Do not grieve the Holy Spirit… (Ephesians 4:25-32) 250408
There are five clear practical ethical instructions from Apostle Paul in this passage . But it is unfortunate that the chapter division at 5:1, it is because for the commands to imitate God and to love as those who have been loved in 5:1 – 2 continue the idea of forgiving as God has forgiven in 4:31. Ephesians 5:1 – 2 is best seen as the conclusion of this unit in the letter. (Taken from NIV Application Commentary of the Epistle to Ephesians). That will make it seven practical ethical instructions whereby verse 30 is in the middle of these seven.
Therefore, the center theme of this passage is for us not to grieve the Holy Spirit (v30). What does Paul meant by "do not grieve the Holy Spirit"? How can we grieve the Holy Spirit in the first place? The answer is clear from this passage. It has a lot to do with our relationship with one another.
Firstly, consider that we are members of one another, and some version will say we are members of one body (v25). I think I like the NASB translation better. We are not merely members of another body, but of one another. This implies that whatever I do, affects you and whatever you do affects me; not the common body. I had a small cut at the tip of my tongue, and it affects the way I speak and even my mood, I became very irritable and impatience. Just cause by a small cut at the tip of my tongue. When we do not speak the truth, it affects the others, and this grieves the Holy Spirit.
Secondly, consider how we may have something to share with those who has need (v28). When we are angry, or steal from others, we are actually depriving the others from having what they need. When we are angry with someone’s mistake, it is alright. But if we keep harboring the angry and turn to bitterness, we are not only giving the devil an opportunity (v27) to gain his stronghold in us, we also deprive the other person the opportunity to be restored. And stealing is obvious taking away what others need. I am taking care of Alethea today as I am writing this devotion, she refuses sleep after her feed and I am angry with her. Instead of lovingly coax her to sleep, I angrily trying different methods to "put her to sleep". I do not love her in my anger as she disrupted my plan to do my thing (even though writing devotion is a good thing). I should share love with her who needs it. But not doing so, I am grieving the Holy Spirit. I confess and repent and she sleeps.
Thirdly, consider how we may give grace to those who hear (v29) what we say. Consider how we speak, the words from our mouth, may it be wholesome and edifying. Sometime we are so careless in the way we speak and use of our words, we hurt others unintentionally. But no matter we are intentional or not, we hurt others and this grieve the Holy Spirit. Instead, speak words that are encouraging and edifying. I am thankful to some brothers and sisters in our midst who always text me some words of encouragement and these words really pull me through this period of stress.
Fourthly, consider how we may forgive each others as God in Christ also has forgiven you (v32). I will not elaborate on this as I have dealt with in a few days ago. Just remember, do not grieve the Holy Spirit.
Fifthly and sixthly are not from the passage of today, but I will briefly explain 5:1-2. We are to consider how to be a beloved children by imitating Christ (5:1). Unless we understand that we are dearly loved (5:1, NIV), our imitation of God will be in vain, that will become merely religiosity and rituals. This grieved the Holy Spirit. And also be a recipient of Christ’s love as He gave Himself up for us (5:2). Because the love of Christ on the Cross is the central of our faith, if we miss this, we miss the whole point. This will grieve the Holy Spirit. These speak of our relationship with God as the centrality of our faith and hold on to it. Whatever we do, do with Christ in mind. Yesterday, my former SBC principal shared about how to be a Gospel directed person. He shared how he preached Christ on almost every taxi trip with the taxi drivers, how he even imitates Christ to be humble when he was dealing with some projects with other college staffs, though he was the former principal and has high status in the college.
Therefore, do not grieve the Holy Spirit. Consider our words, actions and thoughts; and also our relationship with one another and also God.
HHS…
Abel…
