Members One of Another

Repentance

Conversion

Matthew 12:41 “The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”

Jonah 3:6-10 “The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.” 10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.”

Luther

When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, 'Repent,' he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance

Lord, make me a repenter

Romans 8:29 “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.”

The fulfillment of this divine promise; the purpose and end of God’s predestining us necessitates that we be in an ongoing state of repentance in this life.

“Jesus is ideal and wonderful, but you Christians, you are not like him.” - Indian philosopher Bara Dada,

Examples

v25 - lying > truth

v28 - thieving > working unto generosity

v29 - tearing down > building up

v31-32 - bitterness, wrath, anger, slandor > kindness & forgiveness

Opportunity and Grieving

Opportunity

Ephesians 4:27 “and give no opportunity to the devil.”

1 Peter 5:8 “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

He cannot take your salvation; your being a Child of God away, but He can absolutely steal your influence. He can cause (if you let him) your light to be so dim as to be ineffective in your own life, the life of your children/family, and your community.

Grieving

Ephesians 4:30 “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”

Mark 6:1-6 “He went away from there and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 2 And on the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” 5 And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went about among the villages teaching.”

This is basically a parallel statement to the giving occasion to the devil. It is the other side of the same coin so to speak. The negligence of these teachings by the people of God hinders the ministry to others.

Even the Psalmist wrote that if he regarded evil in his heart his prayers would not be heard.

Parents can identify with this perspective when they see their children squander the gifts and opportunities needlessly and thus fail to mature, advance, or enjoy deeper fellowship in the family.

Members One of Another

This is true of individual believers and of congregations being in the global family of God. We are mystically and in ways that it are difficult for us to see, all members of the one body of Christ.

That said, the local church is where we see and experience, where we can comprehend this unity and belonging most immediately and clearly. So this would be true of any local church of Jesus, but I am not pastor of just any church; I am pastor of this local church, and them most of you are members of this local church, so I will make application for us and trust that any visitors or people who see or hear this message from other churches can make application in their own congregational lives.

Paul’s picture of a body, a human body, as a metaphor here in Ephesians, and also in his letters to Corinth, bears much fruit in the way of application. See these instructions of how we are to interact with one another, especially WITHIN the church:

v25 - speak truth

v26 - do not let anger reach the point of sin

v27 - give no opportunity to the devil

v28 - work not only for yourself, but to help each other

v29 - do not tear down, but build up

v30 - do not grieve the spirit

v31 - put away bitterness

v32 - kindness and forgiveness, as a people forgiven

WHY? - WE ARE ONE BODY

We may not like every part of our bodies, but it behoves us to LOVE every part of our bodies.

He’d cut off his nose to spite his face

She shot herself in the foot

Permanence ought to be our perspective

Harming anyone is harming ourselves

Church Family, in this day of division, anger, and hatred, it is all the more important for us to NOT let the way of this world continue in our church. We need to make use of the grace offered to us to change ourselves, to extend grace to others, and to go out of our way to build up each other and our church as a whole. To do otherwise is to work against the cause of Christ in the local church, our community, and our families. Praise be to God He not only instructs us, but enables us to overcome!