If you have put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, you are a new creation. You have been created in the likeness of God in righteousness and holiness (Eph. 4:24). By the Spirit, God has worked in you to be His workmanship. Therefore, with the new life you have in Christ, you are, we are, to represent God in the world in all holiness and righteousness. But what does that look like? Paul gives us seven answers:
Answer #1:It means living a trustworthy life. Ephesians 4:25 states, “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.”
Answer #2: It means not letting anger control us. Ephesians 4:26 and 27 say, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.” Now as Ephesians 4:26 implies, we can be angry without sinning. But when we anger and lose self-control (which is a fruit of the Spirit), that is when anger becomes sinful. As a new creation, we must live with self-control. When we become angry and lose self-control, we give Satan a foothold in our lives. It is good, at times, to be angry; mainly, when such anger is righteous. But overall, as James 1:20 tells, the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore, we should all be cautious in becoming angry.
Answer #3: It means we live an honest life. Ephesians 4:28 says, “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”
Answer #4: It means giving thought to how we use our words. Ephesians 4:29 says, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” As a new creation, we must not permit language that is abusive or foul to come out of our mouths, especially when referring to others. In fact, Ephesians 5:4 says, “Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. Our words, as new creations in Christ, should use words that encourage others, builds up, and of thanksgiving.
Answer #5: It means not grieving the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 4:30 says, “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” The Spirit is grieved by how we live our life as a new creation. For example, by how we speak (Eph. 4:29) and by how we treat others (Eph. 4:31-32).
Answer #6: It means ridding ourselves of “bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander…along with all malice” (Ephesians 4:31). These are behaviors that grieve the Spirit of God, who lives in every person that has truly surrendered to Christ.
Answer #7: It means we are to “be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). Instead of bitter, we are to be kind. Instead of wrathful and angry and clamoring, we are to be tenderhearted, which means sympathetic. Instead of having malice towards those who do us wrong or cause us harm or injury, we are to be forgiving. Why? Because God, through Jesus, has forgiven us.
Now, how do we do this? Let me just say, there is no way any human being can do this on his or her own. It’s impossible. The only way one can do this is by the Spirit. In our flesh we will fail to live this new life in Christ. Certainly, none of us are perfect. Praise God for His abundant grace! We need the Spirit’s help to live as Paul pointed out in these verses. We must permit the Spirit to lead us. This new life that we are to live in Christ must be lived depending on the Holy Spirit.