A Visit to God’s Worksite

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers . . . Ephesians 4:11

Intro: Let’s take a look at the roadmap to see where we are

Paul painted a wonderful picture of Christian spirituality in chapters 1-3
– then, in chapter 4, he says, in effect, “You must have a spiritual practice”
• this is sometimes referred to as “spiritual disciplines” or “spiritual exercises”
• it is behavior that promotes, reinforces, and externalizes our inner spiritual life
– this practice is surprisingly social (remember how Paul began with humility, gentleness, etc.)
• the one practice Paul has focused on is “being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace”
◦ the big challenge to unity is our differences — we are not all the same
• but as Paul sees it, the ways in which you differ from me is a gift (to all of us)

For who differentiates you from another? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it? (1 Cor. 4:7)
Now you are Christ’s body, ad individually members of it. (1 Cor. 12:27)

◦ we cannot brag of a greater status than others, because what we have is only what we’ve been given
◦ God’s Spirit passes out gifts to each person that are beneficial to everyone

It would helpful to study 1 Corinthians 12, where the body as a metaphor for spiritual community is more fully developed
– the point is the relationship of the parts to the whole
• your gifts makes you a gift to others
• you are a gift Jesus has given to the community
◦ and he’s given you “gifts”that make your participation valuable to others
◦ although everyone’s participation is unique, we function as one and move toward one goal

Now we are caught up to verse 11

Paul provides examples, choosing those that would be most familiar to his readers Continue reading →

Look For Jesus

There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:4-10

Intro: I don’t like breaking up this section–i.e., verses 1-16

It’s too easy to lose Paul’s train of thought
– this is where “verse by verse” teaching commonly slips up
• all verses may be inspired, but not all verses are created equal
◦  that is to say, some verses contain key themes while the verses around them play a supportive role
◦  also, some verses contain “data” (numbers, genealogies, etc.) that do not have the theological weight of others
• at any rate, the Bible was not written in chapters and verses, so the divisions are artificial
◦ as a rule, several verses together form one thought
◦ to lose sight of that main point, it is too easy to overemphasize something that is merely one piece of a bigger idea
– nevertheless, we want to enjoy all that Paul has packed into this passage
• and the only way to do that is to focus up close
• so what we’ll do is alternate our view by zooming out for the big picture and zooming in on the particulars

Paul’s concern (from last week) is that his readers would be “diligent to preserve the unity of Spirit in the bond of peace”
– in verses 4-10, he elaborates on this and answers two questions:
• where do we (believers, members of his church) find our unity?
• why isn’t our unity obvious?

Vv. 4-6, Where to we find our unity? The answer lies in a list of “ones”

One, in these verses, is a point where two or more lives are linked by single factor
– notice that verse 4 begins abruptly, “One body” (the Greek does not have “There is”)
• so he jumps from “unity” into the list, which begins, “One body”
◦ he has already made the connection between the church and the body of Christ (1:22-23)
◦ also, in 2:16 he demonstrated how Jesus had incorporated both Jews and Gentiles in one body
• toward the end of his ministry on earth, Jesus told his disciples:

I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd (Jn. 10:16)

◦ every follower of Jesus, in every place and in every period of history belongs to this one universal community of faith
– we have learned that sharing a common interest forms a bond between people

C. S. Lewis, “The typical expression of opening Friendship would be something like, ‘What? You too? I thought I was the only one.’”

• camping, stamp collecting, and many other interests are potential points for beginning a friendship
• even so, a bond is formed between us when we discover that we share membership in Jesus’ “body” Continue reading →