Address—C.E. Lunden
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We'll start reading in the 14th verse of Ephesians 5. Wherefore he saith.
Awake thou that sleepest.
And arise from the dead or among the dead.
And Christ.
Shall give thee light.
See, then, that she walks circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time because the days are evil.
Wherefore be ye not unwise, but the understanding what the will of the Lord is.
And be not drunk with wine. We're in a success, but be filled with the spirit.
Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns.
And spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord.
Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Submitting yourselves 1 to another in the fear of God. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the Church.
And he is the savior of the body.
Therefore, as the Church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives.
Their own husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the Church and gave himself for it.
That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word.
That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy.
And without blemish.
Sought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.
No man ever yet hated his own flesh, but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord, the Church.
For we are members of his body.
Of his flesh and of his bones.
For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother.
Shall be joined unto his wife.
And they too shall be one flesh.
This is a great mystery.
But I speak concerning Christ and the Church nevertheless, that everyone of you in particular.
So love his wife, even as himself and the wife see that she reverence her husband. Now, dear friends, I just want to make a few remarks on the book of Ephesians.
Principally from this chapter.
In the first chapter we have the counsels of God set before us.
And there are 7 specific things mentioned that you will notice as you read it.
That we have come into in blessing.
The sovereign grace of God and the work of Christ at Calvary's cross.
We have two prayers in Ephesians.
In the first chapter.
The apostle praised that the eyes of the heart might be open.
To know what we have.
In Christ.
Connected with his exaltation and glory.
In the second chapter we have the subject of where we were taken from the pit from whence we were digging.
And now he's taken both Jew and Gentiles and formed them into one body.
In the last verse of that chapter, there's a habitation of God on the earth, for God now has gathered his people.
To the precious name of Christ.
And in the third chapter there is another prayer, and in that prayer.
It's not the open public demonstration of glory that we have in the first chapter, the exaltation of Christ.
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In all his glory, publicly.
But it's that Christ might dwell in your hearts by faith.
And ye rooted and ground in love, may be able to apprehend with fully with All Saints.
The height and the depth and the length and breadth of what?
All beloved of all the glory.
That he has brought in through his work at Calvary.
I'm not going into detail, I want to call attention to the outline.
And in the last chapter of that third, the last verse of that third chapter.
I believe you have the highest point reached in eternity furthest into eternity.
For the glory will be to God by Christ Jesus through the church.
Now why does the Spirit of God?
Bring us to the 4th chapter.
Here well to endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
The practical expression of this glorious truth.
That is being given up today.
The practical expression of the truth of the one body.
The working of it down here.
The gathering together to the person of Christ, acknowledging the truth of the one body in contrast to all evil.
And how God has given the gifts for the nurturing and care for that body.
Until Jesus comes back, and he's coming.
Now.
In the next chapter, we're exhorted to walk.
As dear children.
You see, it begins with the counsels of God.
He shows us the pit from which we were digged.
And then he speaks of our putting into practice those precious councils now that the Spirit of God has come down to the earth in the midst of the assembly for the power.
And.
In the beginning of this next chapter.
The 5th chapter.
Imitators of God as dear children, is that too much to ask?
Oh, you say I shrink from that imitators of God.
Yes, think of it.
Imitators of God as dear children. Whose children?
God, children.
Has it ever come home and power to your soul that you're one of God's children?
That God Himself is dwelling within you, the Holy Spirit.
What effect does that have on our conduct?
In every move I make here do I realize that God is indwelling?
Is he pleased with everything I do?
And more what I do Am I an imitator of God as a dear child?
Is there any whip here?
Not a bit.
No, Drawn by the chords of love.
You know, law is wonderful.
It had its effect.
In other days in a special way with Israel.
That is nothing like the wisdom of God.
Did God create the world by a law or wisdom?
Read in the book of Job and other places. Wisdom, of course. What is wisdom?
Christ.
And he is made unto you wisdom.
Christ Wisdom is the mind of God.
Why do we have precepts in Scripture?
In the book of Proverbs, but also in Psalms.
We have commandments.
Different expressions that speak of the word of God, but we have the word precept. Why we have them here?
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Sort of a little picture given up repeated from Genesis 2.
As to what God's counsels are.
Why precepts? Why do they differ from law?
The laws of commandment.
But a precept is given.
As an invitation for you.
To discover the teaching that God has in view, it supposes a ready mind.
A precept It's instruction.
And these are for his dear children.
Voters warning to the unsaved. There's warning to us too, but principally precepts now.
In this 4th. In this 5th chapter.
The Spirit of God suddenly drops us right down to the very bottom. Why?
Because of that old nature that we have.
And what does that old nature do?
If we allow it, it will rob us of all the preciousness of the counsels of the first chapter.
Be there for followers of God, as dear children, walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us.
And hath given himself for us an offering of sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor. But fornication, uncleanness, and cover or covetous, let it not be once named among you. Why?
Oh, because your followers of God is dear children, that's why.
Is this law?
Commandment of love, though.
Do these truths appeal to our hearts? Are these harsh things?
We spoke of law and we spoke of wisdom. What else, love?
And that's what characterizes the book of Ephesians as well as the whole Word of God, really.
But in a special way, Ephesians love.
To know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge. Why does it pass knowledge? Because it's divine.
And who is it for those who have a divine nature?
Divine nature.
But now we're going on.
To where we started reading.
In the eighth verse, he tells us.
Now are ye light in the Lord, and walk as children of light, for the fruit of the light it should read is in all goodness.
And righteousness. And truth.
Goodness, Righteousness, Truth.
14 first.
Awake thou that sleepest is he speaking about.
Slumbering as we generally speak of it. No, he's speaking about the soul.
What does it mean to sleep here?
It means to settle down in a fixed religion here on earth and satisfied with a few basic principles.
They'll get us by, as it were.
The soul gone to sleep.
All, beloved, when God has given us so much as we have in the book of Ephesians.
It takes us to the very, very heights.
Of the glories of Christ.
Both as to the outward display in the first chapter and all those deep, deep interior truths in the inner man in the third chapter.
That have to do with the riches of his glory.
Is it right?
I ask my soul this afternoon, is it right for me to go to sleep?
And to be satisfied with the few basic principles of truth that I've learned, perhaps as a child.
Christ shall give thee light.
God has one object for our poor hearts.
And in this 4th chapter, he reminds us of how low we can go if we don't have Christ before us.
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The Christian.
And how low some of us, shall I say, have gone.
Because Christ was not a light before us.
Isn't that sad?
Years of loss.
Because of it.
16 First redeeming the time, taking advantage of opportunities.
17 verse be not unwise, but understanding.
What the will of the Lord is?
Now understanding is the product.
Of knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge by reading and wisdom on our knees.
The product is understanding and understanding is the wellspring.
Life, the wellspring of life.
Now the next thought, because I don't want to dwell on this.
18th and 19th verses. I won't read it, I'll just put it this way.
Be not inebriated, but the spirit of this day.
But satisfy your new soul, your new nature, with heavenly things.
Am I going too far?
Be not inebriated.
With all that surrounds you.
That Satan has made a special issue of in these last few years.
To steal your hearts away from the precious truths of the Ephesians 1.
But then satisfy your heart with heavenly things.
What's next?
He brings up the subject. There's a pattern here, wives.
Submit yourselves to your husbands.
I'm not going to speak of that line of things.
Because here we have hidden again the precious truth of Ephesians.
In which lie the counsels of God for his Son.
There is a verse in the 40th Psalm that's quoted in Hebrews 10.
Lo, I come, I delight to do thy will, Oh my God.
In the volume of the book it is written of me.
Now what is the volume of the book?
I don't know except this.
That it's all the counsels of God from eternity.
Eternity has no beginning and no end.
We think in terms of time, but time is only a bubble on eternity.
And all those counsels of God, beloved, had to do with Jesus as a man.
Down here doing the will of God.
That's the way I interpret that verse.
Why? So we watch home with Him in the heavens, that's why.
The father wants to embrace you like you did the prodigal.
Christ wants you for his bride.
When the Father and the Son wants you to enjoy it now.
Not just then, now.
And what's going to hinder the enjoyment of it being inebriated with present things?
Oh, you say that there's no harm in that. Is there no harm in that?
It may be perfectly good, and that's the deceit of Satan, but it keeps Christ out.
Why didn't Abraham stay down in the place where God called him?
There was plenty of fruits and dates and nuts, pomegranates and everything that the heart would desire in a natural way. Why didn't he stay there? Because the God of glory appeared to him, that's why.
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All, beloved, as the God of glory appeared to you, I know you're a Christian, but I say as the God of glory appeared to you, have you got a glimpse of the glory like Paul did?
I ask my heart that this afternoon.
But I want to go on. I just have two or three thoughts here now. I don't want to take too much time.
The subject of wives and husbands comes up.
And the apostle breaks forth.
Now in the counsels of God.
Those councils in the volume of the book that is written to me.
It's filled the heart of the apostle.
What was written? Jesus, a man down here seeking a bride.
What's going on at present?
25th verse.
See this precious truth couched in the exhortation of wives to their husbands and husbands to their wives? Don't miss it. Oh, how many times we've had this red at at weddings beautifully. What a beautiful picture and what a beautiful thing a wedding is because it speaks of Christ in the church.
Yes it does.
Husband, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church.
And gave himself for us.
Now, what does this mean? I don't know. I can only speak of a few things that I've enjoyed.
I know this.
But all that Christ is as a man he has given to you.
Have you ever traced the lovely graces of Jesus in the Gospel?
Given to you.
Oh, they are not developed fully in you yet or me, but they are given to you.
He is the head, the churches, his body.
One man.
Gave himself.
All beloved, it's enough to overwhelm the heart.
Gave himself. It doesn't simply that he went to the cross for you. He gave himself all it is.
And although you don't know it, perhaps when you receive Jesus Christ as your Savior received him for all that he is.
The man Christ Jesus all it is as a man.
And what's more, the day is coming when you and I are going to be just like him.
But the purpose of this, I believe the next few verses, is that you and I might be morally like him now.
We will be physically like him then.
But.
To be imitators of God as dear children.
We will be morally like him now.
Let's notice two or three things here.
That he might sanctify.
That word means to set apart or to make holy.
To sanctify.
And cleanse it.
With the washing of water.
By the word, there's no difficulty in that verse.
He's cleansing it, he's setting apart, he's making it holy in a practical sense, by the washing of water, by the word. There's no difficulty there, is there?
In what way?
Giving us to enter into those precious things mentioned in the first chapter.
Adoption accepted in the Beloved.
Redeemed by the precious blood, given intelligence, given an inheritance, all these things, you know what they are.
The Holy Spirit sealing us.
All the precious truth.
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Washing the water by the Word is occupying your soul with Christ and these precious truths of all that's laid up in store for you and me when He comes and gives that shout of victory.
Think of it.
That's not all.
It says cleansing.
Oh yes, it's the word of God that cleanses us. That's true.
But this involves discipline.
The discipline that's allowed in our lives is in view.
Of that preparation.
To make ready for that moment when he presents her to himself without spot or blame.
But beloved, beloved, remember this.
I want you to get this.
What is complete up there?
I say again, what is complete up there?
When he get home.
Is a result of this work now.
Now, I'm not Speaking of redemption's work that's already finished. I'm Speaking of the present work of the Spirit of God in our soul.
For the believer.
What is complete up there?
The result of the work of the Spirit of God in our souls down here, and so the cleansing.
With the washing of the water by the word.
As something like what you have in the 13th of John.
As the Lord Jesus washes the disciples of feet.
What for? So they can enjoy the 14th chapter of John. That's the Father's house.
Cleansing away all the definement of this pathway through this world. Anything that would hinder communion.
Though they will be happy, but not only happy and cleared from any defilement refreshed.
Refreshed because that's what the water does.
Refreshes the soul and I trust that my heart has been refreshed.
As I sat under the Ministry of the Word in these meetings.
Whatever cleansing was needed beside.
Because, beloved, there's never chastisement with us without a reason.
But there's never chastisement without his love.
Never.
Sometimes we as fathers.
Allow anger to arise if we chasten our children sometimes.
That that's not of God.
But not with our precious Savior, or shall I say the Father, because it's the Father who chastens his children.
Washing of water by the Word, The two things occupying us with all the precious truth the Spirit of God has brought to us.
The full revelation of the truth of God, and then.
Anything in our ways that's contrary to that truth must go.
That there might be that deep, sweet communion.
That Christ might dwell in your hearts by faith.
Rooted and grounded in love, may be able to apprehend with All Saints.
What is the depth, heightened depths and breadths and light?
And to know the love of Christ.
Which passeth knowledge?
That you might be filled to.
The fullness of God that is to be brought up where you can dip into that fullness and enjoy it. But one more thought and I'm going to close.
Two more thoughts 27 first.
That he might present it to himself.
A glorious church.
Could that be this afternoon?
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Yeah.
Doesn't it thrill your soul, dear Christian, dear young people that they can be this afternoon? Is there one thing in my life this afternoon that I say I wish I wished he'd wait another day. I got to get some things cleared up. Oh, is it so, dear, dear ones this afternoon?
I have to get some things cleared up.
It could be today.
That he presented to himself.
Without spot or wrinkle or any such thing.
Holy and without blemish.
Now one more thought.
29 First, no man ever yet hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, even as the Lord, the Church.
Beloved, that's just what he's doing now. He loves you so much.
And he loves me so much.
That he's occupied with us every single moment.
Nourishing.
And cherishing.
I ask my soul, and I ask you.
Are we answering to this, beloved?
Some little answer to that precious Savior in His love and all that He has done for us and what we notice here that He is doing for us now.
May the Spirit of God.
Awake thou that sleepest.
That Christ may give thee light.