Riches of the Unity of the Faith
Sufficiency of Christ: A Walk through Ephesians • Sermon • Submitted
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· 8 viewsIndividual unity brings church unity through God's gifts
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From Procession to Gifts
From Procession to Gifts
(insert a slide of wedding procession; graduation procession, funeral procession too)
We are used to several kinds of processions in life, in fact we probably have been involved in several, but nothing like the one we see in our passage today and to get a better understanding let me explain a little more.
(Insert a slide of a Roman procession)
Explain about a Roman procession after victory in battle (expand)
Victory with a purpose
(Slide) To give salvation
(Slide) To give gifts of grace
(Slide) For the gifts to be used to bring unity and maturity
I. Christ’s Gift
I. Christ’s Gift
But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, “When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, And He gave gifts to men.”
(Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)
While we find our personal unity in the unity of the One’s
Eph4:
There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
(Slide) There is diversity of gifts that work together to bring unity to the body (the church)
The unity of the body depends on the possession and using the gifts of grace that God gives to us through Christ Jesus.
(Slide) Gift of grace - Salvation (This is one slide, leave it that way)
Gifts of grace - to church
Gifts of grace - for the church
Gifts of grace - the results
Gifts
Gifts of grace - the unity of the church
With the grace comes the responsibility, the stewardship, the administration of the gifts of grace. But it started with Jesus
What differs between Jesus procession and the Roman procession, the Roman one demanded gifts from the people to then help the people, Jesus procession was so that He could give gifts to men (v.8).
(v.8) is a quote partial quote from Psm68, Paul did not get it wrong; Christ got it right on our behalf.
You have ascended on high, You have led captive Your captives; You have received gifts among men, Even among the rebellious also, that the Lord God may dwell there.
He ascended, but that also means He descended (v.10) so that He may fill all, or at it says.
one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
or
He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
God the Father, received Christ as the gift given so that Christ could give gifts to men.
Christ lead a victory parade
When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him.
Speaking of ascent and descent how about one more reference
“No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.
God appointed Him and in turn He gives us graces, appoints
And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,
He is over all and through all and in all so we can be all for Him.
“Can a man hide himself in hiding places So I do not see him?” declares the Lord. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the Lord.
We cannot hide from God nor should we hide our gifts. Not using the gifts is trying to hide them, we need to bring them and use them to the fulness of Christ (v.13)
(Slide) So God received gifts so Christ could give gifts and the first gifts were to the Church
II. Gifts to the Church
II. Gifts to the Church
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
God gave gifts to the church for a purpose, first I want to look at the gifts then the purpose.
(Slide) Apostles: One sent with authority and a message
In the specific sense these were the hand chosen people by Christ to be “sent forth.” They were to be God’s mouthpiece after His ascension. Look at some of the prayer that Jesus offered up for them.
“I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. “Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.
Jn17:6-
Jesus thanked the Father for the Apostles, then asks the Father to use the Apostles.
Then Jesus
“But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.
Jn17:
“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.
JN17:17
Then states the reason
“I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
The Apostles, those with the authority have since died off, but their message has not. It has been given to us to carry it on. We too are sent with authority, just not the power that the Apostles had. To be an apostle you had to been with Jesus and they had to be a witness of the resurrected Lord. So the pool of Apostles would be limited. Now in the general sense there were other apostles, one’s sent with a message.
(Slide) Barnabas (Act14:4, 14) (One Slide Only; leave it that way)
James (1Cor15:7)
Silvanus ( 1The2:6)
And Andronius & Junias (Rom16:7)
The office of the Apostle has been fulfilled; the message of the apostles we still carry today when we share God’s Word, with God’s authority to introduce God’s power to the people so that they too may come to know the Christ and Him Resurrected.
Know the Christ
That leads us to the next gift.
know the LOrd
Bring the message of the Christ to others
(Slide) Prophets: Spokesmen for God
and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues.
and to another the effecting of miracles, and to another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues.
And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues.
But now there are many members, but one body.
1
Whereas in the O.T. we often see a message given from God to tell to the people of things in the future, we also see forthtelling the Words God had for the people. The Prophets in the N.T. would carry the message of God from place to place since there was not much writing done and the letters, Word of God was not circulated in writing until later. These prophets helped the Apostles to carry the message. The Prophets were no longer needed when everything we hold in our hands was compiled together.
but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.
God’s perfect Word put together then that which is partial was done away with. No longer needed.
Both of these offices, both of these gifts for the church were foundational for the church but not generational, not needed forever.
Let me prove it through the scripture though.
having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone,
which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit;
Eph2
Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.
1COr10
(Slide) Evangelists: Those who proclaim the Good News
I love it, they did not have the prestige of the Apostles, the inspiration of the Prophets, they are the rank and file of the church now, the missionaries carrying the Good News.
But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
2
Timothy was a great example of the evangelist. Timothy travelled from place to place carrying the message, the Good News. Much like the evangelists today they bring the Good News, they bring the invitation to come to Jesus, to lead people to come to know the truth and to respond to the truth.
Another good example was Philip
On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.
One of the original deacons in early church became an evangelist you may remember him from Act8 with the Ethiopian Eunuch.
Are we not all called to evangelize, but not all called to be an evangelist. The evangelist is not normally the one who disciples the Christian but leads someone to become a Christian. That task is left to another office, the one of Pastor, Shepherd, Overseer, Elder.
Unlike Apostles and Prophets the evangelists are found in every generation of the church.
teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
and that brings us to the next gift to the Church.
(Slide) Pastors and Teachers
Where some will link the two together as one gift to the church it is more apparent with the “and” that they are separate.
Pastor: Poimen (Gk)- meaning shepherd, elder, overseer.
Let me show you in some scriptures of the usage
From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church.
“Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church.
For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you, namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain,
“Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and appoint elders in every city as I directed you, namely, if any man is above reproach, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, not accused of dissipation or rebellion. For the overseer must be above reproach as God’s steward, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not addicted to wine, not pugnacious, not fond of sordid gain,
So these Pastors, overseers, shepherds were to be appointed who were apt to teach, so it is easy to see the link between Pastors and Teachers.
Tit
So these Pastors, overseers, shepherds were to be appointed who were apt to teach, so it is easy to see the link between Pastors and Teachers.
Shepherds work and compliment the work of the evangelist in teaching the new converts what it is to be a christian and look over the spiritual condition of the flock.
There are men who are able to teach
An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
It is not God’s pattern for Pastors to do everything, they have a specific task to tend to the spiritual condition of the flock where as the Evangelist is to help lead people to become a part of the flock using the words of the Prophets and the Apostles to do it.
An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
It is not God’s pattern for Pastors to do everything, they have a specific task to tend to the spiritual condition of the flock where as the Evangelist is to help lead people to become a part of the flock using the words of the Prophets and the Apostles to do it.
God’s gifts to the church are with a purpose and now let us start to look at that.
III. Gifts given for the Church
III. Gifts given for the Church
for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
(Slide) Equipping - the gifts that were given were with a purpose, for the equipping of the church for the work of service (expand on this)
(Slide) Building up - the building up, encouraging, edifying one another
(Slide) To obtain unity of the faith -what faith? The One faith of Eph4:4-6; and said only in our passage today. when we are unified in that we teach others so that they maybe unified in that too and there is no division.
(Slide) Knowledge of Son of God - how do we do it all? We do it through teaching people the knowledge of the Son of God.
The leadership helps with the equipping so the church and do the works of service and to bring unity to the body of Christ. A good scripture to go with this is
Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.
For the equipping with a purpose comes with a purposed result.
IV. The purposed results of the gifts
IV. The purposed results of the gifts
As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
Eph4:14
from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
(Slide) Maturity that is strong, rooted, grounded - we are not to be swayed in the winds of time, tossed by the waves/seas of different doctrines, nor easily ticked or deceived by the schemes of man.
(Slide) Able to speak in truth and love to maturity in all aspects - The results are one body who is bold, truthful, filled with love for others who is willing to share the truth with others so all may grow to maturity in all aspects.
from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
As a church, as a whole, we we have the unity of the faith and we know the gifts given to the church, for the church and the results of the gifts in the church then we know we are
(Slide) being fit together, held together
(Slide) Each has a part, a proper part, individual part to bring
(Slide) For the building up of itself (the church) in love
OK now how about some more application, scripture and we close out.
all the gifts were given with a purpose
To teach
“A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.
to equip
equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
To supply
as we night and day keep praying most earnestly that we may see your face, and may complete what is lacking in your faith?
To prepare
Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “Sacrifice and offering You have not desired, But a body You have prepared for Me;
TO form mold and shape
By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.
To mend: From mending nets to fishers of men to mend relationships
Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them.
To bring comfort
Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete, be comforted, be like-minded, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.
To restore
Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.
TO bring harmony
Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.
It’s about unity, its about family, its about maturity as one Body with many parts to form one body. We work together.
(Insert a slide with cog’s on it working together)
Come work with us by being a part of the body or bringing your part to the body to be used.
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