Ephesians 5:11-20
OUT OF DARKNESS INTO HIS MARVELOUS LIGHT
Ephesians 5:11 Have no fellowshipG4790 with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.
G4790 συγκοινωνέω synkoinōnéō, soong-koy-no-neh’-o; from G4862 and G2841; to share in company with, i.e. co-participate in:—communicate (have fellowship) with, be partaker of.
Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
SUSAN: My inner circle of friends, especially friends from whom I seek spiritual counsel, should not include people who are habitually immoral.
If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:6-7 (BSB)
SUSIE: Rather than linking arms and going along with them or participating in questionable activities, we should steer clear of those hanging out in the shadows. We should make clear to them that they are sinning, taking care to do this out of love and in a loving manner. We should never give the impression that we condone behavior that is blatantly against what the Lord has taught us. Our imitation of Jesus should be a reproach to those who do evil.
SUSAN: Those of us who are more mature in the Lord, should disciple others by guiding them away from practices contrary to the Word of God and leading them toward ways that will honor the Lord. We need to move them away from carousing behavior and toward the imitation of their Father.
SUSIE: As always, our actions speak louder than our words, so we must first be sure we are walking according to God’s word ourselves.
Ephesians 5:12-13 For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that is illuminated becomes a light itself.
SUSIE: There are some actions that are so vile and despicable we should not even bring them up in conversation or speak of them at all unless it is to correct a believer who is engaging in them. We need to guard our own hearts and minds and not even think about such things or try to satisfy our curiosity about them. God’s word and the upright behavior of those walking in His steps, shines a light on their evil ways and convicts them. We are to be sure we are walking in the light. We are each responsible for our own actions and cannot blame them on “the crowd.” We do not follow the crowd: we follow the Lord Jesus.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
1 John 1:7 (NIV)
For everyone who does evil hates the Light and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever practices the truth comes into the Light, so that it may be seen clearly that what he has done has been accomplished in God.
John 3:20-21 (BSB)
SUSAN: We must be walking in the light to be cleansed. We must turn from our sin (repent) and turn toward Jesus.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1 John 1:9 (BSB)
He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
Proverbs 28:13 (BSB)
SUSIE: When Jesus shines the spotlight on our sin, our response should be to confess it—agree with God that we were wrong. Then He will cleanse us, giving us a fresh start to remain in His light.
Ephesians 5:14 So it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper, rise up from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
5:14 Using this quotation from Is. 60:1, Paul extended an invitation for salvation to the unsaved, in order that they may be transformed from children of darkness into children of God’s holy light (cf. Prov. 4:18). These words may have been part of an early church Easter hymn used as an invitation to unbelievers. They express a capsule view of the gospel. Cf. the invitations in Is. 55:1–3, 6, 7 and in James 4:6–10.
MacArthur Study Bible
SUSIE: We saw this same idea in Ephesians chapter two:
And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,
Ephesians 2:1 (BSB)
But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved!
Ephesians 2:4-5 (BSB)
SUSIE: We were asleep, dead to spiritual things, until we were awakened and made alive by the grace of God in Jesus Christ our Lord.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
1 Peter 2:9 (NASB)
Ephesians 5:15-16 Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
SUSAN: To walk circumspectly (KJV)—wisely—is to walk in obedience to God. To walk foolishly is to walk in direct rejection of God and His precepts. Even when we are not talking about the Lord, we are still His ambassadors, His witnesses. We must live in the light of this truth. Because of grace, Christ loves us unconditionally, but we still should desire to walk in grace, love, and excellence. We do not want to cause someone to stumble because we said or did something unwise. Words have power for good or evil. God used the vehicle of words to create the expanse of the world. Words must be a powerful tool, if not the most powerful tool we have at our disposal as people made in the image of God. Take every opportunity to share the Lord’s faithfulness in your life and that He wants to extend that same grace and faithfulness to those we encounter.
SUSAN: Redeeming the time: Make each moment of each day of each week of each month of each year count. We have that power, but we do not always think about it intentionally. God wants us to think about it so that with our tenacious obedience, the will of God is brought from eternity to temporality. We must be aware, conscientious, and intentional with the moments God gives us on this earth.
SUSIE: We should remind ourselves of the brevity of life on this earth (ours and those we love) and take every opportunity to share Jesus with people. This truth has been brought home to me by the number of people who have died due to COVID-19 in the last few months.
SUSAN: I have been forced to focus in on this brevity of life on earth as I have seen the health of loved ones declining. We have a limited number of opportunities to influence our loved ones, those that we are privileged and enabled to touch with God’s love, while we are living in our earth-suits. “Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven” (Matthew 6:10). We must make sure our activities work to produce that reality.
Ephesians 5:17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
SUSAN: John MacArthur gives an exceptional explanation of understanding God’s will:
5:17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. Knowing and understanding God’s will through His Word is spiritual wisdom. For example, God’s will revealed to us is that people should be saved (1 Tim. 2:3, 4), Spirit-filled (v. 18), sanctified (1 Thess. 4:3), submissive (1 Pet. 2:13–15), suffering (1 Pet. 2:20) and thankful (1 Thess. 5:18). Jesus is the supreme example for all (see John 4:4; 5:19, 30; 1 Pet. 4:1, 2).
MacArthur Study Bible
SUSIE: God’s will for all believers is found in His word. That is one of the reasons it is essential that we read it, study it, meditate on it, listen to it, and memorize it.
SUSAN: We should be in the Word daily, not just on Sunday or at a weekly Bible study group.
SUSIE: There are literally no excuses anymore (especially here in the USA) since we can listen to it on CD or MP3, study online, or even on our phones! Bibles are readily available in this country, and many ministries distribute them at no cost. We must attend a Bible believing church for sound teaching and fellowship with other believers. As much as we love your participation in our online Bible studies, we hope it is not your only time of study. You also need the in person contact with other believers. The Covid-19 pandemic has made this difficult, and we are thankful for ZOOM Sunday School and worship via the Web. However, we long to return to the encouragement of gathering together with other believers.
Ephesians 5:18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
SUSIE: Pagan worship often involved drunken orgies with the belief that this somehow made them closer to their gods. This may be likened to the “spiritual” experiences of people using mind-altering drugs such as LSD. However, the scripture consistently speaks against drunkenness at any time. We should only surrender our mental faculties to God’s Holy Spirit whose purpose is to guide us into truth and wisdom.
SUSAN: Instead of seeking a substance to desensitize us and enable us to forget or to anesthetize us, we face the challenges of life and find solutions to them through the power of the Holy Spirit. When you are drunk with wine or intoxicated with anything, your faculties are impaired. The substance is clouding and taking over your reasoning ability; your thoughts are not your own. When you are guided by the Holy Spirit, there is edification, exhortation, and consolation.
SUSIE: When you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you have a joy that cannot be taken away.
SUSAN: The Holy Spirit is a joy that is implanted by God in every one of His children. That joy can lay dormant if we don’t engage in intimate interaction with the Lord, but it is there.
Ephesians 5:19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your hearts to the Lord,
SUSIE: The King James Version says “speaking to yourselves” which makes it sound like you are muttering under your breath. Although singing a hymn as a part of your time with the Lord can be a truly uplifting and healing experience, the Berean Study Bible makes the command more understandable by translating it “Speak to one another.” I see believers post a Christian song video or lyrics on their Facebook page to encourage themselves and others. A dear friend who recently graduated to heaven after a battle with leukemia posted lines from a hymn every day that she was able. It was such an encouragement to her brothers and sisters in Christ and I believe a powerful witness to non-believers as well. No, we probably don’t walk up and sing a hymn to someone, but I do find myself quoting from them when someone needs a lift. Okay, I sometimes sing them to them such as I did the night a friend’s husband was killed in a car accident while she was in the hospital recovering from a heart attack. The Lord led me to sing a song based on Psalm 61:1-3 to her over and over until she drifted off to sleep.
SUSAN: God’s word in song was more powerful than the sleeping meds she was given. It served as an anesthetic when she needed to sleep.
SUSIE: God made music powerful, so we need to use it to His glory.
Ephesians 5:20 . . . always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
SUSIE: How can we thank God FOR all things? Only by faith as an act of obedience.
SUSAN: This is an exercise of our will and not a result of a warm, fuzzy feeling we experience. I’ve had to make a conscious effort to apply this in my own life. It is not easy, but it is doable. When it came to my attention that I am to thank God in and for all pain out of obedience to Him, I began thanking Him aloud when I have almost unbearable muscle spasms or the phantom pain that plagues me. In the same breath, I ask Him to heal me from these problems, but I express my trust in Him by being thankful that He is working through my pain to conform me to the image of His Son, Jesus.
SUSIE: We can be confident that He is orchestrating even the “negative” things in our lives to make us more like Jesus, to move us in the right the direction, to enable us to bear witness to His faithfulness. We must remember that God sees how everything fits together while we see only the puzzle pieces lying around.
SUSAN: We thank the Lord, not only for the joys but for the difficulties in life, because He is using them to mold us into the image of Christ.
PONDER THIS: Reflect Christ in all relationships and dealings with people. When we make the proclamation that we are Christians, people are always watching for the good or the bad. As Christians, we are always on the stage of life. If our ultimate and overarching goal is to please, bring pleasure to, the audience of One (God), then we will be fully contented in our everyday lives.
ASSIGNMENT: Make a conscientious effort to examine your actions and your relationships with others this week. If the Holy Spirit flags anything as not representing our Savior well to the world, ask Him to help you change. Just for your own benefit, write the “unbecoming” behaviors on a piece of paper and then destroy it as a symbol of your commitment to change.