In verse 17 Paul charges us to “no longer walk as the nations also walk in the vanity of their mind.” Those who walk in this way are “darkened in their understanding, estranged from the life of God because of the ignorance which is in them, because of the hardness of their heart” (v. 18). It is possible to be a saved person, one who has the life of God, yet walk in the vanity of the mind. For example, some may do their shopping in the vanity of the mind and thereby become alienated from the life of God. Others may go to Chinatown and be estranged from the life of God. As they sit in the restaurant enjoying a Chinese meal, they may sense that, because they are living according to the former manner of life, they are cut off from the life of God. Because of the insulation within them, they do not sense the flow of the heavenly electricity. Whenever we return to the old manner of life, we shall spontaneously sense that we are darkened within and estranged from God’s life. If we persist in living according to the former manner of life, we shall eventually become calloused and insensitive. We may even cease from feeling because we do not care for our conscience.
The church life is definitely a community life. But it is a community life altogether different from that of the old man. The community life of the one new man is new in every way.
Consider how many terms Paul uses to describe the life of fallen man in verses 17 through 19. He refers to vanity, darkness, estrangement, ignorance, and hardness. Whenever we live according to our old community life, we do not sense any shining or brightness within. We may reason that it is permissible to do a certain thing, but we realize that it causes us to be alienated from the life of God and to be in darkness.
The church life is not a matter of right and wrong; it is a matter of the living Christ. You may argue that it is not wrong for you to go shopping at a certain department store. You may insist that such a thing is not sinful. There may in fact be nothing wrong with it, but it causes you to be darkened and estranged from the life of God. You may be right in every way, but you do not experience Christ as your life and as your person. This is the reason that after you go shopping you may not be able to pray for a period of time. The church life is higher than the standard of right and wrong; it is a living that is according to Christ. If Christ is the One living in us, He will not allow us to do certain things. For example, He will not be pleased for us to go shopping according to our former manner of life. Such a way of living is not according to the living of Christ.
In 4:20 Paul speaks of learning Christ and in verse 21, of having been “taught in Him as the truth is in Jesus.” In a note on 4:21 J. N. Darby points out that in Greek there is an emphatic article before Jesus. He then goes on to say that this indicates that “Jesus’ is personally brought into relief.” The truth in Jesus is the real situation of the life of Jesus as recorded in the four Gospels, a life filled with truth, reality. Jesus lived a life of always doing things in God, with God, and for God. God was in His life, and He was one with God. This is the truth in Jesus. Jesus lived in a way that always corresponded to God’s righteousness and holiness.
In verse 24 Paul says that the new man is created according to God in righteousness and holiness of the truth. This truth no doubt is the very truth in Jesus. Our standard of living should not be according to the law or according to the standards of society; it must be according to the truth in Jesus, the reality lived out by Jesus when He was on earth. Hence, the life of Jesus should be our life today in the church. In other words, the living of the new man should be exactly the same as the living of Jesus. The way Jesus lived on earth is the way the new man should live today.
If we would live in such a way, we should not reason according to right or wrong. Instead, we should consider the various aspects of our daily life according to the truth as it is in Jesus. For example, if we are about to go shopping, we should ask whether the Lord Jesus is going shopping. The life of the one new man must be that of the reality of Jesus. If we all live in a way that is heavenly, divine, righteous, holy, and glorious, we shall have a wonderful community life in the church. This is the corporate life of the new man.
Toward the end of chapter four Paul says, “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in Whom you were sealed unto the day of redemption” (v. 30). I am concerned that day by day and even hour by hour many of us are grieving the indwelling Holy Spirit. We grieve Him because we do not live according to the new manner of life. Instead, we walk according to the vanity of the mind. Because we do not stay in the spirit of the mind, we grieve the Holy Spirit. This is a further indication that the new man needs not only creation and growth for function, but also the practical daily living with a new manner of life. This is the church life.