49-25 How Christ Is Building His Church
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Ephesians 4:11-16
Ephesians 4:11-16
Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 672 The Perfect Church
672 The Perfect Church
I think that I shall never see
A Church that’s all it ought to be:
A Church whose members never stray
Beyond the Strait and Narrow Way:
A Church that has no empty pews,
Whose Pastor never has the blues,
A Church whose Deacons always deak,
And none is proud, and all are meek:
Where gossips never peddle lies,
Or make complaints or criticize;
Where all are always sweet and kind,
And all to other’s faults are blind.
Such perfect Churches there may be,
But none of them are known to me.
But still, we’ll work, and pray and plan,
To make our own the best we can.
“I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.
Some people might look at all the shortcomings of the local church, and how we are so far from being all that Christ desires His church to be—and they’ll conclude: “I’ll go somewhere else to find a better church.” There are no shortages of local churches in our valley—you’ll have many options. The problem is that you’ll never find the perfect church (not this side of eternity) and if you do find one—don’t go there b/c you will ruin it.
The church is made up of *redeemed *sinners. And what expresses the wisdom and majesty of LJC is that He has purposed to use redeemed sinners to build the church that He purchased with His own blood. Christ promised to build His church—and indeed He is. In Eph 4, Paul is setting forth How Christ is building His church. He is doing that principally thru His gift to the church.
4) The Distribution of the Gift
4) The Distribution of the Gift
Beginning in vs 7—Paul is explaining the details about this gift (Donation, illustration, explanation) and now the Distribution of the gift. vv11-16 form 1 sentence (7th of 8 long in Eph). In it we will discover the identity of the gifted people and the purpose and result of their faithful ministry.
A. The Gifted People
A. The Gifted People
I explained in brief last time that every believer has received a gift (spiritual gift), a divine enabling (grace) in which each one exercises his special gift within the body of Christ—gifts for service, intended to build up the church so that it becomes all that God desires. so each individual believer receives a gift. It is also true that Christ gives gifts to the whole body so that the church will be built up according to the purpose of Christ.
Beginning vs 11—Paul narrows the focus to a specific group of people that are instrumental to that purpose.
I’ll begin with the first 2—though they are 2 separate, distinct groups they are closely related in terms of their purpose. Paul deals with them in Eph 2:20
Apostles & Prophets
3 basic responsibilities:
to lay the foundation of the church (doctrinal)
to receive and declare revelation of God’s Word (Eph 3:5)
to give confirmation of God’s Word thru signs & wonders (2 Cor 12:12)
“apostles”
Gk “to dispatch or send for a particular purpose” (sent ones). The term is used in 3 ways in the NT:
Very broadly in the sense of “messengers”
But I thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my need;
Used of the 12/13 (1 Cor 15:5 “the twelve”) (including Matthias who replaced Judas) also including Paul who considered himself
then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.
Qualifications:
Personal contact with Christ while on earth
Eyewitness to resurrection of JC (Acts 1:21-22)
Had a direct appointment from the Lord (Lk 6:13; Rom 1:1)
The proof of an apostle was his labors in the power of Christ (2 Cor 12:12).
Others who are bestowed with gift of apostleship: Barnabas (Acts 14:14), James brother of Lord (Gal 1:19), Silas (1 Th 2:6), Junias & Andronicus (Rom 16:7), Apollos (1 Co 4:6, 9), Titus (2 Cor 8:23), Epaphroditus (Phil 2:25)
“prophets”
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;
Those who had the gift of prophecy were endowed by the HS to edify, comfort, encourage and to understand and communicate the mysteries and revelation of God to the church. Their message was not always predictive but they did function to receive new revelation from God and were charged with conveying that message to Christ’s church.
There has been much written on the subject of apostles and prophets and many try to convince us that these gifts are still present in the church today.
James Boice “Here ‘apostles’ and ‘prophets’ must be taken in their most technical sense. Therefore, apostles must refer to those witnesses who were specifically commissioned by Christ to establish the church upon a proper base, and prophets must refer to those who received God’s message (as had prophets of old) and recorded it in the pages of what we call the NT”
We are not seeking new apostles and prophets today.
Harry Ironside relates this story:
In the Heavenlies: Practical Expository Addresses on the Epistle to the Ephesians Lecture XV: Gifts from the Ascended Christ (Eph. 4:7–13)
A young Mormon elder came to me at one time and asked, “What church do you belong to?” I knew at once what he had in mind, and so I replied, “I belong to the one true Church that has apostles and prophets in it.”
“Oh,” he said, “then you must be a latter-day saint.”
“No, I am a former-day saint.”
“But ours is the only church that has apostles and prophets.”
“I do not think so. The Church that I belong to is building upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, and although they themselves have passed off the scene long ago they are still members of this Church, for it does not exist only on earth. They are part of the host though they have passed the flood and are in the presence of God. They are still members of the Church.”
“But we have apostles and prophets in our day.”
“But, you see,” I said, “the apostles and prophets were to lay the foundation, and if I understand the Word of God aright, this blessed temple of the living God, this wonderful Church He is erecting, has been building for nineteen hundred years, and it is now just about completed, and you do not put a foundation on the roof. It is away down there nineteen hundred stories below, and the temple has been rising upon that foundation all through the years. We are now just putting the finishing touches on the roof. We are gathering in poor sinners, just one and another here and there. They are not coming in large numbers these days, but those that are coming are being builded in upon the roof, and it will not be long until it will be complete and then we will all go to heaven.”
Evangelists
3rd group of gifted people are the evangelists. These are the proclaimers of the gospel. The term is found only 2 other times in NT:
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.
But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
Those with this gift of evangelism were instrumental in preaching the good news of salvation thru Christ alone. They are uniquely gifted by the Lord (according to the measure) to reach the lost with the saving message of the gospel. they are what...
Francis Foulkes: and it may be fair to call them ‘the rank and file missionaries of the church’ (Barclay). Foulkes, F. (1989). Ephesians: an introduction and commentary (Vol. 10, p. 125). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.
When we think of preaching the gospel, some of us might wipe the sweat off our brows—being very thankful that God has gifted someone else for this distinct ministry. The existence of these gifted people does not free any believer from the obligation to tell others about the good news in JC. Timothy may not have had the gift but Paul exhorted him (pastor) to do the work. As a church we do well to raise up those with the gift of evangelism. Indeed, some have already been sent out from among us and are serving around the world today. That’s not the only evangelist—some are needed even here. I believe this gift is active today and a blessing to the church as sinners are saved thru the preaching of the gospel.
Pastors & Teachers
The term “pastor”—poimen comes from the word meaning “to rule or to protect” the normally applied to a shepherd (one who takes care of sheep/goats). This term puts an emphasis on care and protection of those gifted and charged with oversight of the flock.
The word “teachers” has to do with imparting knowledge and though it is defined as a ministry of its own (1 Cor 12:28), “pastors and teachers” should be understood as one class of gifted individuals that Christ has given to the church. The word “and” in the Gk. kai can mean “that is” or “in particular” making term “teachers” a further explanation of the function of pastors. Christ gives to the church shepherds who are also teachers of the Word.
I would like to further explain this particular gift of pastor-teacher.
Other Terms
The gift of pastor-teacher is not distinct from that of elder/overseer. While there are shades of difference b/t the terms (poimen, episcopos, presbuteros)—they all refer to those individuals whom Christ has charged with leading the church by example, providing instruction to and guarding the flock against dangerous errors that threaten it. Elders have a tremendous weight of responsibility placed on them—but also the necessary giftedness to carry out that responsibility.
FOOTNOTE: all pastor-teachers are elders and all elders equally share the same pastoral charge, and yet there is diversity among the elders—not all have the same (Strauch) “giftedness, effectiveness, influence, time availability, experience, verbal skills, leadership ability or biblical knowledge”. Paul is specifically addressing 1 crucial task that falls to the elders—teaching God’s Word.
The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.
1 Peter 5:1-2 all 3 terms appear in Peter’s instruction and refer to the same office of leadership in the church.
Elders are charged with shepherding the flock (Acts 20:17, 28-31).
Shepherds follow the example of Christ (the Good Shepherd—Jn 10:14/who is also the “Chief Shepherd” 1 Pt 5:4): 4 essential activities:
know the flock
feed the flock (God’s Word; doctrine)
lead the flock
protect the flock
Shepherds must be vigilant—on guard:
Charles Jefferson The Minister as Shepherd
“The Eastern shepherd was, first of all, a watchman. He had a watch-tower. It was his business to keep a wide-open eye, constantly searching the horizon for the possible approach of foes. He was bound to be circumspect and attentive. Vigilance was a cardinal virtue. An alert wakefulness was for him a necessity. He could not indulge in fits of drowsiness, for the foe was always near. Only by his alertness could the enemy be circumvented. There were many kinds of enemies, all of them terrible, each in a different way. At certain seasons of the year there were floods. Streams became quickly swollen and overflowed their banks. Swift action was necessary in order to escape destruction There were enemies of a more subtle kind—animals, rapacious and treacherous: lions, bears, hyenas, jackals, wolves. There were enemies in the air; huge birds of prey were always soaring aloft ready to swoop down upon a lamb or kid. And then, most dangerous of all, were the human birds and beasts of prey—robbers, bandits, men who made a business of robbing sheepfolds and murdering shepherds. That Eastern world was full of perils. It teemed with forces hostile to the shepherd and his flock. When Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Habakkuk talk about shepherds, they call them watchmen set to warn and save.
Many a minister fails as a pastor because he is not vigilant. He allows his church to be torn to pieces because he is half asleep. He took it for granted that there were no wolves, no birds of prey, no robbers, and while he was drowsing the enemy arrived. False ideas, destructive interpretations, demoralizing teachings came into his group, and he never knew it. He was interested, perhaps, in literary research; he was absorbed in the discussion contained in the last theological quarterly, and did not know what his young people were reading, or what strange ideas had been lodged in the heads of a group of his leading members. There are errors which are as fierce as wolves and pitiless as hyenas; they tear faith and hope and love to pieces and leave churches, once prosperous, mangled and half dead.”
Like evangelists, pastor-teachers are still a necessary gift today. Even before the end of the apostolic era pastor-teachers (as elders/overseers) began to emerge as highest level of leadership within the church (Acts 15). With it came tremendous responsibility for the well-being of the local church.
So in Scripture there are several responsibilities that elders are charged with.
Caretaker of the church (1 Tim 3:1,5)
exercise oversight (lead, manage) the affairs of the local church: 1 Tim 5:17 (to rule is not by force or as a dictator—but by precept and example)
Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.
Preach and teach God’s Word (elders must be able to teach 1 tim 3:2)
Exhort in sound doctrine and refute those who contradict (Tit 1:7-9) The threat of false teachers to the church was already so great by the end of the apostles that a key qualification for elders was ability to understand and teach sound doctrine.
Be available to those seeking partnership in prayer James 5:14
Shepherd the sheep (1 Pt 5:2; Acts 20:28) implies feeding, leading, protecting, guarding, guiding, loving.
Help those within who are weak (Acts 20:35)
The pastor-teacher is an elder whose primary responsibility is to shepherd the sheep by teaching them God’s Holy Word so that they will grow and mature and become the saints God has called them to be (holy and blameless Eph 1:4).
There is desperate need for teaching in the church today. There are scores of believers who have yet to mature in their faith because few churches preach and teach God’s Word. For whatever reason (pragmatism)…the church of Christ needs to recapture the confidence that the Bible is God’s Word, it is the sole authority for faith and Xn living, in it there are truly the answers to humanity’s needs—Scripture must be preached and taught.
A letter from Africa that a friend of mine received underscores how serious the need is for biblical teaching:
“So much of the [problems within the churches] is a neglect of the Bible. Most of the denominations teach their pet doctrine, and don’t teach the Bible…The need for believers is to read and study and teach the Bible they already have. There is a phenomenal lack of basic biblical knowledge…[instead, the have] lots of emotion and lots of merit-based salvation thinking…It is rare for pastors to actually study the Bible or teach from the Bible. Usually just sermons on tithing, ad nauseum.”
B. The Growth Sequence
B. The Growth Sequence
vv 11-16 form 1 sentence… in vs 12 “for” explains the purpose of JC giving gifted people to the church…for…to.
The 2 groups of gifted people Christ is using today (evangelists and pastor-teachers) are given for the purpose of the growth and development of the church.
As we close, let me show you the sequence briefly:
But before this I have to refer to the KJV:
“For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:” (note the comma—suggesting the 3-fold work of those gifted people)
Every other modern translation rightly omits the comma since it is not Christ’s design that the work of ministry and building up of the church be the sole responsibility of those gifted people. That leads to the belief that only a few do the work and all that the others do is let themselves be led. In a church where that mindset is cultivated you have a limited few doing the work that all has been entrusted to everyone.
The proper sequence (Boice):
1) Those who are given the gifts…are to use those gifts to equip or prepare the saints, so that, as a first objective,
2) Believers may do the work of ministry or service, and that, as an ultimate objective,
3) The church may be built up, reach unity in the faith, and become mature, attainting to the whole measure of the fulness of Christ.
That requires the faithful service of every individual believer. This is how Christ is building His church. He gave to the church—gifted people (starting with the foundation of apostles and prophets) so that today thru gifted evangelists and pastor-teachers to equip the saints which leads to service by each member which leads to the building up of the body of Christ. We’ll explore this growth sequence a little more in depth next time.
CCC is not a perfect church—I know this b/c I’m a fallen sinner who is yet to be perfected…I suspect the same is true of each one of you. But the Lord has given us instruction thru His Word how to be the church He wants us to be. As we yield to His pattern for building the church, we’ll have the confidence that Christ is looking favorably upon us. May the Lord give us the strength, resolve and courage to follow Him without wavering…that to God would be the glory in the church.