The Lowly, Loving Walk that Preserves Unity in the Body of Christ

BLANK SLIDE TO BEGIN RECORDING (Please don’t wait for Matt to be on podium.)

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Introduction and Scripture Reading

Every summer around our nation people carve out a morning, or a day, to participate in Walk for Life or, here in Cedar Rapids with Bridgehaven Pregnancy Support Center, In Her Shoes, to raise awareness and funding by actively demonstrating support for the value of every human life God has created – and a desire to make a difference in the lives of women, men, students and babies in our communities.

People come together from all walks of life! And when you park your car, you get out with a broad understanding that the folks who show up are your people. When you see someone you greet them with a big smile because you know that, whatever your hobbies, family and personal history, and careers are, you’re all there for one unified purpose; you have an immediate common unity.

Scripture Introduction

The apostle Paul has spent the first three chapters of Ephesians developing the reason for the unity we have in Christ and unfolding the wonderful works of the Lord:

He’s exalted God’s glorious purpose in creating, calling and redeeming us in Christ;

He’s given a shared vision to live for the praise of God’s glorious grace as we see God unite everything in creation and the heavens in Jesus;

He’s developed our confidence that God will see us through to the end;

He’s prayed for them (and us by extension), not once but twice: praying that we would experience the greatness of God’s power according to the immeasurable greatness of his power;

He’s bolstered that confident expectation by showing that we were dead in sins but God, through His rich mercy in Christ has made us alive in Christ—both Jew and Gentile—once bitter enemies but now reconciled through salvation in Christ. Now every race has access to God the Father!

He’s shown us his suffering and encouraged us not to lose heart, but to press on, being strengthened by God’s power through His Holy Spirit who is the guarantee of our inheritance as He dwells in our hearts through faith.

This roots us and grounds us in the love of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit who is one God in three persons, who is able to do far more abundantly than all we ask or think, according to the power at work with us (the Holy Spirit).

All of this is what motivates us to give God glory in the church through Christ Jesus for all generations. And as we remind ourselves of this we say, “Yes and amen!”

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Paul labors in love to show us what it means to be in Christ, so we eagerly welcome what God demands of us as we walk in Him as a result.

As we give careful, reverent, prayerful consideration to this reality, the message of the gospel applied will change our lives. Kent Hughes has said,

“It is not so much a question of what we will do with (this letter), but what it will do with us.”

Paul digs deeply into his war chest of motivation to call us to walk with a new skip in our step—together—preserving the unity of the Spirit through unity and diversity becomes his focus for the church and ours.

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Look with me at Ephesians 4:1-6 where we see The Lowly, Loving Walk that Preserves Unity in the Body of Christ.

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Ephesians 4:1–6 ESV

1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

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Proposition

To maintain the unity of the Spirit (Eph 4:4-6) we need to understand that God’s heavenly calling to salvation (Eph 4:1, 4; Heb 3:1) is a call to eternal hope (Eph 1:18; 4:4) for holy living (Eph 4:1; 2 Tim 1:9), bringing humility to walk worthy of the Lord (Eph 4:1, 2) through peace which God has supplied (Eph 4:3).

I. Paul’s exhortation to walk (live) worthy of our heavenly calling to eternal hope (Eph 1:1)

When Paul says, “I therefore,” he intentionally connects the remainder of his letter to the first half of Ephesians where he culminates his message in the supernatural reality that because of our calling to salvation through Jesus’ perfect life, willing sacrificial death, and resurrection, both Jews and Gentiles (every race) are brought together as one to be the mobile place where God would dwell/live through his Spirit within us.

This exhortation Paul gives us follows the same pattern he uses in Rom 12:1-2, with a strong “therefore” after spending eleven chapters unfolding incredible theology as he has done in Eph 1-3.

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Romans 12:1–2 ESV

1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

The work God has already accomplished in us fuels our passions for living for Christ. When you read your Bible and see what God has done, you might even whisper to yourself, “Therefore I will…believe what God says and think this way, speak this way, respond this way…act this way...”

Paul has credibility with the church because he’s a prisoner for the Lord, yes, but for the higher purpose God has called him to, which is to bring the gospel to the Gentiles for the greater purpose of bringing them together by the Spirit in unity in Christ!

As Paul exhorts, urges, appeals to them, he does so as one whose life demonstrates a sacrificial commitment to this life.

Paul’s way walking worthy of the calling was to walk into towns where he knew he would be arrested so that he could serve the church. He did it anyway because of the future hope/expectation that God is faithful and has already seated him in the heavenly places.

Paul is set apart (holy) and he calls us to be set apart by walking worthy of our calling. Listen to how he says it elsewhere:

SCRIPTURE SLIDES

Colossians 1:10 ESV

10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;

Colossians 2:6 ESV

6 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,

1 Thessalonians 2:12 ESV

12 we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

Philippians 1:27 ESV

27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

Paul uses the word “walk” metaphorically to refer to our lifestyle which should be worthy or equal to our “call.”

This word (ἀξίως) in the original language is “worthy, worthily, suitably,” (TDNT) and

literally means “‘bringing up the other beam of the scales,’ ‘bringing into equilibrium,’ and therefore ‘equivalent’ ” or “worthily, a manner worthy of, suitability.” (BDAG)

Application

Your first application this morning may be to consider whether you’ve been called by God and responded in salvation, because if not, everything you try to do for the Lord will not be for the Lord. It will be to fulfill a deep-seated sense of self and will be a joyless burden, grating on you with every exhortation. “Why should I do this or that?” will be the single song on repeat in your heart and you’ll resent the church and everything you’re asked to do because it won’t be flowing from gratitude for what God has done for you.

But when you are God’s child living for God’s purposes, you welcome this great commitment to the cause of Christ and count it a privilege.

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Transitional illustration: So then, like a good coach, Paul shows us the characteristics of the lowly, loving walk.

II. The characteristics of the lowly, loving walk (Eph 1:2-3).

Don’t miss the plural union of all of God’s people to understand what God has called us to:

God’s purpose is not simply to dwell in us as individuals where the purpose stops.

No, God’s purpose continues through us to bring us together in unity with other believers.

It is never unity for the sake of unity.

It must always be unity for the sake of the beautiful plan God has designed for the body of Christ.

The Lord, through Paul, then describes this worthy lifestyle which should be worthy or equal to, or balancing the scales of, our “call.”

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all humility (πάσης ταπεινοφροσύνης) = lowliness of mind.

There’s nothing half-hearted about walking in a manner worthy of our calling. We never float toward Christlikeness and unity. It requires intentional effort.

It was not a virtue in the ancient Greek world. It is the opposite of pride.

Humility means being Christ-sufficient, not self-sufficient. The proud person trusts in himself. He thinks that he can do it. You often hear, “you’ve got to believe in yourself.” No, the humble Christian trusts in Jesus. He knows that if he believes in himself, he will fail big-time!

Humility does not mean dumping on yourself. Rather, the humble person recognizes that God has graciously given him certain abilities that he is to use for God’s glory and purposes. So, with Paul we can say, “Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God” (2 Cor. 3:5; see, also, Rom. 12:3).

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all gentleness or meekness (πραΰτητος)

Jesus used both humility and gentleness to describe Himself

Matthew 11:29 ESV

29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Again, we take the work of Christ done for us by taking on his yoke and learning from him. What God requires of us he has worked in us.

Philippians 2:13 ESV

13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

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with patience (μετὰ μακροθυμίας)

God is patient towards us (Rom. 2:4; 2 Pet. 3:9).

It is the first quality of love (1 Cor. 13:4).

bearing with (forbearing) one another in love (ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων ἐν ἀγάπῃ)

The verb translated “bearing” (ἀνεχόμενοι) is often used in contexts of enduring persecution or suffering (1 Cor. 4:12; 2 Cor. 11:20; 2 Thess. 1:4).

But Paul is not simply suggesting that believers tolerate each other. Rather, he adds that we must bear with each other “in love” (i.e., lovingly; cf. Col. 3:13).

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eager to (making every effort to) maintain/preserve the unity o the spirit (σπουδάζοντες τηρεῖν τὴν ἑνότητα τοῦ πνεύματος

“Eager” adds a sense of urgency to Paul’s appeal.

Paul is not urging us to create unity but rather to maintain the unity that already exists because of the finished work of Christ (cf. Eph. 2:11–22).

This “unity” (cf. 4:13) is something that comes from or is produced by the Holy Spirit.

We are exhorted to maintain the unity secured by Christ and given by the Spirit.

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Finally, This unity is established in or by, in the bond of peace (ἐν τῷ συνδέσμῳ τῆς εἰρήνης)

Since we have peace with God through Christ, we ought to strive for peace with one another, which we are able to do through our unity in the Spirit.

Transition statement:

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III. The basis for Christian unity — Eph. 1:4-6.

Paul never calls us to unity for the sake of unity, he tells us that right doctrine leads to right unity.

One Body and Spirit. He reminds them that there is one body because it’s his primary concern (Eph 1:22-23; 2:16).

Ephesians 4:4 ESV

4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—

One Hope. Just as there is one body and one Spirit, similarly there is one hope, which accompanied our call. The “hope” to which Paul refers is not the subjective feeling of a confident expectation, but the content which drives our confident expectation.

One Lord, who is Jesus Christ. When Christians speak of God, we must speak hand-in-hand of Jesus, because this is Who differentiates our faith from every other religion in the world.

In their culture, Caesar, or the cult of Artemis in Ephesus, were both called “lord.”

Paul is drawing a line in the sand regarding salvation as Moses did in Deut. 6:4

Deuteronomy 6:4 ESV

4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

One Faith.

Objective content of that which is believed (cf. 4:13; Rom. 10:8; Gal. 1:23; 3:23; Col. 1:23; 2:7; 1 Tim. 3:9; 4:1, 6)

One Baptism (Eph. 4:5; Rom. 6:4).

Whether Paul is stressing water baptism or Spirit baptism, the two cannot be separated in the apostle’s thinking.

Commentator F. F. Bruce explains, “It is beside the point to ask whether it is baptism in water or the baptism of the Spirit: it is Christian baptism—baptism ‘into the name of the Lord Jesus’ (Acts 8:16; 19:5; cf. 1 Cor. 1:13–15)—which indeed involved the application of water …, but … was closely associated with the gift of the Spirit.”

One God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Paul affirms God’s “supreme transcendence” (he is “over all”) as well as his “pervasive immanence” (he is “through all and in all”). (Andrew Lincoln, WBC.)

See how the Trinity is central to Paul’s discussion on unity.

The Spirit is linked with the one body or church, which is called to one hope.

The Lord Jesus is linked with the one faith the church professes and the one baptism it receives.

And God the Father is the one who supremely rules over all his creation and yet is intimately involved in it, working in and through all things.

Conclusion and Transition to Communion

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Proposition

To maintain the unity of the Spirit (Eph 4:4-6) we need to understand that God’s heavenly calling to salvation (Eph 4:1, 4; Heb 3:1) is a call to eternal hope (Eph 1:18; 4:4) for holy living (Eph 4:1; 2 Tim 1:9), bringing humility to walk worthy of the Lord (Eph 4:1, 2) through peace which God has supplied (Eph 4:3).