newness of self is the likeness of God in the nature of righteousness and holiness. Accordingly, Jesus said in Matthew 3: 8; Luke 3: 8 bear fruit worthy of repentance. The prerequisite is the fruits we bear beyond the confessions we make on our lips. Are we known by our fruits before God?

We must be true to ourselves

Paul wrote in Ephesians 4: 25, so then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbours, for we are members of one another. Without the truth, but with falsehood which is not God’s nature, we cannot make it to eternity. Jesus said in John 14: 6, I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. This is the truth which must guide us always. 

Since we are one body in Christ, when we are false to one another, we are rather false to ourselves, and we do not belong to the same body of Christ. Jesus said in Matthew 5:37 let your word be ‘Yes, Yes’ or ‘No, No’; anything more than this comes from the evil one. Also, John 4:24 says God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. Basic scripture is founded on God’s truth. Are we true to God and our neighbours as a basic divine requirement?

We must measure our deeds

Paul wrote in Ephesians 4: 26-29, be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger; and do not make room for the devil… Our deeds comprise our thoughts and actions. Paul wants us to close all avenues by which the devil can operate in our lives.  The avenues include nursing anger; stealing; and possessing unbridled tongue. Our deeds should aim at building lives rather than destroying lives. 

Paul wrote of the greatest deed of love in 1Corinthians 13: 13, and now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.  Jesus also said of the commandments in Mark 12:29-31… you shall love the Lord your God… you shall love your neighbour as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these. We will be rewarded according to our deeds, Revelation 20: 12-13 ; 22: 12. Galatians 6: 7 says … for you reap whatever you sow. What will we reap in eternity? 

We must not grieve God’s Holy Spirit

Paul cautioned in Ephesians 4: 30, do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with seal for the day of redemption. The Holy Spirit is our mark of identity. When we grieve the Holy Spirit, we deny the legitimacy of our identity and seal for eternity in Christ Jesus. God has sent his Holy Spirit to comfort us, lead us, teach us, speak for us, and to be our advocate by grace. Is he our mark and seal?

Without the Holy Spirit, God will not hear us. Isaiah 63: 10 says they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit; therefore he became their enemy; he himself fought against them. In Ephesians 4: 31 the ways we grieve the Holy Spirit include bitterness, wrath, anger, wrangling, slander, and malice. In Ephesians 4: 32 the ways we please the Holy Spirit include being kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving as God in Christ has forgiven us. The Holy Spirit must be alive in us through the expression of God’s love in us. 

Colossians 3: 13 says, bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other, just as the Lord had forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Paul also wrote in Romans 13: 8, owe no one anything, except to love one another. Without love, we grieve the Holy Spirit. Jesus said in John 13: 34, a new commandment I give you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. Have we kept the basic Christian doctrine taught by the Holy Spirit? 

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, in our quest for knowledge, fame and power we have been deceived by the enemy as an angel of light to ignore the basics which you have taught us by the Holy Spirit. Give us your grace to return to righteousness and holiness, which is what is right in your sight. Help us to be perfect by grace in you because of your precious blood. Thank you for answered prayer, Amen!!