Romans: Law, Obedience, and Sanctification: Walking With God

Walking With God - 8

Transcript: AI Transcript

Professor: John Weaver

Subject: New Testament Studies

Genre: Sermon

Dictation Name:

Date: 2016-03-27

Synopsis: John Weaver continues the series 'Walking with the Lord' with part two of 'Learning Christ,' expounding Ephesians 4:17-32. He explains that learning Christ involves a simple but painful process: putting off the old man (the corrupt, deceitful nature), being renewed in the spirit of the mind, and putting on the new man created in righteousness and true holiness. Using the analogy of changing clothes, he illustrates that we must replace old sinful habits with new godly ones. Paul gives specific examples: put off lying and speak truth; put off unrighteous anger and resolve issues before sundown; put off stealing and work honestly to give; put off corrupt speech and edify others; put off bitterness, wrath, and malice, and put on kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness. Grieving the Holy Spirit occurs when we refuse this process. The sermon emphasizes practical, step-by-step transformation through obedience to Christ.

[John Weaver] All right, well, let's open our Bible's day to the book of Ephesians chapter four, Ephesians chapter four, and the series is walking with the Lord. And this is number eight. And actually, I would call this part two of learning Christ, which I dealt with last week. But let's begin reading with verse 17 and we'll read through verse 32. Notice Ephesians four and verse 17. This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, That you henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk in the vanity of their mind.

[John Weaver] Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart. Who being past feeling have given themselves over to lasciviousness to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ. If so be that you have heard him that have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus. That you put off concerning the former conversation, the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lust, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore, putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.

[John Weaver] Be angry and sin not, let not the sun go down upon your wrath, neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more, but rather let him labor, working with his hands, the thing which is good that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

[John Weaver] And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed unto the day of your redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's hath forgiven you."

[John Weaver] Now, you remember we've been dealing with walking with the Lord, and I'm not going to take time to review every one of these messages. However, I do want to point out that the Apostle Paul has told us in Ephesians 4 about walking worthily, and now he's been teaching us how to walk differently as well. And I pointed out last week, actually, verse 20 and 21, where he says,"...but you have not so learned Christ."

[John Weaver] If so, be that you've heard him and been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus. So the truth of the matter is, we must actually learn Jesus Christ. Learning Christ is absolutely necessary. In this passage, the Apostle Paul tells us how not to live, how to live, and how to change our lives. In essence, he tells us how to learn Jesus Christ. He informs us clearly how to discern as to whether or not we have learned Christ and or are learning Christ. Jesus Christ does not teach us or instruct us to live unholy, ungodly, unethical lives as his children. The truth of the matter is we may be in the world, but we are not of the world. You remember that passage in 1 John chapter 2, verses 15 through 17. Listen carefully. God says, Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. Now, when He's talking about the world, He's not talking about His creation. Listen carefully. Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world.

[John Weaver] If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. Now, He describes the world that we're not to love. For he says, for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away in the lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. So notice when he says love not the world, he's certainly not talking about the creation that he has made. He's talking about the world of sin, the world of man, which is described as the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh and the pride of life.

[John Weaver] Now, the Apostle Paul in Galatians 6 and verse 14 says this, But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, listen now, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world. So the Apostle Paul is basically saying that I'm dead to the world. I do not want the lust of eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life. So our Lord now is teaching us in Ephesians chapter four how to walk. And Paul is teaching us how to learn Jesus Christ. So if we're going to learn Jesus Christ, we're going to learn to love not the world. Moreover, we're going to learn to mortify our flesh.

[John Weaver] with its affections and lusts thereof. I'll cover this later in this brief series. But in Romans 8 in verse 13, Paul said this, for if you live after the flesh, you shall die. But if you through the spirit do mortify the deeds of the flesh or the deeds of the body, you shall live.

[John Weaver] Now, the word mortified just simply means to make dead. That's where we get our English word mortician from someone who deals with the dead. So he tells us that we're to mortify the deeds of our body. One more. In Colossians 3 and verse 5, he said this, mortify, therefore, your members which are upon the earth, fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence and covetousness, which is idolatry. Now, isn't it interesting that he says mortify, therefore, your members? That is the extension of your life, the extension of your body. And he names these specific things that we are to make dead.

[John Weaver] So the question automatically arises then, how do we know as to whether or not we love the world or not? How do we know whether or not we are indeed mortifying the deeds of the body? And the answer is that Christ teaches us not only to love, not the world, but to mortify the body. He teaches us exactly how to do so because it is explicitly stated in his word. So I suppose an even more profound and provocative question would be this.

[John Weaver] How do we accomplish these tasks? How do we make sure that we love, not the world? How do we make sure that we do indeed mortify the deeds of our body? Well, Look in Ephesians 4 and verse 21 again. He says, if so be that you have heard him and have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus.

[John Weaver] Now, let me point something out. Most of the time when we read scripture, we just simply read it and we read it just to say, well, I've read my scripture for the day and it's over with. And we never really pay any attention to the text. But if you look in verse. Twenty one again, watch carefully in verse twenty one, he says, if so be that you have heard him. And I've been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus, would you please tell me? What comes after the word Jesus? It is a colon. Two little dots. Do you realize that one of the most important aspects of the use of a colon is that of emphasis? When you see a colon, usually what that colon means is, hold on. Wait a minute. I know what I have just said, but the most important thing is about to follow. That's exactly what a colon means. Now, if you will notice something. If you will look at verse 21, you see the colon. If you look at verse 22, you see a semicolon.

[John Weaver] If you look at verse 23 at the end, you see a semicolon. And you will notice there's a period at the end of verse 24. So that means actually the sentence does not end. until you get to verse 24. So actually, this entire sentence began in verse 17 and does not end until you get to verse 24. So the Apostle Paul now is telling us that we must learn Christ. And he is telling us exactly how we're to learn Christ. He is telling us exactly how a good student And a good disciple learns Jesus Christ.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to listen to me just for a moment. Look at me because I want to make sure that you hear this. Learning Christ is really simple. It is practical and easy to apply. The problem is not the complexity in learning Jesus Christ. The problem is not the difficulty in applying the truth. The problem is, this is extremely painful to our flesh. And we may expect a battle from our flesh. Because our flesh is not going to lie as easily and readily and as submissively upon the altar as did Isaiah. Our flesh will scream and cry and demand its own way. Let me just give you a quote, we'll look at this later on, but in Galatians 5 verses 16 and 17, listen, the apostle said this, I say, therefore, and walk that this, I say, then walk in the spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Now watch for the flesh lusted or fight against the spirit. and the spirit against the flesh.

[John Weaver] And these are contrary, the one to the other, so that you cannot do that which you would. So the Apostle Paul is telling us that the flesh is going to fight against the spirit and the spirit is going to fight against the flesh. They're absolutely contrary, one to the other. And he concludes by saying, therefore, You cannot do the things that you would. So let me spell it out for you. When you and I do things.

[John Weaver] What we would do naturally. We're usually sinning. Because the flesh loves to have its way now. Here's the question, how do we learn Christ? I said that the concept was simple. And it is. So allow me to explain. I want you to answer these questions in your mind. Do not answer them out loud, please. How many of you go to sleep each night with your work clothes on? How many of you go to work each morning in your pajamas? How many, when your clothes gets dirty, just simply go into your house and put clean clothes on over your dirty clothes. And when those get dirty, you just put on more clean clothes. And you keep adding clean clothes over your dirty clothes until all of a sudden you can't function. You can't move. You have on so many clothes.

[John Weaver] Has anybody in this room ever do anything like that? Have you ever known anyone that would do anything like that? The point that I'm making is very simple. Each night you put off your day clothes and you put on your night clothes. Each morning you put off your night clothes and you put on your day clothes or your work clothes. When your garments are dirty and filthy, you take them off. And then you put new or clean garments on in their place.

[John Weaver] This is something you've done all your life. Do you realize ever since that you were able to understand, you understood this concept, put off, put on, put off, put on. You can't put something on until you put something off. That which is true in the physical realm is equally true in the spiritual realm. And when you read Ephesians chapter 4 and also Colossians chapter 3, you will find that these words put off and put on occur over and over.

[John Weaver] Now, let's go back, if you would please, to verse 21. Watch carefully. He says in verse 21, If so be that you have heard him and have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus. There's the colon, which means hold on, wait a minute. The most important thing is about to come. And then you look at the next sentence. In verse 22, and you see the semicolon. And then in verse 23, you see a semicolon as well.

[John Weaver] Now, a semicolon is used to connect two related sentences. So the point I'm trying to make is this. Verses 22 and 23 are related and they lead to the final truth of verse 24. So when you read actually verse 17 down through verse 24, as I pointed out, it is one sentence. But what Paul is doing in verses 21 through 24, he's giving us general instruction on how to learn Jesus Christ. And then in v. 25-32, he gives us particular instruction on how to learn Jesus Christ.

[John Weaver] Let me say it another way. He gives us the doctrine in encapsulated form in v. 21-24. And then he expands upon that in v. 25-32.

[John Weaver] Let's go back and begin looking at verse 22 because we connected that with verse 21. In fact, let's read verse 21 again. If so be that you have heard him and have been taught by him as a truth in Jesus. Hang on. Here's the truth that you put off. concerning the former conversation, the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lust. So according to verse 22 now, something has to be put off and that which has to be put off is the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lust. So here is something that you and I must put off before we can put on and we must put it off. And part of this putting off is part and parcel of learning Jesus Christ. Now, when he says in verse 22 that you put off concerning the former conversation of the old man, the word conversation just simply means your former conduct, your former lifestyle.

[John Weaver] It was the way you walked. It was the way you lived. So our former conduct is nothing more or nothing less, I should say, than an exhibition of the old nature with all of its corruption. For instance, let me give you an illustration. When you were unsaved and you got in trouble, the easy way out was just to lie. You didn't have to face responsibility. You didn't have to take responsibility. You weren't accountable. You just lied.

[John Weaver] And when you were lost, if you needed money, well, you know, what's wrong with stealing? What's wrong with fraud? What's wrong with deceit? In other words, anything was open to you because you were in the old nature and your old nature was corrupt. You thought nothing of violating the law of God. So the Apostle Paul then is using the phrase, the old man, to refer then to the old nature.

[John Weaver] Let me say it another way. The old man is that which we were and are in Adam. It is where our sin was imputed. And because sin has been imputed, we are actually sinners as well. So he is telling us that this old man is corrupt and is deceitful. Let me give you a good quote. John Gill, in commenting on the phrase The old man says this, listen carefully. By the old man is meant the corruption of nature. Called a man because natural to men, it lives and dwells in them. It has spread itself over the whole man. It rules and governs in men and consists of various parts and members as a man does. It is called old because it is the poison of the old serpent. with which man was infected by him from the beginning. It is derived from the first man that ever was. It is as old as man is, in whom it is, and is likewise called so with respect to its duration and continuance and in opposition to and contradistinction from the new man or principle of grace.

[John Weaver] It is called ours. Because continually it is continually with us. It is in our nature. It pleads to us and abides in us. So when you look at verse 22 and he says that you put off concerning the former conduct or the former lifestyle, the old man, that's everything that you are by nature. Everything that you've ever been taught all of your life as an unsaved man.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to hold Ephesians 4 and turn in your Bibles very quickly to Romans chapter 6. Let me tell you, the way this old man can be put off is because our old man was crucified with Jesus Christ. Notice if you would, Romans chapter 6 and verse 6. Look what he says, knowing this, here is something that you must know, knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed at that. Henceforth, we should not serve sin. So he is telling us that when Christ was crucified, our old man was crucified with him. that the body of sin might be destroyed. Henceforth, we should not serve sin. Now, the old man is corrupt.

[John Weaver] It is that which we are by nature. But since our old man has been crucified in Jesus Christ, it is not to dominate us. It is not to rule and reign in us. It is not the whole sway. Look in your Bibles to Romans six, beginning there in verse eleven. Watch what he says. In light of the fact that our old man has been crucified with Christ, likewise, reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it unless thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin. But yield yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

[John Weaver] For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you're not under the law, that is, as a means of justification, but under grace. Now, notice, if you would, in verse 11, likewise reckon. The word reckon there literally means to count or to impute. So he says, count yourselves be dead indeed unto sin. Let me ask you. Here's a man that was a drunk all of his life. And he died. And he's lying in his casket, dead as a hammer, and you go hold a fifth of whiskey over his face and say, here it is, but would you like some more?

[John Weaver] What's he going to do? Nothing. Because he's dead. This is what God is saying. We have to learn to count ourselves dead indeed unto sin. But we also count ourselves alive unto God through Jesus Christ. Then he says, sin is not to reign in our mortal bodies. Now listen carefully. He did not say, let not sin therefore be in your mortal bodies. It is here. He said, let not therefore sin reign in your mortal bodies. In other words, sin is not our Lord. Jesus Christ is our Lord. The power of sin has been broken in the child of God. Do we sin? Yes. Do we have to sin? No. We are sinners, but we now, through Jesus Christ, have the ability to say, no. I'm not going to be an adulterer. I'm not going to be a drunkard. I'm not going to be a thief. I'm going to obey Christ and bring my life in conformity to his word. So he tells us sin is not to have dominion over us. Now.

[John Weaver] Notice, if you would, as you turn back to Ephesians chapter four. Look what he said in verse 22. That you put off concerning the former conversation, the old man which is corrupt according to deceitful lust. Now, you don't have to turn there, but in Colossians 3 and verse 9, Paul said it again like this. He says, lie not one to another, seeing that you have put off the old man with his deeds. And when you look back at verse 22, that old man with his deeds, isn't only corrupt, he also has deceitful lusts. So the analogy then of our life without Jesus Christ is described as an old man that is corrupt and full of deceitful lusts. Now, I hope you remember the passage in Jeremiah chapter 17, verse 9. Let me quote it and you will remember it. The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked who can know it." Now, if the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, now you combine that with what the Bible says in Ephesians 4, verse 22, or deceitful lusts.

[John Weaver] You have to stop and ask yourself this. What controls an unsaved man? And the answer will be his passions and his pleasures. Sin dominates an unsaved man. It rules over him. It reigns over him. It manipulates him. It seduces him. It deceives him. And when sin says jump, they jump. You see, when he talks about deceitful lust, you have to remember this about sin. Sin always promises happiness and excitement and gratification and pleasure. But it always produces death.

[John Weaver] Have you ever noticed, and I realize that alcohol is not sinful in and of itself. I understand that. But have you ever noticed that when someone, an advertisement on TV comes for alcohol, they never show a drunk lying in the gutter wallowing in his own vomit. I mean, they'll show a beautiful young woman and a handsome young man just sipping and having a wonderful time and a good time. You understand that? And when your flesh lusts after another man or another woman, whatever They never show you a broken home and children that are begging for mama and daddy and neither one of them happen to be around. No, no, no.

[John Weaver] Sin promises all of these. That's why the Scripture is talking about deceitful lusts.

[John Weaver] Now listen, let me quote this for you. In James 1, verses 13 through 15, let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted of evil, neither tempted thee any man. Listen, but every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. What did the Bible say? But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed.

[John Weaver] In other words, when there appears something outside of you. That promises to satisfy a desire that you have on the inside, that's your lust. And when you see that on the outside, you're enticed, and when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death. But notice, if you would, every man is tempted when he's drawn away of his own lust. And it is a deceitful lust. Now, let me show you how deceitful sin is.

[John Weaver] I want you to hold adhesions forward. We're coming right back there. But I do want you to turn to Hebrews chapter 3. And look, if you would please, at verse 13. Hebrews chapter 3 and verse 13. This is how deceitful sin really is. It will deceive even a child of God, if we allow it to do so. So the apostle warns in Hebrews 3 and verse 13. In fact, let's begin with verse 12, just so you can see he's talking to believers. Hebrews 3, verse 12, Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily what it is called today, lest any of you be hardened Through the deceitfulness of sin. Less any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, so sin will deceive. It's just that simple. And it will deceive. Anyone if we will allow its deception. And embrace that deception. Now I want you to go back to Ephesians chapter 4. Remember now we're talking about learning Jesus Christ.

[John Weaver] So he says in verse 21, if so be that you have heard him and have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus. So what does he tell you to do first? Verse 22, that you put off. Concerning the former conversation or conduct or lifestyle, the old man, which is corrupt, according to the deceitful lust. Now. We must put that off. The question is. What must be done in light of the understanding that our old man is corrupt and filled with deceitful lust? Well, the answer is found in verse 23.

[John Weaver] Watch and be renewed in the spirit of your mind. Now, I want you to take note. That verse 23 begins with a conjunction And. A.N.D. I also told you that verse 22 ended with a semicolon, which means that which follows is related. So obviously, it is related since it's a continuous thought and begins with an and be renewed in the spirit of your mind. So these two things are to take place simultaneously.

[John Weaver] First, the old man must be put off. That is with respect to your former conduct or habits of life. They must be laid aside. Anything that pertains to a corrupt or fallen nature. And secondly, we must be renewed in the spirit of our minds. Now, let me put it to you very bluntly. Our minds cannot be renewed with the old man, the old ways, the old habits and the old thought patterns still in place. If our minds are to be renewed, we must put away everything that is contrary to renewed mind. Now, I want you to look at verse twenty three and be renewed in the spirit of your mind. The word renewed in the Greek is the Greek word on a on an O.

[John Weaver] It's a present passive infinitive. It is asserting an obligation. And it is treated as a command. Literally, we're commanded to have a renewed mind, but the renewal is not a self renewal. It is accomplished on us rather than by us. We're to be constantly and continually renewed by Jesus Christ.

[John Weaver] Now, there are specific commands that we must obey. And that are clearly that we are clearly exhorted to follow in regards to our minds, so Romans 12 verses 1 and 2. Listen carefully. I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Now listen, and be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed. How?

[John Weaver] By the renewing of your mind. that you may prove what is that good and perfect and acceptable will of God.

[John Weaver] Now, the interesting thing is this when he says that you may be transformed. The Greek word for transformed. Is where we get our English word metamorphosis. What's a butterfly do? He goes through changes. So. Literally, he says that we're to be metamorphosized, we're to go through changes, how? By the renewing of our mind. Do you remember that passage in Philippians 2 and verse 5? Let this mind be in you, which also was in Christ Jesus. Let this mind be in you.

[John Weaver] Let me give you one more quote, 1 Peter 4, verses 1 and 2, listen carefully. For as much as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind. For he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin, that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lust of men, but to the will of God."

[John Weaver] So what did he say? For as much as Christ has suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same mind. So we've been told to be armed with the mind of Christ. have the mind of Christ, we're to be renewed in the spirit of our mind.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to go back to Ephesians 4. I want you to look at this, because you see, we're not through. I'm just trying to show you how to learn Jesus Christ based upon Ephesians chapter 4.

[John Weaver] Now, he said in verse 21, if so be it that you have heard him and have been taught by him as the truth is in Jesus, colon, hang on, The most important is about to come. What must you do? Put off the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful lust, semicolon. And there's a conjunction, be renewed in the spirit of your mind, which means now that, yes, those two thoughts do indeed go together.

[John Weaver] Ah, but that's not all. Notice, if you would please, verse 23 ends with a semicolon, and verse 24 begins with a conjunction, and again. So, and, that you put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. So, what he's telling us is this. These things must absolutely go together. We must, number one, put off the old man. Number two, be renewed in the spirit of our minds. And number three, put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. So, we're to put off and we're to put on. And in between, we're to have our minds renewed. Now, notice if you would, please, Verse 22 tells you put off concerning the former conversation, the old man. Verse 24 tells you that you put on the new man. Wow. What is the new man? The new man is the man that we are in Jesus Christ. He's the man that's created in righteousness and true holiness. So.

[John Weaver] The way this works is very simple. When we put off the old man, that is the old habits, the old conduct, our minds are renewed. We understand scriptural truth. We understand obedience and submission and godliness and holiness and sanctification. We understand that we have been set apart and that we're to live differently. And when we do not walk and talk and think the way the ungodly do, Rather, we learn now to think scripturally and biblically and walk as Jesus Christ walked in righteousness and true holiness. We understand that righteousness and true holiness are only found in Christ and in His Word. And thus we seek to bring the totality of our life in conformity to His Word.

[John Weaver] I want you to hold Ephesians 4. I want you to turn to 2nd Corinthians chapter 10. 2nd Corinthians chapter 10. And I want you to look at verses 3 through 5. 2nd Corinthians chapter 10, beginning with verse 3. Because we're talking about having our minds renewed. Notice second Corinthians 10 and verse three, the apostle says, for though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh. In other words, we're not fighting to have our lusts satisfied. We're not fighting to commit adultery or steal or kill or no, no, no. We're not walking after the flesh. We're not warring. We're not warning our wills. He says, for though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh.

[John Weaver] Then he goes on to say this, For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Now, I want you to note, he says, For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. You know what your stronghold is? It's your place of defense. It's your place of defense. What is man's stronghold? Watch, if you would, in verse 5, after he talks about the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Watch.

[John Weaver] Casting down imaginations and every high thing or literally every high thought that exalted itself against the knowledge of God and bringing to captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. So here's my question. As a new man in Jesus Christ. How many thoughts are we allowed that are unbiblical, ungodly, unrighteous and unholy? None. Because we're to bring every thought. To the obedience of Jesus Christ, every thought. Isn't that interesting? Isn't that amazing?

[John Weaver] So he tells us that we must put off, we must be renewed, and we must put on. So how do you do that? Well, it's very simple. So when this old habit, this old thought pattern comes up in your mind, you have to say, Lord, I refuse that. I reject that. I will not have that. Lord, I want to be renewed in the spirit of my mind. I ask Jesus Christ to renew my mind. And Lord, by your grace, I want the mind of Christ. I want to be armed with the mind of Christ. And Lord, here is what you say that I should do in the place of that. And I'm going to put my mind upon that. I've said this before. But let me point it out again, if I were to hold up this and ask you what is this, you're going to tell me it's a pen. If I were to ask you what color, you're going to say black and white. Now, if I were to take my Bible and hold it up and ask you what is this, you say it's the Bible.

[John Weaver] If I ask you what color is the cover, you say it's black. Isn't it interesting that while you were thinking about the pen, you were not thinking about the Bible. And while you were thinking about the Bible, you were not thinking about the pen. No matter how hard you try, you can't think of but one thing at a time. So if I put off that wicked, wrong thought, and I ask to be renewed, and I start thinking things that are biblical and scriptural, where is my mind? It's now on the new man, not on the old man.

[John Weaver] That's exactly what he's saying. Now, I want you to understand something. Listen carefully. These three things go together, we put off, we are renewed and we put on. It does no good to try to put off an old habit or any old biblical conduct unless. You're going to put on a new habit and a new biblical conduct in its place. If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself according to your own dictates and your own thoughts, you are doomed for failure. Let me show you. I want you to hold Ephesians chapter 4, but turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 12.

[John Weaver] Look at what our Lord says concerning self-reformation. Matthew chapter 12. If you do not replace an old, unbiblical habit with a new, godly habit, inevitably the old habit will return and it will return with a vengeance. Your last state will be worse than your first state. So here it is, Matthew 12, beginning there with verse 43. Look at what our Lord said. Our Lord says, When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return unto my house once I came out. And when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished.

[John Weaver] Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself. And they enter in and dwell there. And the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so it shall be also unto this wicked generation. So self-reformation does not work. It cannot work. So he's telling us concisely how we're to learn Christ, we're to put off, we're to be renewed and we're to put on.

[John Weaver] Now, I want you to go back to Ephesians chapter four. In this passage, in Ephesians chapter four. Paul mentions a number of items that must be dealt with, particularly in our lives. He tells us what to put off and he tells us what to put on in its place. Let me just point out the list in Ephesians chapter four is certainly not extensive. But it is illustrative that it illustrates the principle. Paul could not cover every sin, every habit, every sinful thought pattern. So we could not even carry our Bibles. But He does give us principles in order that we may apply them and work them out in our own lives.

[John Weaver] So, here it is in a nutshell in verses 21, 22, 23, 24. He said, if you're going to learn Christ, you've got to put off the old man, be renewed in your spirit, and you put on the new man.

[John Weaver] Now, how do we do that? So Paul says, I'm going to give you some illustrations. So look, if you would please, in verse 25. Putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor, for he remembers one of another." So clearly, lying then is a sin that must be put off. If our minds are renewed in Christ Jesus, then we learn to speak the truth. The truth is the truth. Now, if you'll look in Ephesians 4 and verse 15, just look at that verse. But speaking the truth in love, May grow up unto him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.

[John Weaver] Now, let me tell you something. I can speak the truth and I can speak it in a hateful manner and irritate people and drive them away. Or I can speak the truth and still speak it lovingly, kindly, civilly, and it may or may not be accepted. But he says speaking the truth in love. I understand that truth hurts. And I understand that truth may be offensive. However, truth is still truth and it must be spoken, especially. To each other. You will never know. How many people have come to me in times past and wanted help?

[John Weaver] And sit in front of me and lie like a dog. You cannot help someone unless they tell the truth. And unless they face the truth. Nor can you help anyone unless they're willing to hear the truth and act upon the truth. The apostle is saying in verse 25, we are one body. And we are members one of the other, and we actually owe the truth to each other. It may hurt. We may not like it. But we still must tell the truth. OK, so he says, here's what you put off, you put away line and you put on in its place, speaking the truth, every man with his neighbor.

[John Weaver] Well, that would be everybody. Then he says, well, we're members one of another, but he's particularly talking about the saints of God in that particular area. So we're to put off line, we're to put on speaking the truth. Well, like I say, we don't have to speak it in a hateful manner or in an ugly manner, but we still must speak it. Look at verses 26 and 27.

[John Weaver] Be ye angry and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your wrath. Need to give place to the devil.

[John Weaver] Now, interestingly, verse 26 tells us that we're to put off an unrighteous anger and we're to put on a righteous anger. No, he says. Be angry and sin not. That is a positive. There is a way to be angry and not to sin, but on the other hand, you must put off an angry anger that is sinful and wicked. He says, be angry and sin not. Let not the sun go down upon your wrath.

[John Weaver] Well, let me ask you a question. How can you tell the difference between a righteous anger and a sinful anger? Well, it's very simple. A sinful anger will always manifest itself in one of two ways. The first way and the way that most people understand anger is it is volcanic. That is when you get so angry, you get so mad, you just cuss everybody out and tell everybody off and you rant and rave and you scream and you're upset and everybody knows it's an explosion and you don't care who hears it. That's sinful anger. But there's another anger that is sinful. And that is internalized anger. That's when Ed does me wrong and I don't explode and cuss him out. I just kind of smile. And say. You just wait, buddy.

[John Weaver] I'm going to nail you. I'll get you sometime when you're not expecting it. And so what I do, I just internalize that anger. and let it eat my guts out. That's sinful anger. Have you ever noticed that anger is an emotion? And anger is not necessarily sinful in and of itself. If you want to say that all anger is sinful, then you've got a problem, because in Mark chapter three, the Bible says in our ward, look round about upon them with anger. He was angry. He was angry. You see, anger is not meant to blow up and cuss everybody out. If you use the emotion correctly, nor is it meant to internalize and eat as a canker your insides out. Anger is an emotion to deal with the sin and to deal with the problem and get it resolved. The problem is, most of us get angry with each other. We don't get angry with the sin. Now, I want you to watch this. Look what he says. Neither, he says, be angry and sin not, let not the sun go down upon your wrath.

[John Weaver] What does that mean? I don't care if you've got a righteous anger or an unrighteous anger. God says, work it out before the sun goes down. You're not to go to bed with your wife mad, angry, upset, and you're not to go to bed with your husband mad, angry, upset. Work it out before the sun goes down. If you have a righteous anger and it's dealing with sin, work it out before the sun goes down. That's what he's saying. Put off an unrighteous anger. put on a righteous anger that works the problems out. Note, if you would, what he says next in verse 27.

[John Weaver] Neither give place to the devil. What does that mean? That means when you do not work out your anger before the sun goes down, you're giving him place. You're giving him ground. If you don't want the devil in your life, don't give him ground. Don't invite him into your house. Don't invite him into your life. I've got news for you. If you give him ground, he will take it. If you invite him in, he will come in. So he says, you put off an unrighteous anger, you put on a righteous anger, and then you deal with that problem before the sun goes down, because if you don't, you're going to end up giving place to the devil. Now, watch verse 28. Here's another put off, put on. Verse 28,"...let him that stole steal no more, but rather let him labor, working with his hands a thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that need it." Now, God says we're to put off theft and every aspect of it that would be fraud, deceit, dishonesty, anything like that has to be put off.

[John Weaver] Our renewed minds then will replace that old habit or that old way of life with an honest labor and a cheerful Generous, sacrificial heart. What does he say? Let him that stole steal no more. Put off stealing. Put off this honesty. What are you to put on? You're to put on work. The thing which is good that you may have to give to him that needeth. In other words, you put on not a covetous spirit, but a generous spirit, a gracious, sacrificial spirit. Oh.

[John Weaver] Wow, look at verse 29, I'm trying to hurry, look in verse 29. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearer." So, he says, you put off corrupt communication, and you put on that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearer. All corrupt communication is to be put off. Corrupt communication is that which is bad, rotten, putrid, corrupted and not fit for use.

[John Weaver] It is language that is worthless and of poor quality. Let me say it another way. It's a waste of time and breath. Everybody understands there's a lot of things that's not worth saying. And should never be said. But what do we put on in its place? We put on quality communication. We put on that which is holy and godly. Such communication builds up. It does not tear down.

[John Weaver] Gossip, innuendo, slander, false accusation, libel and malicious implications are all forbidden. In verse 29, And that which is commended that they're put on is that which edifies that which builds up and promotes and strengthens and encourage. In other words, Paul is saying that we must put on language and communication that promotes one another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, holiness and happiness.

[John Weaver] Now, look at verse 30, I'm not going to comment on it right now. He said, And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you're sealed in the day of your redemption. I will comment on that in just a moment, but let's look at verses 31 and 32. Verse 31 is a total put-off verse. He said, Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. There should not be a root of bitterness in you. No wrath, no anger, no clamor. You know what clamor is? Clamor is useless noise. That's when somebody says, well, I don't have the solution to this problem, but bless God, I'm going to put my two cents worth in. That's clamor. It's useless noise. You don't have an answer. You just want to spout off. He said all that's to be put off. Well, what is to be put on in the place of bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking and malice? Well, look in verse 32.

[John Weaver] It's a complete put on verse. And be ye kind one to another. Tenderhearted. Forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven you. So he says that we are to put on kindness. We're to put on being tender heartedness. We're to put on being forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven you. Wow. How many of you have ever heard Christians say, well, I'll forgive, but I'm not forgetting. I've heard it. If you don't forget, then you've never really forgiven. Because when God, for Christ's sake, forgave our sins, He forgot them.

[John Weaver] That is, He does not use them against us. He does not manipulate us with them. He does not hold them against us. You see, when someone sins against you, you may not have the power to obliterate it from your mind, but you do have the power never to speak of it again. And if it comes into your mind, you can put it out of your mind. So he says, we're to put on forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven us.

[John Weaver] So I can't say, well, Ed, I remember what you did two years ago. No, if I forgave him, I forgot. I'm not going to manipulate him or try to use it against him.

[John Weaver] Now, I skipped verse 30. I want to go back to verse 30. Look at it. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you're sealed in the day of your redemption. So here's my question. In the context, how do you grieve the Holy Spirit of God? In the context, you grieve the Holy Spirit. By refusing to put off the old man. By refusing to be renewed in your mind. And by refusing to put on the new man. The Holy Spirit who indwells us, who inhabits us, who is our seal into the day of redemption, is grieved when we follow the old man. He's grieved when we do not have a renewed mind. He's grieved when we do not put on the new man.

[John Weaver] Paul said you must learn Christ. How do you learn Christ? by learning to put off the old man, be renewed in your mind, and put on the new man.

[John Weaver] Now, let me make just a couple of quick applications. The first one is this. Everybody knows the answer. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. How do you build a house? One step at a time. You may not be able to change everything in your life, but you can start by changing one thing and then going from there. The journey of a thousand miles is begun with one step. And you can change your life by taking a step a day if you have to.

[John Weaver] Your goal should be to become something entirely different from that which you are by nature. Your goal should be to become the child of God that your obedience and the grace of God can make you for your good and His glory. And the only way that you could accomplish that goal is to put off, be renewed and put on. That is how you learn Jesus Christ. Father, in thy name, we ask for your grace and your mercy.

[John Weaver] We pray that you would help us, that you would teach us, that you build us up in the most holy faith. Help us to change our lives, Lord. Help us to put off the old man, be renewed in the spirit of our mind and put on the new man in Christ Jesus. And I bless it. And we ask and pray. Amen.

Walking With God - 8

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	522161823540
Subject	New Testament Studies
Course	Romans: Law, Obedience, and Sanctification: Walking With God
Genre	Sermon
Date	2016-03-27
Dictation Name
Book	Book 146: Walking With God — Chapter 8
Source Timed Segments	84

Formatted Transcript

Introduction and Reading of Ephesians 4:17-32

Weaver opens with the reading of Ephesians 4:17-32, setting the stage for the message on learning Christ.

All right, well, let's open our Bibles today to the book of Ephesians chapter 4, Ephesians chapter 4, and the series is "Walking with the Lord." And this is number eight. And actually, I would call this part two of "Learning Christ," which I dealt with last week. But let's begin reading with verse 17 and we'll read through verse 32. Notice Ephesians 4 and verse 17: "This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind."

Scripture Reading — Ephesians 4:17-32

"Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; if so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another."

"Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."

The Necessity of Learning Christ

Weaver emphasizes that believers must learn Christ, which involves not loving the world and mortifying the flesh, as taught in 1 John 2:15-17 and Galatians 6:14.

Now, you remember we've been dealing with walking with the Lord, and I'm not going to take time to review every one of these messages. However, I do want to point out that the Apostle Paul has told us in Ephesians 4 about walking worthily, and now he's been teaching us how to walk differently as well. And I pointed out last week, actually, verse 20 and 21, where he says, "...but ye have not so learned Christ." If so be that ye have heard him and been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus. So the truth of the matter is, we must actually learn Jesus Christ. Learning Christ is absolutely necessary. In this passage, the Apostle Paul tells us how not to live, how to live, and how to change our lives. In essence, he tells us how to learn Jesus Christ. He informs us clearly how to discern as to whether or not we have learned Christ and or are learning Christ. Jesus Christ does not teach us or instruct us to live unholy, ungodly, unethical lives as His children. The truth of the matter is we may be in the world, but we are not of the world. You remember that passage in 1 John chapter 2, verses 15 through 17. Listen carefully. God says, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world." Now, when He's talking about the world, He's not talking about His creation. Listen carefully. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world."

"If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him." Now, He describes the world that we're not to love. For He says, "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever." So notice when He says "love not the world," He's certainly not talking about the creation that He has made. He's talking about the world of sin, the world of man, which is described as the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh and the pride of life.

Now, the Apostle Paul in Galatians 6 and verse 14 says this,

Scripture Reading — Galatians 6:14

"But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,"

listen now,

Scripture Reading — Galatians 6:14

"by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world."

So the Apostle Paul is basically saying that I'm dead to the world. I do not want the lust of eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. So our Lord now is teaching us in Ephesians chapter 4 how to walk. And Paul is teaching us how to learn Jesus Christ. So if we're going to learn Jesus Christ, we're going to learn to love not the world. Moreover, we're going to learn to mortify our flesh. with its affections and lusts thereof. I'll cover this later in this brief series. But in Romans 8 in verse 13, Paul said this, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."

Now, the word "mortify" just simply means to make dead. That's where we get our English word "mortician" from, someone who deals with the dead. So he tells us that we're to mortify the deeds of our body. One more. In Colossians 3 and verse 5, he said this,

Scripture Reading — Colossians 3:5

"Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry."

Now, isn't it interesting that he says "mortify therefore your members"? That is the extension of your life, the extension of your body. And he names these specific things that we are to make dead.

So the question automatically arises then, how do we know as to whether or not we love the world or not? How do we know whether or not we are indeed mortifying the deeds of the body? And the answer is that Christ teaches us not only to love not the world, but to mortify the body. He teaches us exactly how to do so because it is explicitly stated in His Word. So I suppose an even more profound and provocative question would be this.

The Colon in Verse 21 and the Connected Sentence

Weaver highlights the colon after 'Jesus' in verse 21, indicating that the most important instruction follows, and notes that verses 17-24 form one sentence.

How do we accomplish these tasks? How do we make sure that we love not the world? How do we make sure that we do indeed mortify the deeds of our body? Well, look in Ephesians 4 and verse 21 again. He says, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus."

Now, let me point something out. Most of the time when we read Scripture, we just simply read it and we read it just to say, "Well, I've read my Scripture for the day and it's over with." And we never really pay any attention to the text. But if you look in verse 21 again, watch carefully in verse 21, he says, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" Would you please tell me what comes after the word "Jesus"? It is a colon. Two little dots. Do you realize that one of the most important aspects of the use of a colon is that of emphasis? When you see a colon, usually what that colon means is, "Hold on. Wait a minute. I know what I have just said, but the most important thing is about to follow." That's exactly what a colon means. Now, if you will notice something. If you will look at verse 21, you see the colon. If you look at verse 22, you see a semicolon.

If you look at verse 23 at the end, you see a semicolon. And you will notice there's a period at the end of verse 24. So that means actually the sentence does not end until you get to verse 24. So actually, this entire sentence began in verse 17 and does not end until you get to verse 24. So the Apostle Paul now is telling us that we must learn Christ. And he is telling us exactly how we're to learn Christ. He is telling us exactly how a good student and a good disciple learns Jesus Christ.

Now, I want you to listen to me just for a moment. Look at me because I want to make sure that you hear this. Learning Christ is really simple. It is practical and easy to apply. The problem is not the complexity in learning Jesus Christ. The problem is not the difficulty in applying the truth. The problem is, this is extremely painful to our flesh. And we may expect a battle from our flesh. Because our flesh is not going to lie as easily and readily and as submissively upon the altar as did Isaac. Our flesh will scream and cry and demand its own way. Let me just give you a quote, we'll look at this later on, but in Galatians 5 verses 16 and 17, listen, the apostle said this, "This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh."

The Simple Analogy of Putting Off and Putting On

Using the everyday practice of changing clothes, Weaver illustrates the spiritual principle of putting off the old man and putting on the new man.

"And these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would." So the Apostle Paul is telling us that the flesh is going to fight against the Spirit and the Spirit is going to fight against the flesh. They're absolutely contrary, one to the other. And he concludes by saying, "Therefore, ye cannot do the things that ye would." So let me spell it out for you. When you and I do things what we would do naturally, we're usually sinning. Because the flesh loves to have its way. Now, here's the question: how do we learn Christ? I said that the concept was simple. And it is. So allow me to explain. I want you to answer these questions in your mind. Do not answer them out loud, please. How many of you go to sleep each night with your work clothes on? How many of you go to work each morning in your pajamas? How many, when your clothes get dirty, just simply go into your house and put clean clothes on over your dirty clothes? And when those get dirty, you just put on more clean clothes. And you keep adding clean clothes over your dirty clothes until all of a sudden you can't function. You can't move. You have on so many clothes.

Has anybody in this room ever done anything like that? Have you ever known anyone that would do anything like that? The point that I'm making is very simple. Each night you put off your day clothes and you put on your night clothes. Each morning you put off your night clothes and you put on your day clothes or your work clothes. When your garments are dirty and filthy, you take them off. And then you put new or clean garments on in their place.

This is something you've done all your life. Do you realize ever since you were able to understand, you understood this concept: put off, put on, put off, put on. You can't put something on until you put something off. That which is true in the physical realm is equally true in the spiritual realm. And when you read Ephesians chapter 4 and also Colossians chapter 3, you will find that these words "put off" and "put on" occur over and over.

Now, let's go back, if you would please, to verse 21. Watch carefully. He says in verse 21, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" There's the colon, which means "hold on, wait a minute. The most important thing is about to come." And then you look at the next sentence in verse 22, and you see the semicolon. And then in verse 23, you see a semicolon as well.

The Threefold Process: Put Off, Be Renewed, Put On

Weaver explains that learning Christ requires putting off the old man (verse 22), being renewed in the spirit of the mind (verse 23), and putting on the new man (verse 24).

Now, a semicolon is used to connect two related sentences. So the point I'm trying to make is this: verses 22 and 23 are related and they lead to the final truth of verse 24. So when you read actually verse 17 down through verse 24, as I pointed out, it is one sentence. But what Paul is doing in verses 21 through 24, he's giving us general instruction on how to learn Jesus Christ. And then in verses 25-32, he gives us particular instruction on how to learn Jesus Christ. Let me say it another way. He gives us the doctrine in encapsulated form in verses 21-24. And then he expands upon that in verses 25-32.

Let's go back and begin looking at verse 22 because we connected that with verse 21. In fact, let's read verse 21 again. "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" Hang on. Here's the truth: "that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." So according to verse 22 now, something has to be put off and that which has to be put off is the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts. So here is something that you and I must put off before we can put on, and we must put it off. And part of this putting off is part and parcel of learning Jesus Christ. Now, when he says in verse 22 "that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man," the word "conversation" just simply means your former conduct, your former lifestyle.

It was the way you walked. It was the way you lived. So our former conduct is nothing more or nothing less, I should say, than an exhibition of the old nature with all of its corruption. For instance, let me give you an illustration. When you were unsaved and you got in trouble, the easy way out was just to lie. You didn't have to face responsibility. You didn't have to take responsibility. You weren't accountable. You just lied.

And when you were lost, if you needed money, well, you know, what's wrong with stealing? What's wrong with fraud? What's wrong with deceit? In other words, anything was open to you because you were in the old nature and your old nature was corrupt. You thought nothing of violating the law of God. So the Apostle Paul then is using the phrase "the old man" to refer then to the old nature. Let me say it another way. The old man is that which we were and are in Adam. It is where our sin was imputed. And because sin has been imputed, we are actually sinners as well. So he is telling us that this old man is corrupt and is deceitful. Let me give you a good quote. John Gill, in commenting on the phrase "the old man," says this, listen carefully. "By the old man is meant the corruption of nature. Called a man because natural to men, it lives and dwells in them. It has spread itself over the whole man. It rules and governs in men and consists of various parts and members as a man does. It is called old because it is the poison of the old serpent, with which man was infected by him from the beginning. It is derived from the first man that ever was. It is as old as man is, in whom it is, and is likewise called so with respect to its duration and continuance and in opposition to and contradistinction from the new man or principle of grace."

It is called ours because continually it is with us. It is in our nature. It cleaves to us and abides in us. So when you look at verse 22 and he says "that ye put off concerning the former conduct or the former lifestyle, the old man," that's everything that you are by nature. Everything that you've ever been taught all of your life as an unsaved man.

Now, I want you to hold Ephesians 4 and turn in your Bibles very quickly to Romans chapter 6. Let me tell you, the way this old man can be put off is because our old man was crucified with Jesus Christ. Notice if you would, Romans chapter 6 and verse 6. Look what he says,

Scripture Reading — Romans 6:6, 11-14

"Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin."

So he is telling us that when Christ was crucified, our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed. Henceforth, we should not serve sin. Now, the old man is corrupt. It is that which we are by nature. But since our old man has been crucified in Jesus Christ, it is not to dominate us. It is not to rule and reign in us. It is not to hold sway. Look in your Bibles to Romans 6, beginning there in verse 11. Watch what he says. In light of the fact that our old man has been crucified with Christ, "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God." "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace." Now, notice, if you would, in verse 11, "likewise reckon." The word "reckon" there literally means to count or to impute. So he says, "count yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin." Let me ask you. Here's a man that was a drunk all of his life. And he died. And he's lying in his casket, dead as a hammer, and you go hold a fifth of whiskey over his face and say, "Here it is, but would you like some more?" What's he going to do? Nothing. Because he's dead. This is what God is saying. We have to learn to count ourselves dead indeed unto sin. But we also count ourselves alive unto God through Jesus Christ. Then he says, sin is not to reign in our mortal bodies. Now listen carefully. He did not say, "Let not sin therefore be in your mortal bodies." It is here. He said, "Let not therefore sin reign in your mortal bodies." In other words, sin is not our Lord. Jesus Christ is our Lord. The power of sin has been broken in the child of God. Do we sin? Yes. Do we have to sin? No. We are sinners, but we now, through Jesus Christ, have the ability to say, "No. I'm not going to be an adulterer. I'm not going to be a drunkard. I'm not going to be a thief. I'm going to obey Christ and bring my life in conformity to His Word." So he tells us sin is not to have dominion over us. Now.

Notice, if you would, as you turn back to Ephesians chapter 4. Look what he said in verse 22. "That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." Now, you don't have to turn there, but in Colossians 3 and verse 9, Paul said it again like this. He says,

Scripture Reading — Colossians 3:9

"Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds."

And when you look back at verse 22, that old man with his deeds isn't only corrupt, he also has deceitful lusts. So the analogy then of our life without Jesus Christ is described as an old man that is corrupt and full of deceitful lusts. Now, I hope you remember the passage in Jeremiah chapter 17, verse 9. Let me quote it and you will remember it. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Now, if the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, now you combine that with what the Bible says in Ephesians 4, verse 22, about deceitful lusts.

The Deceitfulness of Sin and the Old Man

Weaver describes the old man as corrupt and full of deceitful lusts, warning that sin deceives and hardens, referencing Hebrews 3:13 and James 1:13-15.

You have to stop and ask yourself this: What controls an unsaved man? And the answer will be his passions and his pleasures. Sin dominates an unsaved man. It rules over him. It reigns over him. It manipulates him. It seduces him. It deceives him. And when sin says "jump," they jump. You see, when he talks about deceitful lusts, you have to remember this about sin. Sin always promises happiness and excitement and gratification and pleasure. But it always produces death.

Have you ever noticed, and I realize that alcohol is not sinful in and of itself. I understand that. But have you ever noticed that when someone, an advertisement on TV comes for alcohol, they never show a drunk lying in the gutter wallowing in his own vomit. I mean, they'll show a beautiful young woman and a handsome young man just sipping and having a wonderful time and a good time. You understand that? And when your flesh lusts after another man or another woman, whatever, they never show you a broken home and children that are begging for mama and daddy and neither one of them happen to be around. No, no, no.

Sin promises all of these. That's why the Scripture is talking about deceitful lusts. Now listen, let me quote this for you. In James 1, verses 13 through 15,

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: but every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."

What did the Bible say?

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed."

In other words, when there appears something outside of you that promises to satisfy a desire that you have on the inside, that's your lust. And when you see that on the outside, you're enticed, and when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death. But notice, if you would, every man is tempted when he's drawn away of his own lust. And it is a deceitful lust. Now, let me show you how deceitful sin is.

I want you to hold Ephesians 4. We're coming right back there. But I do want you to turn to Hebrews chapter 3. And look, if you would please, at verse 13. Hebrews chapter 3 and verse 13. This is how deceitful sin really is. It will deceive even a child of God, if we allow it to do so. So the apostle warns in Hebrews 3 and verse 13. In fact, let's begin with verse 12, just so you can see he's talking to believers. Hebrews 3, verse 12,

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 3:12-13

"Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin."

Lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. So sin will deceive. It's just that simple. And it will deceive anyone if we will allow its deception and embrace that deception. Now I want you to go back to Ephesians chapter 4. Remember now we're talking about learning Jesus Christ.

So he says in verse 21, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus." So what does he tell you to do first? Verse 22, "that ye put off concerning the former conversation or conduct or lifestyle, the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." Now, we must put that off. The question is, what must be done in light of the understanding that our old man is corrupt and filled with deceitful lusts? Well, the answer is found in verse 23. Watch: "and be renewed in the spirit of your mind." Now, I want you to take note that verse 23 begins with a conjunction "and." A-N-D. I also told you that verse 22 ended with a semicolon, which means that which follows is related. So obviously, it is related since it's a continuous thought and begins with an "and": "be renewed in the spirit of your mind." So these two things are to take place simultaneously.

Renewal of the Mind and Capturing Thoughts

Weaver stresses the need for mind renewal, citing Romans 12:1-2 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, and explains that we must replace wrong thoughts with biblical ones.

First, the old man must be put off. That is with respect to your former conduct or habits of life. They must be laid aside. Anything that pertains to a corrupt or fallen nature. And secondly, we must be renewed in the spirit of our minds. Now, let me put it to you very bluntly. Our minds cannot be renewed with the old man, the old ways, the old habits, and the old thought patterns still in place. If our minds are to be renewed, we must put away everything that is contrary to a renewed mind. Now, I want you to look at verse 23: "and be renewed in the spirit of your mind." The word "renewed" in the Greek is the Greek word "ananeoō."

It's a present passive infinitive. It is asserting an obligation. And it is treated as a command. Literally, we're commanded to have a renewed mind, but the renewal is not a self-renewal. It is accomplished on us rather than by us. We're to be constantly and continually renewed by Jesus Christ.

Now, there are specific commands that we must obey, and that are clearly, we are clearly exhorted to follow in regards to our minds. So Romans 12 verses 1 and 2. Listen carefully. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Now listen, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed." How? "By the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."

Now, the interesting thing is this: when he says "that ye may be transformed," the Greek word for "transformed" is where we get our English word "metamorphosis." What's a butterfly do? He goes through changes. So literally, he says that we're to be metamorphosized, we're to go through changes. How? By the renewing of our mind. Do you remember that passage in Philippians 2 and verse 5? "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." Let this mind be in you.

Let me give you one more quote, 1 Peter 4, verses 1 and 2, listen carefully. "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God." So what did he say? "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same mind." So we've been told to be armed with the mind of Christ, have the mind of Christ, we're to be renewed in the spirit of our mind.

Now, I want you to go back to Ephesians 4. I want you to look at this, because you see, we're not through. I'm just trying to show you how to learn Jesus Christ based upon Ephesians chapter 4. Now, he said in verse 21, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" colon, hang on, the most important is about to come. What must you do? Put off the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful lusts, semicolon. And there's a conjunction, "be renewed in the spirit of your mind," which means now that, yes, those two thoughts do indeed go together.

Ah, but that's not all. Notice, if you would please, verse 23 ends with a semicolon, and verse 24 begins with a conjunction "and" again. So, "and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." So, what he's telling us is this: these things must absolutely go together. We must, number one, put off the old man. Number two, be renewed in the spirit of our minds. And number three, put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. So, we're to put off and we're to put on. And in between, we're to have our minds renewed. Now, notice if you would, please. Verse 22 tells you "put off concerning the former conversation, the old man." Verse 24 tells you "that ye put on the new man." Wow. What is the new man? The new man is the man that we are in Jesus Christ. He's the man that's created in righteousness and true holiness. So.

The way this works is very simple. When we put off the old man, that is the old habits, the old conduct, our minds are renewed. We understand scriptural truth. We understand obedience and submission and godliness and holiness and sanctification. We understand that we have been set apart and that we're to live differently. And when we do not walk and talk and think the way the ungodly do, rather, we learn now to think scripturally and biblically and walk as Jesus Christ walked in righteousness and true holiness. We understand that righteousness and true holiness are only found in Christ and in His Word. And thus we seek to bring the totality of our life in conformity to His Word.

I want you to hold Ephesians 4. I want you to turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 10. 2 Corinthians chapter 10. And I want you to look at verses 3 through 5. 2 Corinthians chapter 10, beginning with verse 3. Because we're talking about having our minds renewed. Notice 2 Corinthians 10 and verse 3, the apostle says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh." In other words, we're not fighting to have our lusts satisfied. We're not fighting to commit adultery or steal or kill or—no, no, no. We're not walking after the flesh. We're not warring. We're not warring after the flesh. He says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh."

Then he goes on to say this, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." Now, I want you to note, he says, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." You know what your stronghold is? It's your place of defense. It's your place of defense. What is man's stronghold? Watch, if you would, in verse 5, after he talks about "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." Watch. "Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." So here's my question. As a new man in Jesus Christ, how many thoughts are we allowed that are unbiblical, ungodly, unrighteous, and unholy? None. Because we're to bring every thought to the obedience of Jesus Christ, every thought. Isn't that interesting? Isn't that amazing?

So he tells us that we must put off, we must be renewed, and we must put on. So how do you do that? Well, it's very simple. So when this old habit, this old thought pattern comes up in your mind, you have to say, "Lord, I refuse that. I reject that. I will not have that. Lord, I want to be renewed in the spirit of my mind. I ask Jesus Christ to renew my mind. And Lord, by Your grace, I want the mind of Christ. I want to be armed with the mind of Christ. And Lord, here is what You say that I should do in the place of that. And I'm going to put my mind upon that." I've said this before. But let me point it out again, if I were to hold up this and ask you what is this, you're going to tell me it's a pen. If I were to ask you what color, you're going to say black and white. Now, if I were to take my Bible and hold it up and ask you what is this, you say it's the Bible.

If I ask you what color is the cover, you say it's black. Isn't it interesting that while you were thinking about the pen, you were not thinking about the Bible. And while you were thinking about the Bible, you were not thinking about the pen. No matter how hard you try, you can't think of but one thing at a time. So if I put off that wicked, wrong thought, and I ask to be renewed, and I start thinking things that are biblical and scriptural, where is my mind? It's now on the new man, not on the old man. That's exactly what he's saying. Now, I want you to understand something. Listen carefully. These three things go together: we put off, we are renewed, and we put on. It does no good to try to put off an old habit or any old unbiblical conduct unless you're going to put on a new habit and a new biblical conduct in its place. If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself according to your own dictates and your own thoughts, you are doomed for failure. Let me show you. I want you to hold Ephesians chapter 4, but turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 12.

Look at what our Lord says concerning self-reformation. Matthew chapter 12. If you do not replace an old, unbiblical habit with a new, godly habit, inevitably the old habit will return and it will return with a vengeance. Your last state will be worse than your first state. So here it is, Matthew 12, beginning there with verse 43. Look at what our Lord said. Our Lord says,

Scripture Reading — Matthew 12:43-45

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished."

The Danger of Self-Reformation (Matthew 12:43-45)

Weaver warns that self-reformation without replacement leads to worse bondage, using Jesus' teaching on the unclean spirit returning to an empty house.

That's exactly what he's saying. Now, I want you to understand something. Listen carefully. These three things go together: we put off, we are renewed, and we put on. It does no good to try to put off an old habit or any old unbiblical conduct unless you're going to put on a new habit and a new biblical conduct in its place. If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself according to your own dictates and your own thoughts, you are doomed for failure. Let me show you. I want you to hold Ephesians chapter 4, but turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 12.

Scripture Reading — Matthew 12:43-45

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished."

"Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation." So self-reformation does not work. It cannot work. So he's telling us concisely how we're to learn Christ: we're to put off, we're to be renewed, and we're to put on.

Now, I want you to go back to Ephesians chapter 4. In this passage, in Ephesians chapter 4, Paul mentions a number of items that must be dealt with, particularly in our lives. He tells us what to put off and he tells us what to put on in its place. Let me just point out the list in Ephesians chapter 4 is certainly not extensive. But it is illustrative; it illustrates the principle. Paul could not cover every sin, every habit, every sinful thought pattern. So we could not even carry our Bibles. But He does give us principles in order that we may apply them and work them out in our own lives.

Specific Put Off/Put On Examples (Verses 25-32)

Weaver walks through the practical commands: put off lying and speak truth; put off unrighteous anger and resolve it; put off stealing and work to give; put off corrupt speech and edify; put off bitterness and malice, and put on kindness and forgiveness.

So, here it is in a nutshell in verses 21, 22, 23, 24. He said, if you're going to learn Christ, you've got to put off the old man, be renewed in your spirit, and you put on the new man. Now, how do we do that? So Paul says, I'm going to give you some illustrations. So look, if you would please, in verse 25. "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another." So clearly, lying then is a sin that must be put off. If our minds are renewed in Christ Jesus, then we learn to speak the truth. The truth is the truth. Now, if you'll look in Ephesians 4 and verse 15, just look at that verse. "But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ."

Now, let me tell you something. I can speak the truth and I can speak it in a hateful manner and irritate people and drive them away. Or I can speak the truth and still speak it lovingly, kindly, civilly, and it may or may not be accepted. But he says "speaking the truth in love." I understand that truth hurts. And I understand that truth may be offensive. However, truth is still truth and it must be spoken, especially to each other. You will never know how many people have come to me in times past and wanted help

and sit in front of me and lie like a dog. You cannot help someone unless they tell the truth. And unless they face the truth. Nor can you help anyone unless they're willing to hear the truth and act upon the truth. The apostle is saying in verse 25, we are one body. And we are members one of the other, and we actually owe the truth to each other. It may hurt. We may not like it. But we still must tell the truth. OK, so he says, here's what you put off: you put away lying, and you put on in its place speaking the truth, every man with his neighbour.

Well, that would be everybody. Then he says, well, we're members one of another, but he's particularly talking about the saints of God in that particular area. So we're to put off lying, we're to put on speaking the truth. Well, like I say, we don't have to speak it in a hateful manner or in an ugly manner, but we still must speak it. Look at verses 26 and 27. "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil."

Now, interestingly, verse 26 tells us that we're to put off an unrighteous anger and we're to put on a righteous anger. No, he says, "Be ye angry, and sin not." That is a positive. There is a way to be angry and not to sin, but on the other hand, you must put off an anger that is sinful and wicked. He says, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath." Well, let me ask you a question. How can you tell the difference between a righteous anger and a sinful anger? Well, it's very simple. A sinful anger will always manifest itself in one of two ways. The first way and the way that most people understand anger is it is volcanic. That is when you get so angry, you get so mad, you just cuss everybody out and tell everybody off and you rant and rave and you scream and you're upset and everybody knows it's an explosion and you don't care who hears it. That's sinful anger. But there's another anger that is sinful. And that is internalized anger. That's when Ed does me wrong and I don't explode and cuss him out. I just kind of smile and say, "You just wait, buddy."

Scripture Reading — Mark 3:5

"I'm going to nail you. I'll get you sometime when you're not expecting it." And so what I do, I just internalize that anger and let it eat my guts out. That's sinful anger. Have you ever noticed that anger is an emotion? And anger is not necessarily sinful in and of itself. If you want to say that all anger is sinful, then you've got a problem, because in Mark chapter 3, the Bible says our Lord "looked round about upon them with anger." He was angry. He was angry. You see, anger is not meant to blow up and cuss everybody out. If you use the emotion correctly, nor is it meant to internalize and eat as a canker your insides out. Anger is an emotion to deal with the sin and to deal with the problem and get it resolved. The problem is, most of us get angry with each other. We don't get angry with the sin. Now, I want you to watch this. Look what he says. "Neither," he says, "be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath."

What does that mean? I don't care if you've got a righteous anger or an unrighteous anger. God says, work it out before the sun goes down. You're not to go to bed with your wife mad, angry, upset, and you're not to go to bed with your husband mad, angry, upset. Work it out before the sun goes down. If you have a righteous anger and it's dealing with sin, work it out before the sun goes down. That's what he's saying. Put off an unrighteous anger, put on a righteous anger that works the problems out. Note, if you would, what he says next in verse 27.

"Neither give place to the devil." What does that mean? That means when you do not work out your anger before the sun goes down, you're giving him place. You're giving him ground. If you don't want the devil in your life, don't give him ground. Don't invite him into your house. Don't invite him into your life. I've got news for you. If you give him ground, he will take it. If you invite him in, he will come in. So he says, you put off an unrighteous anger, you put on a righteous anger, and then you deal with that problem before the sun goes down, because if you don't, you're going to end up giving place to the devil. Now, watch verse 28. Here's another put off, put on. Verse 28, "Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth." Now, God says we're to put off theft and every aspect of it—that would be fraud, deceit, dishonesty, anything like that has to be put off.

Our renewed minds then will replace that old habit or that old way of life with an honest labor and a cheerful, generous, sacrificial heart. What does he say? "Let him that stole steal no more." Put off stealing. Put off dishonesty. What are you to put on? You're to put on work. "The thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth." In other words, you put on not a covetous spirit, but a generous spirit, a gracious, sacrificial spirit. Oh.

Wow, look at verse 29, I'm trying to hurry, look in verse 29. "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." So, he says, you put off corrupt communication, and you put on that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. All corrupt communication is to be put off. Corrupt communication is that which is bad, rotten, putrid, corrupted, and not fit for use. It is language that is worthless and of poor quality. Let me say it another way. It's a waste of time and breath. Everybody understands there's a lot of things that's not worth saying and should never be said. But what do we put on in its place? We put on quality communication. We put on that which is holy and godly. Such communication builds up. It does not tear down.

Gossip, innuendo, slander, false accusation, libel, and malicious implications are all forbidden in verse 29. And that which is commended that they're put on is that which edifies, that which builds up and promotes and strengthens and encourages. In other words, Paul is saying that we must put on language and communication that promotes one another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, holiness, and happiness. Now, look at verse 30, I'm not going to comment on it right now. He said, "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." I will comment on that in just a moment, but let's look at verses 31 and 32. Verse 31 is a total put-off verse. He said, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice." There should not be a root of bitterness in you. No wrath, no anger, no clamour. You know what clamour is? Clamour is useless noise. That's when somebody says, "Well, I don't have the solution to this problem, but bless God, I'm going to put my two cents' worth in." That's clamour. It's useless noise. You don't have an answer. You just want to spout off. He said all that's to be put off. Well, what is to be put on in the place of bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and evil speaking and malice? Well, look in verse 32.

It's a complete put-on verse. "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." So he says that we are to put on kindness. We're to put on being tenderhearted. We're to put on being forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Wow. How many of you have ever heard Christians say, "Well, I'll forgive, but I'm not forgetting"? I've heard it. If you don't forget, then you've never really forgiven. Because when God for Christ's sake forgave our sins, He forgot them.

That is, He does not use them against us. He does not manipulate us with them. He does not hold them against us. You see, when someone sins against you, you may not have the power to obliterate it from your mind, but you do have the power never to speak of it again. And if it comes into your mind, you can put it out of your mind. So he says, we're to put on forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven us.

So I can't say, "Well, Ed, I remember what you did two years ago." No, if I forgave him, I forgot. I'm not going to manipulate him or try to use it against him.

Grieving the Holy Spirit and Conclusion

Weaver explains that grieving the Holy Spirit (verse 30) happens when we refuse to put off the old man, be renewed, and put on the new man. He concludes with practical steps for gradual change.

Now, I skipped verse 30. I want to go back to verse 30. Look at it. "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." So here's my question. In the context, how do you grieve the Holy Spirit of God? In the context, you grieve the Holy Spirit by refusing to put off the old man. By refusing to be renewed in your mind. And by refusing to put on the new man. The Holy Spirit who indwells us, who inhabits us, who is our seal unto the day of redemption, is grieved when we follow the old man. He's grieved when we do not have a renewed mind. He's grieved when we do not put on the new man.

Paul said you must learn Christ. How do you learn Christ? By learning to put off the old man, be renewed in your mind, and put on the new man. Now, let me make just a couple of quick applications. The first one is this. Everybody knows the answer. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. How do you build a house? One step at a time. You may not be able to change everything in your life, but you can start by changing one thing and then going from there. The journey of a thousand miles is begun with one step. And you can change your life by taking a step a day if you have to.

Your goal should be to become something entirely different from that which you are by nature. Your goal should be to become the child of God that your obedience and the grace of God can make you for your good and His glory. And the only way that you can accomplish that goal is to put off, be renewed, and put on. That is how you learn Jesus Christ. Father, in Thy name, we ask for Your grace and Your mercy. We pray that You would help us, that You would teach us, that You build us up in the most holy faith. Help us to change our lives, Lord. Help us to put off the old man, be renewed in the spirit of our mind, and put on the new man in Christ Jesus. And I bless it. And we ask and pray. Amen.

Study Guide

Major Themes

Learning Christ as a Practical Process

Summary: Learning Christ is not complex but involves a simple, practical process of putting off the old man, being renewed in the mind, and putting on the new man.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'Learning Christ is really simple. It is practical and easy to apply.' He then outlines the three steps from Ephesians 4:22-24.

The Deceitfulness of Sin and the Old Nature

Summary: The old man is corrupt and full of deceitful lusts that promise pleasure but produce death, requiring believers to recognize and reject its deception.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'Sin always promises happiness and excitement and gratification and pleasure. But it always produces death.' He references Hebrews 3:13 and James 1:13-15.

Renewal of the Mind as Essential to Transformation

Summary: Transformation comes through mind renewal, which involves replacing old thought patterns with biblical truth and bringing every thought captive to Christ.

Evidence: Weaver cites Romans 12:1-2 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, emphasizing, 'we're to bring every thought to the obedience of Jesus Christ.'

The Necessity of Replacement, Not Mere Reformation

Summary: Putting off sin must be accompanied by putting on righteousness; self-reformation without replacement leads to worse bondage, as illustrated in Matthew 12:43-45.

Evidence: Weaver warns, 'If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself... you are doomed for failure.' He then reads Matthew 12:43-45.

Grieving the Holy Spirit Through Disobedience

Summary: The Holy Spirit is grieved when believers refuse to put off the old man, be renewed in mind, and put on the new man, as this contradicts His sealing work.

Evidence: Weaver explains, 'In the context, you grieve the Holy Spirit by refusing to put off the old man. By refusing to be renewed in your mind. And by refusing to put on the new man.'

Key Arguments

The colon in Ephesians 4:21 signals that the most important instruction follows.

Summary: Weaver argues that the colon after 'Jesus' in verse 21 emphasizes the crucial three-step process of learning Christ in verses 22-24.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'When you see a colon, usually what that colon means is, "Hold on. Wait a minute. I know what I have just said, but the most important thing is about to follow."'

The old man was crucified with Christ, so believers are not under sin's dominion.

Summary: Because the old man was crucified with Christ (Romans 6:6), believers can reckon themselves dead to sin and alive to God, breaking sin's reign.

Evidence: Weaver reads Romans 6:6 and 6:11-14, stating, 'our old man has been crucified in Jesus Christ, it is not to dominate us.'

Anger can be righteous or sinful; sinful anger is either explosive or internalized.

Summary: Weaver distinguishes righteous anger, which deals with sin, from sinful anger, which manifests as volcanic outbursts or internalized resentment.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'A sinful anger will always manifest itself in one of two ways... volcanic... or internalized anger.'

Forgiveness requires forgetting in the sense of not holding sins against others.

Summary: True forgiveness, modeled after God's forgiveness in Christ, means not using past sins to manipulate or condemn others.

Evidence: Weaver states, 'If you don't forget, then you've never really forgiven. Because when God for Christ's sake forgave our sins, He forgot them.'

Scripture References

Ephesians 4:17-32

Context: The primary passage read and expounded throughout the sermon, focusing on the put off/put on process.

1 John 2:15-17

Context: Cited to show that believers are not to love the world, defined as the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life.

Galatians 6:14

Context: Quoted to illustrate Paul's declaration that the world is crucified to him and he to the world.

Romans 8:13

Context: Used to support the command to mortify the deeds of the body through the Spirit.

Colossians 3:5

Context: Quoted to list specific sins that must be mortified, such as fornication and covetousness.

Galatians 5:16-17

Context: Referenced to explain the conflict between the flesh and the Spirit, making it impossible to do what we naturally want.

Romans 6:6, 11-14

Context: Read to show that the old man was crucified with Christ and that believers should reckon themselves dead to sin and not let sin reign.

Colossians 3:9

Context: Cited to reinforce the command to put off the old man with his deeds.

Jeremiah 17:9

Context: Quoted to emphasize the deceitfulness and wickedness of the human heart.

James 1:13-15

Context: Quoted to explain how lust entices, conceives, and brings forth sin and death.

Hebrews 3:12-13

Context: Read to warn believers about the deceitfulness of sin that can harden hearts.

Romans 12:1-2

Context: Quoted to command transformation through the renewing of the mind.

Philippians 2:5

Context: Cited to exhort believers to have the mind of Christ.

1 Peter 4:1-2

Context: Quoted to encourage arming oneself with the mind of Christ to cease from sin.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

Context: Read to illustrate the spiritual warfare of casting down imaginations and bringing every thought captive to Christ.

Matthew 12:43-45

Context: Quoted to warn against self-reformation without replacement, showing that the last state becomes worse.

Ephesians 4:15

Context: Referenced to emphasize speaking the truth in love as part of growing up in Christ.

Mark 3:5

Context: Mentioned to show that Jesus experienced anger, indicating that anger itself is not sinful.

Historical References

John Gill's commentary on 'the old man'

Context: Weaver quotes John Gill's description of the old man as the corruption of nature, derived from the old serpent and opposed to the new man.

Important Quotes

Learning Christ is really simple. It is practical and easy to apply. The problem is not the complexity in learning Jesus Christ. The problem is not the difficulty in applying the truth. The problem is, this is extremely painful to our flesh.

Significance: Summarizes the central tension of the sermon: the process is simple but painful because it goes against our sinful nature.

You can't put something on until you put something off. That which is true in the physical realm is equally true in the spiritual realm.

Significance: Uses the clothing analogy to make the put off/put on principle memorable and applicable.

Sin always promises happiness and excitement and gratification and pleasure. But it always produces death.

Significance: Captures the deceitful nature of sin, a key theme in understanding why the old man must be put off.

If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself according to your own dictates and your own thoughts, you are doomed for failure.

Significance: Warns against self-reformation without the biblical replacement, leading into the Matthew 12 illustration.

In the context, you grieve the Holy Spirit by refusing to put off the old man. By refusing to be renewed in your mind. And by refusing to put on the new man.

Significance: Directly connects the command not to grieve the Spirit with the threefold process of learning Christ.

Discussion Questions

What does it mean practically to 'put off the old man' in daily life, and why is it described as painful?

Context: Weaver emphasizes that the process is simple but painful to the flesh, and that the old man is corrupt and deceitful.

How does the analogy of changing clothes help you understand the necessity of both putting off and putting on in the Christian life?

Context: Weaver uses the everyday example of changing clothes to illustrate the spiritual principle.

In what ways can we actively participate in the renewal of our minds, and what role does the Holy Spirit play?

Context: Weaver explains that renewal is a command but accomplished by Christ, and references Romans 12:1-2.

Why is self-reformation without replacement dangerous, according to Matthew 12:43-45?

Context: Weaver warns that merely putting off sin without putting on righteousness leads to a worse state.

How can we distinguish between righteous and sinful anger, and what does it mean to not let the sun go down on our wrath?

Context: Weaver discusses the two types of sinful anger and the command to resolve anger quickly.

What does it look like to forgive as God forgave us, and why is forgetting (not holding against) essential?

Context: Weaver explains that true forgiveness means not using past sins against someone.

Applications

Start with one change at a time

Summary: Weaver encourages believers to begin transformation by tackling one habit or sin at a time, using the analogy of eating an elephant one bite at a time.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time... You may not be able to change everything in your life, but you can start by changing one thing.'

Replace sinful speech with edifying words

Summary: Believers are to put off corrupt communication and instead speak words that build up and minister grace to hearers.

Evidence: Weaver expounds Ephesians 4:29, stating, 'All corrupt communication is to be put off... We put on quality communication... that which edifies.'

Resolve anger before the day ends

Summary: Whether anger is righteous or unrighteous, it must be dealt with promptly to avoid giving the devil a foothold.

Evidence: Weaver says, 'I don't care if you've got a righteous anger or an unrighteous anger. God says, work it out before the sun goes down.'

Replace dishonesty with honest labor and generosity

Summary: Those who have stolen must stop and instead work honestly so they can give to those in need, cultivating a generous spirit.

Evidence: Weaver explains Ephesians 4:28, 'Put off stealing. Put off dishonesty. What are you to put on? You're to put on work... a generous spirit.'

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T22:33:17Z

deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T14:01:48Z

Clean Transcript

Walking With God - 8

Clean readable transcript. This view follows the Commentary.net cleaned segment text while preserving timestamps for audio follow-along.

All right, well, let's open our Bibles today to the book of Ephesians chapter 4, Ephesians chapter 4, and the series is "Walking with the Lord." And this is number eight. And actually, I would call this part two of "Learning Christ," which I dealt with last week. But let's begin reading with verse 17 and we'll read through verse 32. Notice Ephesians 4 and verse 17: "This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind."
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"Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; if so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another."
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"Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil. Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth. Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers."
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"And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you."
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Now, you remember we've been dealing with walking with the Lord, and I'm not going to take time to review every one of these messages. However, I do want to point out that the Apostle Paul has told us in Ephesians 4 about walking worthily, and now he's been teaching us how to walk differently as well. And I pointed out last week, actually, verse 20 and 21, where he says, "...but ye have not so learned Christ."
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If so be that ye have heard him and been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus. So the truth of the matter is, we must actually learn Jesus Christ. Learning Christ is absolutely necessary. In this passage, the Apostle Paul tells us how not to live, how to live, and how to change our lives. In essence, he tells us how to learn Jesus Christ. He informs us clearly how to discern as to whether or not we have learned Christ and or are learning Christ. Jesus Christ does not teach us or instruct us to live unholy, ungodly, unethical lives as His children. The truth of the matter is we may be in the world, but we are not of the world. You remember that passage in 1 John chapter 2, verses 15 through 17. Listen carefully. God says, "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world." Now, when He's talking about the world, He's not talking about His creation. Listen carefully. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world."
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"If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him." Now, He describes the world that we're not to love. For He says, "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever." So notice when He says "love not the world," He's certainly not talking about the creation that He has made. He's talking about the world of sin, the world of man, which is described as the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh and the pride of life.
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Now, the Apostle Paul in Galatians 6 and verse 14 says this, "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ," listen now, "by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." So the Apostle Paul is basically saying that I'm dead to the world. I do not want the lust of eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. So our Lord now is teaching us in Ephesians chapter 4 how to walk. And Paul is teaching us how to learn Jesus Christ. So if we're going to learn Jesus Christ, we're going to learn to love not the world. Moreover, we're going to learn to mortify our flesh.
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with its affections and lusts thereof. I'll cover this later in this brief series. But in Romans 8 in verse 13, Paul said this, "For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."
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Now, the word "mortify" just simply means to make dead. That's where we get our English word "mortician" from, someone who deals with the dead. So he tells us that we're to mortify the deeds of our body. One more. In Colossians 3 and verse 5, he said this, "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry." Now, isn't it interesting that he says "mortify therefore your members"? That is the extension of your life, the extension of your body. And he names these specific things that we are to make dead.
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So the question automatically arises then, how do we know as to whether or not we love the world or not? How do we know whether or not we are indeed mortifying the deeds of the body? And the answer is that Christ teaches us not only to love not the world, but to mortify the body. He teaches us exactly how to do so because it is explicitly stated in His Word. So I suppose an even more profound and provocative question would be this.
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How do we accomplish these tasks? How do we make sure that we love not the world? How do we make sure that we do indeed mortify the deeds of our body? Well, look in Ephesians 4 and verse 21 again. He says, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus."
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Now, let me point something out. Most of the time when we read Scripture, we just simply read it and we read it just to say, "Well, I've read my Scripture for the day and it's over with." And we never really pay any attention to the text. But if you look in verse 21 again, watch carefully in verse 21, he says, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" Would you please tell me what comes after the word "Jesus"? It is a colon. Two little dots. Do you realize that one of the most important aspects of the use of a colon is that of emphasis? When you see a colon, usually what that colon means is, "Hold on. Wait a minute. I know what I have just said, but the most important thing is about to follow." That's exactly what a colon means. Now, if you will notice something. If you will look at verse 21, you see the colon. If you look at verse 22, you see a semicolon.
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If you look at verse 23 at the end, you see a semicolon. And you will notice there's a period at the end of verse 24. So that means actually the sentence does not end until you get to verse 24. So actually, this entire sentence began in verse 17 and does not end until you get to verse 24. So the Apostle Paul now is telling us that we must learn Christ. And he is telling us exactly how we're to learn Christ. He is telling us exactly how a good student and a good disciple learns Jesus Christ.
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Now, I want you to listen to me just for a moment. Look at me because I want to make sure that you hear this. Learning Christ is really simple. It is practical and easy to apply. The problem is not the complexity in learning Jesus Christ. The problem is not the difficulty in applying the truth. The problem is, this is extremely painful to our flesh. And we may expect a battle from our flesh. Because our flesh is not going to lie as easily and readily and as submissively upon the altar as did Isaac. Our flesh will scream and cry and demand its own way. Let me just give you a quote, we'll look at this later on, but in Galatians 5 verses 16 and 17, listen, the apostle said this, "This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh."
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"And these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would." So the Apostle Paul is telling us that the flesh is going to fight against the Spirit and the Spirit is going to fight against the flesh. They're absolutely contrary, one to the other. And he concludes by saying, "Therefore, ye cannot do the things that ye would." So let me spell it out for you. When you and I do things
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what we would do naturally, we're usually sinning. Because the flesh loves to have its way. Now, here's the question: how do we learn Christ? I said that the concept was simple. And it is. So allow me to explain. I want you to answer these questions in your mind. Do not answer them out loud, please. How many of you go to sleep each night with your work clothes on? How many of you go to work each morning in your pajamas? How many, when your clothes get dirty, just simply go into your house and put clean clothes on over your dirty clothes? And when those get dirty, you just put on more clean clothes. And you keep adding clean clothes over your dirty clothes until all of a sudden you can't function. You can't move. You have on so many clothes.
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Has anybody in this room ever done anything like that? Have you ever known anyone that would do anything like that? The point that I'm making is very simple. Each night you put off your day clothes and you put on your night clothes. Each morning you put off your night clothes and you put on your day clothes or your work clothes. When your garments are dirty and filthy, you take them off. And then you put new or clean garments on in their place.
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This is something you've done all your life. Do you realize ever since you were able to understand, you understood this concept: put off, put on, put off, put on. You can't put something on until you put something off. That which is true in the physical realm is equally true in the spiritual realm. And when you read Ephesians chapter 4 and also Colossians chapter 3, you will find that these words "put off" and "put on" occur over and over.
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Now, let's go back, if you would please, to verse 21. Watch carefully. He says in verse 21, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" There's the colon, which means "hold on, wait a minute. The most important thing is about to come." And then you look at the next sentence in verse 22, and you see the semicolon. And then in verse 23, you see a semicolon as well.
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Now, a semicolon is used to connect two related sentences. So the point I'm trying to make is this: verses 22 and 23 are related and they lead to the final truth of verse 24. So when you read actually verse 17 down through verse 24, as I pointed out, it is one sentence. But what Paul is doing in verses 21 through 24, he's giving us general instruction on how to learn Jesus Christ. And then in verses 25-32, he gives us particular instruction on how to learn Jesus Christ.
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Let me say it another way. He gives us the doctrine in encapsulated form in verses 21-24. And then he expands upon that in verses 25-32.
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Let's go back and begin looking at verse 22 because we connected that with verse 21. In fact, let's read verse 21 again. "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" Hang on. Here's the truth: "that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." So according to verse 22 now, something has to be put off and that which has to be put off is the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts. So here is something that you and I must put off before we can put on, and we must put it off. And part of this putting off is part and parcel of learning Jesus Christ. Now, when he says in verse 22 "that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man," the word "conversation" just simply means your former conduct, your former lifestyle.
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It was the way you walked. It was the way you lived. So our former conduct is nothing more or nothing less, I should say, than an exhibition of the old nature with all of its corruption. For instance, let me give you an illustration. When you were unsaved and you got in trouble, the easy way out was just to lie. You didn't have to face responsibility. You didn't have to take responsibility. You weren't accountable. You just lied.
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And when you were lost, if you needed money, well, you know, what's wrong with stealing? What's wrong with fraud? What's wrong with deceit? In other words, anything was open to you because you were in the old nature and your old nature was corrupt. You thought nothing of violating the law of God. So the Apostle Paul then is using the phrase "the old man" to refer then to the old nature.
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Let me say it another way. The old man is that which we were and are in Adam. It is where our sin was imputed. And because sin has been imputed, we are actually sinners as well. So he is telling us that this old man is corrupt and is deceitful. Let me give you a good quote. John Gill, in commenting on the phrase "the old man," says this, listen carefully. "By the old man is meant the corruption of nature. Called a man because natural to men, it lives and dwells in them. It has spread itself over the whole man. It rules and governs in men and consists of various parts and members as a man does. It is called old because it is the poison of the old serpent, with which man was infected by him from the beginning. It is derived from the first man that ever was. It is as old as man is, in whom it is, and is likewise called so with respect to its duration and continuance and in opposition to and contradistinction from the new man or principle of grace."
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It is called ours because continually it is with us. It is in our nature. It cleaves to us and abides in us. So when you look at verse 22 and he says "that ye put off concerning the former conduct or the former lifestyle, the old man," that's everything that you are by nature. Everything that you've ever been taught all of your life as an unsaved man.
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Now, I want you to hold Ephesians 4 and turn in your Bibles very quickly to Romans chapter 6. Let me tell you, the way this old man can be put off is because our old man was crucified with Jesus Christ. Notice if you would, Romans chapter 6 and verse 6. Look what he says, "Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." So he is telling us that when Christ was crucified, our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed. Henceforth, we should not serve sin. Now, the old man is corrupt.
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It is that which we are by nature. But since our old man has been crucified in Jesus Christ, it is not to dominate us. It is not to rule and reign in us. It is not to hold sway. Look in your Bibles to Romans 6, beginning there in verse 11. Watch what he says. In light of the fact that our old man has been crucified with Christ, "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God."
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"For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace." Now, notice, if you would, in verse 11, "likewise reckon." The word "reckon" there literally means to count or to impute. So he says, "count yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin." Let me ask you. Here's a man that was a drunk all of his life. And he died. And he's lying in his casket, dead as a hammer, and you go hold a fifth of whiskey over his face and say, "Here it is, but would you like some more?"
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What's he going to do? Nothing. Because he's dead. This is what God is saying. We have to learn to count ourselves dead indeed unto sin. But we also count ourselves alive unto God through Jesus Christ. Then he says, sin is not to reign in our mortal bodies. Now listen carefully. He did not say, "Let not sin therefore be in your mortal bodies." It is here. He said, "Let not therefore sin reign in your mortal bodies." In other words, sin is not our Lord. Jesus Christ is our Lord. The power of sin has been broken in the child of God. Do we sin? Yes. Do we have to sin? No. We are sinners, but we now, through Jesus Christ, have the ability to say, "No. I'm not going to be an adulterer. I'm not going to be a drunkard. I'm not going to be a thief. I'm going to obey Christ and bring my life in conformity to His Word." So he tells us sin is not to have dominion over us. Now.
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Notice, if you would, as you turn back to Ephesians chapter 4. Look what he said in verse 22. "That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." Now, you don't have to turn there, but in Colossians 3 and verse 9, Paul said it again like this. He says, "Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds." And when you look back at verse 22, that old man with his deeds isn't only corrupt, he also has deceitful lusts. So the analogy then of our life without Jesus Christ is described as an old man that is corrupt and full of deceitful lusts. Now, I hope you remember the passage in Jeremiah chapter 17, verse 9. Let me quote it and you will remember it. "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" Now, if the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, now you combine that with what the Bible says in Ephesians 4, verse 22, about deceitful lusts.
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You have to stop and ask yourself this: What controls an unsaved man? And the answer will be his passions and his pleasures. Sin dominates an unsaved man. It rules over him. It reigns over him. It manipulates him. It seduces him. It deceives him. And when sin says "jump," they jump. You see, when he talks about deceitful lusts, you have to remember this about sin. Sin always promises happiness and excitement and gratification and pleasure. But it always produces death.
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Have you ever noticed, and I realize that alcohol is not sinful in and of itself. I understand that. But have you ever noticed that when someone, an advertisement on TV comes for alcohol, they never show a drunk lying in the gutter wallowing in his own vomit. I mean, they'll show a beautiful young woman and a handsome young man just sipping and having a wonderful time and a good time. You understand that? And when your flesh lusts after another man or another woman, whatever, they never show you a broken home and children that are begging for mama and daddy and neither one of them happen to be around. No, no, no.
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Sin promises all of these. That's why the Scripture is talking about deceitful lusts.
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Now listen, let me quote this for you. In James 1, verses 13 through 15, "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: but every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death." What did the Bible say? "But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed."
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In other words, when there appears something outside of you that promises to satisfy a desire that you have on the inside, that's your lust. And when you see that on the outside, you're enticed, and when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and when sin is finished, it bringeth forth death. But notice, if you would, every man is tempted when he's drawn away of his own lust. And it is a deceitful lust. Now, let me show you how deceitful sin is.
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I want you to hold Ephesians 4. We're coming right back there. But I do want you to turn to Hebrews chapter 3. And look, if you would please, at verse 13. Hebrews chapter 3 and verse 13. This is how deceitful sin really is. It will deceive even a child of God, if we allow it to do so. So the apostle warns in Hebrews 3 and verse 13. In fact, let's begin with verse 12, just so you can see he's talking to believers. Hebrews 3, verse 12, "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." Lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. So sin will deceive. It's just that simple. And it will deceive anyone if we will allow its deception and embrace that deception. Now I want you to go back to Ephesians chapter 4. Remember now we're talking about learning Jesus Christ.
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So he says in verse 21, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus." So what does he tell you to do first? Verse 22, "that ye put off concerning the former conversation or conduct or lifestyle, the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts." Now, we must put that off. The question is, what must be done in light of the understanding that our old man is corrupt and filled with deceitful lusts? Well, the answer is found in verse 23.
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Watch: "and be renewed in the spirit of your mind." Now, I want you to take note that verse 23 begins with a conjunction "and." A-N-D. I also told you that verse 22 ended with a semicolon, which means that which follows is related. So obviously, it is related since it's a continuous thought and begins with an "and": "be renewed in the spirit of your mind." So these two things are to take place simultaneously.
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First, the old man must be put off. That is with respect to your former conduct or habits of life. They must be laid aside. Anything that pertains to a corrupt or fallen nature. And secondly, we must be renewed in the spirit of our minds. Now, let me put it to you very bluntly. Our minds cannot be renewed with the old man, the old ways, the old habits, and the old thought patterns still in place. If our minds are to be renewed, we must put away everything that is contrary to a renewed mind. Now, I want you to look at verse 23: "and be renewed in the spirit of your mind." The word "renewed" in the Greek is the Greek word "ananeoō."
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It's a present passive infinitive. It is asserting an obligation. And it is treated as a command. Literally, we're commanded to have a renewed mind, but the renewal is not a self-renewal. It is accomplished on us rather than by us. We're to be constantly and continually renewed by Jesus Christ.
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Now, there are specific commands that we must obey, and that are clearly, we are clearly exhorted to follow in regards to our minds. So Romans 12 verses 1 and 2. Listen carefully. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Now listen, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed." How?
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"By the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God."
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Now, the interesting thing is this: when he says "that ye may be transformed," the Greek word for "transformed" is where we get our English word "metamorphosis." What's a butterfly do? He goes through changes. So literally, he says that we're to be metamorphosized, we're to go through changes. How? By the renewing of our mind. Do you remember that passage in Philippians 2 and verse 5? "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." Let this mind be in you.
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Let me give you one more quote, 1 Peter 4, verses 1 and 2, listen carefully. "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God."
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So what did he say? "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same mind." So we've been told to be armed with the mind of Christ, have the mind of Christ, we're to be renewed in the spirit of our mind.
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Now, I want you to go back to Ephesians 4. I want you to look at this, because you see, we're not through. I'm just trying to show you how to learn Jesus Christ based upon Ephesians chapter 4.
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Now, he said in verse 21, "If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:" colon, hang on, the most important is about to come. What must you do? Put off the old man, which is corrupt according to deceitful lusts, semicolon. And there's a conjunction, "be renewed in the spirit of your mind," which means now that, yes, those two thoughts do indeed go together.
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Ah, but that's not all. Notice, if you would please, verse 23 ends with a semicolon, and verse 24 begins with a conjunction "and" again. So, "and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." So, what he's telling us is this: these things must absolutely go together. We must, number one, put off the old man. Number two, be renewed in the spirit of our minds. And number three, put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. So, we're to put off and we're to put on. And in between, we're to have our minds renewed. Now, notice if you would, please. Verse 22 tells you "put off concerning the former conversation, the old man." Verse 24 tells you "that ye put on the new man." Wow. What is the new man? The new man is the man that we are in Jesus Christ. He's the man that's created in righteousness and true holiness. So.
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The way this works is very simple. When we put off the old man, that is the old habits, the old conduct, our minds are renewed. We understand scriptural truth. We understand obedience and submission and godliness and holiness and sanctification. We understand that we have been set apart and that we're to live differently. And when we do not walk and talk and think the way the ungodly do, rather, we learn now to think scripturally and biblically and walk as Jesus Christ walked in righteousness and true holiness. We understand that righteousness and true holiness are only found in Christ and in His Word. And thus we seek to bring the totality of our life in conformity to His Word.
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I want you to hold Ephesians 4. I want you to turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 10. 2 Corinthians chapter 10. And I want you to look at verses 3 through 5. 2 Corinthians chapter 10, beginning with verse 3. Because we're talking about having our minds renewed. Notice 2 Corinthians 10 and verse 3, the apostle says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh." In other words, we're not fighting to have our lusts satisfied. We're not fighting to commit adultery or steal or kill or—no, no, no. We're not walking after the flesh. We're not warring. We're not warring after the flesh. He says, "For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh."
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Then he goes on to say this, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." Now, I want you to note, he says, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." You know what your stronghold is? It's your place of defense. It's your place of defense. What is man's stronghold? Watch, if you would, in verse 5, after he talks about "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds." Watch.
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"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." So here's my question. As a new man in Jesus Christ, how many thoughts are we allowed that are unbiblical, ungodly, unrighteous, and unholy? None. Because we're to bring every thought to the obedience of Jesus Christ, every thought. Isn't that interesting? Isn't that amazing?
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So he tells us that we must put off, we must be renewed, and we must put on. So how do you do that? Well, it's very simple. So when this old habit, this old thought pattern comes up in your mind, you have to say, "Lord, I refuse that. I reject that. I will not have that. Lord, I want to be renewed in the spirit of my mind. I ask Jesus Christ to renew my mind. And Lord, by Your grace, I want the mind of Christ. I want to be armed with the mind of Christ. And Lord, here is what You say that I should do in the place of that. And I'm going to put my mind upon that." I've said this before. But let me point it out again, if I were to hold up this and ask you what is this, you're going to tell me it's a pen. If I were to ask you what color, you're going to say black and white. Now, if I were to take my Bible and hold it up and ask you what is this, you say it's the Bible.
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If I ask you what color is the cover, you say it's black. Isn't it interesting that while you were thinking about the pen, you were not thinking about the Bible. And while you were thinking about the Bible, you were not thinking about the pen. No matter how hard you try, you can't think of but one thing at a time. So if I put off that wicked, wrong thought, and I ask to be renewed, and I start thinking things that are biblical and scriptural, where is my mind? It's now on the new man, not on the old man.
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That's exactly what he's saying. Now, I want you to understand something. Listen carefully. These three things go together: we put off, we are renewed, and we put on. It does no good to try to put off an old habit or any old unbiblical conduct unless you're going to put on a new habit and a new biblical conduct in its place. If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself according to your own dictates and your own thoughts, you are doomed for failure. Let me show you. I want you to hold Ephesians chapter 4, but turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 12.
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Look at what our Lord says concerning self-reformation. Matthew chapter 12. If you do not replace an old, unbiblical habit with a new, godly habit, inevitably the old habit will return and it will return with a vengeance. Your last state will be worse than your first state. So here it is, Matthew 12, beginning there with verse 43. Look at what our Lord said. Our Lord says, "When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished."
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"Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation." So self-reformation does not work. It cannot work. So he's telling us concisely how we're to learn Christ: we're to put off, we're to be renewed, and we're to put on.
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Now, I want you to go back to Ephesians chapter 4. In this passage, in Ephesians chapter 4, Paul mentions a number of items that must be dealt with, particularly in our lives. He tells us what to put off and he tells us what to put on in its place. Let me just point out the list in Ephesians chapter 4 is certainly not extensive. But it is illustrative; it illustrates the principle. Paul could not cover every sin, every habit, every sinful thought pattern. So we could not even carry our Bibles. But He does give us principles in order that we may apply them and work them out in our own lives.
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So, here it is in a nutshell in verses 21, 22, 23, 24. He said, if you're going to learn Christ, you've got to put off the old man, be renewed in your spirit, and you put on the new man.
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Now, how do we do that? So Paul says, I'm going to give you some illustrations. So look, if you would please, in verse 25. "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another." So clearly, lying then is a sin that must be put off. If our minds are renewed in Christ Jesus, then we learn to speak the truth. The truth is the truth. Now, if you'll look in Ephesians 4 and verse 15, just look at that verse. "But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ."
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Now, let me tell you something. I can speak the truth and I can speak it in a hateful manner and irritate people and drive them away. Or I can speak the truth and still speak it lovingly, kindly, civilly, and it may or may not be accepted. But he says "speaking the truth in love." I understand that truth hurts. And I understand that truth may be offensive. However, truth is still truth and it must be spoken, especially to each other. You will never know how many people have come to me in times past and wanted help
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and sit in front of me and lie like a dog. You cannot help someone unless they tell the truth. And unless they face the truth. Nor can you help anyone unless they're willing to hear the truth and act upon the truth. The apostle is saying in verse 25, we are one body. And we are members one of the other, and we actually owe the truth to each other. It may hurt. We may not like it. But we still must tell the truth. OK, so he says, here's what you put off: you put away lying, and you put on in its place speaking the truth, every man with his neighbour.
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Well, that would be everybody. Then he says, well, we're members one of another, but he's particularly talking about the saints of God in that particular area. So we're to put off lying, we're to put on speaking the truth. Well, like I say, we don't have to speak it in a hateful manner or in an ugly manner, but we still must speak it. Look at verses 26 and 27.
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"Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil."
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Now, interestingly, verse 26 tells us that we're to put off an unrighteous anger and we're to put on a righteous anger. No, he says, "Be ye angry, and sin not." That is a positive. There is a way to be angry and not to sin, but on the other hand, you must put off an anger that is sinful and wicked. He says, "Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath."
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Well, let me ask you a question. How can you tell the difference between a righteous anger and a sinful anger? Well, it's very simple. A sinful anger will always manifest itself in one of two ways. The first way and the way that most people understand anger is it is volcanic. That is when you get so angry, you get so mad, you just cuss everybody out and tell everybody off and you rant and rave and you scream and you're upset and everybody knows it's an explosion and you don't care who hears it. That's sinful anger. But there's another anger that is sinful. And that is internalized anger. That's when Ed does me wrong and I don't explode and cuss him out. I just kind of smile and say, "You just wait, buddy."
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"I'm going to nail you. I'll get you sometime when you're not expecting it." And so what I do, I just internalize that anger and let it eat my guts out. That's sinful anger. Have you ever noticed that anger is an emotion? And anger is not necessarily sinful in and of itself. If you want to say that all anger is sinful, then you've got a problem, because in Mark chapter 3, the Bible says our Lord "looked round about upon them with anger." He was angry. He was angry. You see, anger is not meant to blow up and cuss everybody out. If you use the emotion correctly, nor is it meant to internalize and eat as a canker your insides out. Anger is an emotion to deal with the sin and to deal with the problem and get it resolved. The problem is, most of us get angry with each other. We don't get angry with the sin. Now, I want you to watch this. Look what he says. "Neither," he says, "be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath."
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What does that mean? I don't care if you've got a righteous anger or an unrighteous anger. God says, work it out before the sun goes down. You're not to go to bed with your wife mad, angry, upset, and you're not to go to bed with your husband mad, angry, upset. Work it out before the sun goes down. If you have a righteous anger and it's dealing with sin, work it out before the sun goes down. That's what he's saying. Put off an unrighteous anger, put on a righteous anger that works the problems out. Note, if you would, what he says next in verse 27.
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"Neither give place to the devil." What does that mean? That means when you do not work out your anger before the sun goes down, you're giving him place. You're giving him ground. If you don't want the devil in your life, don't give him ground. Don't invite him into your house. Don't invite him into your life. I've got news for you. If you give him ground, he will take it. If you invite him in, he will come in. So he says, you put off an unrighteous anger, you put on a righteous anger, and then you deal with that problem before the sun goes down, because if you don't, you're going to end up giving place to the devil. Now, watch verse 28. Here's another put off, put on. Verse 28, "Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth." Now, God says we're to put off theft and every aspect of it—that would be fraud, deceit, dishonesty, anything like that has to be put off.
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Our renewed minds then will replace that old habit or that old way of life with an honest labor and a cheerful, generous, sacrificial heart. What does he say? "Let him that stole steal no more." Put off stealing. Put off dishonesty. What are you to put on? You're to put on work. "The thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth." In other words, you put on not a covetous spirit, but a generous spirit, a gracious, sacrificial spirit. Oh.
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Wow, look at verse 29, I'm trying to hurry, look in verse 29. "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." So, he says, you put off corrupt communication, and you put on that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. All corrupt communication is to be put off. Corrupt communication is that which is bad, rotten, putrid, corrupted, and not fit for use.
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It is language that is worthless and of poor quality. Let me say it another way. It's a waste of time and breath. Everybody understands there's a lot of things that's not worth saying and should never be said. But what do we put on in its place? We put on quality communication. We put on that which is holy and godly. Such communication builds up. It does not tear down.
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Gossip, innuendo, slander, false accusation, libel, and malicious implications are all forbidden in verse 29. And that which is commended that they're put on is that which edifies, that which builds up and promotes and strengthens and encourages. In other words, Paul is saying that we must put on language and communication that promotes one another's growth in Christian wisdom, piety, holiness, and happiness.
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Now, look at verse 30, I'm not going to comment on it right now. He said, "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." I will comment on that in just a moment, but let's look at verses 31 and 32. Verse 31 is a total put-off verse. He said, "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice." There should not be a root of bitterness in you. No wrath, no anger, no clamour. You know what clamour is? Clamour is useless noise. That's when somebody says, "Well, I don't have the solution to this problem, but bless God, I'm going to put my two cents' worth in." That's clamour. It's useless noise. You don't have an answer. You just want to spout off. He said all that's to be put off. Well, what is to be put on in the place of bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and evil speaking and malice? Well, look in verse 32.
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It's a complete put-on verse. "And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you." So he says that we are to put on kindness. We're to put on being tenderhearted. We're to put on being forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Wow. How many of you have ever heard Christians say, "Well, I'll forgive, but I'm not forgetting"? I've heard it. If you don't forget, then you've never really forgiven. Because when God for Christ's sake forgave our sins, He forgot them.
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That is, He does not use them against us. He does not manipulate us with them. He does not hold them against us. You see, when someone sins against you, you may not have the power to obliterate it from your mind, but you do have the power never to speak of it again. And if it comes into your mind, you can put it out of your mind. So he says, we're to put on forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven us.
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So I can't say, "Well, Ed, I remember what you did two years ago." No, if I forgave him, I forgot. I'm not going to manipulate him or try to use it against him.
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Now, I skipped verse 30. I want to go back to verse 30. Look at it. "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." So here's my question. In the context, how do you grieve the Holy Spirit of God? In the context, you grieve the Holy Spirit by refusing to put off the old man. By refusing to be renewed in your mind. And by refusing to put on the new man. The Holy Spirit who indwells us, who inhabits us, who is our seal unto the day of redemption, is grieved when we follow the old man. He's grieved when we do not have a renewed mind. He's grieved when we do not put on the new man.
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Paul said you must learn Christ. How do you learn Christ? By learning to put off the old man, be renewed in your mind, and put on the new man.
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Now, let me make just a couple of quick applications. The first one is this. Everybody knows the answer. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. How do you build a house? One step at a time. You may not be able to change everything in your life, but you can start by changing one thing and then going from there. The journey of a thousand miles is begun with one step. And you can change your life by taking a step a day if you have to.
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Your goal should be to become something entirely different from that which you are by nature. Your goal should be to become the child of God that your obedience and the grace of God can make you for your good and His glory. And the only way that you can accomplish that goal is to put off, be renewed, and put on. That is how you learn Jesus Christ. Father, in Thy name, we ask for Your grace and Your mercy.
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We pray that You would help us, that You would teach us, that You build us up in the most holy faith. Help us to change our lives, Lord. Help us to put off the old man, be renewed in the spirit of our mind, and put on the new man in Christ Jesus. And I bless it. And we ask and pray. Amen.
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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T22:33:17Z

Walking With God - 8

John Weaver | Freedom Ministries

John Weaver continues the series 'Walking with the Lord' with part two of 'Learning Christ,' expounding Ephesians 4:17-32. He explains that learning Christ involves a simple but painful process: putting off the old man (the corrupt, deceitful nature), being renewed in the spirit of the mind, and putting on the new man created in righteousness and true holiness. Using the analogy of changing clothes, he illustrates that we must replace old sinful habits with new godly ones. Paul gives specific examples: put off lying and speak truth; put off unrighteous anger and resolve issues before sundown; put off stealing and work honestly to give; put off corrupt speech and edify others; put off bitterness, wrath, and malice, and put on kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness. Grieving the Holy Spirit occurs when we refuse this process. The sermon emphasizes practical, step-by-step transformation through obedience to Christ.

Introduction and Reading of Ephesians 4:17-32

Weaver opens with the reading of Ephesians 4:17-32, setting the stage for the message on learning Christ.

Scripture Reading — Ephesians 4:17-32

"Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But ye have not so learned Christ; if so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: that ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another."

The Necessity of Learning Christ

Weaver emphasizes that believers must learn Christ, which involves not loving the world and mortifying the flesh, as taught in 1 John 2:15-17 and Galatians 6:14.

Now, the Apostle Paul in Galatians 6 and verse 14 says this,

Scripture Reading — Galatians 6:14

"But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,"

listen now,

Scripture Reading — Galatians 6:14

"by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world."

Scripture Reading — Colossians 3:5

"Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry."

Now, isn't it interesting that he says "mortify therefore your members"? That is the extension of your life, the extension of your body. And he names these specific things that we are to make dead.

The Colon in Verse 21 and the Connected Sentence

Weaver highlights the colon after 'Jesus' in verse 21, indicating that the most important instruction follows, and notes that verses 17-24 form one sentence.

The Simple Analogy of Putting Off and Putting On

Using the everyday practice of changing clothes, Weaver illustrates the spiritual principle of putting off the old man and putting on the new man.

The Threefold Process: Put Off, Be Renewed, Put On

Weaver explains that learning Christ requires putting off the old man (verse 22), being renewed in the spirit of the mind (verse 23), and putting on the new man (verse 24).

Scripture Reading — Romans 6:6, 11-14

"Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin."

Scripture Reading — Colossians 3:9

"Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds."

The Deceitfulness of Sin and the Old Man

Weaver describes the old man as corrupt and full of deceitful lusts, warning that sin deceives and hardens, referencing Hebrews 3:13 and James 1:13-15.

Sin promises all of these. That's why the Scripture is talking about deceitful lusts. Now listen, let me quote this for you. In James 1, verses 13 through 15,

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: but every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death."

What did the Bible say?

Scripture Reading — James 1:13-15

"But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed."

Scripture Reading — Hebrews 3:12-13

"Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin."

Renewal of the Mind and Capturing Thoughts

Weaver stresses the need for mind renewal, citing Romans 12:1-2 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, and explains that we must replace wrong thoughts with biblical ones.

Scripture Reading — Matthew 12:43-45

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished."

The Danger of Self-Reformation (Matthew 12:43-45)

Weaver warns that self-reformation without replacement leads to worse bondage, using Jesus' teaching on the unclean spirit returning to an empty house.

Scripture Reading — Matthew 12:43-45

"When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished."

Specific Put Off/Put On Examples (Verses 25-32)

Scripture Reading — Mark 3:5

"I'm going to nail you. I'll get you sometime when you're not expecting it." And so what I do, I just internalize that anger and let it eat my guts out. That's sinful anger. Have you ever noticed that anger is an emotion? And anger is not necessarily sinful in and of itself. If you want to say that all anger is sinful, then you've got a problem, because in Mark chapter 3, the Bible says our Lord "looked round about upon them with anger." He was angry. He was angry. You see, anger is not meant to blow up and cuss everybody out. If you use the emotion correctly, nor is it meant to internalize and eat as a canker your insides out. Anger is an emotion to deal with the sin and to deal with the problem and get it resolved. The problem is, most of us get angry with each other. We don't get angry with the sin. Now, I want you to watch this. Look what he says. "Neither," he says, "be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath."

So I can't say, "Well, Ed, I remember what you did two years ago." No, if I forgave him, I forgot. I'm not going to manipulate him or try to use it against him.

Grieving the Holy Spirit and Conclusion

Weaver explains that grieving the Holy Spirit (verse 30) happens when we refuse to put off the old man, be renewed, and put on the new man. He concludes with practical steps for gradual change.

Walking With God - 8

John Weaver | SermonAudio

Lecture Metadata	Details
Speaker	John Weaver
Source	SermonAudio
Media ID	522161823540
Subject	New Testament Studies
Course	Romans: Law, Obedience, and Sanctification: Walking With God
Genre	Sermon
Date	2016-03-27
Dictation Name
Book	Book 146: Walking With God — Chapter 8
Source Timed Segments	84

Lecture Guide

Outline

Introduction and Reading of Ephesians 4:17-32: Weaver opens with the reading of Ephesians 4:17-32, setting the stage for the message on learning Christ.
The Necessity of Learning Christ: Weaver emphasizes that believers must learn Christ, which involves not loving the world and mortifying the flesh, as taught in 1 John 2:15-17 and Galatians 6:14.
The Colon in Verse 21 and the Connected Sentence: Weaver highlights the colon after 'Jesus' in verse 21, indicating that the most important instruction follows, and notes that verses 17-24 form one sentence.
The Simple Analogy of Putting Off and Putting On: Using the everyday practice of changing clothes, Weaver illustrates the spiritual principle of putting off the old man and putting on the new man.
The Threefold Process: Put Off, Be Renewed, Put On: Weaver explains that learning Christ requires putting off the old man (verse 22), being renewed in the spirit of the mind (verse 23), and putting on the new man (verse 24).
The Deceitfulness of Sin and the Old Man: Weaver describes the old man as corrupt and full of deceitful lusts, warning that sin deceives and hardens, referencing Hebrews 3:13 and James 1:13-15.
Renewal of the Mind and Capturing Thoughts: Weaver stresses the need for mind renewal, citing Romans 12:1-2 and 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, and explains that we must replace wrong thoughts with biblical ones.
The Danger of Self-Reformation (Matthew 12:43-45): Weaver warns that self-reformation without replacement leads to worse bondage, using Jesus' teaching on the unclean spirit returning to an empty house.
Specific Put Off/Put On Examples (Verses 25-32): Weaver walks through the practical commands: put off lying and speak truth; put off unrighteous anger and resolve it; put off stealing and work to give; put off corrupt speech and edify; put off bitterness and malice, and put on kindness and forgiveness.
Grieving the Holy Spirit and Conclusion: Weaver explains that grieving the Holy Spirit (verse 30) happens when we refuse to put off the old man, be renewed, and put on the new man. He concludes with practical steps for gradual change.

Major Themes

Key Arguments

The colon in Ephesians 4:21 signals that the most important instruction follows.

Weaver argues that the colon after 'Jesus' in verse 21 emphasizes the crucial three-step process of learning Christ in verses 22-24.

Weaver says, 'When you see a colon, usually what that colon means is, "Hold on. Wait a minute. I know what I have just said, but the most important thing is about to follow."'

The old man was crucified with Christ, so believers are not under sin's dominion.

Because the old man was crucified with Christ (Romans 6:6), believers can reckon themselves dead to sin and alive to God, breaking sin's reign.

Weaver reads Romans 6:6 and 6:11-14, stating, 'our old man has been crucified in Jesus Christ, it is not to dominate us.'

Anger can be righteous or sinful; sinful anger is either explosive or internalized.

Weaver distinguishes righteous anger, which deals with sin, from sinful anger, which manifests as volcanic outbursts or internalized resentment.

Weaver says, 'A sinful anger will always manifest itself in one of two ways... volcanic... or internalized anger.'

Forgiveness requires forgetting in the sense of not holding sins against others.

True forgiveness, modeled after God's forgiveness in Christ, means not using past sins to manipulate or condemn others.

Weaver states, 'If you don't forget, then you've never really forgiven. Because when God for Christ's sake forgave our sins, He forgot them.'

Scripture References

Ephesians 4:17-32: The primary passage read and expounded throughout the sermon, focusing on the put off/put on process.
1 John 2:15-17: Cited to show that believers are not to love the world, defined as the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life.
Galatians 6:14: Quoted to illustrate Paul's declaration that the world is crucified to him and he to the world.
Romans 8:13: Used to support the command to mortify the deeds of the body through the Spirit.
Colossians 3:5: Quoted to list specific sins that must be mortified, such as fornication and covetousness.
Galatians 5:16-17: Referenced to explain the conflict between the flesh and the Spirit, making it impossible to do what we naturally want.
Romans 6:6, 11-14: Read to show that the old man was crucified with Christ and that believers should reckon themselves dead to sin and not let sin reign.
Colossians 3:9: Cited to reinforce the command to put off the old man with his deeds.
Jeremiah 17:9: Quoted to emphasize the deceitfulness and wickedness of the human heart.
James 1:13-15: Quoted to explain how lust entices, conceives, and brings forth sin and death.
Hebrews 3:12-13: Read to warn believers about the deceitfulness of sin that can harden hearts.
Romans 12:1-2: Quoted to command transformation through the renewing of the mind.
Philippians 2:5: Cited to exhort believers to have the mind of Christ.
1 Peter 4:1-2: Quoted to encourage arming oneself with the mind of Christ to cease from sin.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5: Read to illustrate the spiritual warfare of casting down imaginations and bringing every thought captive to Christ.
Matthew 12:43-45: Quoted to warn against self-reformation without replacement, showing that the last state becomes worse.
Ephesians 4:15: Referenced to emphasize speaking the truth in love as part of growing up in Christ.
Mark 3:5: Mentioned to show that Jesus experienced anger, indicating that anger itself is not sinful.

Historical References

John Gill's commentary on 'the old man': Weaver quotes John Gill's description of the old man as the corruption of nature, derived from the old serpent and opposed to the new man.

Important Quotes

Learning Christ is really simple. It is practical and easy to apply. The problem is not the complexity in learning Jesus Christ. The problem is not the difficulty in applying the truth. The problem is, this is extremely painful to our flesh.

Summarizes the central tension of the sermon: the process is simple but painful because it goes against our sinful nature.

You can't put something on until you put something off. That which is true in the physical realm is equally true in the spiritual realm.

Uses the clothing analogy to make the put off/put on principle memorable and applicable.

Sin always promises happiness and excitement and gratification and pleasure. But it always produces death.

Captures the deceitful nature of sin, a key theme in understanding why the old man must be put off.

If you are just merely interested in putting off and reforming yourself according to your own dictates and your own thoughts, you are doomed for failure.

Warns against self-reformation without the biblical replacement, leading into the Matthew 12 illustration.

In the context, you grieve the Holy Spirit by refusing to put off the old man. By refusing to be renewed in your mind. And by refusing to put on the new man.

Directly connects the command not to grieve the Spirit with the threefold process of learning Christ.

Discussion Questions

[Question]

What does it mean practically to 'put off the old man' in daily life, and why is it described as painful?

[Context]

Weaver emphasizes that the process is simple but painful to the flesh, and that the old man is corrupt and deceitful.

[Question]

How does the analogy of changing clothes help you understand the necessity of both putting off and putting on in the Christian life?

[Context]

Weaver uses the everyday example of changing clothes to illustrate the spiritual principle.

[Question]

In what ways can we actively participate in the renewal of our minds, and what role does the Holy Spirit play?

[Context]

Weaver explains that renewal is a command but accomplished by Christ, and references Romans 12:1-2.

[Question]

Why is self-reformation without replacement dangerous, according to Matthew 12:43-45?

[Context]

Weaver warns that merely putting off sin without putting on righteousness leads to a worse state.

[Question]

How can we distinguish between righteous and sinful anger, and what does it mean to not let the sun go down on our wrath?

[Context]

Weaver discusses the two types of sinful anger and the command to resolve anger quickly.

[Question]

What does it look like to forgive as God forgave us, and why is forgetting (not holding against) essential?

[Context]

Weaver explains that true forgiveness means not using past sins against someone.

Applications

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | weaver_study | 2026-06-06T14:01:48Z