QUALITIES OF A NEW SELF (PART 13)

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 5:18-20

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Today, Sunday, is designated as a formal day of worship, a day when Christians will attend the church of their choice and dedicate time to their Lord.

It’s a day that is to be focused on reverence, on bringing honor and glory to the Maker and Master of all created things and His Son who saved us. It’s also a quality expected from anyone who has believed in Jesus as Savior and, as a result, is required to put on a new self.

Look again at these words from the Apostle Paul as he writes to the Christians in Ephesus and concludes sharing with them the behaviors associated with becoming a new creation in Christ:

Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:18-20

Before coming to Jesus, people worship all kinds of earthly, worldly things.

Some worship other gods. Some worship other people like famous actors or singers. Some worship themselves, an exercise in extreme narcissism and self centeredness.

Drinking to the excess must have been a big issue in the Ephesian culture because we find Paul mention it specifically.

“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery.”

The Apostle’s point was that certain behaviors had to stop once a person placed their belief in Jesus. Worshiping alcohol to the point of drunkenness was no longer acceptable because as a person put in their new self, their worship was to change. You see, Christians are called to party but in a different way. They are to drink in the Holy Spirit and allow Him to lead you to righteousness and holiness, the exact opposites of debauchery.

If you’re a Christian and still getting drunk on wine (or any other alcoholic beverage, for that matter), you are still living in your old self, the self that viewed sin as acceptable.

Conversely, living in your new self in Christ is to lead you to draw near to your Savior every day and bring Him the greatest measure of praise. Paul gives us various ways to do this which include:

1. Speaking to one another with Psalms.

On the Twitter ministry the Lord called me to, The Christian Walk (@ThChristianWalk), I make daily posts that simply say, “Blessed words from the Psalms”. I follow this from verses from that Old Testament book. It’s one way that we can speak the Psalms to one another. We can also use the words from the Psalms to pray for our world and one another. I would encourage you to do so in your daily spiritual devotion.

2. Sing hymns and songs, making music from your heart.

Our worship service this morning was chock full of wonderful songs of praise and worship to our Lord. These songs were composed by people who let the Holy Spirit lead them to write the words and notes that the Lord wanted others to sing and play. There is a conveyance of the Lord’s will for worship passed down from composer to praise vocalists and accompanists to the congregation, and this conveyance threads together the people of God with their Maker and Master as they all make music with their hearts, either vocally or instrumentally.

3. Giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of Jesus.

True worship, worship we should engage in every day, is centered on reverence but it is also focused on thanksgiving. All that we have materially and spiritually, to include the hope that salvation brings, is only because of what God has done for us.

He is the Creator of everything.

He is our Great Provider.

He is the Great Physician.

He is the Mender of every broken heart.

And He is the Author of our salvation, the One who loved us so much that He didn’t wish for us to perish but rather have eternal life with Him and the Son He sent to save all mankind.

Anyone who has truly put on a new self, donning the very identity of Jesus, will naturally come to a place of worship and that worship will lead to bringing honor to the Lord in everything we think, say, or do.

We’ve spent 13 days looking at expected behaviors of a Christian. If you’re falling short in regard to any of those expectations, turn to the Lord, repent of your sins, and worship Him through psalms, songs and hymns while making music with your heart, and adopt a chronic attitude of gratitude toward the only One who can do all things in your life.

Glorify Him fully and uncompromisingly with the way you live your life and you will always be conducting yourself in a way that is pleasing in His sight as you put the qualities of a new self on full display.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to Gods4all@aol.com