Ephesians 4-6

don’t get depressed, you don’t have to figure it out. Yeah, like it’s that easy. Think about it this way: even if things aren’t pre-planned, they are still just as certain if God just knows the future. The Openness of God movement says that God knows everything about the future that can be known. But he cannot know your choices beforehand or they would not be free choices. The problem with this is that it throws out a very fundamental teaching, that God knows the future! Otherwise how could he ever have any control or be able to prophecy?

But even still, even if God just knows, that gives us more free will. But even if God does influence our choices, they are still our choices. That is why Pharaoh was held accountable.

Getting rid of predestination is not the way to get read of that uncertainty. So we can either believe that God controls all things according to his purpose, which includes sending billions of people to damnation, or we can believe that God merely knows what people are going to do, which insufficiently represents what the Bible really says.

God is not willing that any should perish: yet, will has two words and three different meanings.

In one sense, everything exists because God commands it. Therefore anyone who does not come to faith is disobeying God. The thing is, no one can come to faith unless the holy Spirit unshackles him first and brings him to Christ. So basically we made a bad choice in Adam. What the heck! Sometimes people talk about corporate solidarity, in that we were somehow physically present there. But really we still didn’t make the choice because we weren’t individuals

The other sense is that God Decrees it.

Sometimes it means that it brings God joy.

Did God choose the best representative? You have to trust the Goodness of God.

So, are we condemned because of Adam? Option one: we are, and when it comes to babies God makes an exception to the rule and allows them to go to heaven. Option two: God won’t send us to heaven unless we actually sin, which is why babies go to heaven because they don’t sin (they cannot distinguish right from wrong, much like animals). But then, is it ever possible not to sin? Is it our choice or is it inevitable because of our sinful nature, or both. Are we condemned because of our sinful nature, or our sin?

- Eph. 3: Paul says some dubious things, describing himself unnecessarily if he is just writing to the Ephesians who he already spent three years with.

o Ephesians 4: Unity and diversity in the Body of Christ
+ Of the gifts, let’s talk about the gift of pastor-teacher. Verse 12, job description of a pastor: prepare God’s people for works of service so that the Body of Christ may be built up.
# This contrasts with what we know now, with the pastor at the top, then the deacons, then at the bottom, the lay people. People don’t like that though.
# The pastor is not supposed to do everything on behalf of the church. Rather, he is supposed to equip the church to do good works and such truck.
# V. 15: gives us the right perspective. Don’t ignore differences? Discuss them, but speak the truth in love. Whatever we do, we don’t do it to get another notch in our belt. Nooooo my friend, we speak the truth in love. Don’t worry about converting people to our way of thinking.
# Most of the time we secretly judge people, or we call them names.
# Ch 4: don’t let the sun go down on your anger.
# Paul is a master of combining the negative with the positive. You would think in v. 28 that he would just stop at the negative command, but he switches it around.
+ In order to get rid of a certain sin, actively practice the positive alternative.
o Ch. 5: riotous living in 5:18, same as prodigal son. Paul doesn’t say don’t drink. Don’t get drunk. Be filled with the Spirit, a repeated action. Do not be under the influence of booze
+ The most basic way to get under the influence of the spirit is to heed what he says in the Bible.
+ Series of participles in 5:21
# Worship, submission to one another, children to parents, husbands and wives, slaves to masters
# It is radical for a husband to submit to his wife.
# Paul moves as far as he can toward equality. Husbands still have some ultimate role of authority to play, BUT let’s be rational.
+ Armor of God in Chapter 6
# Spiritual warfare – we’re makin’ war in the heavenlies!
# Everything is defensive except for the last thing, which is the SWORD OF THE SPIRIT, the BIBLE!
# Eph. 6:17, the Word of God is the sword of the spirit.