Transcript
“Danger: Minefield” are two words with an almost unsurpassed power to stop you in your tracks. Landmines were first used in the 1800s during the Civil War. Later, during World War I, mines were deployed to defend against tanks.
However, it was during WWII that they became a major weapon of war. And, of course, they are still being used in armed conflicts today.
Landmines are often used to defend a military position instead of soldiers, because unlike a sentry, a landmine never needs to sleep. And minefields have often been used to channel an attacking army into what are called “killing zones.”
Some estimates suggest that there are as many as 110 million landmines buried in the 60 or so countries contaminated by these deadly devices and some of these mines date back to World War II, with their locations having been lost to history.
Mine clearance, also called demining, is the process of removing land mines from an identified area. Of course, this is dangerous and tedious work.
It is Paul Heslop’s job to discover them. He started clearing landmines 23 years ago.
He stated once, “If demining is close to any job, then it is archaeology, because it is calm, slow, repetitive work. We use a metal detector to find out where a mine is and then scrapers and prodders to carefully excavate it. A good deminer may find one mine a week.”
A deminer must make sure he is careful where he’s walking! The Apostle Paul teaches us to walk circumspectly, or carefully, because there are spiritual minefields in this world that the believer needs to be aware of. And we need to walk carefully and wisely to avoid these dangers to our spiritual lives and testimony for Christ.
Ephesians 5:15: “See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.”
The words, “See then,” refer to the immediate context. And that context refers to walking as children of light and maintaining a bright testimony for Christ before the world and the unbelieving so that they might find the way of salvation.
It also concerns the need for the believer, who is light in the Lord, to not live in darkness or as the world any longer and to not join with the unbelieving in their unfruitful works or sinful deeds so that our light might shine even brighter and stronger.
The light of our testimony for Christ and the gospel may be vast or small. We may light up one neighborhood, one home, one family, or even just the visitors to one hospital room, or our light might have a greater outreach depending on our circumstances in life.
The light of our testimony for Christ may also be long or short. It may be limited in time by a short life or a short time after we are saved before our homegoing, or we may have many years to be a light for Christ, and our light might even continue shining after our homegoing by the legacy we leave.
Faithfulness to be a light to the world that needs the Lord wherever we are and however long we are here is what God is most concerned about.
It is God’s will that those with His light and presence within radiate outward, shining out God’s goodness, righteousness, and truth.
That is what the “See then” is referring to. “See then” that we conduct our daily lives in a new way as light and not darkness.
“See then” that our lives radiate Christ and His salvation out of a concern for the lost. “See then” that we are a faithful, bright light of the Spirit’s fruit of goodness, righteousness, and truth, and not take part in the unfruitful works of darkness.
In light of these things, Paul wrote, “See then that ye walk circumspectly.”
The term walk portrays our way of life, worked out in a daily, step-by-step process. In Paul’s day, people didn’t just walk for exercise. They walked to get somewhere to go to a destination. So, to walk spiritually, pictures steady progress toward a definite goal.
And the goal for our Christian lives and our daily walk is always Christ, to know Him and to be more and more like Him.
The believer’s daily walk in this world is one of resolve, honor, and courage. It is full of purpose. And you see that in this instruction for our walk.
When Paul says to “walk circumspectly,” the word “circumspectly” means exactly, accurately, diligently, and carefully.
The first half of this word, the “circum” in circumspectly, means around. For example, the word “CIRCUMference” refers to the distance around something.
The second half of the word, the “spectly” in circumspectly, means to look. Think of the word “spectacles” which refers to eyeglasses, out of which one looks. So, to put it together, “circumspectly” means to look around, and to do so out of carefulness and exactness.
It has the idea of walking on a narrow path along the side of a steep mountain. In that instance, you definitely take each step carefully and accurately, looking with awareness and alertness at the path so that you don’t stumble or make any missteps.
In the original Greek, “See then that ye walk circumspectly” is in the present imperative. This means that it is a COMMAND to CONTINUALLY walk carefully and to pay close attention to how we live. We’re charged to be constantly careful.
Now, I couldn’t even count how many times my wife and I have told our children to “be careful” when they were growing up, and we still do it, even now that they are adults. God is telling us to be “careful” here, too, at all times.
Walking circumspectly means to make sure we’re being careful to live by faith and obedience to the Word of God so that we are a consistent and faithful light before the world.
God wants us to live carefully and thoughtfully, paying attention to the consequences of our actions and behavior, so that we might guard against what might cause a brother or sister in Christ to stumble or give reason for the unbelieving to reject Christ.
To walk circumspectly is to live aware of danger, knowing that the enemy, the devil, attacks believers in the spiritual battle and has a plan to destroy us.
We are to walk carefully so that we don’t stumble or fall in our testimony and cause our light for Christ to dim as a result of one of the devil’s attacks and temptations.
To walk circumspectly is also to be watchful for opportunities for Christ and to share the truth, and to be careful to rely on the Spirit and His strength by faith.
The believer’s walk is to be one that is given careful consideration. It is one that is to be the outgrowth of thought, purpose, and deliberate action according to God’s Word.
Life is made up of steps, decisions, and events. Walking circumspectly is to have one’s spiritual eyes open to look around and consider God and His will in each step we take, in the decisions we make, and in the things that take place in our lives.
One who walks circumspectly surveys all circumstances and possible consequences before deciding, speaking, or acting. It is like the old saying, “Look before you leap,” which means to carefully consider the possible consequences before you act.
And looking around and considering God’s will and the consequences of our behavior in this context is in regard to “the wrath of God” that comes upon the children of disobedience (v. 6), and our need to be a light to them to reprove their sinful lifestyles, so that they might realize their need of Christ and be saved.
Paul adds that we are to “walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise.” Paul adds to what he means by walking circumspectly here, first giving a negative, then a positive.
Paul says we are to walk carefully, “not as fools.” A fool is not just someone who is a couple bricks short of a full load. Psalm 14:1 gives us a description of a fool: “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.”
A fool is a person who lives apart from God because of unbelief. They deny God in their heart and beliefs, and because they believe they have no accountability to God, their consequent, foolish actions stem from that.
Proverbs 28:26 says, “He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool.” A fool does not trust in God or His wisdom, but rather their own heart. And Jeremiah describes the heart as deceitful above all things and desperately wicked.
Proverbs 12:15 states that “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes.” A fool is one who doesn’t follow God’s ways but does what is right in his own eyes, follows his own way, and convinces himself that his way is true and good.
Proverbs 14:9 states that “Fools make a mock at sin.” Sin is that which is against God and His standard of righteousness. But since the fool does not recognize God, he does not recognize sin. Thus, he makes his own rules and standards and justifies his behavior.
A fool proudly believes he has the authority to determine what is right and wrong, true and false, entirely by his own thinking and reasoning.
But God doesn’t want us to live like this. He wants His children to live carefully, not as fools, or as those live apart from God and His wisdom and purposes.
Rather God wants us to “walk circumspectly…as wise” people. Wisdom with God is the knowledge, understanding, and the application of the truth of His Word. It is a matter of knowing what God says and doing it.
All of Proverbs 12:15 states, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.”
To we walk carefully as “wise men” and “wise women,” we need the true wisdom and light of God’s Word to guide our steps. As we hearken unto its counsel, we will be wise.
And Proverbs 9:10 states, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”
To be wise is the opposite of what a fool is, believes, and does. It is not to say in our hearts that “There is no God,” as the fool does, but instead to fear the Lord and acknowledge Him in our lives, and to trust Him, to know Him, and to follow His ways and live by the truth and righteousness of the Word. This is true wisdom.
Walking carefully in this world and avoiding its dangerous land mines of sin, temptation, and false beliefs occurs as we depend on God and His Word, carefully stepping, putting our feet, and following Him where He says to go.
Charting our course according to the Word is wise. It keeps our priorities and values straight, and it leads us to live for what is good, right, true, and lasting.
The challenge of this verse, to “walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,” is ultimately a call to the knowledge and application of the Word of God.
Ephesians 5:16 says: “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Some believe that 6:30 is the best time on a clock. Hands down.
Speaking of time, day planners are readily available and easy to find. Many time-management self-help books have been written. Seminars on how to increase your efficiency in life and the workplace are common.
How to make every moment count and how to invest your time wisely and the most productively is something that is on people’s minds.
There are many demands on our time. We all understand that time is valuable and is a precious possession. And there are “time-wasters” in life, such as: worrying, focusing on getting rich, trying to please everyone, bitterness, dwelling on the past, and so on.
Wasting the gift of time grieves the Giver of time. God doesn’t want us to waste our time; He wants us to fill our time and to use our time. God has instruction for our time and our time is invested wisely and used productively as we serve and live for Him.
Verse 16 shows how a believer is to walk wisely and not foolishly. One way is to make the most of our time and grab the opportunities we are given in life to serve the Lord.
The word “redeeming” means to buy up something, to rescue from loss. It refers to seeing something of great value and seizing the opportunity to buy it up.
It reminds me of going to the stores after Christmas when they have all their candy, lights and decorations, candles, perfumes and colognes on sale for 50-75% off. You aggressively buy up and grab what you can before it is too late and it’s all gone.
The Greek word for “time” is not the Greek word for clock time, the time that is measured in hours, minutes, and seconds. Rather, Paul used a word that denotes a measure of time, a fixed, allocated season. It does not emphasize a point of time but rather a time-space filled with all kinds of possibilities.
The term implies an opportune time, and so the word “time” is translated as “opportunity” in Galatians 6:10: “As we have therefore OPPORTUNITY, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.”
We each have a measure, a season of time, a window of opportunity on earth. Our lives and time have a boundary, and our opportunity for service exists within that boundary.
As Psalm 39:4-5 says, “LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am. Behold, Thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before Thee…”
“My days as an handbreadth,” refers to the width of a hand across it. We each have this short window of time and opportunity to serve the Lord.
God wants us to take hold of the time we have and the opportunities that are in it and use it to the fullest, using it for Christ.
Ephesians 5:16 teaches us to buy up the opportunities whenever we can to serve the Lord and to devote the time and effort to make the most of them for His glory.
Bear Bryant, Alabama’s celebrated college football coach, told of a time in his early days of coaching at the University of Kentucky when his team fumbled the ball in front of the bench, but in the resulting scramble to recover the ball, someone kicked over a box containing eight more footballs.
A free-for-all ensued with Tennessee recovering five balls and Kentucky four. The officials gave possession to Tennessee. The moral of the story: When the ball comes bouncing your way, just grab it. Seize every opportunity.
God wants us to have purposeful and meaningful lives in His service, lives in which we maximize our time by seizing the opportunities He gives us.
Earlier in Ephesians we read, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should WALK in them” (2:10).
God has good works for us to do and walk in, and we’re to grab hold of the chance to do them when given the chance.
God doesn’t force the believer to do good works; the opportunities present themselves, and we need to recognize them and take hold of them and walk in them.
And we do so remembering the truth of the old quote, “Only one life, Twill soon past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.”
So, in light of the fool and the wise of verse 15, the “unwise” allow opportunities to pass them by, occasions which cannot be recalled. They may regret it, but they have missed it.
The “wise,” on the other hand, who walk circumspectly, are careful to look for and recognize opportunities to do good works and serve the Lord, and when they see them, they grab hold of them, they make the most of it whatever the sacrifice, and they redeem it.
And we are to do so “because the days are evil.” By grace, this additional instruction reaches for our hearts while reminding us of something we all know.
The days being evil reminds us of the assessment of the world in Noah’s day, “And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only EVIL continually” (Gen. 6:5).
The fact that the times in which we live are so evil and morally corrupt is a strong reason for making use of every opportunity for good and for Christ to counteract that evil.
This tells us why we should not live aimlessly and carelessly but instead to walk circumspectly, redeeming the opportunities God places in our path.
The fact that there is active evil opposing that which is good and that there are people who need to be rescued from this evil lends a sense of urgency to redeem the time.
As Pastor Jim Black rightly said, “The horrible state of the world is a reminder of just how desperately our world needs Jesus.”
We need to use our time for Christ, because there’s a dark world that needs Him, and there are so many that need to be turned from darkness to light.
As Colossians 4:5 tells us, “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.”
Ephesians 5:17 says, “Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.”
Paul says, “Wherefore be ye not unwise.” The word “unwise,” means to be without reason, senseless, ignorant.
Paul did not want the church to be unwise, that is, to not see things in their true light, or to not estimate things according to their relative importance.
Seeing things in their true light in this context, we see and recognize that the days are evil. And to estimate things according to their relative importance, we must walk carefully as children of light in this evil day before people who need Christ.
In these verses, Paul shows us that wise people walk circumspectly, they redeem and make the most of their time and opportunities, and they seek to discover and do God’s will.
Our understanding of the will of the Lord, and what it is, comes from the knowledge of the Word of God.
The term “understanding” means to set or join together in the mind; it refers to assembling facts into an organized whole. And because this is understanding about the will of the Lord, it’s thinking and reasoning about the Word of God and putting the pieces together so that the Lord’s will is clear to us.
Because the days are evil, it is vital that we not be unwise or ignorant, but understanding what God is doing today and what His will is for man under grace.
When the Bible speaks of God’s will, there are times when it speaks of His specific will for a particular person in a given situation. But more frequently, the Bible speaks of the “will of the Lord” as God’s overall plan for mankind. In the context of Ephesians, the “will of the Lord” is the eternal plan of God as laid out in chapters 1-3.
If we are to be wise, and not unwise, we are to understand the plans and purposes of God, as revealed in the Scriptures. And we are to base our decisions on His eternal plan.
1 Chronicles 12:32 reads, “And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do.” Today God’s people still need to “understand the times” to know what the Church, the Body of Christ should do.
To understand the times and what the will of the Lord is, we need to realize that God has “made known unto us the mystery of His WILL” as Ephesians 1:9 says earlier in this letter. This “will” that Paul had already mentioned in Ephesians is what we are called to understand in chapter 5, verse 17.
The “us” in “made known unto us the mystery of His will,” are those who are the members of the Church, the Body of Christ. God’s will has been made known to the Church today, we just need to understand it from the Word with the Spirit’s help and enlightenment.
The “mystery of His will” is the previously unknown truth and revelation that the Lord Jesus revealed to the Apostle Paul. In Ephesians 3:3, Paul wrote, “How that by revelation He [or Christ] made known unto me the mystery…Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men.” This is the “will” we need to understand.
The revelation of the mystery teaches that, after God set His program with Israel aside temporarily, He ushered in a program with the nations and the dispensation of the grace of God, a dispensation which has continued for nearly 2000 years.
As Paul wrote earlier, “If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward,” or to you people of the nations.
Under this current dispensation, God is dealing with all people in His grace, giving all men an opportunity to be saved by grace through faith.
And as we understand what the will of the Lord is, 1 Timothy 2:4 tells us very simply: “God WILL have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.”
It is God’s will and desire that every single man, woman, boy, and girl be saved from their sins and enter into a personal, eternal relationship with Him.
So as we walk carefully and redeem the time and opportunities we are given, we do so understanding that God’s heart and will is that God wants all to be saved.
And in understanding what the will of the Lord is today, we can make known a clear gospel message. The gospel is very simple. We are saved from all our sins and from hell by grace through faith alone, just believing that Christ died for our sins and rose again. That’s it.
Ephesians 1:13 states that “In Whom [or Christ] ye also trusted, after that ye HEARD the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in Whom also after that ye BELIEVED, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise.”
Also, by understanding the Lord’s will, we can properly apply the Word in light of God’s grace truth for the Church today, so we can know how we are to walk today and be an even stronger testimony and an even brighter light for Christ.
And it is very clear in this context what the will of the Lord is. It is that “ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light” (5:8).
The Lord’s will is that we “have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them,” with the prayer that as a result of our testimony of light, those sleeping in spiritual darkness might “awake,” and those dead in their sins might “arise from the dead” by faith in Christ.
And it is the Lord’s will that we “walk circumspectly,” with carefulness and thought before the world, redeeming the time and seizing the opportunities we are given for Christ to serve Him and make Him known so that souls might be saved.