Gifted to Grow

Introduction

Growing up with a garden. Tilling, planting, fertilizing, weeding, and harvesting.

Paul sees the church as something that is growing, and God has provided for her people to help lead and guide to be effective.

The Who

v. 11

What are the gifts mentioned earlier that are used to bring unity?

Apostles. Prophets. Evangelists. Pastors-Teachers.

Brief overview of each.

Question: Is the church an organization or is it an organism?

A combination of the two.

The church is a garden.

Structured to produce growth.

People who work it, tilling the soil, planting, fertilizing, weeding, and harvesting.

But the gardeners aren’t the ones producing the produce.

That’s why we have gardens.

Take Root * Bear Fruit

Those four positions help to prepare the soil and watch over the believers to give them the best opportunity of being productive.

The Why

v. 12

What is the goal of the work of the gardener/shepherd?

1. Equipping. Who?

The model the church has become. Pastors as hired guns.

The church is the means of ministry.

2. Building up.

1 Corinthians 12:27 ESV

27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

House + Dome. To add on. “Making more able”

Remodeling and adding on to a house.

The church is in the process of increasing ministry.

Are we more interested in maintenance or ministry?

The What

vv. 13-16

The primary challenge of unity (last week).

Two main fruit of unity:

of the faith - what we believe (the content)

of the knowledge (the source of the content)

As that fruit grows, we see some things:

Stand Firm in a stormy world.

Speak Truth without being a jerk.

Sustain with one another in Christ.

Standard of love for every one of these.

Conclusion

A heavy burden I carry.

1 Peter 5:2–3 ESV

2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.

Not a burden I carry alone as we, as the church, work together.