Ephesians 4:1-6 Devotional
Notes
Transcript
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
What are Paul's credentials here?
Paul here declares himself to be a prisoner for the Lord...
He could have said, “HEY, I am an apostle and you all need to listen to me.” He could have clung to his credentials as one who had seen the Resurrected Christ and had then been commissioned by Christ to go to the Gentiles.
And, sometimes Paul did that. When he was dealing with the Corinthian church, and their issues, he made sure, a few times, that they understood his authority as an apostle.
But, in this case Paul clings to his authority as one who is a prisoner for/of the Lord.
Paul has worded this in an interesting way… This verse can be translated with a couple of meanings (“Prisoner OF the Lord)
1) It could be translated that Paul is in prison, which he most likely was when he wrote the letter to the church in Ephesus. He is in prison, in this case, due to his ministry of serving the Lord. In other words, he has been placed in prison. Because of his ministry for the Lord, he is in prison.
2) He could also be saying that he is the Lord’s prisoner. That he is held captive by the Lord. That although he is in prison, it is not the Roman Government who has him held captive - ultimately. Yes, it is true he is being held captive by the government, but he is being held captive by the government BECAUSE he was ALREADY held captive by the Lord.
Yes, he is in prison. But, his greatest captivity is that he has allowed himself to be fully surrendered to the Lord, Jesus Christ. Therefore, he was already a servant/slave of the Lord. He was already a prisoner of/for the Lord. His captivity by the Romans is of no consequence.
I, in my own personal opinion, believe Paul wants us to understand that he means both interpretations - that he wrote it in an unclear point so that we would understand both ways of looking at this verse.
Paul is both a prisoner of Rome because of his service to the Lord as an Apostle. But, that imprisonment came about because he was ALREADY fully surrendered as a prisoner of Jesus Christ.
In either case, Pauls credentials, that he states here in Ephesians, is not his ordination, it is not his degree(s). His credentials are that he is fully surrendered to Jesus Christ, that he is a prisoner of Jesus Christ, and he is a prisoner FOR Jesus Christ. And, ultimately, that he models the message that he is writing to the church about.
And his message is that the Church MUST be united...
He instructs the church to live a life worthy of their calling.
What is their calling? It is to fulfill what they meant when they declared, “Jesus Christ is Lord.” To declare that Jesus Christ is Lord is also to declare that NO ONE else is lord.
This calling, as one who bears the image and name of Christ into the world is one that draws, or should draw, the believers together in UNITY (no surprise there).
Paul Challenges the church to MAKE EVERY EFFORT to be United.
3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
This unity is “of” the Spirit. Or, because of the Spirit, or simply the Spirit’s unity (it comes about as the Spirit gifts it to the church.
And it is PEACE, and the Holy Spirit that brings this unity about in the Church.
Peace is not simply the absence of conflict.
We often think that peace means there is no conflict, or chaos, etc...
And, that is a good thought, but peace involves much more than that.
True peace looks to a time when that will be the case, yes. And true peace strives to organize such an existence.
But, peace properly understood from the biblical perspective is not the absence of conflict - at least not right now.
True peace is God’s presence bringing WHOLENESS and COMPLETENESS in all situations - EVEN SITUATIONS OF CONFLICT.
The church can be united, BUT it is a gift of the Spirit and a work of peace
There may be conflict, but if PEACE is allowed to be present in the conflict, then God’s presence is there, and then UNITY can follow. However, God’s presence that brings peace will often find solutions to resolve the conflict.
Ultimately, Paul encourages the Church to seek God’s presence, to know God’s peace, in the midst of struggle and to allow God to guide the struggle to a peaceful, united end.
So, Paul gives some examples of what this looks like, even before he gives the challenge for unity.
Unity calls for changed character!
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
The Church has to LEARN how to get along.
This begins ith humility and gentleness.
It extends into how we are patient with one another. patience LITERALLY means to suffer for a long time in the midst of the situation. We are patient with the immaturity of others (yes, we try to instruct them and give them examples of how to live differently - but we are patient and suffer long with them through that process).
Ultimately we bear with the shortcomings of each other in LOVE! The word Paul uses for love is the word that describes God’s love for us. It is an unconditional, unmerited, fully gracious and merciful love. This is the love we are called to share with one another so that there could be UNITY.
But why would we do this?
Because our faith CALLS us to do this.
Everything about the Christian faith is centered on UNITY. There is ONE BODY of Jesus Christ. There is ONE Spirit that unites us together. There is ONE hope that we were called to (yes, there are many facets of that hope, but it is ONLY ONE HOPE). There is ONE Lord, ONE Christian faith, ONE baptism (baptism is one church is just as effective as baptism in another church) ONE God and Father who is over all things, working through all thing, and who is in ALL individuals who call upon Jesus Christ for salvation.
ONE, ONE, ONE, ONE, ONE… I think Paul is painting a picture. If all that is true, there the CHURCH MUST ALSO BE ONE!!
And that Unity comes through DIVERSITY!
Unity is not the idea that we “copy-cat” the person next to us. We are an individual...
Unity comes when individuals come together for a common purpose and each individual does his/her own part so that the entire whole can function...
The best image of this is the image of the body… One body made of many parts...
In discussions on the gifts of the church Paul highlights that gifts are like different body parts...
12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. 15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
In this images, Paul highlights that unity comes when we as individuals work together for the good of the group.
That there is a single purpose, but each one must do his/her part to see that purpose accomplished.
There is the reminder of the working together towards that purposed. And, therefore, a symptom of the lack of unity is the individuals not doing there part.
Unity requires the individuals to do their part for the whole...
Back to the passage in Ephesians 4… Paul discusses Christ bestowing gifts upon the believers. The point of the gifts is so that we can become united as each person does his/her part.
13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
So, a couple of questions to ponder...
How do you approach authority? Do you waive around your rights and credentials, or is being a servant of Christ, a prisoner for/of Christ enough? Do you model what you ask others to do?
How is your character towards other encouraging unity? Are you humble, gentle, patient, and displaying God’s love towards them?
What is your role in the unity of the church? Yes, you are an individual with gifts and graces that Christ has given you. Are you using your gifts and abilities and encouraging others to use theirs? Thus bringing about unity as more people are challenged to do their part to help the church fulfill her purpose.
What about your church in relationship to other churches? Let’s look at the district and global levels as well. IS your church doing her part to assist the ministries of the district? What about assisting the ministries of the global church. Are there things you, your church, and your district could do different to see more unity in your church, in your district, and at our global level?