Ephesians: Spiritual Gifts and Their Purpose 2

Ephesians 4:11-16 - No More Tossed Churches Part 1

Words: Mixed up. Jumbled. Out of place. Thrown around. Disordered. Disconnected. Disjointed.

This Past Wednesday: We looked at Chapter 4:7-13.

Christ has come, has descended, has overcome the world, the flesh and the devil, and now He has ascended with all power and authority.

He has also given the church gifts, people with gifts, to be used by God so that the saints of God will be equipped for the work of service/ministry.

The list that is here is not exhaustive. These are gifts, persons with gifts, that have offices in the local church.

If you look at Romans 12 and 1 Cor. 12, you will find more spiritual gifts mentioned.

Christ ascended and gave gifts to men, to His people. To each member of the Family of God.

You did not earn them. He gives them.

1 Cor. 12:11 - The same Spirit distributes to each one individually just as He wills.

Romans 12:3-8 - Don’t think too highly of yourself… God has allotted to each of us a measure of faith… we do not all have the same function… we are many, but we are members of one another… Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly...

“What are they to be used for?”

To serve and glorify God. To serve His people. To build up and equip the saints for the work of service/ministry.

There is a way to build up the body of Christ. And we are not talking about numbers… or numerical growth. Numerical growth can and will happen, but the concern here is for individuals to grow up in the things of God.

There are buildings filled today with many unconverted people, and there are buildings filled with a lot of babies, carnal believers who are still very self-centered.

The goal is not to fill buildings. The goal is to make people look more like Christ.

I like daycare. I love nurseries. I love children ministry. There is a place for this ministry… But we are to grow up.

How?

There is a way to make church folks mature, to get them growing, keep them growing, and keep them going onward.

There is a way to bond us all together, keep us together, and keep us in peace as we serve together...

It is by the Spirit of God and the Word of God.

Verse 13 - There is this goal: That we attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man...

Accusation: “Wait, wait, wait… you don’t have unity by teaching the Word of God… Sound teaching/doctrine divides… it does not unite.”

People can divide the church. Lies and false doctrine can divide the church. People that hate Christ, hate Christianity… they may create and cause division...

But the people who love Christ, love truth, love God’s people… We will submit ourselves to sound biblical teaching.

Acts 2:42 - Believers were continually devoting themselves to the teachings of Christ… And God uses this...

The Spirit of God and the Word of God brings us all together.

We are placed under the Word of God. We submit ourselves to pastors and teachers, who can help us… And the Lord uses this to grow us up...

The Spirit of the Living God works through the Word of God, through the gifted people of God… and as we grow in the Word of God, we grow in Christ, in Christ-likeness, in holiness, praise, in worship, in gratitude, faith, hope, and love…

When we all do this together… We are looking to Christ together. We are looking to truth together. We are all united on the same foundation, the same pillars, and structure.

We all grow together… and we all go in the same direction and to the same place...

We are here to be equipped.

The word makes us think of being made complete, to set bones in place to where they should be.

Two tools are essential to equip us: The Bible and Prayer. In Acts 6:4 - There was so much that was placed on the minsters that preaching, teaching and prayer was being pushed to the side.

But praise God for deacons, servant leaders. Seven men who were filled with the Spirit were placed in charge of the other tasks so that the preacher-teachers could continue on serving by teaching the Word and by Prayer.

In order to equip others, we must teach and pray. In order for your family members and friends to know the Lord and grow in the things of God… We must teach them and pray for them.

The Word of God reproves, corrects, and trains us. The Word of God is living and active… and it works deep within a mind and soul, judging the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

When we come to Christ, we come shaped and warped by the world and its patterns. we are shaped by its thought and images.

It takes time studying, praying and practicing God’s Word to get this out of us. It takes time to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

It takes time to grow up as spiritual children. It just does.

Be patient with yourself and be patient with those you are discipling… It takes perseverance.

There are many today who are struggling with their thought life, struggling with many fears, they do not know the power of God… They think that they will lose their salvation every 30 seconds...

They do not have the helmet of salvation, the breastplate of righteousness, and they do not know how to use the sword of the Spirit...

The need help!

Church… they need help. We have been gifted to help them. We have been gifted to train and equip others. Someone poured into to you… or you had to learn on your own… either way… We understand that we have received form God, and now we are here to serve others.

We are here and we are gifted to equip and to…

2. We are here to serve.

No matter how gifted and talented you are… You cannot do it all. I can not do it alone. It takes all of us serving together.

The saints… all the saints… are gifted to serve one another.

And we are not just talking about showing up to a service. We are not just talking about showing up to the church...

We are talking about showing up and being the church. We are talking about showing up and serving other saints.

Show up and encourage. Show up and support. Show up and help. Show up and set up. Show up and teach. Show up and clean. Show up and sing, pray… Show up and stir up your church family, and give them hope and joy...

Have your minds so filled with the love of Christ, that you can look outside of yourself and see… someone else. See someone else… who is going through life.... Se someone else who is suffering and struggling...

And serve them in some way...

And being equipped and serving is going to take the Church somewhere: It is going to have a Building Effect.

Unity of the Faith and Full Knowledge of God’s Son

Maturity and The Fullness of Christ

At home, are we taking our families forward together, with the Word of God and prayer?

Are we setting aside time for this?

Do you want your family to be built up in the lord? Saved, equipped and serving the Lord? Do you want your family to be unified in the faith and filled with the knowledge of Christ, mature… Full of Christ?

They need to be taught and the need to be prayed for.

Individual family members must do this, individually… and then families find good/biblical churches… and join in that community, under spiritual care... and then we all come together in church and we do this together… As the Body.

This is what we are here for.

We are coming together on Sundays to do this. We are coming together on Wednesdays to do this… By the way: We have services on Wednesdays… Just in case you did not know...

We can only move forward together if we are moving towards Christ together.

We can only move forward if we are seeking Christ together. We can only move forward if we are serving together, loving together, building up one another… together.

But we cannot be One Body… while you isolate. We cannot be One Body when you are not in the Word and not in prayer.

We cannot serve one another if we are not with one another.

It takes all of us being together and doing these things together...