Today we want to look at the last two verses of Ephesians 4. Ephesians 4:31-32 says, “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” Paul here wraps up his contrast of the old way of life versus the new life we have in Christ. So let’s look at it in a little more detail.
As we begin in verse 31 we first encounter the word bitterness. Here to be bitter means to have resentment for someone or to be unwilling to forgive. Next is wrath which is a burst of rage or what we call in small children temper tantrums. Then comes anger which is similar to wrath but in this instance refers to having animosity or hostility towards someone. Next we see clamor which is loud outcries of anger, bickering, or shouting down your opponent. Evil speaking in the verse refers to insulting someone or abusing them with your speech. Paul says these things should be put away as should our malice, or our wishing evil on someone. How many times have we ever fallen into one of these traps? These are all signs of our sin nature. Earlier in the week we said that this passage was about two things. First we are to put away some things. But secondly we are to fill the space with what we have put away with other things. So many times we simply focus on asking God to remove the sin in our life, but then we never ask God to fill it with Him and His character. The end result of this is that God removes one bad habit and we pick another one up. 2 Timothy 3:16 says that “All Scripture is given by the inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine (what we should believe), for reproof (telling us what we do wrong), for correction (telling us what to replace it with), for instruction in righteousness.” In this instance Paul says that we should replace the sinful nature stuff with kindness towards others. This kindness is not just towards those who are kind to us, but also to those who are mean to us (cf. Mt. 5:44). We should also be tenderhearted which means that we are compassionate towards people and willing to bear their burden rather than wishing God would give them what they deserve. Paul’s last replacement strategy is that we give them forgiveness which is our being willing to overlook how someone has hurt us and to harbor no desire to retaliate against them. Paul closes the chapter by telling us why we should be so ready to forgive and it is, “even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.” This falls in line with Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:14-15. The meaning of Matthew 6:14-15 is that if we have truly experienced God’s forgiveness for our sins, then we will forgive others readily. But if we are unable to forgive others for what they have done to us, that shows that we have not received God’s forgiveness for our sins. Simply put, those who have experience the amazing, matchless grace of Jesus Christ cannot help but to extend the same grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness to others that has been extended to them.
So as we close out this mini-series on Ephesians 4, I hope you will take time to ask yourself, who is in control of my life right now? According to 2 Corinthians 5:17, when Jesus saved us and became Lord to us, He threw out the old way of life and He gave us a new heart with new desires. Is it evident to those around you that you have received a heart transplant?
By His grace and through His strength, may we live for Him!