Ephesians 5:18Plain English VersionDon’t get drunk. If you drink too much grog, you will go wild, and you will do stupid things. Don’t do that, but instead, keep on letting the Holy Spirit come into you and fill you up. See the chapter |
You see, you might be bad, but you always give good things to your kids. Well, your father in heaven is a lot better than you, so you can be sure that he will always give you good things. He will send the Holy Spirit to everyone that asks him.” (We have not yet translated 11:14-36. You can read about that teaching in Mark 3:20-27; 8:12; Matthew 5:15; 6:22-23; 12:41-45.)
We have to do things that are right and good and honest, like the things people do in the day-light. We can’t go to wild grog parties, and we can’t get drunk. We can’t sleep with anyone that is not our own wife or husband, as if we are married to them. We can’t do wrong things with our bodies. We can’t get into fights and arguments. We can’t be jealous of other people.
No. This is what I meant. Don’t be good friends with people that reckon they are Christians, but they do bad things all the time. If they sleep with somebody that is not their own wife or husband, as if they are married to them, then don’t be good friends with those people. Or if they are greedy, don’t be good friends with them. If they respect bad spirits, and if they make those spirits their gods, don’t be good friends with them. If they yell and swear at other people, don’t be good friends with them. If they always get drunk, don’t be good friends with them. If they trick other people to get their money, don’t be good friends with them. Don’t even eat food with a Christian that does things like that.
and people that steal things, and greedy people that want a lot of money and things, they will not be in God’s family. And people that always get drunk, and people that yell at other people and swear at them, and people that trick other people to get their money, none of those people will be in God’s family.
Now I want to tell you what church leaders have to be like. They have to be really good people, so that nobody can say anything bad about them. A church leader can only have one wife, and he can’t sleep with any other woman, like a husband sleeps with his wife. His kids have to believe in God, and they have to do the right things and not get into trouble. His kids have to do what he says.