Walk in Newness - Week 7
Lesson Seven Eph. 4:17-24
Connecting to one another
We say, “It takes a village to raise a child” (African proverb). When you became a new child in Christ, who in the church came alongside you? Share a memorable story about that person or that village.
Understanding the Truth with one another
Verse by Verse ~ Topic by Topic ~ Argument by Argument
Read Ephesians 4:17-24.
Verses 17-19
Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.
Discuss the bullets below to prepare to answer question #1. Answer in snap-of-the-finger pacing.
o Paul is comparing how the Gentiles live to walking. Let’s think about “walk” literally first. Why do we walk?
o Literally “futile” means empty or useless. The Jews used this word to refer to worshiping idols. How would a person walk if his mind were futile?
o Literally, what can we perceive if we are walking in a dark room?
o Literally, to be “alienated” is to be a foreigner. How would ignorance of authority affect a foreigner in a new country?
o Literally, a “callous” is a hard, thick area of skin developed through friction and irritation. How would developing a callous be a natural effect of all this type of walking?
o Explain how you visualize what it means to give yourself up to something.
READING STRATEGY – What you just did with all those bullets was take the first step for understanding figurative language -- Go basic with the literal. After doing that, go deep with the figurative meaning. See below.
1. Considering all that figurative language (walk, futile, darkened, alienated, callous, giving up self) why does Paulsay and “testify in the Lord” that the Ephesians MUST not walk as they did before knowing Christ?
2. Verses 20-21
a. To “learn Christ” means to be affected by His person and how He lived His life. We learn from His example. Our life reflects His. Share one of your favorite stories of Jesus where you “learned” Him.
b. We use exclamation points so frequently in writing today that they lose their emphasis. Writers of Scripture use exclamation points sparingly. We’ve also noticed that Paul favors long complicated sentences. However, in verse 20, Paul writes a short sentence with an exclamation point. Why?
c. In verse 21, Paul uses Jesus instead of Christ to emphasize He is a Person; our Savior is a Person. Paul is not questioning that they are saved. What is he questioning about their learning?
3. Verses 22-24
PUT OFF -- Old Self (flesh) BE RENEWED PUT ON -- New Self (Christ)
belongs to former manner of life in the spirit of your minds created after the likeness of God corrupt through deceitful desires in true righteousness & holiness
a. What do you notice about the differences between what we are to put off and put on?
b. Some say that Paul is simply stating the facts, as in “In Christ our old self has been replaced by our new self.” Others says that Paul is commanding the Ephesians to put off the old self and to put on the new self. How, in a sense, could both be true?
c. In verse 17, Paul says Gentiles walk in the futility of their minds. Now he links the old self and new self with “be renewed in the spirit of your minds.” Why must we regularly renew our mind?
READING STRATEGY – Sometimes we recognize a figurative image like “old self” because it is used elsewhere in Scripture. It’s helpful to read how that image is used in another passage and bring what we understand there to what we are currently reading.
4. Let’s practice that reading strategy. Read Colossians 3:9-11.
a. What similarities do you notice?
b. In verse 11, is Paul talking about one person putting on the new self or the body of Christ putting on the new self? How do you know?
READING STRATEGY – When a writer keeps using the same image (detail, word/phrasing etc.) again and again in the same biblical book, we should pay attention and ask, “Why does he keep repeating that?” because answering that question helps us determine the author’s message.
Read the highlighted sections to yourself quietly. Ask God to help you see His message.
And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fill all in all. from 1:22-23
But God, being rich in mercy...made us alive together with Christ.... and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. from 2:4-6
For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility...that he might create one new man in place of the two. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. from 2:14-16, 22
...the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body...that you may be filled with all the fullness of God from 3:6, 19
There is one body and one Spirit. And he gave [people gifted with word gifts] to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ until we all attain to mature manhood to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. from 4:4, 12-13
...put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. from 4:24
5. What message about the purpose of the church do these repetitions support? How do you feel about your part in God’s purpose here?
Living & Praying Through the Truth for the Body
6. When we gather as a community group or small church, the Word is central. Together we learn how to do the following: a. Read the Word b. Interpret the Word c. Apply the Word. d. Pray through the Word. THEN e. We each go out and live it and come back the next week to share how that went for US.
Choose one of those areas. How have you personally grown in Christ likeness because of what you’re learning and doing in small church each week?
7. Last week we learned that Christ gave those with word gifts to equip the saints to whom He gave all kinds of gifts so that the whole church could mature together. Imagine a church where everyone is gathering in big church, gathering in commUNITY groups AND everyone is using their gifts the He gave them.
Pray for what God imagined for Grace Bible Church & Somos Grace since before the foundation of the world to be reality. It takes a village to raise each child God gives us. Pray to be a villager.
Worship ALL Week At Grace we trust Christ to transform us as we abide in Him daily.
READ & MEDITATE
o Homework – Read Ephesians 4:25-32 in preparation for next week. Ask God to reveal where you need to put off the old self and where you need to put on the new.
ACT
o Review questions 6 and 7 from this week. Reflect on where you would like to grow more. Pray through that. Then text your area of desired growth to your group so they can pray for you too.
o Ask God to reveal and to use your gift(s).
God’s joy and strength to you!
kpaulson@gracelaredo.org