Side Plot: What exactly were they doing?

Introduction:

One subplot that is consistent is that the early church was busy. They were active. Their faith did not make them passive like we often see in the church today. But what exactly did they do? What is it that the church spent their time doing to complete the ultimate goal of building the kingdom? I think this passage in Ephesians gives us a glimpse into this.

Ephesians 4:7-16

Let’s set a few foundational points here:

We all are gifted to do something in the church.

Eph. 4:7;8b “grace was given to each according to the measure of Christ’s gift” ; “he gave some to be…”

Not everyone is called to be a church leader but all are called to be in “the ministry”. The idea of doing ministry is not a job reserved for the ones who get paid by the church. “The Ministry” is for all believers (Eph. 4:12)

We all are given some measure of a spiritual gift AND not equally. Some are given an “extra measure of grace”

It is not our job to determine who has the most but to be faithful with what we are given.

Matthew 25:14-30

Parable of the Talents. Master gives his servants a certain number of talents to manage while he is traveling. 5, 2, and 1 respectively. the two with 5 and 2 go out and invest theirs, double it, and are given much more to manage. The third one buries their in fear of losing it. The master calls him a “wicked and slothful servant”. The implication being, you can’t control what you are given to work with but you can make the most of what you are given.

Historically, $1 invested in a broad U.S. stock index could grow to:

~$2 after 10 years

~$4 after 20 years

~$7.50 after 30 years

If you don’t invest the dollar and just put it in your pocket you have only $1. I know those numbers aren’t like “oh wow that is insane” but I am simply trying to illustrate that it doesn’t matter how gifted spiritually you think you might be, you have to do something.

Reflection Question: What is something you know you’re good at or passionate about that God could use to bless others in the church?

All of this ministry is done “in love”

The second greatest commandment according to Jesus is what?

Love your neighbor as yourself. If you do not love people you can’t effectively do ministry.

Or to say it differently, if you don’t love people you can’t build the kingdom.

You can’t pick and choose who you love either, James tells us that. You have to love all people. When you see homelessness or evil or friends living in sin, you should be heartbroken not hateful.

If you find yourself being more hateful to those kind of people, you need to check your relationship with God through Jesus Christ because I can guarantee it’s not right.

What is “ministry”?

“building up the Body of Christ” and when you utilize your gifts by building up the body, these 3 things are the results:

Unity of the faith and the knowledge of the son of God. Ref. Eph. 4:5

a mature man

the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ

When every believer uses the gifts Jesus has given them, the whole church grows stronger together. We become more united, more spiritually mature, and start to look more like Jesus in how we live and love.

**What would a mature, unified, Christlike version of our student ministry look like? What part could you personally play in helping it move that direction?**

Transition: We can’t all preach like Paul or plant churches like the early church in Acts — but the same Spirit works through us in our time and place.

So the question now I want us to spend a few minutes discussing is what does ministry look like for you. For us. In our context?

What does it look like for me to “equip the saints”?

Do any of you feel that you are called to a specific area of ministry? vocational, foreign or domestic missionary, etc?

Discuss:

If “the work of the ministry” is for every Christian, what could that look like for a teenager today?

How could you use your gifts at school, at home, or in your friend group to build up others or point them to Christ?

What are some “ordinary” things you already do (sports, music, social media, gaming, etc.) that could become ministry opportunities?

What would it look like for our group to take this idea seriously — to live like every one of us is called to ministry?

Reflection Prompt (Journal or Verbal):

Write down one small, practical way you could use your gifts to love and serve others this week. Be ready to share or pray over it together.

Key Point today: “Ministry” is not a title or a job — it’s the everyday act of using your God-given gifts to build up His church in love.