Walk Worthily Together-Maturity (Eph 4:11-16)

Walk Worthily Together: Maturity (Ephesians 4:11-16) Pray & Intro: This week’s sermon finally culminates the Walking Worthily Together section with explaining the need for leadership and cooperation to help us grow to maturity (with unity in diversity). [teamwork illustrations – football, orchestra] Read Passage: In order to maintain unity in diversity and the successful deployment of various moving parts to grow together toward maturity, it’s necessary to have leadership and cooperation. I. Christ gives spiritual gifts (to all believers – 1 Peter 4:10-11) and he gives gifted leaders (to the church). A. Big picture points of v. 11 1. Leaders positioned by God and subject to the Head – Christ 2. The centrality of the ministry of the Word (cf. Acts 20:32 – where the Word builds up) – the focus are those gifted to articulate the gospel and lay the foundational teaching B. Nitty-gritty details in v. 11  Apostles and prophets as the foundational leaders of the church. 1. Apostles (in this context) – the 12 (Matthias replacing Judas) + Paul – were with Jesus and commissioned BY Jesus as apostles  (Php 2, Epa as “your messenger and minister to my need”) [And of course then there’s a sense in which we all as believers are to be his sent ones, his messengers to the world, Christ’s ambassadors.] 2. Prophets – stood in the presence of God and delivered the revelation of God to His people (these prophets spoken of here clearly form the foundation of the church with the apostles, Christ himself being the chief cornerstone – 2:20) 3. If there continues to be a spiritual gift along these lines today, it pertains to the proclamation of God’s revelation (which would be based upon the New Testament, which has become the foundation, the teaching about Jesus that the A & P laid) – perhaps particularly keen insight into understanding God’s word and a unique ability and boldness to explain and proclaim it publicly, and closely linked to the gifting in the areas of evangelism and preaching and teaching. – [N.T. – Agabus, Acts 21, foretelling] – but in many contexts, this prophecy is based upon acknowledged revelation and applied to the will of God for a localized group, and must therefore be tested. (Corinth) 4. (It may be helpful to distinguish between the office of Prophet [which ceased with the office of Apostles: there are certainly no apostles and prophets in this same sense today] and the spiritual gift of prophecy  on that side it is largely a semantic issue in attempting to pin down spiritual gifts by naming them, as we know that various believers are gifted to proclaim and to evangelize, and to preach and to teach, or to counsel; just as many others are gifted with a special measure of faith in prayer, and mercy and sensitivity, and encouragement, and wisdom and discernment and insight, and serving that especially blesses those who are helped. You get my drift.) 5. [So the offices of Apostles and prophets came to end, but other offices continue as servant leaders to localized bodies of believers.] – Evangelists bringing new believers into the fold, while shepherds and teachers nurture, administrate, guard, and challenge those within the flock. C. Evangelists and shepherds and teachers as the continued leaders of local representations of the bigger body of Christ 1. Evangelists are those engaged in preaching the gospel. This can come in the form of public appeals, like those of Peter and Stephen, or in more private settings, like Philip’s opportunity with the Ethiopian eunuch; and through relationships built on respect and trust (like many other opportunities I’d imagine that Paul had – In fairness, he did both – ie. Reasoning with them in the synagogues that Jesus is the Christ and winning many to Christ through personal relationship). 2. Shepherds and teachers – These two are closely linked in the sentence structure, so it’s likely that they are meant to represent leaders in a local church who have similar and overlapping functions.  I would take this office of shepherds to be a reference to elders/overseers, as described in 1 Peter 5:1-4.  These teachers then are either one and the same with these shepherds or are an arm or hand of overseers more particularly gifted in instruction of God’s Word (1 Tim. 5:17). – That is not to say that there are not many others gifted in teaching, whom we desperately need to exercise that gift at various levels and in various settings. II. Cooperation: The leadership’s purpose (through the ministry of the word) (in obedient submission to Christ, the head): To equip the saints for the work of ministry – so that everybody is DOING the ministry.  To Equip, for Building up – in unity and knowledge, to a full grown man = maturity (13b), stability (14), and mutual edification (15-16) A. Equipping the saints for the work of ministry. – bring to completion and fit for a purpose  Here’s why I harp on this so much. How do we do that? (training and discipling – indicated in the *nuance of the verb itself – 2 Tim. 2:2 & Php. 4:9)  Ministry = service done by a person or group to benefit another. (‘work’ is an ongoing activity) B. For building up – This mutual edification (described again in 15-16) is pictured as each team member assisting in the construction of this “body” or “temple” of believers that is still growing toward maturity/completeness. C. In unity (of the faith) and knowledge (of Son of God) to grow to mature manhood, v. 13, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ 1. Worshipping the same Lord, wrapping our heads around the same truths & the same purpose, having the same passion (even though it doesn’t always show the same way) 2. Next this knowledge of Jesus is not just head knowledge but heart knowledge (relationship) and experiential knowledge (thru submissive obedience) 3. All also attaining to a full-grown man – mature, complete  That’s the objective. Keep growing in Christlikeness, aiming for the completion of it. 4. Measured by nothing less than the full stature of Christ. – that’s how you measure what full maturity is, the full stature of Christ. D. V. 14 is a contrast to maturity for comparison – the immaturity of children depicted as small boats that get thrashed around and flung here and there by the winds and waves of doctrinal error, and by human worldly ideas and goals and measurements of success 1. When we hail expository preaching and teaching as the best method of regular teaching from the Bible, you know why. (the message comes from God’s word) – Col. 2:6-8 & 1 Cor. 2:2 2. And if we insist on not departing from sound doctrine, you understand completely. 3. When we challenge you to seek active involvement in making and maturing disciples, you see that this is the clear command of God’s word and essential to the successful growth of the body. [the irony of “attending church”] E. Mutual edification and interdependence (vv. 15-16) – a re-contrast back to maturity (growing up into Christ) 1. Truth and love must go hand in hand for both evangelism and edification. – That way truth is not a bludgeon nor love a caramel latte. 2. The head leads, directs, and guides 3. Every member a minister – held together by every joint, each part working properly 4. Builds itself up on love – the heartbeat and lifeblood of the church as we receive it from Christ