Walk Worthy
Ephesians 4:1-6
CCCAG, March 27th, 2022
Scripture: Ephesians 4:1-6
Introduction
I have a small confession- I’m a bit of a skeptic about most things. I want to see evidence of whatever someone says is true or claims is true.
That’s different from being a cynic. A cynic doesn’t care what the truth is as long as they can gloat over another person being wrong or failing in life.
Don’t be a cynic, but I’d widely encourage a healthy skepticism about most things.
I’m a child of the 1980’s. I was into hairband music and heavy metal. One of the songs that came out in the late 80’s was a song by the group Poison called, “Something to Believe In” in which the song lists a series of scandals and failures by famous people that rocked them to their core.
In the church we saw this in our lifetime. Anyone here over the age of 45 or so remember the televangelist scandals of the late 80’s and early 90’s where many of those who were held in very high regard rapidly and in quick succession came to ruin as it was discovered that they were not following the message they preached.
For many, it destroyed their faith in the ministry, the church, and even the Gospel message.
We all need something to believe in. We need that rock solid proof that what we believe is really real.
That is why when you find something or someone that is the real deal- it’s so refreshing.
I want to share something that taught me the difference when it comes to our faith.
Many of you have heard me talk about a man named Peter Chun.
He was visiting the USA when I was very young in the faith, doing a short term itineration to help raise money for a special project for the underground church in China.
My pastor recommended that I hang out with him on my next day off. At our first church, we had a room that we set up like a very nice hotel room or small apartment for visiting missionaries or guest speakers. He told me to come and meet him on Wednesday at noon and maybe we could all go out to lunch.
I thought, sure- he seems cool, and is really well known as a missionary to China. I thought it would be neat to hang out with him. Wednesday came around and I drove to our church, go there about 1145 and checked in at the office and the secretary told me that Pastor Claire and Peter were in his room. This was a large building so it was a bit of a walk, and as I got closer, I hear wailing, really loud wailing. The door to the room was open and I saw both Pastor Clair and Peter laying face down on the floor in prayer. Peter was speaking what I assumed was Mandarin Chinese, and Pastor was praying in English and tongues. What I found out later was that is one of Peter’s church’s that he founded and oversaw was raided by the Chinese officials and they had executed the pastor of the church on site in front of his wife and kids. Peter was praying with such intensity that he had sweat through his shirt, his hair was soaked, and the only way I could describe the feeling in the room was that there was an overwhelming feeling of God in that room, that made me sink to my knees by the couch and begin to pray….even though I really at that point didn’t know what to pray for.
About 2 hours later, Peter stood up. He was a mess, there was a noticeable dark stain on the carpet where he was laying. He said in his broken English that he felt God release him to go to lunch now, but he had to get cleaned up. Without saying anything, he stripped off his shirt and I saw the scars all over his body where both North Korean and Chinese jailers had whipped and beaten him over the years for being a Christian missionary.
During his 25-year ministry, He had spent almost 10 years in prisons all over Asia for proclaiming the Gospel, and I didn’t realize it then, but I was looking at a man who carried the same Spirit that the Apostle Paul carried.
I want you to think about that as we open today’s message. We are going to hear the heart of a man who, like Peter Chun, had set up underground church’s, been imprisoned, beaten, scourged, and even killed and revived for the sake of the Gospel. We should remember that when we listen to his words-
Paul is the real deal, speaking to us from the city of Rome, around 60 AD.
Ephesians 4:1-6
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 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.
Prayer
At the beginning of the message, I made a contrast between those who were had failed and caused great harm to the church, and a man who had suffered greatly for the sake of the Gospel.
Paul paid the price, he bore the marks, and his words and witness carried such weight that (THINK ABOUT THIS!!!) they still influence the western world, even today in a post Christian society.
So let’s look at his credentials-
I. Paul’s Credentials
“As a prisoner for the Lord”
This was not a poetic staying, or some type of allusion to his spiritual dedication to Jesus.
It was very literal.
Paul was writing these words from Rome. You can read about his journey there in Acts 22-28. He was arrested by the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem on trumped up charges. Tried before Governors Felix, Festus, and King Agrippa. When he saw he was going to get railroaded into a false conviction, Paul appealed to Caesar, so they sent him to Rome for trial. During that time he was in Rome, he was chained to a Roman guard 24/7, but got to stay in a home instead of a prison until his trial was complete.
While he was in Rome, under arrest, and chained to this guard, he wrote the books of Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians, and Philippians, which are called the Prison Epistles.
Paul is chained 24/7 to a probably very hard and unfriendly guard, and he writes 4 of the 12 books that we included in the New Testament.
Think about an average church goer today-
If we have a headache Sunday morning, we consider missing church.
The packers are playing, and Pastor John preaches too long- skip church.
One of the biggest things that irritates me in the age we live in-Children’s sports are all on Sunday morning. Coincidence, or not so subtle attack from the enemy?
But, when you look at the 1st century church and particularly it’s leadership we do see a difference in mindset.
You see it especially in Paul.
I mentioned a moment ago he wrote this letter chained to a guard. Probably a very uncomfortable situation right?
The reason Paul could still perform the duties of the ministry is this-
Paul viewed himself a prisoner long before they slapped a chain on him…
Paul was a prisoner of grace and forgiveness.
Remember- he got his start in ministry by being the Dog the Bounty hunter of Christians.
Except he didn’t just deliver them to jail. Often the people he brought into custody were at the very least scourged (whipped 39 times with a cat of 9 tails), or they went to a cross.
One the day of his conversion to Christianity- this is what Paul was doing as he was riding toward Damascus to arrest even more Christians.
Paul met Jesus.
Acts 9:3-9
As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
5 "Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6 "Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
Paul needed to be knocked off his high horse.
Paul needed to turn those eyes of pride and judgement inward and see the spiritual wreck he was.
Paul needed to see how deep his sin ran, so he could appreciate the perfection of Jesus.
And you know what? This has personal application.
Sometimes….
You and I need to be knocked off our high horses
Sometimes…
You and I need to turn our eyes of pride and judgement inward and see the spiritual wreck that we are.
Sometimes,
You and I need to see the depth of our sin.
Realize as the hymn says, “Oh to grace, how great a debtor” and then to allow that realization to shape our thinking, our wants, our desires toward pleasing the one who gave it all for us.
Just as Paul did. The chains the bound his heart to Jesus were forged in love and gratitude for the one who forgave his great sin.
Because of the chains that bound his heart to Christ, the chains that bound him to a solider didn’t feel so heavy.
From that day on the road, Paul began to purpose to live a life worthy of the God who saved him.
This is how we begin to live a life worthy of he who has brought us out of darkness and into
HIS wonderful light,
his freedom,
his strength,
and His joy.
Let’s look at some of the practical ways we can live a worthy life
II. Live a life worthy
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
Let’s take these one at a time-
Be completely humble
A few years before we moved up here, we had a friend from Australia come to visit. I wife and I had met him in an online game, and he had to come to MKE on business so we said we’d meet him at the gate and save him a taxi ride to the hotel.
As we stood at the gate watching all of the people walking toward us, we picked him out as the one person from Australia that got off that plane.
He didn’t have crocodile boots on, or a black hat like Crocodile Dundee, but he walked different, was dressed a little different, and to even a casual observer was not from around here. We only had one older picture of him but I didn’t need it- I spotted him immediately.
People can pick out the thing that doesn’t belong.
Do you know what else people spot immediately?
False humility.
People who accomplish something and then try to “Aw shucks” but secretly desire for you to keep piling on the compliments.
Men, we do this sometimes. Our wives are out with friends or running the kids around, and we vacuum and do the dishes, and then she gets home and is surprised and thanks us, and we encourage her to keep telling us how much she appreciates us and how good of a husband we are.
Ladies, you do this by dressing up fancy and putting on your makeup so that we compliment you on how you look.
Just two minor examples we can see in our lives
However, Biblical humility is grounded in the character of God.
Think about that for a moment-
God emptied HIMself to save us.
I could try to explain this further using my own words, but the bible does a much better job.
In another letter of Paul, he describes the idea of Godly humility in great detail in Philippians 2
Phil 2:3-8 (slightly paraphrasing)
(Humility is) Do(ing) nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider(ing) others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross!
NIV
Look at the highlights here-
Do nothing out of ambition or conceit- in other words, don’t do things to make yourself feel good or look good.
Instead, do the things that made Jesus feel good and look good
Consider others before yourselves.
Isn’t that what Jesus did on the cross, and even before the cross in the garden of Gethsemane where everything in HIS humanity was screaming at his divinity that he needed to beg the father to find another way. It caused so much anxiety that he sweated blood.
Maybe we need the Holy Spirit to scream at our stubborn human spirits to do as our Savior did- pick up our cross and follow HIM- not just walk behind, but follow HIS teachings to us, so that we can model them to the world.
That should also be shown in how we consider others.
I know this doesn’t affect everyone, but it’s important.
How you represent yourself online is as important as you represent yourself in person.
When we take stands on doubtful things, or especially unproven and frankly some crazy ideas being perpetrated by those with a political axe to grind, it destroys any influence we may have to show them the Gospel.
If you take any note today, take this one-
I call this Oscar’s Law of Social Media-
The number of people every influenced to change their mind via an argument on social media will forever remain at zero.
So far, I’ve seen no evidence of that not being true.
So why ruin a relationship fighting over earthly opinions that have no eternal significance?
Remember when we want to argue about doubtful things- In the end, your opinion doesn’t matter in eternity.
The only opinion that matters is God’s opinion.
Don’t be quick and willing to wreck your witness and ruin a friendship to win an argument that is unwinnable because the truth isn’t something that you can argue a person into- (repeat)
It has to be spiritually discerned.
Therefore, spend your time this way-
2 Cor 10:4-5 (NLT)
4 We use God's mighty weapons, not mere worldly weapons, to knock down the Devil's strongholds. 5 With these weapons we break down every proud argument that keeps people from knowing God. With these weapons we conquer their rebellious ideas, and we teach them to obey Christ.
Instead of posting, pray
Instead of arguing- pray
Instead of being stubborn and rude- pray
Instead of ruining relationships over something that won’t matter even a year from now much less a million years from now in eternity- pray.
When you do that, then you will be seen as humble, gentle, patient, and able to bear one another in love.
Then you will reflect Jesus to everyone you see.
Finally, there is a admonition that is placed here especially for the church-
III. Unity shown in Godhead
Verse 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.
I want you to look at that scripture- 7 different times Paul uses the word, ONE.
One Body
One Spirit
One hope
One Lord
One Faith
One Baptism
One God and Father
That is unity in the faith. Understanding that we all might have our own ideas, our own desires, our own preferences, or our own needs.
But when we come together, we are one people because our God is one God.
And we want be like HIM
So that we can walk worthy of HIM.
Altar call.
