2. They are to walk differently than the world. In addressing what appears to be a largely Gentile church, Paul tells them they can’t be saved by Jesus and yet live like they don’t know Him. They can’t live like their unredeemed friends and family. That was how they used to walk when they “followed the ways of this world” and Satan (2:2). But no more. Paul is unsparing as he dissects their culture of their day:
- . . . you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity (4:17-19).
They weren’t living out their truth, living their best lives, or any of the other rationalizing labels people put on their disobedience. They were separated from the life of God. Clearly, there was nothing for the disciples to go back to because there was never anything there to begin with. But all of that was in their rear-view mirror. They were to be different.
Still, there’s different good and different bad. Different bad would be to be the Pharisees. They were certainly different, but it was not a good thing. They were proud as peacocks about being different and looked down on people because of it (Luke 18:9). We don’t want to be like that.
Different good is like a medical practitioner. They are different than us in their diagnostic abilities, knowledge of medical procedures, as well as the attention they give to maintaining a sterile field. But they don’t look down on us because of it. In fact, they are different in these ways because they are compassionate and caring and want to help us. And the world is a better place because of them. That’s the kind of difference Paul is pushing the disciples toward.
In keeping with the “heavenly realms” scale he has previously established, Paul speaks of walking in a way that does not give the devil any opportunity (v. 27 NIV). In the context, he’s discussing controlling our anger, but the broader principle is that we don’t leave any room in our life for Satan. This doesn’t mean we don’t sin, but it does mean we’re diligent in confessing it to God and repenting of it.
This is the opposite of what Cain did after Abel’s sacrifice was accepted and his was rejected, Cain was warned by God that “if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it” (Genesis 4:7). He didn’t heed God’s warning. Instead, he gave the devil opportunity and it led to him murdering his brother. It wasn’t the first sin that got him (offering an unacceptable sacrifice), it was the second sin of becoming uncontrollably angry about it—which led to Abel’s murder. Paul wants to handle our anger with care.
This leads to Paul’s other reference beyond the human realm. It is when he speaks of them not grieving “the Holy Spirit of God” (v. 30). We do this by using words that won’t be helping in building others up (v. 29). And with that, we’re back to where we started our walk with a connection between the Spirit and unity. Words and attitudes against our brothers and sisters grieve the Spirit because they threaten “the unity of the Spirit” (v. 3).
We learn from the two occurrences of “walk” in Ephesians 4 that our walk is not an individual, private walk. It is a walk that includes our brothers and sisters. We are walking with them and for them.
It’s a walk of life!
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 