11. The Calling of the Christian (2)

Posted on Posted in Sermon Notes Tagged with , , ,

Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians

Knowing Your Privilege in Christ

 “The Calling of the Christian (2)”

(Ephesians 4:1-16)

1 I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

OUTLINE

  • Live as you are called (v1-6)
  • Serve as you are endowed (v7-16)

Continued…

In verses 4-6, Paul elaborates for us the 7 reasons for this unity.

4 There isone body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who isabove all, and through all, and in you all. 

True Christian unity isn’t sharing a cup of coffee and discussing last night who won the match, but is bound up with our common bond with the Triune God. 

There is one body… true unity is built on the truth that there is one body, the church, Jesus Christ is the Head (1:23; 2:16). And although the body has this fundamental unity as a body of God’s people, it also necessarily has diversity. There is room for differing gifts, ministries and personalities in this one body. Each one comes into the body by experiencing the new birth. 

and one Spirit…

Here we are referring to born again Christians having the new birth.

even as ye are called in one hope of your calling…

Paul is referring to the yet future aspect of our salvation, the second coming of Jesus Christ, when we will be changed totally to be like Christ and share His glory. In the Bible, hope is not uncertain, as we often use the term. We say, “I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow,” but it is just a wish. But biblical hope is absolutely certain, but not yet realized.[1]

It is certain because God has promised it and He never fails to keep His promises. We just haven’t experienced it yet at this point in time. Although mockers may scoff at the promise of Christ’s coming, God is not slow about His promise (2 Pet. 3:3-4, 9). When He comes, we will be caught up to be with Him forever. Those who reject Him will face His wrath and judgment. As with the doctrine of the Spirit, so with matters of prophecy, there is division among Christians. But all genuine Christians are united on this one fact, that Jesus is coming back bodily in power and glory. It is the Holy Spirit who gives us hope as we believe in the promise of His coming (Rom. 15:13). This is the hope of our calling.[2]

5 One Lord…biblical unity is built on the truth that there is one Lord.

There is one Lord, Jesus Christ Himself. He “is our peace” (Eph. 2:14). Thus, all true biblical unity centers in the person and work of Jesus Christ, our eternal Lord. 

If a person or a religious group denies what the Bible teaches about the Person of Jesus, that He is fully God and fully man, we are not in unity with them. If they deny His substitutionary death on the cross as the only means by which we can be reconciled to God, we are not one with them. If they deny the need to submit everything to Jesus as Lord and to live so as to please Him, we are not one with them. He is our Lord both by virtue of who He is, the sovereign Creator and Sustainer of the universe; and, by what He did, purchasing us with His blood on the cross. If someone claims to know Christ as Savior, but denies that He is their Lord, you need to challenge him on whether he truly knows Him as Saviour. At best, you cannot enjoy true fellowship with a professing Christian who by a disobedient life denies the lordship of Jesus Christ.[3]

one faith…biblical unity is built on the truth that there is one faith.

This faith is the body of doctrine found in the Old and New Testament. We need to make sure that we get our faith from the right Bible which in the English language is the King James Bible. 

For example, the modern versions have doctrinal errors which we do not want to follow because it is translated from the Greek Text that has 9900 words missing. If you have the wrong Bible, you have some places where false doctrine is found. Today, there is not one doctrine or one faith but there are many doctrines.[4]

John 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. The New International Version and the New American Standard Bible leave out the important words “on me” because they follow the false Greek text Westcott and Hort. They follow this Gnostic heretical text from Egypt.[5]The NIV says, I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. They omit “on me”/ The Gnostics did not believe that Christ was necessary for salvation. If you are going to have one faith, you better have the right underpinning to that faith.

one baptism…true unity is built on the truth that there is one baptism.

Here it refers not to more water or less water but the Spirit’s indwelling in the believer at conversion.

6 One God and Father of all, who isabove all, and through all, and in you all. 

Here the Father of all refers to the Father of all believers and not the Father of all people. That is the distinction of truth and error in our modernistic and liberal churches. These churches may say that God is the Father of all people, Christian and non-Christian.

In His omnipresent, the entire Godhead, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, indwells all those who are redeemed and saved by God’s grace. Because God is omnipotent and omnipresent, He can do all.[6]  

Our first thought “live as you are called” secondly, “serve as you are endowed”. 

(2) Serve as you are endowed (v7-16)

7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 

God gives gifts according to the “measure of the gift of Christ.” Every saved person has been given a “gift” from Christ. God gives you some special thing that you can do that no one else can do. This is not a natural gift. It is a supernatural gift. The word “measure” refers to an instrument to measure something. There are 12 kinds of gift which are spoken of in 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and Romans twelve. 

Romans 12:4-8 (KJV) 4 For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: 5 So we, beingmany, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. 6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesyaccording to the proportion of faith; 7 Or ministry, let us waiton ourministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; 8 Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do itwith simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.

Each is to function in the measure of the gift given (v7) … the order in the list of gifts is similar to 1 Corinthians 12:28-31 where Paul states that God has appointed first apostles, second prophets, and third teachers, then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators, various kinds of tongues.

1 Corinthians 12:27-31 (KJV) 27 Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. 28 And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. 29 Areall apostles? areall prophets?areall teachers? areall workers of miracles? 30 Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret? 31 But covet earnestly the best gifts: and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way. 

Here in Ephesians, Paul has the same order except he lists the evangelists and the pastors not mentioned in 1 Corinthians) between the prophets and the teachers. It must be realized that the lists in the three passages on gifts (Eph. 4; Rom. 12; 1 Cor. 12) vary and thus there are overlaps as well as omissions from each list. Paul lists gifts and not offices. Everyone has a gift but not everyone holds an office. There are particular requirements for those office bearers depending on marital status, those holding office cannot be novices whereas gifts are given regardless of age or maturity.[7]

What is your gift? Once you have your gift, exercise it. Do not just sit idly by. Whether it is your gift of giving, or your gift of praying, or your gift of ministry, or your gift of helping, use it! There are those who would write a card to encourage another person, it is a gift.

How do we know if it’s the Lord’s leading to go ahead, it is according to the Scriptures!

8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 

William MacDonald said well, “4:7 The doctrine of the unity of the Body of Christ has a twin truth, namely, the diversity of its members. Each member has a particular role assigned. No two members are alike, and no two have exactly the same function. The part to be played by each one is assigned according to the measure of Christ’s gift, that is, He does it as He sees fit. If Christ’s gift here means the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, 17; Acts 2:38, 39), then the thought is that the Holy Spirit is the One who assigns some gift to every saint, and who also gives the ability to exercise that gift. As each member fulfills his appointed work, the Body of Christ grows both spiritually and numerically.

4:8 In order to assist each child of God to find and fulfill his function, the Lord has given some special gifts of ministry, or service to the church. These should not be confused with the gifts mentioned in the previous verse. Every believer has some gift (v. 7), but not everyone is one of the gifts named in verse 11: these are special gifts designed for the growth of the body.

First, we find that the Giver of those special gifts is the risen, ascended, glorified Lord Jesus Christ. Paul quotes Psalm 68:18 as a prophecy that the Messiah would ascend to heaven, would conquer His foes and lead them captive, and, as a reward for His victory, would receive gifts for men.

4:9 But this raises a problem! How could the Messiah ascend to heaven? Had He not lived in heaven with God the Father from all eternity? Obviously, if He was to ascend to heaven, He must first come down from heaven. The prophecy of His Ascension in Psalm 68:18 implies a prior descent. So, we might paraphrase verse 9 as follows: “Now when it says in Psalm 68 ‘He ascended’ — what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth.” 

We know that this is exactly what happened. The Lord Jesus descended to Bethlehem’s manger, to the death of the cross, and to the grave. The lower parts of the earth have sometimes been taken to refer to hades or hell. But that would not fit in with the argument here: His Ascension necessitated a previous descent to earth but not to hell. In addition, the Scriptures indicate that Christ’s spirit went to heaven, not hell, when He died (Luke 23:43, 46).”

The gift of apostles and prophets are foundational gifts before the Bible is completed. There is no need for further revelation when the Bible is completed.

Rather, we believe today we have “evangelists” ones who proclaim and preach the Christ.

William MacDonald in the Believers Bible Commentary said well, “Evangelists are those who preach the good news of salvation. They are divinely equipped to win the lost to Christ. They have special ability to diagnose a sinner’s condition, probe the conscience, answer objections, encourage decisions for Christ, and help the convert find assurance through the word. Evangelists should go out from a local church, preach to the world, then lead their converts to a local church where they will be fed and encouraged.”

Pastors and teachers are still here. Some combine those two. The pastor is one who shepherds the flock. He is to shepherd those God has given him for care. The Lord Jesus Christ is our Shepherd. We are His sheep, but the preachers and undershepherds are in charge of the local church which is their flock. 

Pastors minister to troubled saints, exhorting and comforting all believers and administering the activities in the local assembly.[8]

The tasks of the shepherd are many – to watch for enemies trying to attack the sheep, to defend the sheep from attackers, to heal the wounded and sick sheep, to find and save lost or trapped sheep who are out of the fold and to love the sheep. The shepherd is to love them and share their lives and so earn their trust.[9]

The role of the teachers depicts instruction, not only in factual matters and skills but most likely also in moral evaluation. Jesus was called a teacher by both friend and foe. One marked difference between the teaching of Jesus and the scribes is that he taught with authority. Likewise, teaching in the local assembly should have authority based on the Scriptures. Teachers should not be like the scribes who propounded a variety of views but never came to any conclusion. Rather, they should teach the revelation of God authoritatively.

12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

The word “perfecting” speaks of bring to spiritual maturity. William MacDonald described well, “The gifts are given to perfect or equip all Christians to serve the Lord, and thus to build up the body of Christ.” 

14 That we henceforthbe no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, andcunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 

The exhortation that the people of God are to “stop being children!” Grow out of our spiritual immaturity, in other words, to grow up and be spiritual matured.

He uses the phrase that mean to be “tossed by the waves” causing the ship to rock with instability. Be not unstable in your spiritual life.

Isaiah 57:20-21 (KJV) 20 But the wicked arelike the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. 21 There isno peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

A healthy body has doctrinal discernment (4:14). That is the reason our gentle plea to attend Sunday School Classes for instruction at all levels.

The word “sleight” means “dice playing”. Let us not be carried away by the deception of men because the doctrinal dice players are like dice players who sometimes cheated and defrauded their fellow players. The method of the Devil lead one astray. He uses a lot of cunningness. People would not be hog wild for false doctrine unless there were something that was sweet like a juicy delectable bit of strawberry in that doctrine. These doctrines have a come-hither smell like perfume which get people to follow them. Paul says stop being babies, grow up, and do not follow the winds of doctrine which are wrong.[10]

15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, evenChrist: 16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

A healthy body balances truth with love (4:15a). A healthy body grows toward Christlikeness by submitting to His lordship in all areas (4:15b). A healthy body has every member contributing to the growth of the whole (4:16).

CONCLUSION

  • Live as you are called (v1-6)
  • Serve as you are endowed (v7-16)

[1] Ibid.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid, 6.

[4] D A Waite, Ephesians – Preaching Verse by Verse, Bible for Today, 2002, 105.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid., 107.

[7] Harold W. Hoehner, Ephesians – An Exegetical Commentary, Baker Academic, 2002, 538-539.

[8] Ibid., 545.

[9] D A Waite, Ephesians – Preaching Verse by Verse, Bible for Today, 2002, 111.

[10] D A Waite, Ephesians – Preaching Verse by Verse, Bible for Today, 2002, 115.