Details are given as to what should characterized the manner of life and lifestyle the new life of the believer. Those characteristics of the old life will have been laid aside and the new put on as the power and ministry of the new resident Holy Spirit works through the Word of God in the life. What were some tendencies and practices of the old life are described with the new to be put on. These new life characteristics are manifestations of the grace of God by which the believer has been given and will receive continually as the daily walk is in obedience to and in harmony with God's will and Word.

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Manifesting Grace in the New Life

The Christian life involves more than knowing about God and believing that He exists. God's intention for the believer's life is to live in and live out the relationship with Him that was reconciled by faith in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. That relationship is one in which the believer has lifelong growth in being transformed by the Holy Spirit of God inwardly to become the person God created to be in a personal relationship with Him. This will be a life of change, a life in contrast to the former life before becoming a believer, a life in contrast to the world of unbelievers being lived amongst. The characteristics of the new life will be righteousness and holiness by and consistent with the truth of God's word.

The Issue of a Relationship with God

The new life given by faith in Jesus Christ results in a new lifestyle. With the provisions given by God for salvation the new motivations of the believer are driven with the desire to please God in all manner and aspects of life. As individuals receive God's salvation He then places them in the Church, more specifically in a local church which is a manifestation of the universal. As believers the need for the continual teaching of God's Word to learn who God is, how to live to be pleasing to Him and how to serve Him with the means He provides will be life long. -As individuals are brought into the local church the diversity makes for an effective ministry with the various gifts, abilities, and resources being contributed for the benefit of the corporate body. God carries on His work in the world today through HIs Word ministered by His Spirit in the lives of individuals who live for Him and to serve Him.

Overviewing the New Life in Christ

Individual maturity builds the corporate maturity of God's church. This maturity of the local church will be built upon and centered on the Word of God and teaching thereof. As the knowledge of the Word is learned and practiced in individual lives who then are being transformed, the church can and will then be effective, equipped, and enabled to do the work of the ministry together with all parts necessary and contributing.

God's Plan for Unity in His Church

As God's man Joshua led His people in the conquest of the land He had given them they were reminded time and again how serious God is about His word. The people of the land have heard of the greatness of Israel's God as His fame spreads. Israel so easily and quickly were forgetful and distracted however. Complacency, carelessness, and compromise would set in and led to consequences as the nation of Israel lost their focus and failed to give careful attention to what God had said. -Trusting God is demonstrated by obedience and that obedience God can, and will bless with His care. While rightfully requiring faithfulness and the loyalty of His people He is merciful in HIs patience and willingness to forgive the repentant.

The Priority of God's Word

Within the unity of Christ's church a diversity of spiritual gifts are given for each local church to function in carrying out the ministry as God so intends. Not all of the gifts or gifted people are given today since God is not giving new revelation. With the completion of the New Testament from God through those men He so gifted the church has the Word of God to function corporately and individuals to live lives of godliness. -An explanation is given of Christ's death, burial, and resurrection as the basis for Christ giving of the gifts to believers.- God has gifted individuals to be used corporately as He builds His church universally through the building up and equipping of local churches.

Responsibilities With the Gifts

What God is doing in the world today is building His Church while He carries out much of His work in the world through the Church. -The Church with its unity and diversity is called to walk in step with His Spirit who is at work through His Word. The follower of Christ while walking in step will be being conformed to the likens of Christ while becoming increasingly different and distinct from the world. To enable a worthy, God-pleasing walk and to be building and growing His church the Spirit of God has been provided. Through the Spirit the believer is gifted with the measure of ability, resources, time, and opportunity to faithfully carry out God's work in the world. Individual believers have personal responsibility for their walk as well as responsibility in the local body of Christ they serve and work through and as each one is faithful the body is built up as the other members are edified. Such is the beauty, plan, and program God is accomplishing in the world today as He is unhindered by the times and circumstances of the day.

God's Gifts to His Church

God is serious when He speaks. He is consistent in His holiness in regard to keeping His promises and in bringing judgment upon the offenders. God's people often forfeit His provisions and protection by failure to heed His word and simply do what He has said and not do what He has forbidden. Rebellion has consequences and as sin does by its nature has a ripple effect on the people involved. God must be feared and regarded as the ultimate owner and authority having sovereignty over all His creation including all creatures. No matter the age or circumstances every individual has their lives and the length of their lives determined by God. God is unchanging, holy, and righteous in all His ways and who He is so He takes all sin seriously as an offense against Himself.

Consequences of Unfaithfulness

The effectual call of God to the sinner will result in a change in the course and manner of life. On the basis of faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ the believer follows after Him, becoming like Him in character and conduct. The very character of the believer will be one of humility, gentleness, patience, and tolerance without compromise or condoning of what conflicts with scripture. As such characteristics take on influence in individual believers there has also been a unity created by the Spirit of God that the believer is responsible to maintain. What is commonly shared by believers will unify, build, and strengthen relationships in the local church.

Walking in Godliness

The nation of Israel crossed the Jordan River, at flood stage no less, by faith in God and His promises. The nation paused from moving ahead to spiritually prepare themselves for the conquest of the land promised to them. Their trust in God and obedience to Him would be their source of strength, wisdom, and power as God provided them with the leadership of Joshua. Joshua had an appearance by the pre-incarnate Christ describe as the Angel of the Lord in his preparation as well. -As God led the nation forward to the conquest beginning with the city of Jericho His method and means was for the people to demonstrate their faith in HIs strength which they put in to practice by doing so according to His instructions, as unusual and unique as they were. Faith in the practice of doing God's will, will always accomplish God's purposes for HIs glory and the good of His people. Sadly such faith and obedience would not prove to be the ongoing practice of the nation as they moved forward in the conquest yet God will prove faithful to His word time and time again.

Conquest by the Obedience of Faith

Knowing Jesus Christ by fact of the gospel and faith in Him with all of a persons inner being is the basis for living life as it should be and as was meant to be. The means are provided by God and in so being with out limit in their sufficiency and supply. Strength, power, and wisdom, as supplied by God renders the believer able to be godly in all aspects of life. God is able is the confidence, encouragement, and peace believers have in all circumstances of life as lived out in the world today.

The Foundation of Godly Living

The promises of God and the the faith of a Canaanite prostitute brought the nation of Israel to the brink of the land promised to them six hundred years prior. They had to respond in faith to God's word by moving ahead and into the land beginning by crossing the Jordan river at flood stage, no less. God didn't make it easy but He promised and proved His presence, power, and faithfulness by again stopping the waters upstream. The visual of His manifest presence by the Ark of the Covenant was to precede them in. God also used the miracle crossing and the miraculous events surrounding it to confirm Joshua as HIs appointed leader for the nation. The nation had to be prepared spiritually for the conquest ahead. As they acted in belief God would ensure their victories as He promised. God keeps His word doing what is good and best as blessing upon the obedience of the believer and what is bad for the rebellious who come under His judgment as consequences for sin.

Israel's Preparation for the Conquest

New definitions of old words can deceptively cause confusion and misunderstanding of what was meant by God in revealing truth to His chosen writers of the scriptures. -The nature and purpose of the church being explained by the apostle Paul in this letter as a 'mystery' is one current attempt. The church while not new in God's plan was new in it being revealed by God as would manifest His grace in the salvation of Gentiles and Jews called out and together through faith in Jesus Christ by the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Church, since Pentecost, has been the focal point of God's salvation in the world today. Gentiles and Jews who become recipients of His salvation are joined together to form the Church. New in God's revelation but not new in God's plan. Being previously unrevealed until God's chosen time, it was in that sense, a mystery. Today as God's grace is on display in the salvation of individuals there are not distinctions between race, gender, social class or other worldly status. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and for all who have sinned God has provided a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. By faith in Him alone the sinner is given the free gift of eternal life.

God's Wisdom Displayed in His Church

The letter to the Ephesians is focused on the uniqueness of the Church in being a new group of people called out by God. The Church is not only distinct from the Jews, from Israel and from the kingdom, also not being a spiritual form of the kingdom today. God's work of salvation today is focused on Gentiles while some Jews are being saved, nationally and the majority are in unbelief today. Racial identity is not a distinction in the Church that is a matter of significance today. The fact of the matter is that all people have sinned and Jesus Christ has died for the sin of all people so that any of the all who will confess their sin and believe in Him are saved and become members of the Church. -What is characteristic of the universal church is to be true of each individual local church as the manifestation of the Church in the world today. The building material of the Church is the people of God who are called out, brought together, each being personally indwelt by the Spirit of God as well as the local church being a temple of the Holy Spirit.

The Uniqueness of the Church

God chooses to save whom He so wills. The beauty of His choice and how that changes a life is on display in the life of Rahab. A Canaanite woman who was a prostitute by profession would be among the least likely from the human perspective. From God's perspective she was chosen not only to help the nation of Israel as they began their conquest of the promised land but also as she became a woman of faith in God and became identified with the nation of Israel by marriage. A marriage significantly noted as she is in the lineage of the humanity of Jesus Christ. Rahab testified of her faith in the God of Israel as the true God and by her works as she in various ways cut off ties with her past life, her people, and culture.

Works Putting Faith on Display

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