25-26 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbour, for we are members one of another. 27 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. 

28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labour, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. 

29-30 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Ephesians 4:25-32 (English Standard Version)

Did you spot a common theme in these verses?

Much of it was to do with how Christians should use their mouths! There's an idiom that says “put your money where your mouth is.” It means to do, and to live up to, or to follow through on something we said or promised. It doesn't only refer to money. Paul says that Christians should be a people who speak the truth, who restrain their anger, who don't talk damaging or dirty words, or words that slander and run others down. What is the reason he gives for this in vs 25-27?

Because Jesus is the way, THE TRUTH, and the life, Christians should put away all that is false. We've become members of the family of God and should never want to deceive a brother or sister in Christ. We also don't want our anger to allow Satan to bring mistrust and resentment into the Church that we are part of. What’s another reason (in vs 29-30) for guarding our lips?

Words that damage others grieve the Holy Spirit. It's as if we hurt the Holy Spirit as well as the people we hurt with our words. We need to think about that. The first time the word 'grieved' is used in the Bible we're told that “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord  was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and it grieved Him to His heart.” (Genesis 6:5-6) The 'corrupting' talk Paul mentions isn't just dirty talk and swearing, it's any speech that spoils relationships instead of building people up. What's the root of words that hurt people.(vs 31)

Jesus said that our words come from what's in our heart. If we are bitter towards others, full of anger and even hatred, then our words will be harsh and malicious. That should never be the case between Christians. But what if another Christian has let me down terribly or caused me pain? What if I discover that they have bad-mouthed me to others? Surely I have a right to be angry and to give then a BIG piece of my mind! What does the Holy Spirit say about that through Paul? (vs 32)

Wow. But remember that Paul didn't say we are not allowed to be angry - he said we mustn't dwell on our anger and let it get the better of us. (vs 27) There will be times when other Christians upset us, even hurt us. But we are called by God to show them the same tenderness, kindness, and forgiveness, that He showed to us in Christ Jesus. When our hearts are full of Christ, our words will be full of grace.

It's for the same reasons we noted above concerning dishonest words that Paul also speaks to those who were dishonest in their deeds. (vs 28). Thieves are dishonest, and they hurt the people they steal from. Paul doesn't tell them to just ‘stop stealing’ – he urges them to do honest work AND to share with others. The gospel calls us to a total change from the wrong ways we were living in. If we claim to be converted, our words and actions should show that this is true.