Eph 4:14-16
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I. Introduction
A. Early Christian upbringing.
a. In college, when I was exposed to expository preaching and theology, I was fixated on what I could learn.
b. Of course, I would say things that I look back and remind myself that I was so young in my unbelief that I probably came across people the wrong way.
c. I was in what would be a “caged staged Calvinist” phase.
d. It was there that I made Calvinism and the beliefs more important than what they were, and didn’t want to associate with anyone who had a differing view.
e. I remember that this was an issue that I needed to mature in, and it didn’t happen until I got to seminary.
f. It was the seminary, but, most importantly, my local church that helped foster it.
B. This Sermon
a. Have you ever felt disappointed that you didn’t know Christ better?
b. Today, we will learn what Paul tells the Ephesian church about the importance of spiritual growth.
c. The head of this growing Christ, who is the head of the body of Christian called the “Church.”
d. Church is the essential element for growth, along with personal discipleship.
e. As Paul writes, the body needs to be warned of people who will deceive. Thus is the necessity of clinging to the Hope of Christ and the desire to know Him.
f. Main idea: Growing in Christ doesn’t just strengthen ourselves, but also His Church.
II. Warning Against Heresy (v. 14)
Eph 4:14
Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit.
A. Verse 14a “Then we will no longer be little children.”
a. We see here that Paul, through the Holy Spirit, tells the audience about Maturity. He first starts in a negative sense.
b. The term “children” (v. 14a) may also be translated as “toddlers.”
c. Why would Paul begin here?
d. In this verse, the unity of the church is emphasized.
e. The issue is that they are still in the infant state of their walk with Christ.
f. Here, Paul is talking about weak members of the congregation.
g. As Merkle states,
1. “Thus, ' children' is used metaphorically to refer to spiritually immature believers, starkly contrasting with the mature man of verse 13.”
g. Arnold also states,
1. “His reference to “children” (νήπιοι) here provides a sharp contrast with the “mature man” (ἄνδρα τέλειον) of the previous verse. The term thus does not convey “innocence” (as Paul describes himself and his companions in 1 Thess 2:7) as much as “immaturity” (1 Cor 13:11). The young and immature are much more vulnerable and can be easily taken advantage of.”
h. So, what is Paul getting at?
1. The issue is that people are stuck in a state of spiritual infancy that is deteriorating their walk with Christ.
2. Another term could be characterized by “inch deep” or “simple.”
3. This infancy doesn’t reflect properly on the Christian.
4. God is not honored by this type of nature because it robs the believer of knowing God intimately.
5. Some might ask, “What does Paul mean by this?”
6. Echoing S.M Baugh, “Paul is teaching in v.14 and context that Christians must be doctrinally 'mature' in order not to become ensnared by the crafty schemes of false teachers.”
i. Immaturity: Too many Christians are contemptuous of being immature believers.
1. As one commentator states, “One purpose (ἵνα, “so that”) for this building up of the church was so that believers would no longer be ' infants' (νήπιοι). Paul set this spiritual infancy in contrast to the mature adult he expected his readers to become.
j. This issue is addressed in Hebrews 5:11-14.
Hebrews 5:11-14
We have a great deal to say about this, and it is difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand.
Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food.
Now everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant.
But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil.
1. We have a great deal to say about this, and it is difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food. Now, everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant. But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil.
k. Paul also addressed it to the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 3:1-4.
1 Corinthians 3:1-4
For my part, brothers and sisters, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ.
I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, since you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are still not ready,
because you are still worldly. For since there is envy and strife among you, are you not worldly and behaving like mere humans?
For whenever someone says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,” are you not acting like mere humans?
1. For my part, brothers and sisters, I was not able to speak to you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh, as babies in Christ. I gave you milk to drink, not solid food, since you were not yet ready for it. In fact, you are not ready yet because you are still worldly. For since there is envy and strife among you, are you not worldly and behaving like mere humans? For whenever someone says, “I belong to Paul,” and another, “I belong to Apollos,” are you not acting like mere humans?
l. People are kept with milk. Milk is good, but don’t expect to grow in Christ. As Christians, we strive, like a newborn baby, to move on to more solid food.
m. You may ask what makes someone immature in faith—not understanding fundamental doctrine, like the divinity of Christ, or articulating what the Gospel means.
n. Let me be clear: immaturity lies in not reading the scriptures or even trying to understand them.
o. Where does this start?
1. This is why it starts with us, your pastors.
2. There is a high view of the office of the pastor in the body of Scripture.
3. Paul elsewhere sets strategic and rigorous expectations for the pastorate (1 Timothy 3:1-7, Titus 1:5-9).
4. Pastors are not just the teachers of the congregation, but also those who help the congregation set up guardrails to shepherd their flock for the Lord.
5. The sad part is not that not all Pastors are qualified, but the Lord will sift that out in time.
B. v. 14b. “tossed by the waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit.”
a. Paul starts by using sea-faring language.
b. Thielman states that,
c. “Paul is particularly concerned about the vulnerability of the spiritually immature to false teaching.”
d. This is the realization of the immature belief's life.
e. False teaching is like a storm.
f. In some cases, I would use the illustration of a tsunami.
1. A tsunami occurs when an earthquake occurs in open water, causing seismic waves that make the waves unpredictable.
2. To the naked eye, they don’t seem significant, but they are.
3. In this event, waves can be large and catastrophic, causing massive destruction.
4. Like a tsunami, false teaching might seem correct; it is dangerous and destructive.
5. It uses just enough Bible verses seem biblical, but it pulls the rug out from under you. This theology leads to destruction.
g. Their theology is described by Paul as “by human cunning with cleverness in the techniques of deceit.
1. Baugh gets the concept correct: “They toss Christ’s people about with their false doctrine to accomplish their deceitful design.”
2. Arnold agrees with this assertion, “In Paul’s view, the variant teachings are not innocent errors on the part of their propagators, but are part of a strategy that is designed to lead people astray from the truth of the gospel. Behind it, the fingerprints of the evil one are present.”
C. Application: Growing in Christ Helps Identify False Teaching. (v.14)
a. Case Study: Prosperity Theology
1. So, what are some modern examples?
2. One cannot look far to see the prosperity Gospel that has plagued America.
3. This theology is often characterized as the “Health and Wealth Gospel.”
4. This theology claims to be “Christian,” yet it’s far from the case.
5. A characteristic of this theology is that God wants you to be healthy and wealthy.
6. They often believe that the poor, sickly, or people struggling are not in the will of God. Their game plan is name it or claim it; you frequently hear them say, “I claim this healing.”
b. There are two tragic aspects of this theology.
c. First, Suffering and the Will of God. (They believe that suffering means that you're not in the will of God.)
1. This falls in the face of the disciples.
2. Peter said in 1 Peter 4:13-22 that suffering is part of God’s will.
1 Peter 4:13-19
Instead, rejoice as you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may also rejoice with great joy when his glory is revealed.
If you are ridiculed for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you.
Let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or a meddler.
But if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed but let him glorify God in having that name.
For the time has come for judgment to begin with God’s household, and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God?
And if a righteous person is saved with difficulty, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?
So then, let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator while doing what is good.
3. Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you, as if something unusual were happening to you. 13 Instead, rejoice as you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may also rejoice with great joy when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are ridiculed for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 Let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or a meddler. 16 But if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed but let him glorify God in having that name. 17 For the time has come for judgment to begin with God’s household, and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God? 18 And if a righteous person is saved with difficulty, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner? So then, let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator while doing what is good.
4. Furthermore, Jesus told his disciples in John 16:31-33 that they would suffer.
John 16:31-33
Jesus responded to them, “Do you now believe?
Indeed, an hour is coming, and has come, when each of you will be scattered to his own home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.
I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.”
5. Jesus responded to them, “Do you now believe? 32 Indeed, an hour is coming, and has come, when each of you will be scattered to his own home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me. 33 I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will suffer in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.
6. Look at the story of Job, where God allowed his suffering.
7. 11 of the Disciples were martyred for their faith. God allows suffering to happen to strengthen our dependence on him.
d. Second, this theology holds that if you have enough Faith in God, Christ will give you wealth and health.
1. This sounds more like Satan than God.
2. They usually think that they believe in what is called “little ‘g’ god” theology.
3. This means that what we say can become reality.
4. The belief that reward in having faith in God is in money and health
5. This is carnal, fleshly wants, not Godly desires.
6. God uses suffering, pain, sickness, and poverty to his glory.
7. To think otherwise is to side with worldly desires that are not only not biblical but Satanic.
8. As Late Pastor John Macarthur states, “The Prosperity Gospel has no interest in the biblical gospel; it only offers financial prosperity and physical well-being to spiteful people. It offers carnal comforts and earthly success to millions of people who literally give up the little they have to buy it. It is the worst, and it is the ugliest to pray on the sick and to pray on the poor to become wealthy by lying to them and attributing it to the Holy Spirit. They associate it with the name of Jesus.”
9. The worst council was from a book I read, and in it was a sad story about a brain-dead child. The parents sought counsel, and the pastor believed that God didn’t have anything to do with this type of suffering, so it must have been either the parents, the pastor, or both in unbelief that caused this miracle not to happen.
10. To get an idea of what this word salad means, the “pastor” blamed the parents for their child’s not being healed.
11. This is foolish counseling that should disqualify that man from ministry for life.
III. Growing up Starts with Christ (v.15)
Ephesians 4:15 “But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ.”
But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ.
A. V.15 “But speaking the truth in love, let us grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ.”
a. Speak the Truth.
1. So how can we spot those impostors to our faith?
2. It is by growing in Christ that we seek maturity.
3. Paul is telling his audience that he wants them to grow in Christ.
4. The phrase “Speaking the truth” is vital.
5. In essence, as Merkle states, “believers are to speak 'the truth,' which includes honest speech in general and also speaking or confessing the truth of the gospel. Such speaking must be done not with callousness or cold-heartedness but 'in love.”
6. Speaking the truth in love is the form of communication that we ought to use to help others grow in Christ.
7. As one commentator states, “Speaking the truth most likely referred to teaching accurately about Christ, in conjunction with the ministries highlighted in verse 11.”
8. This communicates the avenue to church growth. What is the truth that we are to speak?
9. As O’Brien states, “He [Paul] wants all of them to be members of a ‘confessing’ church, with the content of their testimony to be ‘the word of truth,’ the gospel of their salvation (Eph 1:13).”
10. This is to speak about Christ and the Gospel to one another.
b. Truth in love
a. Of course, this truth is to speak out of love.
b. This love is to be shared in the community of Christ, the church.
c. We are supposed to love each other beyond a shadow of doubt.
d. This love is supposed to be transformative. Gossip, slander, and judgment are not to enter the community.
e. This love for the community is what grows in one another.
f. Speaking truth in love isn’t judgment but accountability.
g. We are accountable to one another. Now, because someone might tell you what you believe is wrong, it may not be out of judgment.
h. but love.
c. Head. Christ
1. Paul follows this statement by stating that “who is the Head, Christ.”
2. As a community of Christians, this is our foundation.
3. Christ is the head of the church.
4. Arnold states, “Paul will stress that he is the ultimate source of their growth and the one who coordinates and directs this corporate entity.”
5. As Head, Christ is the leader of the church. This means that He is the source of our growth.
6. Christ leads our lives and our church.
B. Application: Growing in Christ helps us become more like Him. (v.15)
a. Now, how do we practically grow in Christ to become like him?
b. The most straightforward answer is to read the Bible.
c. Now, let me ask you something: Is reading the Bible enough?
d. I would argue that it is the most essential aspect, but not the only part.
e. You see, you don’t grow in isolation but in community.
f. This whole context is in the framework of the church.
g. Now, some things also help us grow, such as reading or listening to more mature Christians.
h. I grew closer to Christ by interacting with other Christians and by reading books that shaped my doctrine and beliefs.
i. Some books that I cherish most are:
1. 40 Questions about Interpreting the Bible by Robert Plumer,
2. The Insanity of God by Nick Rikman
3. Rediscover of Discipleship by Robbey Gallaty
4. Master Plan of Evangelism by Robert Coleman
5. Nine Marks of a Healthy Church by Mark Dever
6. Finally, the current book I’m reading, Delighting in the Trinity by Matt Reaves, is just one of the books that help shape me.
IV. Church Growth Starts with Community (v.16)
Eph 4:16
From him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each individual part.
A. v.16a “From him the whole body, fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament,”
a. Thielman brings this section by stating, “Christ is the source of bodily growth.”
b. This maturity doesn’t benefit the believer but the Church. Christ serves as the object of this growth.
c. Arnold states, “The result is a dynamic image of the individual members of the body receiving nourishment from Christ, and they, in turn, serve other parts of the body with the strength and grace they have received from Christ.”
d. This whole body is, of course, a reference to the Church in totality
e. . Our local body is a part of the Church at large.
f. As Chapell states, “We have a deep obligation to one another—everyone must do their part. Each has a calling to make the body work.”
g. Which is why we are “fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament.”
h. God has made us to become together.
i. Remember that Paul situated this context in the context of the church. God has gifted every believer in the body of Christ with a different gift.
j. The context is that we have different gifts, but when we come together in unison, we help grow the church.
k. As Dockery said, “Ultimately, the church will grow up into Christ in all aspects, with each part fitting together and supporting the other. Each member of the body must function properly if the body is to grow.
l. We get our English word harmony from the Greek term translated fitted and knit together.”
B. v.16b, “promotes the growth of the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each part.”
a. We are better together than alone.
b. This is how we should view each other.
c. We help each other grow in maturity.
d. Unfortunately, some people struggle with this understanding.
e. We collectively help promote a healthy church.
f. Which is why if most of us are young in the spirit, we make our bodies weak.
g. As with our own bodies, if we don’t strengthen them with daily vitamin supplements, we are prone to sickness.
h. If we are not helping each other grow, we can accidentally let in some false teaching, legalism, or even heresy.
i. We don’t do this out of pity, but out of love.
j. As Merkle states, “God gifts believers so that they, having been empowered, may use their gifts for the benefit of others and the common good. The result is that the body will grow—not just numerically but also in maturity. Finally, Paul adds that this growth must be closely related to “love,” the essential lifeblood of the body.”
k. It is by this love that we help brothers and sisters grow.
l. Again, love isn’t just supportive.
m. It is also corrective. It is lovely to correct false teaching in major issues like the prosperity gospel, deviation from God’s decree of marriage, or even a theological issue involving not believing in the Trinity.
C. Application: Growing in Christ helps us impact His Church. (v.16)
a. It is by this growth that we can help strengthen the Christian body.
b. Let's look at our local setting.
c. How many of you are active in your prayer lives?
d. How many of you can help answer difficult theological and/or Bible-based questions? If you can't, that’s ok.
e. We all have to start somewhere.
f. We are called to grow in Christ and to help other brothers and sisters grow in him.
g. We all must be ready to answer questions from those who are not as spiritual as we are.
h. Some questions we might never know, and that’s ok. We are all called to mature not just individually but also collectively.
V. Conclusion
A. As we read this passage of scripture, our call is not just for ourselves but also for others.
B. We might focus on our own growth, but we must also look out for others. God has called us to look after His ministry.
C. We must grow for ourselves, in the sense of making sure we do not let false teaching into our paths and corrupt our relationship with God.
D. We must look to God and other mature believers to help us grow in Christ Church.
