Ephesians 2.21b-The Church is Growing Into a Holy Temple By Means of Fellowship with the Lord
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Saturday February 17, 2024
Ephesians Series: Ephesians 2:21b-The Church is Growing into a Holy Temple By Means of Fellowship with the Lord
Lesson # 128
Ephesians 2:21 On the basis of its being continually fitted inextricably together by means of justification by faith and union and identification with Him, the whole building is growing into a holy temple by appropriating by faith your union and identification with the Lord. (Lecturer’s translation)
Ephesians 2:21 is composed of the following:
(1) causal participial clause en hō pasa oikodomē synarmologoumenē (ἐν ᾧ πᾶσα οἰκοδομὴ συναρμολογουμένη), “On the basis of its being continually fitted inextricably together by means of its union and identification with Him.”
(2) declarative statement auxei eis naon hagion en kyriō (αὔξει εἰς ναὸν ἅγιον ἐν κυρίῳ), “the whole building is growing into a holy temple by appropriating by faith your union and identification with the Lord.”
As was the case in 1 Corinthians 3:9, the noun oikodomē (οἰκοδομή) here in Ephesians 2:19 is used in a figurative sense of the body of Christ, the church as the building of God.
In other words, the word is employed as a building metaphor to describe the members of the body of Christ as a corporate unit.
The metaphor describes the members of the body of Christ, i.e., the church as part of a building or construction project undertaken by God and accomplished through the work of His Son and the Spirit.
This word is modified by the nominative feminine singular form of the adjective pas (πᾶς), which pertains to the totality of the members of the body of Christ, i.e., the church or we could say it pertains to them as a corporate unit.
The nominative feminine singular present passive participle conjugation of the verb synarmologeō (συναρμολογέω) is used in a figurative or metaphorical sense for the members of the body of Christ being fitted or connected inextricably together to form a coherent whole or corporate unit of people.
The participle conjugation of this verb is a causal participle, which presents “the reason why” or “the basis upon which” the members of the Christian community exist in the state of growing into a holy temple in the Lord.
Thus, it expresses the idea that “on the basis of” the members of the Christian community existing in the state of being continually fitted or connected inextricably together as a coherent whole or corporate unit by means of justification by faith and union and identification with Jesus Christ, they are growing into a holy temple by means of fellowship with the Lord.
The present tense of this verb is a customary or stative present which expresses the idea that the church being “continually” joined inextricably together by means of their union and identification with Jesus Christ.
It indicates that the church is a work in progress in the sense that it is growing every day as a result of sinners exercising faith in Jesus Christ.
This results in the Father imputing His Son’s righteousness to them with the result that He declares them justified.
Simultaneously, the Father through the work of the Spirit in baptism places these justified sinners in union with His Son and identifies them with His Son in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
The passive voice of this verb indicates that church age believers as the subject of this verb receive the action of existing in the state of being fitted inextricably together as a coherent whole and corporate unit by means of justification by faith and union and identification with Jesus Christ.
This is another “divine-passive” because church age believers receive this action of being fitted inextricably together with each other and Jesus Christ as a result of the Father imputing His Son’s righteousness to them with the result that He declares them justified.
Also, it is a “divine-passive” because church age believers are fitted inextricably to together with each other and Jesus Christ because the Holy Spirit places them in union with His Son at justification and identifies them with His Son in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
The third person singular present active indicative conjugation of the verb auxō (αὔξω) is used in a figurative sense in relation to the body of Christ and speaks of the spiritual growth in the individual members of the body of Christ.
The present tense of this verb is a customary or stative present which expresses the idea that the church “continually” growing spiritually into a holy temple by means of fellowship with the Lord.
The accusative masculine singular form of the noun naos (ναός) refers to the inner sanctuary of the temple, which was inhabited by the presence of God and not the entire temple complex and it is used in a figurative sense to describe the members of the Christian community as a corporate unit.
The noun naos (ναός) is modified by the adjective hagios (ἅγιος), which is describing the members of the church or body of Christ as being set apart to serve God exclusively in an experiential sense.
This is indicated by the present tense of the verb auxō (αὔξω) which we noted is used in a figurative sense in relation to the body of Christ and speaks of the spiritual growth in the individual members of the body of Christ.
The noun naos (ναός) is the object of the preposition eis (εἰς), which marks the members of the church as a group of individuals whose character is being transformed from the state of sin, evil and rebellion to those who possess experientially a holy character.
Therefore, by Paul describing church age believers as growing into a holy temple of God here in Ephesians 2:1, he is implying that the church is indwelt by God, i.e. Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The book of Exodus presents the Lord dwelling in the midst of the nation of Israel in the tabernacle.
He indwelt the temple Solomon had built (1 Kings 6, 8).
He also indwelt Zerubbabel’s temple according to the book of Haggai.
The Gospels record the incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ indwelling and teaching and healing in Herod’s temple.
In each of these temples, Jews were separated from Gentiles.
In fact, Gentiles were not permitted to enter the tabernacle, as well as the temples of Solomon, Zerubbabel’s and Herod but were relegated to a section, which separated them from the Jewish worshippers of the God of Israel.
However, both Jewish and Gentile church age believers are permanently indwelt by the Father, (John 14:22-23; Ephesians 4:6; Philippians 2:13; 1 John 4:15; 2 John 9), the Son (John 14:20; 17:22-23, 26; Romans 8:10; 2 Corinthians. 13:5; Galatians 2:20a; Colossians 1:27) and Holy Spirit (Romans 8:11; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19-20; 2 Corinthians 6:16).
Now, as was the case in Ephesians 1:2, 3, 15, and 17, the referent of the dative masculine singular form of the noun kurios (κύριος) is Jesus Christ.
It contains the figure of metonymy which means that the Lord is put for the church age believer appropriating by faith their union and identification with Him in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
In other words, the Lord is put for experiencing fellowship with Him as a result of appropriating by faith their union and identification with Him in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
This interpretation is supported by the meaning of the verb auxō (αὔξω), which as we noted speaks of the spiritual growth of the members of the body of Christ as a result of appropriating by faith their union and identification with Him in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
It is also supported by the present tense of this verb, which expresses a present state or in n other words, the church age believer grows up spiritually into Christ-likeness by experiencing fellowship with the Lord.
This is accomplished by appropriating by faith their union and identification with Him in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
In fact, it is also accomplished by obeying the various Spirit inspired commands and prohibitions of Scripture with the greatest being the command to love one another as Christ has loved the believer (John 13:34; 15:12).
The noun kurios (κύριος) is the object of the preposition en (ἐν), which functions as a marker of means.
This indicates that it is “by means of” church age believers experiencing fellowship with the triune God by appropriating by faith their union and identification with the Lord in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father that they are growing spiritually into a holy temple experientially.
So therefore, Ephesians 2:21 reveals that the church is a work in progress numerically as well as spiritually or experientially.
The participial causal clause makes clear that sinners are being added to those who are already members of the body of Christ, i.e. the church as a result of exercising faith in Jesus Christ as their Savor.
Consequently, the Father imputes His Son’s righteousness to them and declares them justified.
Simultaneously, as we noted, the Holy Spirit in baptism places these justified sinners in union with His Son and identifies them with His Son in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
Thus, these justified sinners are added to the church membership.
The declarative statement in Ephesians 2:21 also reveals that these justified sinners who are in union with Jesus Christ and identified with Him are growing spiritually and experiencing their sanctification.
In other words, experiencing the holiness of God by appropriating by faith their union and identification with Him in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.
This is accomplished by considering themselves dead to the sin nature (Rom. 6:11-12) and the cosmic system of Satan (Gal. 6:14) and alive to God.