Mature in Christ Ephesians 4:14-16

*Introduction: Ephesians chapter 1-3 is all about what God has done for us. The Spiritual blessings, our identity, and our position in Christ.

*Chapter 4 begins with our responsibility to live a life worthy of your calling

Remember, Eph 2:10 “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Which leads us to 4:11 where we will pick up

* (V11) God gave gifts to the church

Apostles, prophets, evangelist, pastors, and teachers

* (V12) For the purpose of: equipping and building up the church for the work of the ministry

* (V13)That you may become mature and complete in Christ to fulfill your calling

(V14) No longer immature like children

A child is unstable because they are still learning about the world and who they are

Growing up, I had a friend that was always changing his appearance, the way he spoke, which dictated who he was friends with (Looking back, I would say he was unstable due to the constant change in his life, he didn’t know who he was)

The same thing can happen in Christianity, we can be unstable because we don’t really understand the faith we profess we have. We can be influenced by friends, schools, even the things we watch on tv.

A) Don’t be tossed and blown around by a new teaching or influenced by people who try to trick us with clever lies

People do not advertise they are trying to trick you, they are clever about their ways

Often times the enemy uses partial truths mixed with a lie to deceive as many people as he can

I stumbled upon a youtube channel where a women took the scriptures out context to say that God condones homosexuality

Col 2:8 “Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.”

2. (V15) Instead we speak truth in love and continue to grow more and more to become like Christ

A) We speak against lies with truth in love

B) You cannot truly love someone unless your willing to speak truth to them

My father is not a believer and I have had some uncomfortable conversations with him about what I believe.

My motivation is love because without the Son, he can’t have God and without God he’s going to hell

You think its hot today, imagine what hell is like

C) “As we speak truth in love, we become more and more like Christ”

3. (V16) Each person has an ability to contribute to help others grow, which creates a healthy body

When I hurt my ankle I was limping around. The rest of my body had to work harder to make up for my bad ankle

A) The health of a church is dependent upon everyone doing their part

B) This requires us to become selfless and care about others or to die to self

Maybe your thinking, am I mature in the Lord? Are you willing to lay down your life for the person next to you?

About 8 or 9 years ago, I heard a similar message that changed my life.

I began to evaluate wether I was living for Christ or myself

I made some changes and began to serve God and radically changed my life and hear I am today

What does a mature Christian look like?

They know the Word of God and are not moved away by clever lies

They speak truth to others in love

They understand their calling and are faithful in it