Thoughts From Ephesians 5 - Part 3

 “Wake up, sleeper,

    rise from the dead,
    and Christ will shine on you.”

15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Eph.5:14-20

        I see 6 W's in this passage. First of all - Wake up. Salvation is waking up. The alarm clock of conviction of sin by the Holy Spirit is going off and you have a choice - respond or turn it off. If you respond and are reborn, it's possible to get lulled back to sleep in our walk with the Lord like the guys in Matthew 25 and say, "my master isn't coming back anytime soon. Don't be so intense!" Paul says, no. We will only be here for a hiccup of time compared to eternity and we can't waste a second. Living day by day knowing that you are only a short timer here and the minutes are ticking away until we leave for our real home is living wisely.

        Second, although it's not mentioned as such is witnessing. We are to make the most of every opportunity. You don't know if you will ever get another opportunity to introduce that person to Christ so don't say, "I'll do it tomorrow." I used to in my practice write a small "w" on progress notes if I witnessed to people that day. That would keep me from repeating the same thing next time I saw them because it's hard to remember what you say from visit to visit. It would also make sure that at some point during their pregnancy I spoke about Jesus and salvation. Several times, years later I would see a picture in the obituary and race back to my records and see if there was a "w" there. What a relief to see it.

         Third we see drunkenness and wine. I'm always amazed when I go on a vacation like a cruise or all-inclusive how so many people go just to be drunk the whole time. I guess they can't do it at home because they have responsibilities? Is that really fun, to be in a stupor, to let the alcohol numb your inhibitions so you can have an excuse for sensuality. Paul says, rather, since you are on the clock, let the Holy Spirit control you in such a way that you become a fool for Jesus.

        Last, we see worshipping. Everywhere we go we should have a song in our hearts or on our Bluetooth in the car or ear buds. (although wearing ear buds may hurt your chance of witnessing) We should be in constant communication with God aware of His presence everywhere we go. If you are doing that, you probably won't miss those opportunities to witness, and you will be bubbling over with "craziness" for God. And it should be a thankful heart not a whining one. Since I was praising myself with the "w's", I must tell on myself that I used to draw wine glasses on charts of whiners to prepare myself before I went into a room. They would drain me. (I did draw a few drains too). And you thought doctors were recording your problems while writing in the chart! How can we be anything but thankful people knowing that we have eternal life in Heaven and are adopted into the king's family?