Out of Unity, God Creates Diversity
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Ephesians 4:7–11 (KJV 1900)
7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
And the very first thing is
How are the Gifts Delivered?
How are the Gifts Delivered?
Ephesians 4:7 (KJV 1900)
7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Verse 7: “But unto every one of us is given”—underscore the word given—“given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:7)
Now, God has given you a grace gift; therefore, do not insult God by saying God cannot use you. In the church, there can be no inferiority; there can be no superiority. We are what we are by the gift of God.
We often think of “grace” in the context of salvation. For it is “by grace through faith” that we are saved, Eph. 2:8.
Ephesians 2:8 (KJV 1900)
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
The word “grace” in this verse does not refer to the grace of God that saves us. It refers to the grace of God that “gifts” us for service.
Grace is the greek word Charis, which we get our English Word Charisma, which is why the pentecostals are referred to as Charismatic.
Now, what is a charismatic gift? Remember that every one of us has a charismatic gift. Every one of us has a charismatic gift.
What is a charismatic gift?
Here’s the definition:
A grace gift, a charismatic gift, is a God-given ability for service and ministry.
Got it? Got it—a God-given gift for service and ministry; a God-given spiritual ability for service and ministry.
Now, it goes beyond natural talent.
Talent is natural; spiritual gifts are supernatural. They’re supernatural in source, supernatural in nature, and supernatural in purpose.
Now, you do not choose your spiritual gift any more than you could choose your natural gifts.
You can develop your natural talents, but you don’t choose them any more than you could choose the color of your eyes or the color of your skin. You get that genetically by your first birth, and your talents are encoded in you genetically by your first birth.
Your spiritual gift is given to you at your new birth. And, as your natural talents are natural, your spiritual gift is supernatural.
This truth is fleshed out in detail in 1 Cor. 12:7–27.
The primary truth to note here is that you are an individual and you have been uniquely gifted to serve the Lord. When He saved you, He gave you gifts that you may share with other believers, but the way the Lord uses you to exercise those gifts will be unique to you! That is, you may preach, but your preaching will be unique to your personality. You may teach but your emphasis may be children in Sunday School while someone else might stand before thousands.
Whatever we are, we are by the grace of God, 1 Cor. 15:10.
10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
We need to discover our gifts and allow the Lord to develop them the greatest of their potential.
By the way, the best way to find your spiritual gifts is to get involved in a local assembly of believers and get busy serving the Lord. As you faithfully serve Him, He will open doors of service for you that will dovetail perfectly with the gifts He has given you in grace.
So, our differences, our diversity, is rooted in the grace of God. We are all saved the same way, and we are all indwelled by the same Spirit, but we are uniquely equipped for His service, by His grace.
Now,
How are these Gifts Dispensed?
How are these Gifts Dispensed?
Well, it is the gift of your ascended Lord. Look, if you will, in
8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
verse 8: “Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high”
—who is that talking about? Jesus
—“he led captivity captive”
—who is that talking about? The devil
—“and gave gifts unto men”
—who is that talking about? You—
9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)
Quote from Psalm 68:18
Now, here’s what happened: The Lord Jesus descended. He came to this earth; lived a perfect life; suffered, bled, and died on the cross; was buried and rose again.
When Jesus Christ died on that cross for us—when, with His blood, He purchased our salvation—at the same time He broke Satan’s back.
Satan’s kingdom came crashing down, and Satan and his wicked forces were crushed by Calvary. And so, the Lord Jesus Christ, by His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, led captivity captive. Satan had taken the world captive, but Jesus took Satan captive. He led captivity captive.
When Jesus died, they buried His body, but His Spirit descended into Paradise to proclaim to all those who had been waiting on redemption since Adam fell, that sin had been defeated and the way opened to God.
19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
Jesus descended into Paradise and shouted the same message there that He had proclaimed on Calvary. He said, “It is finished!” Then, He led those precious souls out of Paradise and took them home to the Father’s house.Like a conquering hero when he has returned from a successful campaign, the Lord Jesus Christ shared with His people the spoils of His victory. As the Bible says in verse 8, “He gave gifts unto men.”
Now, what the Apostle Paul is talking about here is a Roman triumph. When a Roman general would go off and fight the war for Rome, if he won the battle, he would come back to the city of Rome for a parade called “the triumph.” And in the triumph, the Roman general would come. The air would be filled with incense and perfume. He would be riding upon his white horse. There would be a parade. The priests would be there, swinging incense and perfume. And the people would be there, giving their praises to this general. Behind this general would come the conquered kings and generals behind him. They would have been stripped naked—absolutely naked. They would be chained to the conquering general’s chariot wheels, and they would be dragged along. The people would be praising the conquering general. They would be jeering and mocking these who’d been stripped and shamed and subdued, their power gone, their pride laid in the dust. And then, behind them would come servants bearing all of the spoils of the battle, the riches that had been conquered. They had been brought back to Rome to be given to the people of Rome.Now, that’s the picture—that’s the picture that Paul is talking about here. The Lord Jesus ascended up on high. He led captivity captive. Satan’s kingdom is ruined, and the spoils of the battle are given to us. And the spoils of the battle, that is our grace gift to serve our great King. So, never despise or overlook your grace gift. It is a spiritual gift from our Conqueror, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The gifts can be found in detail in 1 Cor. 12; Rom. 12; 1 Pet. 4.
The gifts that are mentioned here are ministry gifts. They are places in the body that exist to help the body achieve its fullest potential in Christ. Let’s take just a moment to look at this short list of ministry gifts.
How are these Gifts Developed?
How are these Gifts Developed?
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Apostles and Prophets
Apostles and Prophets
Now, not only does God gives to every one of us spiritual gifts, but God also gives to the church spiritual leaders. And so, he mentions some apostles and some prophets. (Ephesians 4:11)
Now, we don’t have apostles and prophets today in the biblical sense. There were twelve apostles and the prophets who wrote the Old Testament, and so forth. They’re already in heaven. And he tells us in the second chapter that the church is “built upon the foundation of the apostles and [the] prophets.” (Ephesians 2:20)
20 And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
Now, we don’t have prophets today and apostles, except in the secondary sense, but did you know you’re looking at a man who can preach with the authority of a prophet and the authority of an apostle if I preach what the prophets and the apostles preached? You see, as long as I preach what they preach, I have the authority that they had. That’s the reason we have the Word of God that has locked in the message of the apostles and the prophets.
Evangelists
Evangelists
And then, he mentions evangelists. (Ephesians 4:11) These are the soul winners that bring people into the Body to help the Body to grow. And thank God that God gives to the church the evangelists, the soul winners, that bring people to Christ.
Pastor-Teachers
Pastor-Teachers
And then, he mentions, “and some, pastors and teachers” (Ephesians 4:11)—not pastors and then teachers, but pastor-teachers. It’s grouped together in the Greek language. The job of a pastor-teacher is to guide and feed the flock. I believe that’s the assignment that God has given to me. Here is God’s job description for me: I am God’s gift to you. Like it or not, you’re stuck with me. I am the pastor-teacher of this church.
Now, why does God give you a pastor-teacher? Well, so the pastor-teacher can do the work of the ministry? Wrong! The pastor-teacher is to help you to do the work of the ministry. Look at it: “and some pastors and teachers; for”—verse 12
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
—“the perfecting”—the maturing—“of the saints, for the work of the ministry.” (Ephesians 4:11–12)
The pastor-teacher is to help you to be mature, to discover and develop your spiritual gift, so you can do the work of the ministry. You say, “Pastor, that’s your job.” No, my job is to help you to do your job. My job is to help you to be mature so that you can find your spiritual gift and you can put your spiritual gift to work. And God has a ministry for you; God has a job for you. God did not save you to be a member of Kentucky anonymous. God put you here to serve the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, you’ve been called into the ministry. It is my job to put you to work for the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, you say, “Well, I want God to use me.” Well, do you really? Do you really? Let me tell you something: if you want God to use you, you need to stop praying for God to use you and get useable, and God will wear you out. I mean, do you think that God doesn’t want to use you? “He hath set every member in the Body as it hath pleased Him.” (1 Corinthians 12:18)
18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.
God has given you a spiritual gift.
How are these Gifts Displayed?
How are these Gifts Displayed?
Now, here’s the fourth thing and the final thing very quickly: I want you to see not only the gifts dispensed, and the gifts described, and the gifts developed, but I want you to think about the gifts displayed.
What happens when all of us find our ministry? Well, look in verse 13:
13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Now, what he’s saying is that He’s given us gifts, and when these gifts work together, then the Body matures and the Body becomes like its head, the Lord Jesus Christ. We are to be mature.
Look in verse 13: “unto a perfect man.” (Ephesians 4:13) The word perfect here does not mean “sinless”; it means “mature.”
Now, let me mention some ways we’re going to be mature, and then I’m finished.
Mature in Stature
Mature in Stature
First of all, you’re going to be mature in stature. That means you’re going to be like the Lord Jesus Christ—“unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13) You can tell when the gifts are working in a church when the church becomes like the Lord Jesus Christ. When the gifts are operating, we’re becoming more and more like the Lord Jesus.
Mature in Stability
Mature in Stability
Mature in stature and mature in stability. Look in verse 14:
14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
The false cults out there are getting Baptists and evangelical Christians going door to door. They do not evangelize. They don’t win souls. What they do is corrupt and deceive people who are immature who have not come to the measure of the stature of Christ. And people get “[blown] about [by] every wind of doctrine.” (Ephesians 4:14) But when the Body is healthy, when the gifts are operating, we become mature in stature, we become mature in stability. We’re not “[blown] about [by] every wind of doctrine.” (Ephesians 4:14)
Mature in Speech
Mature in Speech
Number three: We become mature in speech. Look in verse 15, if you will:
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
Now, we’re to “[speak] the truth in love.” (Ephesians 4:15)
If you speak the truth without love, that’s brutality.
But if you speak in love without truth, that is hypocrisy.
Immature people cannot blend the two.
We have some people who are just already speaking the truth, but they have no love. Other people who talk about love, they have no truth. Truthless love and loveless truth are the signs of immature people.
Mature in Service
Mature in Service
But when the gifts are working, we’re mature in stature, we’re mature in stability, we are mature in speech, and we are mature in service. Look in verse 16; here’s how it all works together:
16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.
Now, what does that mean? It speaks of flexible harmony. He talks about every joint.
My elbow is a joint. You see that? It’s flexible. Now, what holds my forearm to my upper arm? My elbow. It’s a joint. It enables me to bend this arm. Now, it keeps me connected, but it’s flexible. And that’s the way the Body is: it is to be flexible harmony. My body works together because of the joints, and that’s the way God put the Body together. Every member has his ministry, and we’re held together by all of these joints.
Now, you know what happens to some people? We get stiff. We get spiritual arthritis. And rather than having this flexibility, we get rigid and firm because the Body is not healthy. Oh, it’s so wonderful to see a healthy Body—all of the joints just working together in harmony.
The Greek word joint is harmos. It’s the word we get harmony from. Now, when I studied human anatomy and physiology, I found out in college that we have synovial fluid that lubricates these joints. And when the cartilage gets dry, and the synovial fluid is not there, and it gets inflamed and swollen and it gets stiff and painful, then the body is not lubricated. What is the synovial fluid? It is love. When we love one another, then we don’t inflame one another—we don’t get stiff; we don’t get rigid. We all have our gifts of God.
And we become mature in stature: we become like Christ.
We become mature in stability: we’re not blown about.
We become mature in speech: we know how to speak the truth in love.
And we become mature, dear friend, in service: we serve one another, and the Body works together. Don’t you want to be a part of a church like that? Say “amen.” I know you do. And may God help us to find our place in the Body.
ConclusionLook up here. I’m telling you, you are a gifted child. And don’t you leave that thing framed and hanging on the wall. Find out what God wants you to do and get busy doing it.
You say, “Pastor, I just don’t have any joy.” Well, what do you do? “Well, Pastor, I come hear you preach.” Do you think you’ve done God a wild favor when you’ve done that? Friend, if you’re not serving, you won’t have joy. The Greek word charis means, not only “grace,” but it also means “joy.” When you serve the Lord, that’s when the juices of joy begin to flow.Let’s bow our heads in prayer. Heads are bowed, and eyes are closed.
Would you pray that God would show you your ministry in this body?
Will you accept yourself, discover yourself, be yourself, and give yourself for the glory of God?