Christ and His Church
Ecclesiology • Sermon • Submitted
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· 6 viewsSermon 1 on the doctrine of the church. Ephesians 5:22-33
Notes
Transcript
I’m doing something a little unusual this month that I’m preaching
-I usually like to pick a passage, a book or chapter, and go through it over the 4 weeks
-These next 4 weeks though are going to be unified through a topic, and I’m picking a different passage each week to exposit that goes along with the theme
-And this topic is extremely extremely important
-I’ve come to believe that many of the problems Christians struggle with today are actually related to not having a right understanding of this topic
And so the topic I want to address the next few weeks is: What is the local church, and why is it important?
-Now, don’t tune me out
-I know when people hear that, they think, “I’m in church! I know what the church is.”
-But I believe so much of what Christians deal with has to do with not fully understanding the importance or role of the local church
-I think this is evidenced by inconsistent church attendance among many professing believers
-It’s very common to meet people who claim to be Christians but never attend church
-Some Christians may think that meeting together with another believer or 2 at Starbucks constitutes church
-Many people are hesitant to join a church, thinking “why do I need to join? I can just go and be a part of what’s going on without having to join.”
-I believe that part of the reason why people often fall away from regular church attendance is that they don’t really understand why it’s important
-Who’s idea was church anyway?
-Is this just something that started in the early American days and has kind of become a tradition?
-Furthermore, those who do attend churches attend churches who do not preach the Word. I believe this can show a lack of discernment as to what church is really all about.
Now, when we speak of “church” (ekklesia, a called out group), we think of it in 2 ways:
-universal church (all believers)
-local church (localized, organized group of believers)
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Christ is the one who builds His church
Today, we will start off dealing with the universal church at large, and in the following weeks will focus more on local church
-but today’s sermon does have huge implications for our local churches
I cannot cover all that there is to cover about the church, but I will do my best in the next 4 weeks to exposit passages that deal with certain aspects of the church
Ephesians 5:22-33
Context:
-Paul has spent 3 chapters detailing the riches we have in Christ, and the the mystery of how Christ has brought both jew and gentile into one body, called the church, through His sacrificial atoning death
-In chapter 4, Paul begins to detail more specifically how the church ought to conduct themselves based on the truths of verses 1-3
-Paul in chapters 4 and 5 teaches the church how they ought to “walk”
-Paul commands the church in 5:18 to be filled with the Spirit
-He’s now showing what it looks like to be filled with the Spirit, and how it will play out in the church
vs. 25
-Husbands are commanded to love their wives
-That seems like a pretty straight forward command
-But how is a husband to know what that looks like?
-Most husbands would claim that they do love their wives!
-“I mean, I go to work and provide for her! I wouldn’t do that if I didn’t love her!”
-How is love defined? How are we to know what that looks like?
-Is it modeled for us in romance novels or chick-flicks?
-Is it given to us by our culture?
-Is it giving her flowers? Is it providing for her by working? Is it doing the dishes?
-Will Paul maybe give us an example from the OT of a married couple?
-Paul tells us exactly what love looks like, and in so doing, lays the groundwork for the relationship of Christ and His church
-The example of love that Paul gives for the husband is Christ’s love for His church.
-If you want to know what loving your wife looks like, you need only to look at Christ and what He has done for His church, His people
-His love for His people has been from eternity past
just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
-What has He done for them?
-He gave Himself for her
-God’s love for us in the NT is mainly connected with His giving of Christ
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
-Jesus laid aside the glory of heaven to come to die for sinners
For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
-The motive that God gives for giving Christ to die for us is love
-He loved His church, His called out body of people
What was the purpose of dying for her?
Vs. 26
-That he might sanctify her and cleanse her
-Christ has sacrificially died for His bride, His people, the church
-Why?
-So that He can set us apart for Himself!
-When someone is married, they are set apart for their spouse, and their spouse only
-Christ died for us to set us apart to Himself alone
And how does He do this:
-By cleansing her!
-Christ’s blood has bought this people, the church, so that He can set His people apart by cleansing them
How is this enacted?
-Through the washing of water by the Word
-Now, there’s some debate as to what exactly this phrase is referring to
-for washing with water, there’s 2 plausible interpretations:
-The first is that this is a reference to baptism
-Us following Christ by water baptism, publicly identifying with Him
-Or, this could refer to the cleansing a bride would receive before her wedding, so that she was cleansed and ready for the ceremony
-I think both options are possible. I lean towards the first because of the context, but I think Christ does cleanse and set apart His people through baptism to a certain extent, but that the idea is of washing and cleansing her for Himself
But notice how He does this
-by the Word
-The Word of God cleanses and sanctifies the people of God
-Do you see why the Word of God is so central to the church?
-Christ didn’t just die for you purely for your benefit
-He bought you to sanctify you, to cleanse you by the Word
Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
-God the Father calls forth a people for Himself, Jesus the Son dies for this people (the church), and then uses the Scriptures, breathed out by the Spirit, to cleanse and sanctify this people
Why does He do all this?
Vs. 27
-that He might present her to Himself a glorious church
-Christ has saved this people so that He can present her to Himself!
-that word “glorious” has the idea of beautiful
-Anything beautiful about His church, however, is due to His work alone!
-In and of ourselves, we are sinful and depraved
-But through His work of sanctification and cleansing, we are presented to Himself as beautiful!
-Look at the rest of the verse!
-We are going to be presented to Christ not having ANY spot or wrinkle
-WOW!!
-How is that possible?
-I know how sinful I am
-I am far more sinful and wicked and depraved than any of you know
-But I know, because I know my own thoughts and sinful desires
-I know the shameful sins that I’ve committed
-How is it that we can be beautiful, without any spot or wrinkle, but be holy and without blemish??
-We know it’s not by our own good works or ANYTHING awesome or noble that we try to do
But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags;
We all fade as a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind,
Have taken us away.
-So how is it possible that me, and you, and all of use can be presented as holy and without blemish?
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;
-Through the sacrifice of Christ one day, we will be presented to Him as holy and without blame through His righteousness
-In that day there will be no shame, no sin, no guilt because of His atoning work of giving Himself
-One day, you and I and every Christian in every age will be presented to Christ as His bride, blameless and beautiful, clothed in the righteousness of Christ
Vs. 28-32
Vs. 28-32
Look next at what Paul says
Vs. 28-29
-the Lord Himself nourishes and cherishes His church
-He lovingly cares for and provides for His people!
-The word nourish has the idea of “providing for, or bringing up”
-Cherish as the idea of “take care of, nurture”
Christ Himself is the One who provides for and nurtures and cherishes His church!
as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,
He has richly provided for all our needs!
-He gives us salvation, the word, His Holy Spirit, fellowship and peace with Himself and with others
-We are truly rich and well-taken care of in Christ!
Vs. 30
-We have been joined together so intimately with Christ that we are His body!
And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church,
But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.
He is the head, and we are His body!
-We have been joined to Him, just as a husband and wife have been joined together into one entity
-As the church, we get to be the Gospel made Visible!
-If people want to know what Christ looks like and how He acts, they ought to be able to look at us!
-We are His ambassadors and imitators!
-His identity has become our own
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.
-Have any of you every been embarassed by your spouse before?
-Why? Because you’re so closely connected, that you represent each other in a sense
-That’s how closely connected we are with Christ! We represent Him and have been joined to Him and His identity
But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
What a wonderful truth!
Vs. 22-24
Vs. 22-24
Now, let’s go back to verses 22-24
How does the church interact with Christ?
Vs. 22-24
-The church is subject to Christ in everything!
“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
We submit to Christ in all His authority
-We don’t do church in the way that we think it ought to be done!
-It’s not our job to somehow think up new ways to “do church”
-We don’t get to think up ways of how to dress up the Gospel to make it appear less offensive or more “culturally relevant”
-We simply submit to Christ
-He’s given us as a church our marching orders, and it’s:
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
We submit, we reverence, we worship, we obey
-How do we submit and obey Christ then as a church?
-We read His word
-We preach His word
-We teach His word
-We sing His word
-And then, we obey His word
Application
Application
So, what does all this mean for me and for us as a church?
-First, we must worship Christ and be thankful for the salvation we have in Him alone
-He has purchased and bought us with His blood, and we will be presented perfect before Him without blemish
-Praise God
-Second, we are not our own. We must glorify God in our lives and press on to being more like Him
-All through Scripture, we see that because of our salvation, we are to live a life of holiness to the Lord
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”
Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
For us to live however we want, in light of the sacrifice of Christ, is to profane and reproach Him
-The love of Christ ought to compel us to live wholeheartedly for Him and Him alone
-We are not our own
-Thirdly, we are to submit to Him in everything
-This means we must obey His commands found in His Word
-One of these commands is to be faithful to our local church
Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
-It is so important to be meeting with you church to:
-worship Christ
-to encourage believers
-to hear the Word of God rightly taught and exposited
-The local church is so so important
-Lastly, we must love one another
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
-The other Christians around you, no matter how immature or even sinful at times, are people whom Christ has died for
-He has bought them for Himself, and He will present them to Himself one day without spot or blemish, but holy
-Love and respect your brothers and sisters in Christ, whom Christ has paid for