Dear Christian friends:

Psychiatrists and Sociologists tell us that everyone has a self-image. We have an idea of what kind of person we are be it good, bad or in-between. They also tell us that parents, teachers, brothers and sisters are the chief persons who are instrumental in shaping the self-image of a person.

For example, if the parents were positive, encouraging and respectful the children usually grow up with a good image of themselves. But if the parents were negative and used destructive criticism and belittled the child it would usually grow up with a poor image of itself.

Psychiatrists also tell us that we perform and live according to our self-image. If we have a good image of ourself, we will generally be confident and positive in all our activities, but if we have a poor image of ourself, we will be shy, retiring easily embarrassed, negative and lacking in self confidence.

I'm sure that you will agree that there is a great deal of truth in this, however, psychiatry usually doesn't consider the part the Gospel plays in shaping the self-image of a person and so is lacking a great deal. What psychiatry lacks St. Paul in our text supplies. He tells us Christians of:


If you have the Christian self-image you can even endure and overcome negative and destructive parental influences also the destructive influence of a bad conscience due to sin, for this is the beautiful self-image that God has given you by the Gospel through faith in Christ Jesus. Although a harsh and legalistic parent or teacher may have constantly emphasized your sinfulness and unworthiness and belittled and diminished you for years; although your conscience and Satan may have added to your poor self-image the Gospel assures you that God has loved you anyway; that He has forgiven all your sins and imperfections and declared you good and perfect through the atonement of His belove Son, Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

You may have had at one time or yet today have a terrible image of yourself such as these Ephesian Christians once had. They thought of themselves more or less as sexual animals beholden to no real living God. In our text St. Paul describes their former bad image. (read verses 17-19) And it seems to me that in the world we are presently living many seem to have a similar debased image of themselves. So it would not be surprising if some of this rubs off on you and I.

But Paul tells us this is not the image we Christians should have of ourselves. (read verses 20-24) We are constantly to remember that we are the dear children of our heavenly Father, created to be like God, righteous and holy in the truth.

In this connection I will never forget an incident that happened when I was pastor to the deaf in Montana, Idaho and Eastern Washington. I had performed a wedding for a deaf couple and the reception was about over when I noticed the brother of the bride and her father saying goodbye to each other. The brother was planning to leave immediately after the wedding for Alaska to work and live there for a time. Since the brother was also deaf and the father hearing they didn't say any words to each other. They just looked at each other for a long time as they shook hands and held each others shoulder with the left hands. They didn't have to say any words, you could read it in their eyes. The Father's eyes were saying: "I love you, son, you know that; our prayers go with you; remember whose son you are. And the son's eyes were saying, "I love you, too, dad. I won't forget; you can count on me." This father had given his son a good image of himself and he lived up to it and in accordance with it.

So God our heavenly Father has given us all a new and precious self-image through the forgiveness of our sins and the rebirth of our minds and hearts worked by His Holy Spirit. God has adopted us as His Sons and daughters. He loves us very dearly. "Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us that we should be called the sons of God" and "Yes are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." What a tremendous image!

"Children of God", "Sons of a King", "Heirs of salvation", "Joint-heirs of salvation", "Joint-heirs of heaven with Christ our elder Brother."

If we keep this beautiful self-image of ourselves we've gotta be good. We just can't help but live as God our Father would have us live. Even if we sometimes forget and fall into sin for a moment or a day or for a time, when we remember or when He graciously reminds us in one way or another we will not hesitate to come back to him and repent. We will trust His love and His goodness and rest in His great mercy and forgiveness. Then we'll try even harder to be like He would have us be.

And how would our Father have us be? Now Paul lists a few particular ways in which we put on this new self-image and walk with it. A person who does not have the Christian's self-image but rather the old one of the heathen tells lies. He lies whenever it is advantageous for him to lie because He is living strictly for himself and doesn't care about God or his neighbor or the Christian Church. So Paul tells us: "Don't lie anymore, but tell one another the truth, because we are members of one another." The Christian considers the needs and welfare of his fellowmen, especially fellow Christian men. Even if the truth hurt him personally he would have to tell it.

Sometimes we get angry. Even Christians are often provoked to anger by the thoughtlessness and sinfulness of fellow Christians. What are we as children of God supposed to do with our anger? God gets angry, too, and He has more right to be angry than we do, because He is perfect while we are sinners and are guilty of the same sins that make us angry when our brother happens to commit them. God, who is holy and needs no forgiveness, forgives and forgets because of His great mercy in Christ. Surely, we who are sinners and ourselves daily need forgiveness should forgive. So Paul says: "Be angry but don't sin. Don't let the sun go down on your anger. Don't give the devil a chance to work." (Ephesians 4:26)

Be kind to one another tender hearted, and forgive one another as God in Christ has forgiven you." But if you let the sun go down on your anger you give the devil a chance to work and oh what a work he can do with you and your anger and hate. Don't nurse it and pet it! Get rid of it by remembering whose Son you are.

And finally if we remember hat we are God's sons we will have a new attitude towards daily work. We won't work just to draw a pay check. If that's all we work for we may as well be a thief. Our heart isn't any better. So St. Paul reminds us: "Anyone who has been stealing should not steal any more, but instead work hard, doing something good with his own hands so that he has something to share with anyone in need." If we merely put in our time on the job and are not concerned about the good we are doing for our fellow employees our boss or company and the community we are no better than a thief.

As children of God we work for His glory and for the welfare of our community, nation and world. Remember whose son you are!

Amen.