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Ephesians Chapter Five
(Caleb Huang)
Detailed Verse by Verse
Commentary
Eph. 5:1 “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.”
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“Imitators” –.one who imitates, or study to become like a certain
person
Explanation on the Meaning of Words and Phrases
“Therefore”
connects this verse with the previous chapter four. Thus, the following
exhortations are based on the reasons narrated in chapter four.
“Be imitators of God”: This is based on
the new life we have already received: “which
was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph
“As dear children”: To be imitators of God is not something of our
own doing or our effort, but it is of God’s own doing; we just need to put off
the old man, put on the New Man and live by the New Man; God’s Spirit will then
live out the life of God through us as dear children of God.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
Those who have received the Lord Jesus are the
children of God, but not all are necessarily the dear children of God. The dear children of God must meet the
condition of those who are truly God’s dear children… that is, our conduct must
express God in all that we do.
2)
Christians ought to be like God, just as our human
biological children ought to be bear the characteristics of their father.
Eph. 5:2 “And walk in love, as Christ also has loved
us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a
sweet-smelling aroma.”
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“Given Himself for us” – to hand oneself
over to another and let another person control you.
“An offering” – things that are brought
to; “a sacrifice” – things that are
killed.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words and Phrases:
“And walk in love”: To be imitators of
God, we need to walk in love, because God is love. As we walk in love, we are
living in accordance with the model of Christ. “Walk” is in the present tense, meaning that it has to become our
habitual conduct.
“And given Himself for us”: There is a
principle to our walking in love, that is, to give our life for others or to
deny our self. The Lord Jesus incarnated as a man was for the sake of giving
His life for us. God loves us by freely giving us His only begotten Son to us;
thus, God’s love has been manifested through Christ.
“An offering and a sacrifice”:
“Sacrifice” emphasizes sacrifice, meaning His having being killed and shed His
blood for us. This points to the Lord’s death on the cross in redeeming us from
our sins. While “offering” does not emphasize the sacrifice and the shedding of
the blood aspect of Christ Jesus’ death; rather it is like the Old Testament’s
first fruits type of offering, referring to the entire life of the Lord Jesus –
the aspect of His communication. What the Lord has done on our behalf is not
just His death on the cross, but His entire life on this earth was also for us.
“To God for a sweet-smelling aroma”: What
the Lord Jesus had done for us before God:
On the one hand, it is to redeem us from our sins; on the other hand, it
is to restore our fellowship with God. He gave Himself both as an offering and
a sacrifice – this became a fragrant aroma for God to enjoy. Therefore, to walk
in love is 1) to sacrifice/deny our self, 2) to give our life or to live for
others, and 3) to offer the fruits of our labor to God for Him to enjoy.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
To be the dear children of God (v.1), we must walk
in love. To only be a recipient of love and not be a giver of love is not
living a normal Christian life.
2)
To be imitators of Christ is to be imitators of God
(v.1), because all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily (Col.
2:9).
3)
The more we hear of what Christ has done for us,
the more we will seek to be one with Him.
4)
One of the first things that we see in Christ is
His self-denying love.
5)
The greatest principle in the daily living of a
Christian is love. This love is not the natural soulish emotional kind of love,
but the love that issues from the cross of Christ.
6)
Only the love that originates from Christ – a love
that has gone through the purification/refinement of the cross, can really be
of benefit to people; and this love alone can be a fragrant aroma to God
acceptable to God and satisfy Him.
7)
The genuine love of Christ is willing to pay any
price for others and not consider it a sacrifice.
8)
True love is self-denying, prefer the good of
others over our own, not covetous, and devoid of self. A spiritual love is pure in its
motive/intention and giving out to others. The real meaning of love is the
sacrificing of oneself and not mere social custom or courtesy in reciprocation.
9)
How much love we have determines how much we are
willing to deny our self. If there is no love, there is no self denial.
10)
Whenever we come before God, we need to bring along
with us “offerings and sacrifices” to offer to Him. We cannot come empty-handed
when we come to meet God.
Eph. 5:3 “But
fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among
you, as is fitting for saints;”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words and Phrases
“Fornication”: to visit a brothel – used
to make a general reference to any improper sexual relationship.
“Uncleanness”: refers to whatever will
pollute a person’s ear, thoughts, emotions, beliefs and other such matters,
including evil and unclean desires.
“Covetousness”: This does not only refer
to the insatiable greed for material things, but here it refers also to the
self indulgence in sexual desires… irrespective of the harm done to others, but
seeking only satisfy one’s own lust.
“Let it not even be named among you”: Not
only must we not do these things, but we should not even mention them.
“As is fitting for saints”: Since we are
imitators of God, we should not do anything that has its source from satan. If
we have these negative things, then we are not living like saints, since we
would be living a life unbefitting the dignity and status of those who have
been called and separated out by God.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
Fornication and covetousness are like twins. One
seeks after happiness, and the other seeks after material gains. Without God,
man seeks after none other than these two main categories of things represented
by fornication and covetousness.
2)
The love of Christ is a holy love; it cannot
condone sinful deeds and it cannot flow together (mingle) with uncleanness. If
you love the brothers and sisters, you will not use words that are not
befitting the dignity of the saints and cause them to be hurt.
3)
A believer’s lifestyle is one that seeks to be
perfected in its holy dignity, which differs from that of the worldly people.
Eph. 5:4 “Neither
filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but
rather giving of thanks.”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words and Phrases
“Filthiness”:
refers to debauchery, obscenity, indecency, disgraceful conversation.
“Foolish talking”: refers to untimely
words, meaningless words, useless conversation, especially preposterous drivel,
unknowledgeable conclusions, casual random conversations, careless spreading of
rumors, etc. .
“Coarse
jesting”: not only refers to vulgar spoken language, but it also refers to
nonsensical idle talks. Here it especially refers to mutual teasing with filthy
topical matters, and totally revealing one’s own foolishness.
“But rather
giving of thanks”: It is not only giving thanks for what we are grateful
of, but also instill in others who heard us to give thanks to God as well. The
original Greek word for “giving thanks”
can also be translated as graceful or
elegance. What Paul is trying to convey here is that all our words and
conversation should be filled with sincere sweetness and gracefulness; use
beneficial speech harmonized with gentle language.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
The conversation of Christians is a most important
matter. Even a single wrong word can cause a saint to lose his dignity (v. 3),
and will cause our spirit to feel down. We should frequently give thanks to the
Lord to glorify Him, and we too will be joyful in our spirit.
2)
If you truly love the brothers, you will not speak
any obscene words or lies that will contaminate our brothers’ thoughts and
ears; thus harming our brothers.
3)
Only those who know the Lord’s sovereignty will
give thanks to the Lord in all things without any hatred. When we encounter a situation
and we cannot give a heartfelt “thank the Lord;” that proves that we still have
not adequately learnt that “Christ is the Lord of all.”
4)
In actuality, we Christians cannot say “thank the
Lord” all the day long; however, we can always speak with a grateful heart to
the Lord.
Eph. 5:5 “For this you know, that no fornicator,
unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in
the
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“Has any …” – cannot gain, has no share,
not included.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words and Phrases
“Fornicator”: refers to those who sleep
with prostitutes, commits adultery, and any immoral act.
“Unclean person”: refers to indecent
people.
“Covetous man”: Regardless of whether one
is discontent with material things or with passionate lusts, this category of
people seeks after their fleshly enjoyment.
“The
“No… has any inheritance”: Our initial
salvation is through faith and is freely given to us who believed – this is
independent of our man’s conduct. However after a believer is saved and he
commits the sin of fornication, uncleanness, covetousness, or any such sins,
and he refuses to repent but continues in these habitual sins, he will become a
fornicator, unclean person, or a covetous man. Not only does he have no share in the reality of the
Some Bible
commentators thought that the
“Covetous man, who is an idolater”:
Any person, thing, or deed that can
snatch away our hearts and replace God’s place in our hearts is an idol. There are several kinds of idolatry:
Covetousness is one of them. Covetousness can cause a believer to lust after
other blessings or benefits in outside of our Christian belief and apart from
the one and only true God,
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
Covetousness is an attitude of discontentment. An
insatiable heart that constantly covets will cause man to do things that are
increasingly apart from God even to such a degree as to sin.
2)
The love of money is spiritual fornication, because
money has robbed/ preoccupied away their hearts from God.
3)
If you love the brothers, you will not allow the
thought of greed to gain ground within you to invade what our brothers have or
to take advantage of our brothers.
Eph. 5:6 “Let
no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of
God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words and Phrases
“Empty words” have a two-sided meaning:
1) Whatever we talk about that is not about God, not centralizing our
conversation on God, or not having the reality of God in our conversation. 2)
Whatever that’s being talked about is without basis, of unknown origin, and
empty fable gossips.
These two
categories of words are deceitful and it can swindle people to depart from the
right way of the Lord.
“Because of these things”: This is
because of the empty words.
“Comes upon”: This is a present tense
verb when God judges the worldly people on the noun that follows. It definitely
indicates that God will surely deal with the people who seek personal gains in
sins.
“The sons of disobedience”: refers mainly
to unbelievers; however it could also refer to believers. Though the believers
have already receive the eternal life of God, they still will have to face God
in a day of judgment when they will have to give an account to Him about their
conduct after they were saved.
Eph. 5:7 “Therefore do not be partakers with them.”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“Therefore” : this shows a continuation
of the above text.
“Do not be partakers with them”: Although
the believers have already been accepted by God in Christ; however, if they
continue to participate in what the improper things that the unbelievers do,
God’s wrath will also come upon them as it does on the unbelievers.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
We are incompatible with the unbelievers, and we
should not be unequally yoke together with them (2 Cor.
2)
To flow together with them and not be stained – how
difficult is this task! If a believer wants to avoid sharing the same end
result/consequences as the children of disobedience, then we have to avoid
associating with them.
Eph. 5:8 “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as
children of light’”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“For you were once darkness”: God is
Light. Darkness is contrary to the light; therefore, darkness is Satan. Before
we were saved, our nature and our natural disposition are both darkness and
filled with darkness. Thus, we were not only in darkness, but we were part of
darkness itself.
“But now you are light in the Lord”: Now that the Lord has entered
into us and He is Light, we have the nature of Light transferred into us;
therefore, we are not just in the Light and shining with light, but we are part
of the light!
“Children of light’”: The children of
light has the life of light, the disposition of light, live the life of light.
To obey God Who is Light is to live out the nature of Light.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
After we are saved, we became the children of
light; therefore, on the one hand we need to abandon the previous behavior of
darkness; on the other hand, we have to definitely live out the life of light.
2)
On the one hand, we need to have the being before we have the conduct/behavior; on the other hand, we
need to have the conduct to affirm
and prove who we are.
3)
Since the essence of our life has been changed from
darkness to light, our conduct too must have a similar change accordingly.
Eph. 5:9 “(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness,
and truth),”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness”: virtuous,
righteous and honesty are the fruits of light; they are manifested by our
walking in the light. Based on our inner nature, it is light; thus our outer
conduct too must express the fruits of light.
“Goodness”: namely without anything bad –
not only referring to the matter of the nature, but also to the attitude
towards people. The emphasis here is on love and tolerance, that is, the spirit
of gladly helping others.
“Righteous”:
that is without unreasonableness, honest and fair, without any room for others
to criticize. The emphasis here is on respecting the authority of God and of
His delegated authorities… giving to each their respective due.
“Truth”: that is without falsehood… not
only in words, but also in our belief. Speaking sincerely from our hearts, and
being honest and frank. God’s manifestation is reality.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
Fruits is something borne spontaneously by the
maturity in life; therefore, we just need to cultivate our life of light or our
life in the light. Then naturally, we will have all the goodness, righteousness
and truth.
2)
If our conduct issues out of the light, it will
surely pass the test of goodness, righteousness and truth. Thus in our daily
conduct, we need to ask ourselves: whether the nature of this things good or
not? Is the procedure legitimate? And whether the goal of this matter for God
or not?
3)
We often say, “our society is in darkness” … that
is because the people in the society borders in relation is lacking in
goodness, righteousness, and truth, which are the fruits of the light.
Eph.
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“Finding out” – examining, experimenting,
reflecting out, selecting.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
The thought
here is that we need to try to discover what pleases the Lord and to walk
accordingly. In principle, the things that pleases the Lord are things that are
good, righteous, and true, because these things are consistent with the Lord’s
character.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
What the believers ought to put their attention on
is not whether matters are great or small, important or not, but whether the
Lord is please or not.
2)
The believers ought to be those who are considerate
of the Lord’s heart’s desire and do things that are well-pleasing to Him.
3)
If we want to know what the Lord is well-pleased
with, then we must observe carefully what His Word and His example. In other
words, we need to know “what the will of
the Lord is.”
Eph.
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“Expose” – to reveal, to expose, to
correct, to point out.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“The unfruitful works of darkness”: Those
who are called by God, endowed with His Holy Spirit’s power to be dispatched
everywhere to pioneer the way for the establishing of churches.
“Shepherds
and teachers”: The original manuscript only has one definite article for
these seemingly two groups of people, but the definite article indicates that
it is one duty/group shared concurrently as both shepherd’s and teacher’s
functions. These two functions complement each other and embodied upon one person
who has this gift. The former (shepherds) emphasizes the spiritual feeding and
the care of the believers; the latter (teachers) emphasizes on the perfecting
the knowing and the practice of the truths.
The apostles
mainly do the work of a “period”; the “prophets” mainly do the “line” work; the
evangelists mainly do the “overall surface” work; and the shepherd-teachers do
the “three dimensional” work.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
Here we clearly see that the spiritual gifts are
not only of one kind.
2)
Here these 4-5 gifts are mainly centered on the
speaking-type of gifts; furthermore, they have a heart to serve the believers
of the Lord in the Church. They must be diligent and faithful in serving in
their speaking gifts before the Lord.
3)
There is no one who immediately after believing the
Lord knows what his gift is in the church. Thus, the church must provide an
opportunity for all the believers to cultivate in order to reveal and develop
their gifts/functions.
Eph.
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“To speak of” – to discuss.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“Those things which are done by them in
secret”: This indicates that those things done by them in darkness/secret
can only be done in the dark, because they dare not let people see what they
are doing. If they are in the light, they cannot do these things.
“For it is shameful”: Why do we need to
accuse and expose these things? Because these things are shameful.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
The normal life of a Christian will reveal and expose the
sins of other people around them; however Christians should not mainly emphasize the discussion of these
sins.
2)
The goal for believers to talk about matters
related to sins is to cause others to have a proper sense of shame.
Eph.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“But all things that are exposed are made
manifest by the light”: To expose the hidden sinful conducts is to shine
the light upon them in order to unveil them. Therefore, to be able to accept
constructive criticism is to receive the shining of Christ.
“For whatever makes manifest is light”:
According to the original Greek text, this phrase can also be translated as: “For whatever has been revealed becomes light.”
Our responsibility as the children of light is not just to expose those who are
in darkness, causing them to be “made manifest,” but we also need to take the
next step to make them a part of the light as well.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
One of the most important things in the Christian
life is to come under the constant shining of the Lord. This is not the physical light that can
be seen my our physical eyes, but an inner shining that gives us a sense of
accusation, revealing to us any deficit or wrongful doing in any particular
matter of our lives. If we have this kind of inner sense, it shows that the Lord
has shone upon us. At this juncture, we should humble ourselves to receive the
shining exposure and repent.
2)
The effectiveness of the shining of the light of
Christ is often shown through the fellowship among the members of the Body of
Christ. Generally speaking, the inner shining of the Holy Spirit is not as
strong or as intense as the outward critical shining through the other members
of the Body. Those who are unwilling to receive the constructive criticism of
others show that they are definitely in the dark, spiritually sunken, and not
brightly shining within.
3)
The children of light (v.8) are not only brightly
shining in themselves, but they can also shine upon others, causing them to
feel condemned and feel/see their sinful deeds.
4)
We need to not only be those who find
fault/criticize others, but also be able to take constructive criticism from
others.
5)
The substance of the Church lies in giving Christ
the complete rightful position He needs to have in the Church; thus, allowing
the life of Christ to govern the Church.
6)
Our very fallen nature likes to be in darkness.
Strangely when we are in the dark, we naturally feel happy. The reason is
because there are a lot of things that cannot be brought to face the light.
Under the light, it will be shameful.
Eph.
‘ Awake, you who sleep,
Arise from the dead,
And Christ will give you light.’”
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“Therefore He says”: What Paul says in
the following is quoted from which portion. There is not clear source of where
it is derived in the Bible; however, the Lord often use the preaching and the
revealing accusation of man to speak to man.
“You who sleep”: referring to men who
harbor an ulterior motive and use preaching to pass on false teachings.
“Arise from the dead”: A person who is in
darkness is not only asleep, but he is also dead spiritually. Thus, the
exposure is not only to bring them back to light, but also to bring them back
to life.
“And Christ will give you light”: This light
is subjective, realistic, and an exposing light. Therefore to receive the
constructive criticism/rebuke is to receive the shining of Christ. This will
then bring you back into the light.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
We must do our utmost to awaken those who are in
a lethargic sleep state and those
who are spiritually dead that we may bring them into the light of Christ.
2)
The light of Christ is a light of life (Jn.
Eph.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“Circumspectly”: carefully guard, be
cautious to watch what’s in front and behind you… like a person going through a
dangerous ground who has to pay close attention in all possible direction.
“Walk”: points to our need to grow in all
aspects of our living that we may attain to the goal. It also points to every
part of our body all directed towards one direction: growing in Christ.
“Not as fools”: The original Greek word
means those who are unwise.
“But as wise”: Those who have gone
through the real school of wisdom taught by the Lord Himself. The Lord is both
our Guide and our professor teaching us His will that we may obtain the real
wisdom.
Enlightenment in the Word
1)
The difference between the wise and the ignorant
lies in whether they apply prudence in the things they do.
2)
The wise do not do things rashly, rather they must
achieve all things in conformance to the strict criteria.
3)
A lot of believers stumble and fall because they
are not careful and discrete. They are not cautious enough in guarding against
the enemy to such extent as to give ground to the devil.
Eph.
Literal Meaning of Each Word or Phrase:
“Redeem” – to purchase/redeem entirely.
“Time” – opportunity.
Explanation on the Meaning of Words or Phrases:
“Redeeming the time” has two meanings: 1)
The original Greek word is to redeem back,
meaning we need to pay the price to redeem back our lost and squandered time
and wisely use each minute and second of our time. 2) “Time” literally means opportunity, meaning each minute of our time
is an opportunity given by God to us. We need to seize every opportunity for us
to live a meaningful life on this earth.