Ephesians

The Key To Practical Christianity

Genuine Christianity is always demonstrated by a concern for the well-being of others, and for the influence we have on others. The apostle James deals pointedly with this issue in his epistle:

We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check. When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be (James 3:2-10).

James‘ conclusion is the same as Paul’s in Ephesians: Those who belong to Christ, who have put on the new self, must not allow the old self to rule their speech. Out of the same mouth should not come praise to God and curses against other people. Either the old self rules or the new. Either the old nature is in control or the Spirit. If the Spirit controls our speech, then the evidence of the Spirit is not merely the absence of cursing but the presence of God’s words of peace, blessing, and edification.

As members of the body of Christ, we are not just people who put off the old, we are people who put on the new. Being a Christian means more than merely doing no harm. We are called to be a positive force for good in the lives of one another, and in the world.

I once heard a fable that dramatically expresses this truth. It is the story of a man who was given the opportunity to visit both hell and heaven. He was transported by God to hell, a terrible place filled with incredible suffering. There, the man saw thousands of people who were starving, thirsting, wretched, and miserable. Most of all, he was struck by the fact that everyone in hell had stiff arms that would not bend at the elbows. As a result, they could not minister to their own needs. The people of hell could not feed themselves. They could not dress themselves. They could not clean themselves. They could not do anything for themselves. It was the most distressing sight this man had ever seen, and it broke his heart that he was unable to do anything to help the lost men and women who were doomed to such an existence. He couldn’t wait to get away from hell.

When the man had seen enough, God transported him out of hell and into heaven. Once in heaven, the man was shocked to see that, like the people in hell, the people in heaven had stiff arms that would not bend at the elbows. They could not minister to their own needs, nor could they feed or clean themselves. The people of heaven were just as helpless as the people of hell—yet they seemed well-fed, well-dressed, clean, and completely happy. Heaven seemed to be—exactly as it ought to be—a place of utter joy and bliss.

“How can this be?” the man wondered. “These people have stiff, unbending arms just like the people of hell—yet they are happy and healthy!”

Then the man noticed the Tree of Life, loaded with luscious fruit. There were people gathered around the Tree. With their stiff, unbending arms, they were picking the fruit, even though they were powerless to bring the fruit to their own lips and feed themselves. Seeing those people with the fruit in their hands, the man finally understood the difference between the people of heaven and the people of hell. The people of heaven were feeding each other!

That is the great difference between the old self and the new self. The old self is egocentric, selfish, wretched, and miserable. It is rightfully condemned and nailed to the cross. It is powerless to transcend its own limitations.

The new self, which is Christ living in us, is focused on serving others and obeying God. That is the key to the new life, the heavenly life. That is the key to living out the joyful demands of practical Christianity.

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