Exalting Christ by Equipping the Saints

Ephesians 4:7–16 ESV

7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.” 9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

The past thirty years or so has witnessed the development of what is called the church growth movement. Seminars, conferences, books, programs, and even special organizations are devoted exclusively to teaching and discussing principles and methods for church growth. Over the next three weeks Josh and I will be casting the vision for Othello First Baptist Church. We will be doing this by preaching through our Vision statement for the church. Exalting Christ by Equipping the Saints to Share the Gospel with the Nations. This week we will look at Exalting Christ by Equipping the Saints. Today I will let you in on a little secret, what you need to have church growth is a maturing church body. And maturation comes by the Spirit when we equip the saints. Ephesians 4:12-16 gives us the blueprint for a church to equip the saints. God’s spiritual gifts to His church include both the individual gifts given to every believer as well as the calling of men to the four offices of the church. The first two offices were that of apostles and prophets, who were given strictly for New Testament times and were followed by the offices of evangelists and pastor-teachers, who are given for continuing ministry to the church. It is God’s plan for the last two groups of gifted men—the evangelists and pastor-teachers—to equip, build up, and develop Christ’s church by the plan set forth in verses 12–16. In this passage we are shown the progression, the purpose, and the power of God’s divine pattern for the building and function of His church.

THE PROGRESSION OF GOD’S PATTERN

Ephesians 4:12 ESV

12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,

In the simplest possible terms Paul here sets forth God’s progressive plan for His church: equipping leads to service which leads to building up the body.

EQUIPPING

The first task within God’s design is for the evangelists and pastor-teachers to be properly equipping the saints. The evangelist’s work is to bring men and women to an understanding of the gospel of salvation, to lead them to receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and thereby become children in His spiritual family and citizens of His divine kingdom. In the early years the objective was to establish a local church. This begins the equipping. The pastor-teacher’s subsequent work, then, is to provide the leadership and spiritual resources to cause believers to be taking on the likeness of their Lord and Savior through continual obedience to His Word and to provide a pattern, or example, of godliness.

The greek word for equipping basically refers to that which is fit, is restored to its original condition, or is made complete. The word was often used as a medical term for the setting of bones. Paul used the verb form in his closing admonition to the Corinthian believers: “Finally, brethren, rejoice, be made complete.” The writer of Hebrews used the term in his closing prayer: “Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight.”

Not only is the matter of individual equipping implied in these texts but also the collective equipping expressed in 1 Corinthians 1:10—“Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree, and there be no divisions among you, but you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.” The equipping of each believer results in the unity of all.

God has given four basic tools, as it were, for the spiritual equipping of the saints. These are spiritual means, because the flesh cannot make anyone perfect.

His Word

The first and most important is His Word, the Bible. “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” Jesus said, “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.” The first purpose of the pastor-teacher, therefore, is to feed himself, to feed his people, and to lead them to feed themselves on the Word of God.

Prayer

The second example of the apostles, who gave themselves continually to teaching the Word and to prayer indicates that a second tool of equipping is prayer, and the pastor-teacher is responsible to prepare himself and to lead his people to prepare themselves in prayer. This is exactly Josh has been talking about during his last couple of sermons. It has also been the focus of our Wednesday night Sunago meetings for the past couple of months looking at what Paul can teach us about prayer. A church that doesn’t pray is a church that does not have equipped, mature Christians.

It is essential to note that this equipping, completing, or perfecting of the saints is attainable here on earth, because Paul uses the verb form of equipping to refer to what spiritually strong believers are to do for fellow believers who have fallen into sin. The text strongly teaches that the ministry of equipping is the work of leading Christians from sin to obedience.

Testing

A third tool of equipping is testing. Testing is primarily a purging experiences by which the believer is refined to greater holiness. James tells us to “consider it all joy … when [we] encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of [our] faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result,” he goes on to say, “that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” When we respond to God’s testing in trust and continued obedience, spiritual muscles are strengthened and effective service for Him is broadened.

Suffering

Fourth is suffering. Suffering is also a means of spiritual equipping. Peter uses this word near the close of his first letter: “And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.” Knowing and following Christ in the deepest sense not only involves being raised with Him but also sharing in “the fellowship of His sufferings.” Paul rejoiced in his sufferings for Christ’s sake. God “comforts us in all our affliction,” he says, “so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ.”

The sending of tests and suffering are entirely God’s operation, and He gives them to His saints according to His loving and sovereign will. But the other two agents of spiritual equipping—prayer and knowledge of Scripture—are the responsibilities bestowed upon the offices of Pastor and Evangelist first to then be develop in the church body as a whole.

Like the apostles in Jerusalem, the pastor-teacher is to devote himself above all else “to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.” Like Paul, he should be able to say that his supreme effort is given to “admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, that we may present every man complete in Christ.” As Paul said of Epaphras, it should be said of every pastor-teacher that he labors earnestly in prayer for those given into his care, in order that they “may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God.” The devoted pastor-teacher is “a good servant of Christ Jesus, constantly nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine,” which he then prescribes, teaches, reads publicly, and exhorts. He is called to “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”

Even the most biblical and efficient of church organizations will not produce spiritual maturity without the leadership of God’s gifted ministers who are continually in prayer and in His Word. Administration and structure has its place, but it is far from the heart of spiritual church growth. The great need of the church has always been spiritual maturity rather than organizational restructuring. All the books on leadership, organization, and management offer little help to the dynamics of the church of Jesus Christ.

Even less does the church need entertaining. God’s people can use their talents in ways that glorify the Lord and give testimony of His grace, but when testimony turns to vaudeville, as it often does, God is not glorified and His people are not edified. Religious entertainment neither comes from nor leads to spiritual maturity. It comes from self and can only promote self.

The study and teaching of God’s Word takes time. The evangelist or pastor-teacher therefore cannot fulfill his God-given responsibility if he is encumbered with the planning and administration of a multitude of programs—no matter how worthy and helpful they are. Again, like the apostles in Jerusalem, he cannot “serve tables” and also be faithful “to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.”

The surest road to a church’s spiritual stagnation, to the pastor’s burnout, or to both is for the pastor to become so engulfed in activities and programs that he has too little time for prayer and the Word. And programs that “succeed” can be even more destructive than those that fail if they are done in the flesh and for human satisfaction rather than the Lord’s glory. It is lack of knowledge of God’s Word and obedience to it, not lack of programs and methods, that destroy His people. When they fail it is not because of weak programs but because of weak teaching.

The first concern of the leadership of the church should be for the filled seats, not the empty ones. When a young preacher complained to Charles Spurgeon that his own congregation was too small, Spurgeon replied, “Well, maybe it is as large as you’d like to give account for in the day of judgment.”

Spiritual growth does not always involve learning something new. Our most important growth often is in regard to truth we have already heard but have not fully applied. Peter wrote, “I shall always be ready to remind you of these things, even though you already know them, and have been established in the truth which is present with you. And I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder, … that at any time after my departure you may be able to call these things to mind” (2 Pet. 1:12–13, 15). The great truths of the Word of God can never be mastered or overlearned. The battle with our unredeemed flesh necessitates constant reminding. As long as a pastor has breath he should preach those truths, and as long his congregation has breath it should hear them.

Sunday morning worship service is our primary means of discipleship and equipping that we have during the week. It sets the tone of everything else we do. It is vital that the sermons be filled with the truths of scripture and are systematically taught to the church. This is why Josh and I preach the way we do. We pick a book or a section of scripture like the sermon on the mount, and didactically teach through it. In other words we design the messages with the intent to teach or equip you. It is something we both take very seriously as we are accountable to God for this.

SERVICE

The second aspect of God’s plan for the operation of His church is service. Paul’s language indicates that it is not the gifted men who have the most direct responsibility to do the work of service. No pastor, or even a large group of pastors, can do everything a church needs to do. No matter how gifted, talented, and dedicated a pastor may be, the work to be done where he is called to minister will always vastly exceed his time and abilities. His purpose in God’s plan is not to try to meet all those needs himself but to equip the people given into his care to meet those needs.

Ephesians 4:16 ESV

16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Obviously the leaders share in serving, and many of the congregation share in equipping, but God’s basic design for the church is for the equipping to be done so that the saints can serve each other effectively. The entire church is to be aggressively involved in the work of the Lord.

When the gifted men are faithful in prayer and in teaching the Word, the people will be properly equipped and rightly motivated to do the work of service. From the saints who are equipped God raises up elders, deacons, teachers, and every other kind of worker needed for the church to be faithful and productive. Spiritual service is the work of every Christian, every saint of God. Attendance is a poor substitute for participation in ministry.

So let me ask a pointed and direct question, how are you serving in the church? What role are you playing in serving the body? There are many in here that do serve as Sunday school teachers, worship leaders, youth leaders, and leading women’s bible study. People that spray for weeds, mow our lawn, and fix the property when things wear out. Jobs that no one sees but are vital to the function of the church. In my two years serving in Othello First Baptist I have had a few people come to me and say “we should start this ministry or that ministry. Can the deacons figure out how to do that?” The answer to that question is always the same, yes the deacons will talk about it and can figure that out but that is not the way it is supposed to work. I have yet to have someone come and say “I have an idea for a ministry as I see a need, can the leaders help me get this started?” Do you see the difference between those two questions? If God is laying on your heart that there is a need God is prompting you to get involved in service to his people. So follow that leading and step out in faith by getting involved.

BUILDING UP

The third element and the immediate goal of God’s plan for the operation of His church is its being built up. Proper equipping by the evangelists and pastor-teachers leading to proper service by the congregation results inevitably in the building up of the body of Christ. The greek word used for building up in verse 16 literally refers to the building of a house, and was used figuratively of any sort of construction. It is the spiritual edification and development of the church of which Paul is speaking here. The body is built up externally through evangelism as more believers are added, but the emphasis of this passage is on its being built up internally as all believers are nurtured to fruitful service through the Word. The maturation of the church is tied to learning of and obedience to the holy revelation of Scripture. Just as newborn babes desire physical milk, so should believers desire the spiritual nourishment of the Word.

THE PURPOSE OF GOD’S PATTERN

Ephesians 4:13–15 ESV

13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,

The building up of the redeemed involves a two-fold ultimate objective, which Paul identifies as the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, out of which flow spiritual maturity, sound doctrine, and loving testimony. All of which a church should strive for and can achieve here on earth.

UNITY OF THE FAITH

God’s truth is not fragmented and divided against itself, and when His people are fragmented and divided it simply means they are to that degree apart from His truth, apart from the faith of right knowledge and understanding. Only a biblically equipped, faithfully serving, and spiritually maturing church can attain unity of the faith. Any other unity will be on a purely human level and not only will be apart from but in constant conflict with the unity of the faith. There can never be unity in the church apart from doctrinal integrity.

KNOWLEDGE OF CHRIST

The second result of following God’s pattern for building His church is attaining the knowledge of the Son of God. Paul is not talking about salvific knowledge here, but about the deep knowledge that is correct and accurate through a relationship with Christ that comes only from prayer and faithful study of and obedience to God’s Word. Paul prayed that the Ephesians would have that “knowledge of Him” (1:17). Growing in the deeper knowledge of the Son of God is a life-long process that will not be complete until we see our Lord face-to-face. That is the knowing of which Jesus spoke when He said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them” (John 10:27). He was not speaking of recognizing their identities but of knowing them intimately, and that is the way He wants His people also to know Him.

SPIRITUAL MATURITY

The third result of following God’s pattern for His church is spiritual maturity. God’s great desire for His church is that every believer, without exception, come to be like His Son, manifesting the character qualities of the One who is the only measure of the full-grown, perfect, mature man. The church in the world is Jesus Christ in the world, because the church is now the fullness of His incarnate Body in the world (cf. 1:23). We are to radiate and reflect Christ’s perfections. Christians are therefore called to “walk in the same manner as He walked,” and He walked in complete and continual fellowship with and obedience to His Father. To walk as our Lord walked as a result of a life of prayer and of obedience to God’s Word. As we grow into deeper fellowship with Christ, the process of divine sanctification through His Holy Spirit changes us more and more into His image, from one level of glory to the next. The agent of spiritual maturity, as well as of every other aspect of godly living, is God’s own Spirit—apart from whom the sincerest prayer has no effectiveness and even God’s own Word has no power apart from the Spirit. John 16:13-14 says

John 16:13–14 ESV

13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

SOUND DOCTRINE

Ephesians 4:14 ESV

14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.

The fourth result of following God’s pattern for His church is sound doctrine. The Christian who is properly equipped and mature is no longer a child who is tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful scheming.

The greek word used for cunning is the term from which we get cube, and was used of dice-playing. Just as today, the dice were often “loaded” or otherwise manipulated by professional gamblers to their own advantage. The term for dice therefore became synonymous with dishonest trickery of any sort. Craftiness is a similar term, carrying the idea of clever manipulation of error made to look like truth. The greek word for deceitful schemes is used later in the letter to refer to “the schemes of the devil” (6:11). No doubt it has reference to planned, subtle, systematized error. Paul’s point is that neither the trickery of men nor the deceitful scheming of the devil will mislead the spiritually equipped and mature believer.

The immature Christian is gullible; and in the history of the church no group of believers has fallen into more foolishness in the name of Christianity than has much of the church today. Despite our unprecedented education, sophistication, freedom, and access to God’s Word and sound Christian teaching, it seems that every religious huckster can find a ready ear and financial support from among God’s people. The number of foolish, misdirected, corrupt, and even heretical leaders to whom many church members willingly give their money and allegiance is astounding and heartbreaking.

The cause of this blight upon the church today is not hard to find. A great many evangelists have presented an easy-believism gospel and a great many pastors have taught an almost contentless message. In many places the Body of Christ has not been built up in sound doctrine or in faithful obedience. Consequently there is little doctrinal solidarity (“unity of faith”) and little spiritual maturity (“knowledge of the Son of God … to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ”).

AUTHENTIC LOVING TESTIMONY

The fifth and final feature that is primarily a requirement and yet also a result of following God’s pattern for His church will be in direct opposition to being tossed, carried away, tricked, and deceived by the schemes of Satan—namely, speaking the truth in love, a principle that applies to every aspect of Christian life and ministry. The verb translated speaking the truth means alētheuō, which means to speak, deal, or act truthfully. Some have translated it “truthing it,” while others say it conveys the idea of walking in a truthful way. The verb refers to being true in the widest sense and is hard to translate into English. Yet in Galatians 4:16 it seems to especially emphasize preaching the gospel truth. Since the reference in Galatians is the only other use of the verb in the New Testament, it seems safe to say that the emphasis in Ephesians 4 is also on the preaching of the truth (within the context of a truthful and authentic Christian life). Authentic, mature believers whose lives are marked by love will not be victims of false teaching (v. 14) but will be living authentically and proclaiming the true gospel to a deceived and deceiving world. The work of the church goes full swing, from evangelism to edification to evangelism, and so on and on until the Lord returns. The evangelized are edified, and they, in turn, evangelize and edify others.

The spiritually equipped church, whose members are sound in doctrine and mature in their thinking and living, is a church that will reach out in love to proclaim the saving gospel. God does not give us knowledge, understanding, gifts, and maturity to keep but to share. He does not equip us to stagnate but to serve. We are not gifted and edified in order to be complacent and self-satisfied but in order to do the Lord’s work of service in building up and expanding the Body of Christ. In love is the attitude in which we evangelize.

Speaking the truth in love seems deceptively easy, but it is extremely difficult. It is possible only for the believer who is thoroughly equipped in sound doctrine and in spiritual maturity. For the immature believer, right doctrine can be no more than cold orthodoxy and love can be no more than sentimentality. Only the mature man, the man who is growing up to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fulness of Christ is consistent in having sufficient wisdom to understand God’s truth and effectively present it to others; and only he has the continual humility and grace to present it in love and in power. The combination of truth and love counteracts the two great threats to powerful ministry—lack of truth and lack of compassion.

Ephesians 4:15 ESV

15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,

This loving, authentic testimony assists believers in growing into the very likeness of Jesus Christ. The phrase in all aspects calls for a comprehensive Christlikeness such as that described in verse 13.

The head Christ, expresses a familiar Pauline analogy indicating Christ’s authority, leadership, and here, as in Colossians 2:19, controlling power over the church. He not only is the sovereign Head and the ruling Head but also the resurrected, living Head. He is the source of power for all functions. Human beings are declared officially dead when the EEG is flat, signifying brain death. As the brain is the control center of physical life, so the Lord Jesus Christ is the spiritual source of life and power to His Body, the church. To grow into His likeness is to be completely subject to His controlling power, obedient to His every thought and expression of will.

THE POWER FOR GOD’S PATTERN

Ephesians 4:16 ESV

16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

The power for being equipped and matured into lovingly authentic proclaimers of the gospel is not in believers themselves, in their leaders, or in church structure. The Body receives its authority, direction, and power as it grows “up in all aspects into … Christ,” from whom the whole body is fitted and held together. The two phrases translate here are synonymous and are meant to express that the close, tight, compacted correlation of function in the Body as an organism is the result of Christ’s power. That does not negate the efforts of believers, as proved by the phrases by that which every joint supplies and according to the proper working of each individual part. Each of these phrases is extremely significant in conveying truth about the function of the Body. Christ holds the Body together and makes it function by that which every joint supplies. That is to say, the joints are points of contrast, the joining together or union where the spiritual supply, resources, and gifts of the Holy Spirit pass from one member to another, providing the flow of ministry that produces growth. Just as the electrical impulses in our body move from the brain to the appropriate appendages.

The proper working of each individual part recalls the importance of each believer’s gift. The growth of the church is not a result of clever methods but of every member of the Body fully using his spiritual gift in close contact with other believers. Christ is the source of the life and power and growth of the church, which He facilitates through each believer’s gifts and mutual ministry in joints touching other believers. The power in the church flows from the Lord through individual believers and relationships between believers.

Where His people have close relationships of genuine spiritual ministry, God works; and where they are not intimate with each other and faithful with their gifts, He cannot work. He does not look for creativity, ingenuity, or cleverness but for willing and loving obedience. The physical body functions properly only as each member in union with every other member responds to the direction of the head to do exactly what it was designed to do.

In Colossians 2:19 Paul gives a priceless insight when he warns against “not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.” The key idea in that verse is for every member of the Body to remain close and intimate, holding tightly to fellowship with Christ, the Head, and thus not be led astray by that which is false and destructive.

The sum of all that these truths affirm that every individual believer is to stay close to Jesus Christ, faithfully using his spiritual gift in close contact with every believer he touches, and that through such commitment and ministry the Lord’s power will flow for the building up of the Body in love.

Exalting Christ by Equipping the Saints to Share the Gospel with the Nations, our mission statement. With that in mind, what is happening here at FBC? We are excited to announce that we will be moving full time ministry functions to our North Campus facilities this summer with the intent of launching weekly services there starting in August. At this time that facility meets our needs for the equipping of the saints better than this campus. We can fellowship, eat, and learn in a more coherent manner as well as having more usable space in the Worship center than we have at main campus. If you joined us for Easter this last week you will have noticed our attendance was as robust as usual and we still had room to put more chairs in. For those of you that like numbers, we can easily fit 20+ more seats at Pine street than this campus. But fear not we are not trying to divest ourselves of this facility. In fact we want to actually expand our ministry offerings by revamping our main campus turning it into a training and equipping center where we can offer classes with the hope of even offering pastoral preparation courses here in Othello. Almost 10 years ago now we were blessed by the Pine Street Baptist church with the donation of our North Campus. They gave us that facility with no strings attached, but with a desire to see that campus still be used to reach Othello for Christ. I found out this week that the original Pastor of FBC as well as the original congregation had always planned on being a church known for planting other churches, which both Josh and I have a desire for as well. There were many people who contributed to the building of this campus through sweat equity and treasure or another way to say that is through time and money. In a very real sense the church has come full circle as we want to maximize both of the facilities God has granted and entrusted us with. Please join us over the next couple of weeks as Josh will expound more on those plans. Exalting Christ by Equipping the Saints to Share the Gospel with the Nations.

Let’s pray.