Become Who We Are

So a quick survey: by a show of hands, who here would be okay with just a little bit of sewage in their drinking water? ... None, of course!

In Ephesians 4, Paul says

“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.”

A few verses down, he continues:

“Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.”

Now Paul roots both of these exhortations in the reality of our new life, and new identity in Jesus. In Christ, we are a new creation, made in the likeness of God, and so we must put off our old self and “become who we are”. This transforms every part of our lives. There is no area that we get to hold back as our own, there is no domain over which we have any right to coddle remnants of our old selves. 

So then when Paul applies this to our speech, he makes it very clear that as Christians, our speech must be transformed. As new creatures, made in the likeness of God, our speech must reflect our new identity in Christ. Any corrupting, filthy, or foolish talk, any crude joking - is as out of place in the mouth of a Christian as is sewage in our drinking water. It is repulsive to God. 

But 2 weeks ago, Pastor Joe reminded us that:

“as sinful people in a world of death, we are tempted to be acclimated to sin and death.”

Because of our sinful nature, and disordered desires, sin often has an internal allure tempting us to be desensitized to what God hates. And because we live in a world full of sin, surrounded by a current that embraces and normalizes sin, the danger of being desensitized to it becomes that much greater.

I remember first entering a secular workplace, and being surprised by the speech I was surrounded by. The kind of filthy and crude language that was so commonplace, the slander, criticism and complaining behind people’s backs. The crass nature of the humor. But after some time, I noticed that I was starting to get used to it. I was being desensitized to it. The checks in my Spirit, those internal alarms, started getting fainter, and further apart. 

Now if we’re not careful to guard our hearts and our mouths, there’s a real danger for our speech to gradually become like that of our non-christian coworkers, or classmates, and we must not let this happen. Our speech is an important battleground in our lives: As new creatures in Christ, our speech must reflect our new identity in Jesus. We cannot allow even a little bit of sewage to make its way into our hearts and out of our mouths. We must find repulsive the things that God hates. 

So, this morning, my exhortation is:

First, let’s examine our speech. Reflect on your speech this past week. Pay attention to your words this week. Does your speech reflect who you are as a new creation in Christ? Are your words gracious? Thankful? Do they build others up? 

And Second, don’t let any corrupting talk come out of our mouths. Avoid all filthiness and crude speech. Avoid all bitterness, complaining and slander. Don’t ignore the checks in your Spirit, or grow accustomed to the way the world around you speaks.

Church, as new creatures, made in the likeness of God, let’s put off our old self and “become who we are.”

And that reminds us of our need to confess our sins. Let’s pray.