Scripture
Living in the Light
1Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. 2Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us[1] and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
3Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you. Such sins have no place among God’s people. 4Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God. 5You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world.
6Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him. 7Don’t participate in the things these people do. 8For once you were full of darkness, but now you have light from the Lord. So live as people of light! 9For this light within you produces only what is good and right and true.
10Carefully determine what pleases the Lord. 11Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. 12It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. 13But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, 14for the light makes everything visible. This is why it is said,
“Awake, O sleeper,
rise up from the dead,
and Christ will give you light.”
Translation notes (1)
- 5:2 Some manuscripts read loved you.
Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God.
Have you ever played the game Jenga before? Jenga is a game where players take turns removing blocks from a tower made of over 50 blocks. Each player takes a turn, carefully and meticulously removing one block at a time. The player who removes a block that causes the tower to collapse loses the game. Because of this, each player moves the blocks slowly and deliberately, understanding the importance of not making the tower fall. The game is simple, but it proves a strong point. There are many things that must be done carefully and taken seriously. One of these things is our words, which are much more powerful and significant than a block tower. Our words may seem insignificant, but make no mistake, they matter. When we understand this, we must take them seriously and carefully, knowing the impact they can have.
In Ephesians 5, the apostle Paul encourages Christ-followers to carefully consider their words. “Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes—these are not for you. Instead, let there be thankfulness to God,” he writes (verse 4). With this instruction, Paul is warning readers to be careful with their words. He advises readers not to speak foolishly or inappropriately, choosing instead to be careful with their words. This type of careless speaking is not for us. Foolish speaking does not point people to Christ, which is what every one of His followers is to do with their words.
How are Christ-followers to speak instead? They are to speak gently by carefully considering each one of the words that they say, by refusing foolish and inappropriate rhetoric. Even more, they are to speak words of gratitude, particularly words of thanksgiving to God. When gentleness leads us to make gratitude the rhetoric of our lives, we are far less likely to let anger take hold of us.
It is time that you and I take the importance of our words seriously. We have to carefully think about the impact of our words. This is what gentleness does. When we live with gentleness in mind, we consider the impact that our words can have, and we speak with gentleness. We are gracious and thankful, and as a result, God is honored and uses these words to have a great impact.
Moving Toward Action
Think about the words you used this last week. Did you cuss? Did you tell a dirty joke? Did you miss the chance to encourage someone and instead cut them down? It may be time to take an inventory of your words. Make a commitment this week to carefully consider your words before you actually say them. Before you speak, commit to pausing and asking yourself how to speak with gentleness. Let this practice become a habit as you commit to living and speaking with gentleness.
Going Deeper
Read Ephesians 5:1-14 (NLT)
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