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Help with Zechariah

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I’ve been leading my church’s preaching team through series on Jonah and Nahum over the last few months. I’m really enjoying the Lord’s messages for us in the minor prophets.

And I once considered Zechariah to be the most difficult book of the Bible to grasp. Perhaps it is, but Steven McCarthy is here to help.

McCarthy broadly walks through the book’s structure, explaining the main idea of each of the visions before covering the oracles of the book’s second half. Here is a taster:

Zechariah, along with his counterpart Haggai, speaks from this period of return from exile in Babylon and rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem. (Ezra 5:1-2) He does so with a broad scope and a heavily symbolic style. Whereas Haggai’s burden is laser-focused on the specific priority of rebuilding God’s temple, Zechariah’s burden is more generally for the people to be spiritually and morally disposed for God’s renewal and fulfillment of his covenant relationship with them. Indeed, God’s grace trains us “to renounce ungodliness”. (Titus 2:11-14) The book of Zechariah leads us to the conclusion that only Christ’s coming itself will make God’s people into a fitting community for the LORD’s dwelling.

My only hesitation is that McCarthy is quick to suggest that the second half of Zechariah is “about” Jesus and his work. Certainly, the New Testament shows the fulfillment of Zechariah in the work of Christ. But I would prefer to first clarify what the text meant to the original audience (who did not know who Jesus was), and only then talk about the fulfillment in Christ.

But despite this minor qualification, McCarthy’s brief comments are well worth your time. He will enable you to get your bearings in this important book.

Check it out!

Guidance for Psalms

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Ian Hamilton wants you to know 3 things about the Psalms.

  1. The book of Psalms was written over a period of one thousand years.
  2. Approximately 40 percent of the psalms are laments.
  3. The Psalms are all about God’s promised Messiah-King, Jesus Christ.

In only a few minutes, his brief article will provide a wealth of guidance to help you grasp the big picture of this glorious book of poems.

The Psalms portray the life of faith with searing honesty. They poignantly remind us that the pattern of death and resurrection that was etched into the holy humanity of the Lord Jesus Christ is the pattern that the Holy Spirit seeks to replicate in the lives of all God’s children. The book of Psalms is a divinely inspired songbook that reflects the highs and lows, the triumphs and tragedies, of God’s covenant people over a millennium. John Calvin described the Psalms as “an anatomy of all the parts of the soul.” Let us sing the Savior’s songbook, lest we risk impoverishing our worship and robbing ourselves of the rich spirituality contained within its songs.

Check it out!

Guidance for 1 & 2 Kings

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Caleb Cangelosi explains three things you should know about 1 & 2 Kings.

  1. The book of Kings was written during the exile to explain why Israel and Judah were in exile.
  2. Kings isn’t just about kings; it’s also about prophets.
  3. Elijah wasn’t a fearful, self-pitying prophet in 1 Kings 19.

That third thing will help with just one chapter of the book, but it’s a good reminder of how we love to give gold stars. Let’s not be so quick to condemn (or glorify) Bible characters until we’ve considered all the evidence of their nuanced portrayals!

Check it out!

Titus: From Sound Faith Flow Character and Devotion to Good Works

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Ezra Jeffrey-Comeau (2018), public domain

Paul’s letter to Titus was written to help a young pastor set up churches in Crete. While many of Paul’s other epistles are rich with doctrine, this one is not. Instead, Paul writes about what sound doctrine brings: godly character and a zeal for good works.

Divisions of Titus

Paul marks the sections of this letter using logical connectors and thesis statements. He begins the letter with a greeting (Titus 1:1–4) and then moves into qualifications for elders (Titus 1:5–9) and why these leaders are necessary (Titus 1:10–16). Paul then explains that Titus should teach and model the behavior that adorns sound doctrine (Titus 2:1–10) because this is what God’s grace trains us to do (Titus 2:11–15). Paul ends with an emphasis on the saving work of God leading to good works (Titus 3:1–8), instruction to avoid controversies and division (Titus 3:9–11), and final instructions (Titus 3:12–15).

  1. Greeting, rebuking false teachers (Titus 1:1–16)
  2. Character and behavior as a result of grace (Titus 2:1–15)
  3. God’s salvation leading to good works (Titus 3:1–15)

(I previously looked at repetition in Titus, and while that showed me what was on Paul’s mind, by itself it didn’t provide the structure for an interpretive outline. It was an important first step, though!)

Section 1 Walkthrough

The connection between faith and behavior is evident from the very beginning of this letter.

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness (Titus 1:1)

Famously, Paul lists qualifications for elders in Titus 1:6–9. However, we must not jump to those qualifications before reading why they are there. Titus must “put what remained into order” in Crete by appointing “elders in every town” (Titus 1:5). These elders will help establish order.

Elders must be “above reproach”—this requirement is repeated (verses 6 and 7), and in fact this is an umbrella requirement for all of the others involving character (not arrogant, not violent, self-controlled, etc.). The only skills that are mentioned in these qualifications come in verse 9, and it seems those skills may be acquired. Holding firm to the trustworthy word is key, because elders are needed “to give instruction in sound doctrine” and “to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9).

Paul then explains why these elders—those who will instruct and rebuke—are necessary. There are many false teachers in Crete, upsetting many people (Titus 1:10–11). These false teachers need to be rebuked for they are “devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth” (Titus 1:14). Though they claim to know God, “they deny him by their works” (Titus 1:16). Paul’s plan for appointing elders is now coming into sharper focus: he wants leaders who will help everyone be “sound in the faith” (Titus 1:13).

Section 2 Walkthrough

Paul returns to the connection between theology and character at the beginning of the second section, telling Titus to “teach what accords with sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1).

Paul mentions what should be taught to older men, older women, young women, younger men, and bondservants (Titus 2:1–6, 9–10). These teachings are almost entirely in the realm of character (self-controlled, reverent in behavior, kind, submissive, etc.), as good character will “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10). Titus himself must be a “model of good works” (Titus 2:7). Additionally, Paul knows that in his confrontations with false teachers, Titus’s uprightness will matter almost as much as his arguments—he must “show integrity, dignity, and sound speech” in his teaching so that opponents will be “put to shame, having nothing evil to say about us” (Titus 2:7–8).

In the next paragraph, Paul connects character and behavior to the work of Jesus. God’s grace has appeared, bringing salvation and “training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Titus 2:12). We wait for the appearing of Jesus, the one who “gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness”—we were devoted to evil works—and to secure a people “who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14). God’s people gain zeal as his grace does its ongoing training work (Titus 2:12).

At the end of this section, Paul emphasizes that Titus should feel empowered to “declare these things” and to “rebuke” with all authority (Titus 2:15).

Section 3 Walkthrough

Titus must remind his people to be “ready for every good work” and all of the characteristics that implies (Titus 3:1). Paul shares that he was once not this way—embodying the very opposite of these qualities (Titus 3:2). But God saved him, not because of Paul’s works, but because of God’s mercy (Titus 3:5). The center of this section (Titus 3:4–7) is arguably one of the only portions of doctrine in this slim book, where Paul explains how merciful salvation happens and what the results are.

Paul wants Titus to “insist on these things”—this “saying” he’s just written—”so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works” (Titus 3:8). On the other hand, topics that will promote controversies should be avoided (Titus 3:9). In fact, any people who stir up division should be warned and then avoided. Division and quarreling among God’s people is not a fertile environment for good works to grow.

Paul ends the letter with some personal greetings. But he returns to one of his primary themes in these final sentences.

And let our people learn to devote themselves to good works, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not be unfruitful. (Titus 3:14).

Conclusion

For Paul, character and a zeal for good works lie downstream from sound faith. So, Titus needs to put leaders in place to help him rebuke bad teaching and provide instruction from the trustworthy word. The same grace that appeared for salvation becomes our trainer, helping us to renounce our unfruitful ways and to devote ourselves to good works.

Interpretive Outline

  1. Greeting (Titus 1:1–4)
  2. Establish order through leaders who are above reproach and who can instruct and rebuke (Titus 1:5–9)
    • For there are many false teachers who need to be rebuked (Titus 1:10–16)
  3. Teach and model the behavior that adorns sound doctrine (Titus 2:1–10)
  4. Here is the connection between our works and our Savior (Titus 2:11–15)
  5. Emphasize the gospel, so that believers may devote themselves to good works (Titus 3:1–8)
    • Controversies and divisive people will get in the way of good works (Titus 3:9–11)
  6. Final instructions (Titus 3:12–15)

This post is part of a series of interpretive overviews of the books of the Bible.

The Problem with Proverbs

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What a unique treasure we have in the book of Proverbs! No other book of the Bible is as intensely practical as Proverbs. No other book presents such tremendous hope in the mundane parts of life. And no other book presents its material in quite the jumbled mess Proverbs appears to be.

If you have ever tried a chapter-a-day Bible reading plan, you understand how difficult it is to read Proverbs. Nearly every verse demands a pause for reflection. And much of the book yields only tenuous logical connections between one verse and the next. The book does not tell a story like Job. It rarely presents a train of thought across an extended poem like the Psalms. It (mostly) does not make a sustained argument like Ecclesiastes.

So how should we approach this book?

Photo by Karla Hernandez on Unsplash

The Problem of Practicality

Proverbs is famous because it gets so wildly practical. There is a reason the pocket Bibles produced by the Gideons consist not only of the New Testament but also the Psalms and Proverbs. This book is so practical that people love to pilfer its riches in all kinds of ways.

Take for example, this 2006 work [unabashed affiliate link!] endorsed by such luminaries as David Jeremiah, Gary Chapman, Ruth Graham, and Chuck Norris. What a promising title! The Richest Man Who Ever Lived: King Solomon’s Secrets to Success, Wealth, and Happiness. Who wouldn’t want access to such secrets?

In The Richest Man Who Ever Lived, Scott reveals Solomon’s key for winning every race, explains how to resolve conflicts and turn enemies into allies, and discloses the five qualities essential to becoming a valued and admired person at work and in your personal life. Scott illustrates each of Solomon’s insights and strategies with anecdotes about his personal successes and failures, as well as those of such extraordinary people as Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Edison, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, and Steven Spielberg.

At once inspiring and instructive, The Richest Man Who Ever Lived weaves the timeless truths of one of our greatest works of literature into a detailed roadmap for successful living today.

From the marketing copy

This sounds amazing, and the book has more than 1,600 reviews (over 1,300 of them five-star) to back it up.

Now I confess I haven’t read the entire book. I couldn’t make it past the first few chapters, where it was clear that Mr. Scott all but ignores the worldview of Prov 1-9 in favor of the practicals of Prov 10-31. And this simply will not do when we come to the book of Proverbs.

We cannot be dazzled by the book’s practicality to the point of ignoring the context established in the opening chapters.

The Problem of Arrangement

Proverbs 10-31 present six collections of wise sayings. Most of those collected sayings are exactly one verse (two lines) long. For example, Prov 20:3 is a saying about keeping aloof from strife. Prov 20:4 is a saying about the sluggard’s time management. And Prov 20:5 is a saying about the invisible intentions and motivations in people’s hearts. We go from one. Thing. To. The. Next.

The primary exception to this scattershot approach to collecting wise sayings is the first nine chapters. Those chapters consist of many long poems making sustained arguments. That’s why those first nine chapters are the key to understanding the book. They construct a conceptual framework for wisdom, although to say it that way is far too abstract and boring. The way Solomon himself says it is that “wisdom has built her house” (Prov 9:1).

With that house built, personified Wisdom invites you to the feast of chapters 10-31. And the buffet of those collected sayings will make sense only in light of the worldview presented in chapters 1-9.

But that raises a crucial question: How do we read and understand that buffet? And more profoundly: Why did the editors collect these sayings in such an apparently random fashion?

As for the why: We may never know for sure until we can make the acquaintance of these editors in the world to come and ask them directly. The best answer I’ve heard was from my seminary professor, who postulated that the book simulates how real life works. You never have a day of your life where you think about, or have to deal with, nothing but money. And another day dealing with nothing but friendship. And another day dealing with nothing but speech. No, our lives are a jumble of topics from moment to moment. Perhaps the proverbs were collected in a jumbled way to simulate how real life is lived day after day.

As for the how: Proverbs 10-31 nearly demands that we search its treasures for topical threads. We must glut ourselves on wisdom’s feast to find all the verses about money, assembling them into a body of teaching on that topic. And we look for all the verses on friendship. And all the verses on speech.

So much, so good. We just need to make sure we don’t run with the practicals there without first interpreting them in light of the book’s worldview.

The Problem of Probability

One last potential problem is worthy of consideration. Because the particular sayings of Proverbs are so utterly specific and practical, that has led many Bible teachers to develop a conventional wisdom that “proverbs aren’t promises but only probabilities.” While this conventional wisdom has some value, it can be quite misleading.

To understand why it is misleading, we need to examine how we arrived at such a principle to begin with. The reason is typically because various proverbs seem to contradict one another (such as Prov 26:4 and Prov 26:5), or because some verses are easily abused to browbeat people (Prov 22:6). So we seek to solve such errors with a sweeping principle such as “proverbs aren’t promises but only probabilities.”

But here’s the thing: The statement that “proverbs aren’t promises but only probabilities” is itself a wise saying. A summary statement. Dare I say, a proverb? And is that statement only a probability and not a certainty? Is it certain that proverbs aren’t promises? Or is it only a probability itself?

And here’s the bigger issue: The proverbs do not present themselves as probabilities. They do not talk about what might happen or what is likely to happen. No, they make legitimate observations about the way the world works. And at times, they offer clear commands and not simply suggestions (e.g. Prov 14:7, 23:23).

We can get close to solving the problem of probability when we simply bring in the matters of practicality and arrangement. The arrangement means that no single proverb tells the whole truth on a topic; that’s why many verses all speak to various aspects of the same topics! The practicality tells us that any single proverb is speaking to a very narrow, very particular situation. And in those intensely practical, extremely particular settings that the proverb speaks into, the proverb speaks truth. Not probability, but truth.

We misuse the proverb if we try to make it speak to a related but different practical situation it was not meant to speak to. (Prov 26:4-5: Don’t answer a fool in those particular settings when it is best not to answer him!) And we deeply confuse people if we teach that the proverb is not true but only likely. (Prov 18:10: Is it only likely but not certain that Lord’s name will be a strong tower to the righteous who flee to him for final refuge?)

Conclusion

No other book of the Bible is like Proverbs. It presents some unique problems, such as the problem of practicality, the problem of arrangement, and the problem of probability. But studying this book along its natural contours yields a wealth of results, as it leads us to Jesus, in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:2-3).

Repeated Words and Titles as a Clue to the Main Point of a Book

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Andres Siimon (2020), public domain

We’re big fans of observing repetition in the Bible. Just like in our emails and conversations, the words, phrases, and topics we dwell on most are usually at the center of our thinking. We’ve pointed out how this helps us find the author’s main point in a passage of Scripture.

The same is also true for books of the Bible! Since books of the Bible are really just long passages, maybe this isn’t that shocking. But I was a bit surprised how easy this was in the New Testament book of Titus.

Look at the Data

Titus is a short book, so we can read it several times without much effort and uncover the repetition. (For longer or more complicated passages, Bible study software might come in handy. We’ve pointed out the capabilities of both Logos and e-Sword to help in this regard.)

Titles of God

The title of God as “Savior” shows up six times in Titus. Combine that with one occurrence of “salvation” and one of “saved,” and we can see part of what occupies Paul as he writes.

  • Paul has been entrusted with preaching by the command of “God our Savior” (Titus 1:3).
  • Paul sends grace and peace “from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior” (Titus 1:4).
  • The submission of bondservants to masters will “adorn the doctrine of God our Savior” (Titus 2:10).
  • The grace of God has appeared, “bringing salvation for all people” (Titus 2:11).
  • Living godly lives in the present age involves waiting for “the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).
  • The “goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared” (Titus 3:4).
  • God “saved us” (Titus 3:5).
  • The Holy Spirit was “poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior” (Titus 3:6).

The titles used to refer to anyone (especially God) are important details in a passage. So when a title is repeated this often in three little chapters, we should take note.

Good Works

The other repetition that jumped out at me in Titus was the idea of works or good works. I count eight occurences.

  • The unbelieving profess to know God but “deny him by their works” (Titus 1:16).
  • Because they deny God, these unbelievers are “unfit for any good work” (Titus 1:16).
  • Paul charges Titus to be a “model of good works” (Titus 2:7).
  • Jesus gave himself (in part) to purify a people “who are zealous for good works” (Titus 2:14).
  • Titus is to remind his people to be “ready for every good work” (Titus 3:1).
  • God saved us “not because of works done by us in righteousness” (Titus 3:5).
  • Those who have believed in God should “devote themselves to good works” (Titus 3:8).
  • Paul wants “our people” to “devote themselves to good works” (Titus 3:14).

Putting Pieces Together

Noticing the repetition of these two ideas is not enough to produce a main point for the book of Titus. These data points are essential, but we have merely observed so far; it takes the additional work of interpretation to take the next step.

Epistles, more than other books in the Bible, sometimes contain a purpose or summary statement. This is not true of all epistles, just like it is not true of all our conversations or emails.

There are two short sections of Titus that involve one or both of our repeated ideas and which might function as a summary of Paul’s letter.

 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works. (Titus 2:11–14)

The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people. (Titus 3:8)

Stayed tuned, for in a future post I plan to use the observations here to produce an interpretive overview of Titus.

Top 10 Interpretive Book Overviews

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Much of the time, when you read a Bible “book overview,” you’ll find all kinds of historical and cultural details. You’ll likely also get an observational outline of the book (an outline that observes what is said in each of the book’s sections). Such overviews are good and necessary resources for essential background. But when you read one of the book overviews on our site, you’ll primarily find a walkthrough and explanation of the book’s argument. What is the author’s chief message, and how does he go about presenting that message?

Image by Tumisu from Pixabay

Continuing in the spirit of the top 10 lists presented over the last few weeks, here are the top 10 most-viewed posts from the “interpretive book overviews” series. If you browse the full list, you’ll see that we’ve currently got 21 installments. So if you have time to read only 10 of them, you may want to consider these 10.

  1. Mark: Can’t You See God’s King?
  2. Psalms: The Blessing of God’s Word and King
  3. 1 Thessalonians: A Community of Faith, Love, and Hope
  4. Habakkuk: The One Thing that Must Change
  5. Isaiah: Judgment and Deliverance
  6. Ecclesiastes: The Fear of God Gives Joy Amid Frustration
  7. Job: How to Fear the Lord When Everything Falls Apart
  8. Daniel: The Most High Rules the Kingdoms of Men
  9. Acts: The World’s Salvation Cannot be Stopped
  10. Song of Songs: The Intoxication of True Love in its Time

When You Study the Wrong Bible Passage

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Timothy Eberly (2020), public domain

I fear I have become too reliant on the chapter breaks in the Bible. I know these are not inspired and that they do not always produce the optimal portions of Scripture to study. But they are so convenient!

Also, sometimes the chapter breaks are helpful markers. I’ve been studying Ezra and Nehemiah in my small group over the past year, and the chapter breaks in Ezra are great. They occur at logical transitions in the text, and we moved a chapter at a time through Ezra without any issues.

The same has not been true in Nehemiah.

Nehemiah in Jerusalem

There is rarely a single “right” way to divide a book of the Bible into sections for small group study. We might choose to take larger or smaller pieces at a time, and when these divisions resonate with the structure of the book, everything is smooth. When we choose a section that doesn’t match the author’s logical argument, we’re cutting the wood against the grain.

My group studied the first chapter of Nehemiah during one meeting and the second chapter during the next. When I was preparing the third chapter for the following meeting, I realized I’d made a mistake.

Nehemiah 2:1–20 describes how Nehemiah asked the king of Persia for permission to go rebuild Jerusalem. The king granted his request, and this was evidence of God’s work (Neh 2:8).

Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem and inspected the damaged walls and gates by night. He formed a plan and spoke persuasively to the Israelites in the city.

Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision.” And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work. (Neh 2:17, 18)

Biting Off Less Than We Should Chew

Nehemiah 3:1–32 is a list of the successful efforts to rebuild the walls and gates of city. We read of specific people, specific locations, and specific work. It is impressive.

However, at the end of the day, it is undeniably … a list. Lists are challenging to study. It is hard to find the author’s main point in a list.

It became clear to me that our group should have studied chapter 3 with chapter 2. After all, the work in chapter 3 is recorded as evidence to support Nehemiah 2:18 — “And they said, “Let us rise up and build.” So they strengthened their hands for the good work.”

It’s not that there is nothing fruitful to gain from studying Nehemiah 3. But the purpose of chapter 3 is to illustrate the work of God in chapter 2, so putting a dividing line between the two was not the wisest choice. In fact, I suspect the main point of chapter 2 would have landed with more force had we studied the two sections together.

Lessons Learned

This was another reminder to me of the importance of each book’s structure in the Bible. In preparing for my small group, I want to refer back to my book overview and an outline of the book when selecting the next portion of Scripture to study. This will help align my group’s focus with the logical units in which the original author of the book wrote.

Ephesians: Uniting All Things in Christ, Part 2

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The first half of Ephesians lays out God’s plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth (Eph 1:10). Paul’s doctrine of unity can be summarized in the shape of a capital “I” (in a font with bars across top and bottom). The top horizontal bar represents the unity God has with himself, among the persons of the Trinity. The vertical bar represents the unity between God and his people, brought about by grace through faith. The bottom horizontal bar represents the unity among God’s people that ought to result.

Having followed Paul’s argument in Ephesians 1-3 in the previous post, let’s now walk through Paul’s application of the doctrine of unity within the life of the church.

Photo by cottonbro

Diversity Shouldn’t Divide the Church

Paul transitions to application with the urging to walk in a manner worthy of the calling described in the first three chapters (Eph 4:1). And what exactly is a manner of life worthy of the call to unity, in light of God’s plan to unite all things in Christ? It requires humble, gentle, and patient forbearance toward fellow church members (Eph 4:2). Such character arises only from an eager commitment to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph 4:3).

Paul roots the unity of the church, explicitly, to the unity of the Trinity (Eph 4:4-6), which includes a victorious Christ ascending to take his throne while dishing out good gifts to his people. Psalm 68, quoted in Eph 4:8, likens the ascension of the ark of the covenant into Jerusalem to the arrival of God’s glory-cloud on Sinai. And Paul capitalizes on the image to explain how Jesus, the true ark, has entered heaven, the true sanctuary. This king cares enough about the unity of his body that he provides the church with leaders tasked with equipping members to serve one another—all so the community can grow together to maturity, according to the image of Jesus himself (Eph 4:9-14). That theological truth plays out in real life as people speak the truth to one another with love and build up one another in love (Eph 4:15-16).

In short, Eph 4:1-16 teaches that every church member is not required to be the same thing, do the same thing, or think the same thing. It assumes that there are differences among people, requiring patience and loving speech toward one another. In other words, diversity shouldn’t divide the church. But sadly, it often does, so the rest of the letter tells us what to do about that. We must give attention to four key areas, each marked with a renewed exhortation to walk (or, in the last case, to stand — Eph 4:17, 5:1, 5:15, 6:10-13).

Four Areas With Potential for Divisive Behaviors

The first area that requires attention in pursuit of unity is purity (Eph 4:17-32). However, notice that the chief problem of impurity is that it makes people like those who are alienated from—not unified with—God (Eph 4:18). The opposite of building up others in love is to serve oneself in sensuality and greed (Eph 4:19). This is not how you learned Christ! (Eph 4:20). A pure life according to the truth in Jesus requires each church member to do three things with their divisive behaviors:

  1. Put off the old self, with its divisive and selfish desires (Eph 4:22).
  2. Get a new way of thinking about how the calling to unity ought to drive your behavior (Eph 4:23).
  3. Put on the new self, which is like God—fully unified with himself and with his body (Eph 4:24).

Paul gives four case studies to show practically how the three-step change process works. The first (Eph 4:25) is about overcoming the divisive power of lies: put off falsehood, start thinking about yourself and other Christians as fellow members of one another, and put on the speaking of truth. The second: Put off sinful anger, recognize it as an opportunity for the devil to rip relationships apart, and put on godly indignation (Eph 4:26-27). Theft (Eph 4:28) and rotten speech (Eph 4:29) round out the case studies, along with a concluding summary of the process (Eph 4:30-32).

Second, Paul highlights the role of love in the pursuit of unity (Eph 5:1-14). He introduced the topic in Eph 4:15-16, but he expands on it in Eph 5:1-14. Such love draws its power and motivation from the love of Christ for his people (Eph 5:1-2). The challenging work of love requires an extensive putting off (Eph 5:3-4), mind renewal (Eph 5:5-6), and putting on (Eph 5:7-14). The walk of love is a walk that will occupy us for the rest of our lives, and will take every bit of attention we can give to it. Since the Lord Jesus gave himself for us, it is worth it to give all we have to develop love in this walk with one another.

Third, Paul turns to the need for wisdom in the application of unity (Eph 5:15-6:9). Wisdom catalyzes unity by recognizing the times (Eph 5:16), knowing God’s will (Eph 5:17), and seeking the Spirit’s filling (Eph 5:18). The marks of those filled with God’s unifying Spirit include Scripture-filled speech (Eph 4:19a), song-filled thought-lives (Eph 4:19b), thanksgiving-filled attitudes toward everything (Eph 4:20), and reverence-filled submission within hierarchical relationships (Eph 4:21).

Submission is both complex and so easy to get wrong; frequently, we obey the wrong authorities, and we rebel against the right authorities. All such behaviors are divisive within the body of Christ, so Paul expands on this demonstration of Spirit-filling (submission) by exploring three pairs of hierarchical human relationships: wives and husbands (Eph 5:22-33), children and fathers (Eph 6:1-4), and slaves and masters (Eph 6:5-9). In each pair, Paul showcases the vertical unity between believers and God as both model and motivation for the horizontal unity among human relationships.

The fourth and final area that requires particular attention when pursuing unity in the church is that of spiritual warfare (Eph 6:10-20). As I’ve written elsewhere, we are in great danger of getting this text wrong when we read it in isolation from the argument Paul has been making all through the letter. True and lasting unity is one of the most difficult tasks facing the church of Jesus Christ. Look around, and it’s not difficult to find abundant examples of the evil one’s flaming darts (Eph 6:16) leveraging the opportunity granted him by our sinful anger toward one another (Eph 4:26-27), seeking to retain his dominion as the great power of the air (Eph 2:2). God called Paul to proclaim the astounding unity of people from all nations who believe, right in the face of the spiritual authorities in the heavenly places (Eph 3:8-10). Because they’re not pleased with this plan, they do all they can to break up that unity. Therefore, our fight for unity is never against one another within the church. It is always against those spiritual forces seeking to turn us against one another (Eph 6:12). And we cannot win unless we are strengthened by the Lord (Eph 6:10) by means of taking up his own armor (Eph 6:14-20).

Closing Greeting

Paul closes the letter with a reminder of his desire for unity with the letter’s recipients. This desire has led him to send Tychicus as his agent to share all the news and encourage their hearts. Finally, Paul wishes for peace in the church and grace toward all who love the Lord Jesus.

Conclusion

Because the unified God has united believers to himself, the church ought now walk worthy of its calling by pursuing a full-orbed unity. This unity does not require uniformity, but it presumes a diversity of opinions, personalities, social roles, and people groups. Because diversity naturally produces friction, the church ought to give particular attention to humble and patient purity, love, wisdom, and spiritual warfare in its pursuit of unity. This is the sort of walk worthy of the calling of the one God, who is Father, Son, and Spirit.

Interpretive Outline

  1. Grace and peace to the saints – Eph 1:1-2
  2. Doctrine: The unity to which you’ve been called – Eph 1:3-3:21
    • Praise to a unified and unifying God – Eph 1:3-14
      • Prayer for eyes to see what that God is doing – Eph 1:15-23
        • The gift of grace that unifies people with God – Eph 2:1-10
          • The unity of the new humanity in the peace of Christ – Eph 2:11-22
        • The gift of grace that revealed and now preaches the unity of people with God and with each other – Eph 3:1-13
      • Prayer for supernatural strength to comprehend such divine, unifying love – Eph 3:14-19
    • Praise to an astonishing God who empowers unity in ways we could never imagine – Eph 3:20-21
  3. Application: Walk in a manner worthy of this calling to unity – Eph 4:1-6:20
    • Diversity shouldn’t divide – Eph 4:1-16
    • Areas to address when diversity threatens to divide – Eph 4:17-6:20
      1. Purity – Eph 4:17-32
      2. Love – Eph 5:1-13
      3. Wisdom – Eph 5:14-6:9
      4. Spiritual warfare – Eph 6:10-20
  4. Final greeting of peace, love, and grace – Eph 6:21-24

This post is part of a series of interpretive overviews of the books of the Bible.