Many times I am drawn to the writings of Paul! Sure some of them can be very difficult to understand and often times can be difficult to apply (what in the world does most of Romans mean); but for the most part he lays it out (there is a reason that the Roman Road is a very common evangelistic method).
Ephesians is one of those books that on the surface is so simple: Why and how you live and love like Jesus. But on the other hand, it can make your head spin with predestination talk and womens roles. Paul has a way of writing (or should I say God has a way of writing) to challenge the wise old believer and encourage the newest convert. Speaking to the left and right; the old and young; both sides of the coin.
In order to do this Paul has a way of using metaphors in Ephesians, in order to explain the two sides of being saved (those who are and those who ain't).
Some of the metaphors:
Before Christ we were dead in our transgressions and sins (2.1); but Christ made us alive by his grace because he loved us (2.4-5). Dead vs. Alive.
Before Christ we were foreigners and aliens; but Christ has now made us citizens in God's people (2.19).
Before Christ we were darkness; but Christ has made us light (5.8).
But perhaps the most intriguing (and hardest for me to understand) is the metaphor in the middle of chapter 4.
Ephesians 4.22-24: "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness."
Old Self (before Christ); and New self!
The juxtaposition of Old vs. New gives me this problem: can you be old and new at the same time? For as a new creation; my old tendencies come up an awful lot. For being new it sure seems like the old!
For the next couple verses (4.25-5.7), Paul give the deeds of each life:
OLD SELF: anger (26,31); stealing (28); unwholesome talk (29); bitterness (31); rage (31); brawling (31); slander (31); malice (31); sexual immorality (3); impurity (3); greed (3); obscenity (4); foolish talk (4); coarse joking (4).
NEW SELF: speak truthfully (25); work hard (28); sharing with those in need (28); build up other (29); kind and compassionate (31); forgiving (31); imitators of God (5.1); live a life of love (5.2); thanksgiving (5.4).
We are a new creation in Christ; a sentiment Paul echos in 2 Corinthians 5.17. The old has gone. If the old has gone, why is it so present? If the new has come, why does the ways of the old self seem to sneak in an cause havoc?
What scares me is how quickly the manners of the old self creep into my daily life. When im tired they show up. When I am stressed out they show up. When I lose my head they arrive. Unknowingly I turn the corner and find them waiting there!
Old vs New: the battle is on! I am a person of habit, however. Old is comfortable. I wear clothes that I got in high school still. I have used the same kind of deodorant since 7th grade. I have bought the same exact hat every six months for the last 3 years of my life. I don't try on jeans because I will only wear one specific kind (cinch white lable) in one specific size. I am a creature of habit! Old is in my wheelhouse! Old is what I like!
But what better time to devote to NEW! New is all the things that God stands for and New is what God makes things! I am ready to be new; how about you?
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