Building Up the Church

Ephesians 4:1–16 ESV

1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.” 9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

We have all seen various scandals play out on television. Hollywood and Washington, DC, do not lack dramatic and salacious actions by the so-called elites of our society. We watch as names are revealed, and deeds are uncovered. We watch these things because there is something about the human psyche that enjoys watching disasters unfold. Maybe we see it as comeuppance because we don’t care for those who think they are more important and powerful than the rest of us. Whatever the reason, the bigger the name, the bigger the press response.

‌Most of us will never find ourselves on the front page of a newspaper or the breaking news headline on Fox, CNN, MSNBC, or the like. However, all of us are or have been scandalous in our actions against God because of our sins. We may be intrigued by the flashy headlines of famous people, but we all are sinners who need salvation. Whether famous or not, all of us have a broken relationship with God that must be remedied.

‌In the first three chapters of Ephesians, Paul outlines the incredible gift given to us by God’s grace in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is something that none of us deserve but has been freely given because of God’s great love for us.

‌Paul concludes Chapter 3 with the following:

‌17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:17-19)

‌It is in chapter 4 that Paul begins to outline for us what it means for Christ to dwell in our hearts. It is a calling that takes us to a new place where our scandalous nature that goes against God’s commands is replaced with a new nature in which we desire the things of God over and above the things of this world. It is the formation of a new community made up of individuals who seek to live as God commands us so that we might be an example to the rest of the world.

‌Today, we will look at that community and how the Holy Spirit empowers and gifts us to be different for God’s glory.

1. The church is unified in the love of Christ. (vs. 1-6)

‌The focus on the love of Christ is imperative within the church. Paul is clear in this section of Ephesians as he shifts from doctrinal issues to issues within the community that love is the central virtue. It is what all other aspects of the community are rooted in. It is the source of unity in the body of Christ.

‌Paul links love to the classical Christian virtues of humility, gentleness, and patience. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:4-5, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;” The love that we have for one another is not boastful so that all can see. Rather, there is a quietness to Christian love that is necessary.

‌It is this love that becomes the foundation for the exercising of spiritual gifts. Without love, all we do is glorify ourselves and not God. That is why Paul uses a series of “ones” to emphasize the unity of the body found in the love of Christ and how the proper operation of the spiritual gifts can only flow from a foundation of love focused on the upbuilding and unity of the church. There is a greater purpose in Paul’s rhetoric. Return to Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” This is the Shema and absolutely central to Jewish belief. There is only one God. This God is the only one who deserves all our love and praise. It is because we are not grounded in this truth that we sin against God and our neighbor.

‌When Jesus tells the Pharisees the central tenets of his message in Matthew 22:37-40:

‌37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

‌Jesus described what the Holy Spirit's unifying power can do within the kingdom. When we love in the way God intends for us to love, there is an outpouring of the Spirit in individuals and the community. We are unified in Christ’s love with the sole purpose and goal of being witnesses of the gospel.

2. Because of Christ’s ascension, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (vs. 7-10)

Verses 7-10 bring important insight into the work of Christ through his ascension. Paul uses a quote from Psalm 68:18. The psalm is a victory psalm about the warrior King who is God. Christ is victorious, and all things (seen and unseen) are subject to his rule and authority. This victory is brought to us through grace.

‌The victory won by Christ sets the stage for all believers to receive the Holy Spirit in their lives. Some commentators refer to this as the “democratization of the Spirit.” At the end of his sermon in Acts 2:38, Peter says, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Jesus has already told the disciples that when he ascends that they are to wait in Jerusalem until they receive power. In his teaching throughout John 14-16, Jesus continues to remind the disciples that his going away will lead to the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples.

‌Here are just a few quotes from that section of scripture to help us:

‌15“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. (John 14:15-17)

‌​25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. (John 14:25-26)

‌​7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. (John 16:7-11)

‌The victory displayed in the ascension of Christ allowed for the distribution of the gifts to believers.

3. Spiritual gifts equip us for ministry. (vs. 11-16)

What is the purpose behind the gifts listed in Ephesians 4:11? Paul says they are so the saints can be equipped to do the ministry they are called to do. Let’s go back to the beginning of our passage. We are all to walk in a manner worthy of the calling given to us by God. The calling we receive is in tandem with the gifts distributed to us by the Holy Spirit. This means that the call of the one teaching in the church is to help everyone recognize the gifts of the Holy Spirit. The equipping of the saints has three objectives:

‌1. Unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God

2. Create mature believers

3. Growing in Christlikeness or sanctification

‌The idea that the various gifts of the Spirit are also consistent with continued growth in Christ is seen as Paul develops this line of argument. Having a mature faith and knowledge of Christ means we will not be “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” In other words, being mature in the gifts of the Spirit protects us from falling into the deception offered by false gospels. The short letter of Jude tells us this in verse 3, “Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.”

‌Spiritual gifting is not just about miracles, tongues, prophecy, etc. Spiritual gifting is also about being able to discern what is right teaching. That is why Paul lists teaching and the teaching gifts as part of the gifts of the Spirit. Pastors and teachers must rightly divide the word of God for the congregation to grow in their calling. This is the primary task of the pastor. A pastor who does not teach the truth of the gospel but suppresses it is leading his or her congregation away from the true Christ and the true Spirit so that the true gifts of the Spirit might operate within a congregation.

‌Mature Christians growing in their Christlikeness will be able to tell the difference between proper biblical teaching and what is not. The reason why so many Christians are led astray is because they have not had the proper training in their churches to be able to know the difference. So many Christians are biblically illiterate that if teaching seems right on its surface, they do not have the skills to dig deeper and be able to ascertain whether it is correct. That’s why preachers and teachers can twist definitions of love or faith, and so many will fall for it.

‌You and I must be equipped for ministry through the gifts of the Spirit by properly understanding God’s word and contending for the faith once delivered.

Conclusion

The community created by Christ in the formation of the church is a community that reflects his kingdom, although imperfect right now. Christ has sent us the Holy Spirit to continue teaching and forming us into his likeness. The gifts that the Holy Spirit gives to the saints are gifts whose purpose is to build up the church and glorify the name of Jesus. We are called to walk in a manner worthy of the calling that we have received in Christ. We must be mature in our faith and knowledge of him as we are sanctified and gifted to do his work in the world.

You and I have a calling to live for Christ and share his love with the world. We must not be afraid to walk in this calling because of the nature of the fallen world. Instead, we must be bold as we contend for the faith once delivered and not back from proclaiming God’s truth in a world of deception. It is not easy. As Jesus told his disciples, the world will hate you because of me. But through the power of the Spirit, we are given gifts that increase our faith and trust in God to live his calling.