Ephesians, Chapter 6
© Copyright 1998 Darroll Evans-all rights
reserved
Ephesians 6:1-3
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
2 Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with
promise;)
3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
In my opinion, Ephesians 6:1-9 belongs to the
pervious chapter as a commentary on human relations.
These verses continue the thought begun in
chapter 5.
"Obey you parents in the Lord" is
an appeal for children to listen to their parents.
Some young people think that their parents do
not understand their situations.
Instead, it's a matter of, "Been there,
done that, and found out it was not worth the effort."
Children should learn from their parents' experiences.
The old adage, "Those who do not learn
from history are doomed to repeat it," is true in all areas of human
relations.
In directing his comments to children, Paul
appeals to the Ten Commandments to support his position.
For someone who supposedly taught that the
Ten were annulled or done away with,
Paul seems to hold the truth of the Ten in
high esteem.
There are those who teach that the Ten
Commandments are for Jews only and do not apply to Gentiles.
By that, they teach that Gentile children are
under no compulsion to obey their parents.
Grace does not nullify our spiritual
responsibility.
If we refuse to obey and honor our earthly
parents, how can we obey our heavenly Father?
We honor Him by honoring them.
This does not indicate that God expects a
blind obedience to out parents, or to any person.
Our obedience must be consistent with God's
Law.
Ephesians 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not
your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the
Lord.
This verse is written to fathers.
They are not to "provoke," or
enrage their children.
Respect and honor are not located on a
one-way street.
As Children are to honor their father and
mother, parents are also to respect their children.
Lack of respect breeds many things, none of
them good for the individual or society.
What does it mean to bring children up in the
nurture and admonition of the Lord?
"Nurture" means to educate or
instruct.
Our children must receive proper instruction
to live productive lives.
We are born as infants.
Then, we are "born again" as
infants in Christ.
No person is "born again" as a
mature Christian.
We are expected to mature as we live the
Christian experience.
The fact is, too many of "us" don't
want to grow up.
Eventually we need to be weaned from the milk
of the word, and started on the meat of the word.
"Admonition" is calling attention
to something.
We are to call attention to the blessings we
receive when living in obedience to Christ. As parents, we are to raise our
children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
Ephesians 6:5-8
5 Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the
flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ;
6 Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing
the will of God from the heart;
7 With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men:
8 Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he
receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.
Servants are to be obedient to masters
according to the flesh.
Let me put it this way, Follow the
instructions of the one who is your employer.
We follow instructions for two reasons.
Primarily, because we are Christians.
And, secondly, because we are employees.
The good life depends on following good
instructions.
As Christians, we are to respect those in
authority.
We are not to work just when someone is
watching.
God has used your employer to so that you may
provide for your family.
Directly or indirectly, we all work for the
benefit of others.
God wants us to enjoy our labor and the
fruits of our labor.
We know that whatever good any person does
comes from God. Paul says that the good done will be rewarded by God.
Ephesians 6:9 And, ye masters, do the same
things unto them, forbearing threatening: knowing that your Master also is in
heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him.
Respect is not just the duty of employees. It
is also the responsibility of employers.
If you are an employer, God has placed you in
that position to bring benefit to others as well as yourself.
"Forbearing threatening" may be put
into modern terminology as, "cut them some slack." An employer should
not be too easy-going or too intimidating.
Christians who are employers should always
conduct themselves as children of God.
This is clearly seen in Paul's letter to
Philemon.
Onesimus was a runaway slave.
Yet, Paul asked Philemon to accept him as a
fellow Christian (Philemon 15-17).
Ephesians 6:10 Finally, my brethren, be
strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.
We are to be strong "in the Lord."
That strength is shown through reliance on
Him.
Strength is not shown through self-reliance.
The power of His might is found in obedience
to Him.
Your power is not your power.
The secret to godly strength is found in
reliance on God.
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of
God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
We do not put on the full armor of God to
empress other Christians.
This is not like the knight in shining armor
riding up on a white horse.
We are in a real battle.
We put on the full armor of God so we
"may be able," or have the power to stand up to the
"wiles," methods, or trickery of the devil.
Satan knows our weaknesses, and he exploits
them.
Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against
flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers
of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
This battle is not against other Christians,
or people.
It is against the wiles of the devil
According to 1 Peter 5:6-8 we are to
be humble before God.
We are to cast our care on Him.
We are to be humble, sober, and vigilant in
Christ.
Those are rules to gain victory in the battle
with Satan.
Ephesians 6:13 Wherefore take unto you the
whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and
having done all, to stand.
"That ye may be able to withstand in the
evil day" is an interesting way of putting it.
The Greek indicates that the "evil
day" is a day of degeneracy, or spiritual depravity.
We can look around and see that the days are
evil.
The individual and corporate sins of
Improprieties of all types are taking place
within the highest political offices in the land.
The days are indeed evil.
However, it is not our main objective as
Christians to point out, or even try to root out sin.
Our main objective is to present Christ.
Ephesians 6:13 speaks of "the evil
day." It points to the day when antichrist will hold sway over the world
in an unprecedented display of ungodly power.
The evil day will not be what many suppose.
It will be a period of unparalleled
subtleties in corruption.
We are on the threshold of Satan's powerful
display.
Here is a point many Christians miss.
God's armor is not meant for lashing out at
the devil.
The armor of God is meant for our protection
as we "stand" in Christ.
"Having done all," having put on
the armor, just stand.
We receive God's armor to enable us to stand.
You do not need to go looking for the devil.
Satan will find you.
Ephesians 6:14-18
14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on
the breastplate of righteousness;
15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to
quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God:
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and
watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;
Some things you might want to look at in the
listing of armor:
1.
Most of the things listed are for defensive purposes.
2.
Only one is for offensive purposes.
3. There
is no mention of guarding your back.
We are girded, protected by the truth of
God's mercy and grace.
The breastplate guards Christ's righteousness
within us.
Our feet are shod for the purpose of
presenting the gospel wherever we go.
The shield of faith protects us from the
daily onslaught of Satan's methods.
The helmet of salvation guards our minds
where the main battle takes place.
The sword of the Spirit is the word of God.
At this point, I must ask, "How did
Christ use the word?"
When Satan tempted Him, Christ Jesus began
each reply with, "It is written."
We should learn to wield the sword of the
Spirit with such accuracy.
Any person who has ever studied sword technique
understands that it may be used for offense or defense.
Our defense and offense begins with, "It
is written."
We are to stand, pray, and watch.
They are three more keys to success in
Christ.
Ephesians 6:19-20
19 And for me, that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth
boldly, to make known the mystery of the gospel,
20 For which I am an ambassador in bonds: that therein I may speak boldly,
as I ought to speak.
Utterance was given to Paul.
He did not assume it on his own.
Having been given this avenue of service to
God, Paul spoke boldly.
He was not timid in making the gospel known.
"Ambassador in bonds" does not
necessarily mean that Paul was in chains.
Paul was a bondservant.
Paul was bound in the Spirit to Christ.
As an ambassador, he boldly represented
Christ.
Ephesians 6:21-22
21 But that ye also may know my affairs, and how I do, Tychicus, a beloved
brother and faithful minister in the Lord, shall make known to you all things:
22 Whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that ye might know our
affairs, and that he might comfort your hearts.
Paul sent Tychicus to represent him.
He was to teach the Ephesians in whatever
area of the gospel they were found deficient.
He must have been an excellent teacher.
Tychicus means fortuitous.
It was fortuitous for Paul to have him as
part of the ministry.
He is mentioned in Acts 20:4, Colossians 4:7,
2 Timothy 4:12, and Titus 3:12.
The remark in 2 Timothy is historically
significant.
2 Timothy 4:12 And Tychicus have I sent to
Second Timothy was written after Paul's first
trial. It is an authentic prison letter.
For that reason, Ephesians may have been the
next to the last letter written by Paul.
Ephesians may have been written just prior to
his death.
It may also be an authentic prison letter,
and not one of the "rented house" letters.
Ephesians 6:23-24
23 Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and
the Lord Jesus Christ.
24 Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity.
Amen.
Paul closes with his standard "peace and
grace."
These are not throwaway words.
They form a very real blessing pronounced by
the Spirit of God upon the children-of-faith.
Sincere (sincerity) comes from the Latin
"sincerus."
In biblical times, when buying a piece of
pottery, a person would take that piece out into the sunlight to inspect it for
defects.
If none was found, the pottery would be said
to be "sincere."
In Christ Jesus, we are exposed to SONlight.