Ephesians 4:17-24

Ephesians 4:17-24 Do not live as someone who is far from God. Put off the old self and live as someone who has been made new in Christ.
v 17-19 People who are far from God are not thinking correctly, they are darkened in their understanding, ignorant of the truth, and separated from God. They become calloused and give themselves over to sin. What we do best apart from God is sin. All we need to do to see this in action is to watch the news. We must realize that we are all one step away from ending up on the news, and not one of us would want our life decisions shown on the big screen.
v 20-24 We need good Godly teaching to learn about Christ. Our old self is a liar, trying to deceive us and tempt us into sin. We need to put off the old self. Rom 7:21-25, Gal 5:16-17. Which one will win-the old self or new self? It's the one you feed the most. We should put on the new self, created to be like God. 2 Cor 5:17. This is not just a "better" version of ourselves, for there is nothing good in us. It's God's version of us, which is better by far. We are not bad people trying to be good. We are dead people made alive in Christ, who want to be more like Jesus.

Ephesians 4:1-12

Ephesians 4:1-12
v4-6 "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." These are the basics of our faith. Jn 14:6
v7-12 We were all given spiritual gifts to use for God. Descended - came to earth.  Captives - those who had been captive to sin.
v12 Spiritual gifts, Rom 12:6-8. We all need to use our gifts - to serve the church.

Ephesians 4:1-6

Eph 4:1-6: Unity in the church
v1 "urge" to come alongside, a passionate plea. Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Your practical living should match your spiritual condition.
v2 be humble (attitude that says I'm not more important than you, how can I serve you? Phil 2:1-4), gentle (strength under the control of God, maturity), patient (with respect to each other, having a wide soul so you can deal with those around you, patience is hard), love (bear with each other in love 1 Pet 4:8).
v4 make every effort (do your best, a determined effort)