Saved For a Purpose

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Announcements

Events this coming week:

Wednesday Night Study - We are studying the Puritans, their Faith and role in forming our country and practice of faith, as well as examining what it is we can learn from them for our lives today. This has been a great study so far. This week is our 4th week and the material never fails to lead to some really good discussions. If anyone is interested in getting caught up on the material, I would be willing to schedule a time in which we could go back and review the first 3 chapters.

Next Saturday - Farmers Market right here behind the Church 8am-11am. It will be a Family Health & Business Expo, with lots going on for the family. If you or someone you know would like to participate and have a boothyou can get with Linda, otherwise spread the word and come out to support all the vendors.

Next Sunday - Join us at 9:30am for our Sunday School hour where we are studying the Holiness of God, which has been a great study as well.

Prepare for Worship

Call To Worship

Pg 485 To God Be the Glory

Confession

Prayer of Confession

Most merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we confess that we have sinned in thought, word and deed.

We have not loved you with our whole heart. We have not loved our neighbours as ourselves. In your mercy forgive what we have been, help us to amend what we are, and direct what we shall be; that we may do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you, our God.

Amen

Assurance of Faith

The Apostle John assures us of the effectiveness of our confession: 1 John - If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.  My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Jn 1:8–2:2). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.

Confession of Faith - Join me on pg 14 of your Hymnals as we read our Confession of faith, Traditional version

I believe in God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth;

And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father almighty. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church*, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Worship

Pg 142 All The Power of Jesus’ Name

Pg 341 Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine

Prayers of the People

Prayer Request

Saved For a Purpose

Join me a gain in Ephesians Chapter 1: 15-22

English Standard Version Chapter 1

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, 17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all

Last week as we looked at this Portion of Scripture, we discussed Paul’s prayer for the church. In his letter to the Ephesians Paul after presenting “How” God has gone about saving a people for Himself, through the Triune work of God in salvation, he then goes on to offer a prayer for those reading the letter.

In this prayer Paul ask’s God to reveal to them and to us a number of truths about God and his plan in regards to the nature of the kingdom, Christ’s role in that Kingdom, and the role of the Church in the Kingdom.

Paul is praying that God show them the glorious inheritance that is meant for His people, and He wants all to understand that this inheritance is accomplished through the work of Christ. Firstly through the resurrection and ascension of Christ. last week We discussed just how central and beautiful the forgiveness found on the Cross really is in our lives, but we then focused on the importance of Christ rising bodily from the Grave, in a glorified state that He still remains in today. And then the necessity of Jesus ascending into heaven as the Son of Man, according to the Scripture in Daniel 7, where He is placed upon the throne of His Kingdom, and given all power and authority over all the nations according to Psalm 2 and 110. We can see back in verse 18 of Ephesians 1 that Paul calls this the “hope to which we were called”

Secondly last week we talked about the fact that Christ has been placed above all rule, power, authority. Meaning that all the earthly and heavenly powers that function, are beneath Him. This should bring us comfort in knowing that Christ’s rule is not one limited to the heart of the believer with no real power in the rest of the world, but rather a rule that is present in the whole world.

Lastly we looked at the importance that Jesus has been placed above all Dominion. That is “Lordship” It is paramount for us to understand the nature of this title. This is the role that was prescribed to man in the garden. Adam was to take dominion over all that lived on the earth, man and creature alike. Again Noah and his sons were given the command to be fruitful and multiply and to subdue all the earth. Man was created to serve as God’s representative on the earth, His vice-regent, extending His Lordship over all the earth. Put simply man was to reproduce, spread around the world and make generation after generation of believers that were faithful and served God. Paul says that Christ was put in that place as the second and perfect “Adam.” He alone has the power to extend that dominion over all the earth.

This is where we concluded last week, at the end of verse 21, knowing that our King truly is the King of all the other Kings, and we also find that he truly is the Lord of all the other Lords.

But now we continue with Pauls prayer in which he tells us:

22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all

Paul concludes this prayer with informing us, after all the talk about Christ being enthroned over all rule and authority, that Jesus was put as the head over the church. This seems a bit redundant. It seems obvious that if He is ruler of all then He obviously is over the church. So there must be some significance in singling out Jesus’s position over the church.

In order to understand the role or function of the church in God’s kingdom, we must first understand the metaphor given to us here. As simple as it is lets look at what it means for Jesus to be the Head, For us to be the body, and how we will function as the “fullness of Him” who has had all things placed beneath His feet.

Headship

The bible is great at mixing metaphors quite often. When we look at Jesus as the head of the church, we find just that. In terms of the church being the body, He being the head makes perfect sense, but as we look in other parts of Scripture, even right here in the same letter to the Ephesians, we see this assignment as the head related a position of authority, or leadership.

The Head of the Body

Obviously if we look at the majority of creatures in existence, the head, is the top of any bodily structure. It is the place of pre-eminence. For most creatures, the head is where the mind is located. The head is the central place from where all command and control originates. While other bodily parts might very well have pre-programmed function that does not require conscience thought, ultimately no body part can function for long if communication to the head is lost.

This seemingly is the meaning of the metaphor we find illustrated to us here , Christ is the head, the central controlling portion of the body, which is the church. In Col 1 we see a repeat of this metaphor:

English Standard Version Chapter 1

17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.

This understanding of the metaphor should provide for us a good understanding of how we are to function as the body. We like any body part of any creature are not capable of functioning properly, or for very long, without direct communication and direction from the head. So what does that mean? It means that our instructions should come from God. Implied in that directive is the fact that Christ will never leave His church without directions or instructions.

If a mind is faulty and it begins to send bad signals to the heart, there are going to be problems. Luckily for us, our head is perfect and has already given us all the instruction we need to fulfill our part as the body. There is not a single thing that the church will ever face, that Christ has not given us perfect instruction on how to handle. We have to look perpetually to His word in how we are to function as a Church.

However, as most of us know in this room, sometimes our body parts do not listen to our minds. They get a mind of their own and it is not long before they malfunction. As a part of His body, this is an error that we must avoid at all costs. We can never make the error of ignoring His instruction and seeking to function by our own set of instructions. This happened all throughout history, and every time a part decides that His instructions were not what they wanted to follow, that part is cut off from the body.

Head as in Leader

We must always use caution in following a metaphor down one path too long. If we look to all of Scripture to seek out what it means that Christ is head over the church, we will find that it is not solely held in the head/body metaphor. Let us look to Ephesians 5

English Standard Version Chapter 5

22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

Here we see the mixed metaphor of the use of head. In verses 22-24 when Paul is talking about the relationship between husbands and wives in relationship to Christ and the church we see that head here is used in the context of leadership. So we are given a picture of how husbands and wives should relate in view of Christ and the church. We are told as the Church we are to submit to Christ as our head. It is interesting to look at this word submit here, as it is the same word used back in verse 22 when it says that all things are made subject to Christ. It is a Greek military term and conveys the meaning of “to arrange in a military fashion under the command of a leader.” I have said it before, but looking at Ephesians, we often see the allusion that Paul is giving marching orders to the church.

We as a church can once again find a useful application here in this understanding of Christ being given as the head over the church. Verse 22 begins with a quote from Psalm 110 which talks about Christ as King taking dominion over all the earth. If the one that is installed on His throne and will remain their until all His enemies are beneath His feet like a footstool, is also given to us as the head “the leader, our commander” then obviously we have commands to follow from that leader.

The mixed metaphor

Either way we view this mixed metaphor by Paul we can clearly see that Christ as our head has preeminence over us. Meaning that whatever rulers are in charge at this time, they are wholly subject to His will, and His law. We must seek to do all we do in accordance with both his will and his law as well. We have no leeway to operate and function according to our own wishes and whims. Therefore, it is of paramount importance that we diligently seek His word for instruction at every turn. We should not rely upon the wisdom of the world, or the comfort of tradition as we seek to serve God, but rather His commands and how they apply to us here and now in our context, just as the Ephesians did when they first read this letter.

The Body

Hopefully, we now have a clearer understanding what it is Paul means when He says Christ is the head of the church. Now lets look at what we can learn when we understand that we are His body. By Definition, in Greek, the word body, is used in just the same way as we use it today. It means a physical body as well as a gathered assembly of people. The metaphor for the church being Christ’s body is used 8 times alone just in Ephesians, and much more throughout all of Paul's other writings.

It seems that Paul intended the metaphor to stand on it’s own. We understand the body, how it functions, and what it means by their being many parts of the body.

Many parts One Whole

Think about your own body for a second. If I challenged you to add up or even guess at the number of parts that make up your body, do you think you would even come close? Excluding going down to the level of the atom’s in your body, I don’t believe you can even think of a number high enough to account for the “parts” that make up your body. On average the human body is made up of 37.2 trillion cells. And if you have ever looked at the ever growing understanding of the complexity of a single cell you will realize that there are many parts to each of those as well. So the number of parts that make up an individual body is enormous. But all those parts make a single whole, a single body. The same is true of the body of Christ.

The same holds true here and now. We as the local body of Christ residing here at 402 Grand St, are made up of individual parts. Each baptized believer that is brought into the church had a role to play in that local body.

This then further extends to the local area. Each local church as part of the body of Christ, side by side with all the other parts of the body here in our community, should function concurrently to accomplish the work of the head. And so on and so on, the circle grows as we extend the area to the entire earth, we find parts of the body everywhere. But they are all parts right along with us.

On top of that, His body is timeless, meaning that it is not restrained to now, after the cross, before the cross, or some future time in history. We are part of the same body of Christ that the church at Ephesus was. Tht is why we can look to Paul’s instruction to them and it be just as relevant now as it was then.

We do know that after glorification, His body will be made whole, when we all dwell with Him in eternity. But for now, we are living and do truly function as a part of His body, accomplishing a real purpose within that body.

Many parts, many functions

Like the human body, the church as the body of Christ is made up of parts that all have their own role and function to play. Just as I said we are a body in and of ourselves, we are comprised of parts, and each of us has a role in doing the work of the head. In order for our local body, here at FEPC to function properly we as members of this body much each do our assigned part, and do so according to the instruction provided. Take the metaphor further, and each local body must work in unison with the surrounding bodies.

Eph 4 tells us

English Standard Version Chapter 4

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,

God has gifted the body with many gifts, but they all serve one purpose, and that is for the building up of the body of Christ, until we attain to the “unity of the faith.” So whatever, we as the parts of the body do with our gifts, it must be done in harmony with the parts around us, so that we can work towards the goal of unity.

Many parts, Still one Head

In our verse today Paul concludes the prayer saying that the church is the “fulness of Him that fills all in all.” So we as the body of Christ, along with every other true believer throughout time function as the fullness of Christ. And Christ is the one who fills all in all. So what does that mean for us? Simply put, we are not insignificant useless cells within the body of Christ. We are not just there for our protection, or our comfort. We were created as part of the body of Christ to serve His larger purpose.

Unified Purpose and Goal

Looking back at that second understanding of Christ as Head. In the organizational, leader sense. We can see that Christ as a conquering King has set up the church in such a way as it is to be the organization by which He spreads His rule. This whole passage that we looked at last week and this, focuses on Christ as being over all rule and authority, and then it identifies the church as His body. This organization this gathering is the structure that He has set up to go forward and do His bidding on earth.

Just as God created Adam, gave him all the materials required to go forward and establish dominion over all the earth, we see in Jesus, the second Adam, the perfection of this plan. Jesus has faithfully taken what was given to Him, a handful of believers in a small Israelite town, and turned it into a worldwide following 2 millennia later.

That is because He being faithful to the task given to Him, he has communicated to His church, His body, exactly what it is He wants them to do and how he wants them to do it through direct and clear revelation. It is our responsibility to do it.

Explanation of ekklesia?

Confidence in success

We are a body, an army, set out on a mission. I spoke last week about how the great commission is a directive to establish dominion. It tells us to make disciples of all the nations (not in all the nations), but “of” all the nations, teaching them to follow all Christ has commanded us.

We must not fear to bring to bear God’s word on all of the world. And we do so by serving each of ours parts. If I am a banker, I do banking in accordance with God’s direction on how to do it. If I am a politician, I am required to govern in accordance with God’s law, and not my own whims. This is how we function as the body of Christ. If in every corner of my life, I live as God command’s then I am making Him preeminent in the world. I do not give into the ways of the world to make my life easier, I live as a member of the body of Christ, living solely by God's commands.

Our role as a church is to be the fulness of Him, as He fills all in all. That is through living our lives wholly committed to Christ, we bring Him into every corner of the world, the schools, the marketplace, the magistrate.

Then we must train the next generation, and the next generation after that to do the same thing. To multiply and fill the earth with His glory.

Conclusion

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is just getting started. And in what we call the first chapter Paul has told these gentile believers about the sovereign Triune God that they serve. That He is the arbiter of all things, and that He has all authority. He has told them of the great mystery that they were too were included in His ultimate plan to bring the whole world into submission to Himself.

We too must look to Paul’s words, and ensure ourselves that we understand the God that we profess to follow. If it’s not, then we must seek God’s mercy, repent before Him of our unbelief, and submit to Him as He has clearly revealed Himself.

The believer then may look to the grand truth that God is providing for us an inheritance that is beyond our understanding, and that our right response to this salvation is humility, repentance, and obedience. Let us see God’s plan clearly for ourselves, as a church, as a city of churches, and stand up for truth. Proclaiming God’s word before the world. Following into battle our leader, our head, knowing that we are saved for a purpose, and not for ourselves.

Doxology

Closing Prayer

If anyone has any questions or concerns feel free to catch me afterwards. And a quick reminder we do have plates in the back for anyone who desires to worship through giving today.

So today as we close out our service we will be joining my family and myself to the Church.

Call forward Jess

Call up family.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow, Praise Him all creatures here below, Praise Him above ye Heavenly Host, Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.