A Life worth Living
Ephesians 4:1-16 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
Intro: 1st 3 chapters of Ephesians focused on doctrine. The 2nd 3 move to exhortation or encouragement, charging or challenging the believers to live up to the potential they have in Christ. That is indicated from 4:1, when Paul says to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. In other words, their actions and lifestyle must weigh as much as their claim to be a follower of Christ.
Prop: God created us to live a high caliber life that finds expression upward and outward.
TS: In this passage Paul gives us some expectations for believers who want to live lives worthy of the calling they received from God – that is a life worth living!
-A Christ follower who is living the life worth living will…
I. Be Gracious to others (Ephesians 4:2)
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
-Sometimes I’m not sure we really get this humble thing - although I’m proud to say we are some of the humblest folks around.
-Seriously, it seems a bit contradictory to have a worthy walk and be humble about it. Yet, that is what God is calling us to do. One definition of humility is the lowliness of mind which springs from a true estimate of ourselves – a deep sense of our own moral smallness and lack of merit. Humility does not consist of self put-downs or self-loathing. Humility does not require that we despise ourselves, only that we see ourselves honestly through the grace-filled eyes of Jesus. Humility recognizes inadequacies, but also knows that God gives strength and ability with purpose. Humility recognizes that we exist to serve, not to be served. Every advantage and blessing that we have was given so we could serve others better.
-How we view ourselves and the gifts God has given us has a direct bearing on how we view others. That is why Paul started here – Be completely humble.
-Gentle is also rendered meek. It is an expression of humility. Part of the idea here seems to be the lack of resistance or aggression. We exercise gentleness of meekness toward God first, accepting His dealings with us as good without lashing back at Him or rejecting Him. But it must also flow out to our fellow man, namely our brothers and sisters in Christ as Paul writes about here. Deal gently with one another. Be gracious with God’s family. In a parallel passage Paul says, “Be tenderhearted, forgiving one another….”
-Also, be patient. Don’t get frustrated or angry at one another. Work things out and work together. People will come across the wrong way sometimes and really get under your skin. Keep loving them. Another part of patience is not giving up on people. If someone just isn’t getting it, keep praying for them and keep loving them. Bear with one another in love. Sometimes we just need to put up with one another. But realize that others are putting up with you. It’s much easier to see faults in others, be we have a few as well.
-So, to sum up verse 2, we need to respond graciously to one another in our words, actions, and attitudes. This comes from our hearts, which have been transformed by God’s grace at work in our lives.
II. Focus on what believers have in common (Ephesians 4:3-6)
3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit-- just as you were called to one hope when you were called-- 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
-Unity takes effort and determination. Unity does not happen by itself! So Paul says to give it everything you’ve got and do it! Guard or keep the unity that you already have, and it will grow. There is a special bond, a spiritual bond, that exists among believers. I’ve experienced it when I’ve visited other countries and could not communicate with a believer there. Even though I couldn’t put the words together in his language to communicate and to deepen our friendship, I sensed a bond between us. We both had God’s peace in our hearts because we knew our sins were forgiven and we were both in God’s favor. How awesome is that!
-Paul goes on to remind his readers and listeners what the common ground is that they share together. They are all related, part of the same spiritual family, the Church, the body of Christ. There is one Holy Spirit who regenerates and empowers each member. All believers were called to one hope – the hope of life with God forever! They all believed in one Lord, Jesus Christ, with one common faith and receive one common sign of their faith in Christ, water baptism. And to top it all off, they all have the same Dad – one God and Father of all – He is over all, through all, and in all, living in all who call upon Him.
-So with all this in common, how can believers not come together and find the unity God intended for them to enjoy? We were created to do life with God, but we were also made to do life with His family. We have much more in common than we realize! The details of our lives may differ, but in our hearts we have each cried out for the living God and He has heard us and responded to us in love. Now He wants His love to bridge the gaps between us, giving us supernatural unity, binding us together as one family.
-Therefore, be gracious to one another and let your commonalities draw you closer together. Look at the person next to you and say, “You’re stuck with me for eternity!”
III. Recognize the God-given gifts of leadership (Ephesians 4:7-11)
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." 9 (What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
-God has gifted each of us uniquely so we can accomplish certain things for Him. Jesus Himself is the One who gave gifts to His Church. You could call it a bridal shower if you will. Jesus is going to return for His Bride, the Church and take her to live with Him forever! In the meantime, these gifts were given to help the Bride get ready for His return.
-These gifts include, but are not limited to, apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, or pastor/teachers. Apostles refers first to the 12 and others contemporary with Paul, but extends in another sense to all who spread the good news about Jesus. We don’t typically use this as a title for anyone today, although some do. Prophets are those who declare or proclaim the word of God. This may or may not include references to the future, but is not glorified fortune telling. Evangelists are travelling missionaries at home and around the world. Pastors and teachers are written together to describe one individual. The implication is that the shepherd must teach God’s flock the word of God. Paul writes in another place that a pastor or bishop must be apt to teach.
-Now why didn’t Paul list all or most of the gifts that people have within the Church? He made a list in Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12. This list in Ephesians appears to focus on the main areas of the Church leadership. Paul seems to be saying, “Hey, God placed these here for your good! Make the most of it. Don’t resist what God is doing through them, cooperate and get on board. Can they make mistakes? With the best of them! But they are God’s plan for leading His Church forward. The next few verses tell us why. These leaders are not superheroes who can save the world in one grand effort and overthrow the devil with a fiery lightning bolt. No, they are here to help prepare God’s people for ministry.
IV. Understand the purpose of God’s giftings (Ephesians 4:12-16)
-My job is to help equip and prepare each of you to connect with God’s purposes and use your own gifts to reach out to the people in your life circles. My job isn’t to reach the people in your life circles, it is to help prepare you to do it. As someone said, “Sheep beget sheep.” Now let me say that I must lead by example, and while I am a shepherd, I am also a sheep who needs to reach out to other sheep.
-Let’s look at the purposes of these giftings as Paul set them out for us.
A. To prepare God’s people to serve, which helps build God’s family (12)
12 to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up
B. To help promote unity in the faith and in the knowledge of Jesus (13)
13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God…
C. To help us become mature with all the fullness of Christ (13)
13 until we … become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
D. To help us become stable and “Fool” proof (not easily fooled) (14)
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.
E. To teach us to speak the truth in love (15)
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love…
F. To help us grow up into Christ (15)
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.
G. To help each family member do his or her part (16)
16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
-Family, my shepherd’s pledge to you is that I will do all I can to help you grow into all that God wants you to be. You know very well that I cannot do it all. If everything depended on me, we would be in big trouble. But together, with the power of the Holy Spirit and the grace of God, we are equal to the task! We can! We can make a difference! We can help people experience God, develop their gifts and faith, and be transformed in every area of their lives!
And that is a life worth living! Let’s pray.
