There are two groups of Gentiles: the believers and the unbelievers (termed “other Gentiles” in Ephesians 4:17). The Bible teaches that these two groups are very different in their daily walk (or way of life). As Gentile believers, we do not claim perfection in our daily Christian walk, but when we sin, we must confess and ask God for forgiveness, and repent of our sins. We are not to hold on to sin deliberately or to regard iniquities in our hearts. This struggle with sin will continue till we get to heaven. The “other Gentiles” will be different. To them, sin feels normal and may even be desired. Ephesians 4:17-19 teaches the believing Gentiles to walk not as “other Gentiles” walk.

Our mind is not measured by how educated or learned we are, or how well we can think. God judges our mind according to only one aspect: whether or not there is “vanity” in our mind. “Vanity” means depraved. What occupies/fills our mind once we wake up every day? The depraved mind of the unbeliever seeks after material wealth and praises of man. The believer’s mind is filled completely with the knowledge of God. It will think godly thoughts and find great joy in doing so. A godly mind will transform our relationships with everything.

As unbelievers, our hearts were blinded to God and His Word. We had no spiritual understanding of His Word and would read it just like any other books. The blinded heart is the root cause of a depraved mind. Our motives and intentions stem from the heart. Thus, true salvation begins from the heart when we surrender our hearts to God. A blinded heart can memorise God’s Word, but God’s Word will have no effect on our lives. Our lives will not bear fruit. We must have God as the top priority in our lives. Let us surrender our hearts to God. Hold nothing back from Him. It must be a complete and unconditional surrender, otherwise our heart is still blind.

Which group of Gentiles we belong to is proved by the life that we live. Do we follow God? Or the fashion of the world? How we live must be consistent regardless of where we are. Let us be ready to conform to God’s Word and to prove it by the way we live. Let us be teachable, and show forth our new life in Christ.