Ephesians: Study 7

Ephesians 4:17 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!— 21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, 22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

1. Is Paul overly harsh on unbelievers? Surely there are good people of all faiths?

2. How would you respond to the following:

• Religion fosters a self-righteous holier-than-thou attitude.

• How can something be wrong if it doesn’t hurt anyone and makes me happy?

3. Isn’t it unfair that God alienates people because of their ignorance (v.18)?

4. How do callouses form and what does that teach us about sin (v.19)?

5. Paul makes clear that the way we think (v.17-18) starts before the way we act (v.19). Can you think of examples of sin in a Christian’s life which began as a seemingly harmless thought? This is important – spend time discussing!

6. Before telling us how we are to live, what does Paul assume? What difference would it make if it weren’t so?

7. What character traits does our world believe makes a good person? How much of it can we see in Jesus?