Taught by
Stephen ArmstrongEphesians
Ephesians - Lesson 4A
Chapter 4:1-6
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We’ve officially moved beyond the first half of this letter, where Paul provides a foundation of Christian theology, so now we can breathe easier
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Now we turn the page – literally – to the second half of Paul’s letter and a new emphasis on our corporate life in the body
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And you’ll remember I introduced our study by dividing Paul’s letter into halves
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The first half, Chapters 1-3, focused on doctrine
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Doctrine are the truths of our faith
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They explain who God is and how we know and please Him
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And they explain who we are and why we need Him
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And I said we learn doctrine first because it’s intended to guide our living
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The ministry of the word of God for God’s people isn’t merely listening to teaching
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Ultimately the ministry of the word is putting into action what we learn
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I think it’s ironic that misinformed or immature Christians will sometimes say that they don’t find Bible teaching relevant
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They prefer preaching that’s “practical” they say
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This is like a medical student saying “I don’t want to sit for lectures on human anatomy or infectious diseases…
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…I need something more relevant and practical”
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If a doctor doesn’t understand the basic science of their profession, they‘ll never move on to the practical courses
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Likewise, if a Christian doesn’t understand Biblical doctrine, then he or she stands little chance of adopting the lifestyle of a disciple
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And even if a pastor taught “practical” advice from the pulpit, I can’t replace doctrine
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Because if I call you to think or do certain things or refrain from doing other things, will you understand why?
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And the more important question is, will you obey?
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When a preacher calls his congregation to action based on his own ideas or wisdom, the congregation will ask itself does my pastor’s advice seem sensible?
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But when the preacher presents doctrinal truths from the word of God calling his congregation to act accordingly, the question becomes will we obey God?
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Proper Christian practice comes only from an understanding of Christian theology
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That’s why Paul himself spent three chapters wading through important doctrine before he gives specific direction to the church
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Therefore, as we move into the “practical” portion of Paul’s teaching, I’ll refer back to the theology of this letter from time to time
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So now in Chapter 4, Paul’s transition into practical application begins with a sweeping call to live a Christ-like life worthy of the magnificent grace we’ve received
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Eph. 4:1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,
Eph. 4:2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love,
Eph. 4:3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
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Paul signals that he’s moving into application with the transition word, “therefore”
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Obviously, Paul’s referring back to the previous three chapters
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And so we could summarize Paul’s teaching by saying…
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“Because God chose you to be an adopted child to receive mercy by faith, and because you have His Spirit and an inheritance and a glorious future…”
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For all those reasons…
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Paul urges to walk in a manner worthy of this calling
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He uses the euphemism “walk” to describe our testimony of life in Christ
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In fact, the word “walk” is our mile marker for the second half of this letter
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Paul uses the term 6 times at key places to emphasize obedience
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We’re so familiar with this euphemism and so unaccustomed to walking anywhere, that we don’t stop to consider the picture it creates
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When I travel to teach, I am usually working with a local team of supporters
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I enjoy meeting new cultures and experiencing different lifestyles
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And in many places, the culture is accustomed to walking far more than we do in America
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I remember on several occasions my hosts and I were preparing to leave for my teaching, and I walked outside to get into the car
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But I looked up and I’m the only one standing by the car
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Everyone else has started walking down the road
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The church was about half a mile away, so naturally I’m thinking we’re driving there
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While they were thinking it’s only half a mile away, so naturally we’re walking
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This happened to me once in Norway, when the temperatures were in the 20s and it was snowing lightly
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As they began to walk, I politely suggested that we should drive since the weather was a bad
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They replied, there is no such thing as bad weather…there is only inadequate clothing
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My point is that in modern cultures (except Norway) we’re in danger of losing an appreciation for this euphemism “to walk with Christ”
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Even recreational walks around the neighborhood can’t give us a proper appreciation for Paul’s analogy
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Walking in Paul’s day involved a journey
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You had a starting place you wanted to leave
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And you had a destination you wanted to reach
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Furthermore, a walking journey required three things
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First, you had to have the energy
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In Paul’s day, a person might walk 20-30 miles a day for days on end to get somewhere
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To travel between Jerusalem and the Galilee was about a three days walk of about 25 miles each day
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Each step in the journey required a small amount of energy, but collectively the energy was significant
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So secondly, walking required persistence
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There would be times when it was downhill or the scenery was uplifting or the conversation made time go faster
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But there were times when you walked uphill or in the rain or into the wind
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You might face threats or periods of boring silence with nothing but the sound of your feet hitting the dirt in rhythm
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No matter what you found on a given day, you knew you couldn’t reach the destination unless you kept going
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Finally, your journey on foot required a sense of direction
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It’s very easy to get lost walking in open territory
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Unless you have a path to follow or a guide to lead you, you’re likely to walk in circles
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Ask anyone who’s been lost in the woods
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Each of these details relates to the euphemism Paul will use in the second half of this letter
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He is asking us to set our minds on a journey living as disciples of Christ
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Our faith has placed us on this journey, this walk
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Our starting point is the place God found us, whether as a child or teen or adult
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It’s a place we want to leave, a place of sin, ungodliness, brokenness and hopelessness
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And by faith in Jesus Christ, we’ve been adopted into a new family, a family with a glorious future and eternal blessings
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This family is like the Norwegians I mentioned earlier
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The family of God has set its mind on following Christ and so it heads out to the road for a walk of faith
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You can’t take a shortcut…there’s no car or train
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You just start by placing one foot in front of another, dedicating energy, committing to persistence and under direction
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The energy for our spiritual walk comes from the Spirit of God, Who pulls us away from worldly distractions and lust
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So He can put those resources to use in obedience to Christ
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And He encourages perseverance for the journey
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Sometimes the journey is easy because He puts the wind to our backs and brings friends alongside us to pass the time
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Other times he strengthens us by giving us hills to climb
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And all the while He’s speaking to our hearts, encouraging us, challenging us, reminding us that the destination is closer every day
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Finally, He guides us in our journey by His word
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Pointing the way to righteousness
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And even calling us back to the path when we wander off
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That’s what Paul’s talking about when he calls us to walk in a manner worthy of our calling
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In a general sense, he’s asking us to set our minds on leaving the world and seeking the destination of obeying Christ
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He’s urging us to bring our resources of time, talent and treasure to bear in serving God in whatever way we’re called
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He’s asking us to show perseverance
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And Paul’s asking us to walk in the counsel of God’s Spirit so we may stay on track
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I hope that makes it easier for you to appreciate His euphemism, but we know it’s a lot easier to talk about these things than it is to live by them
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Most of us begin the journey with enthusiasm
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We’re eager to please Christ, because we imagine a glorious trip filled with excitement and reward
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Like the day a family starts a long road trip…
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But then things don’t go as planned…
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We get a flat, we face detours, the trip takes longer than we expected, fights break out in the backseat…the poodle gets motion sick
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And pretty soon we’re all asking “Are we there yet?”
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The problem isn’t the journey…it’s our perspective
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We need to start our journey with the proper point of view
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Our walk with Christ isn’t a day trip, it’s not even a two-week vacation road trip
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It’s a lifelong journey
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And the roads won’t always be paved and smooth
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The roads will have potholes and there will be detours to avoid
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So Paul says in v.2 that if you’re going to walk – that is live – in a worthy manner, you must start the journey with the right attitude
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Paul describes that attitude in terms of three virtues
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First, we need an attitude of humility
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In Greek, humility literally means having a lowliness of mind
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Paul says something similar in Romans 12 when he cautions the church not to think more highly of ourselves than we ought
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The idea is to have a realistic appreciation for the difficulty of the journey because of the strength of your opposition and your own weakness
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We must have a sober appreciation for the difficulties that lie ahead
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Secondly, Paul counsels us to maintain an attitude of gentleness
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Gentleness means having grace for other believers who will face the same difficulties with you
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It’s the natural compliment to humility
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Humility is recognizing you’re not going to just glide through your spiritual journey without missteps
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And gentleness means being understanding when others stumble from time to time in their walk
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We appreciate others’ challenges even as we acknowledge we face our own
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That’s why Paul says we must show tolerance for others in the body of Christ in love
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We know people aren’t perfect
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So when they show their imperfections, let’s react in agape love, thinking of their needs above our own
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We don’t judge or condemn, we show tolerance
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And while we’re on the topic of tolerance, let me address the common misuse of the word in our culture today
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Many people in the world call for tolerance
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Most of the time the world uses that word very differently than the Bible does
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The Bible is asking us to show understanding for others in the body of Christ when we sin, when we make mistakes
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We tolerate a mistake in the sense that we show patience and give opportunity for the person to learn and do better in the future
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But the world calls for tolerance in the sense that we accept their sin
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They call for the world to be tolerant by accepting various sexual sin as normal and legitimate
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And they call for Christians to be tolerant toward other religious viewpoints by agreeing they are equally valid to our own
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In other words, tolerance means accepting any viewpoint or preference while silencing any opposing view
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Ironically, the modern view of tolerance is self-contradictory
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By the world’s standard, any mutually exclusive point of view is inherently intolerant
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If you hold a view that by its claims eliminates all other views, it must be rejected simply because it holds an absolute view
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If you believe only one kind of marriage is true marriage, then you are intolerant
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If you believe that there is only one way to God, then you are intolerant
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And anything intolerant must be bad, the world declares
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You can see the enemy’s fingerprints on this one, can’t you?
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He’s working in the minds of the unbelieving with a call to tolerance
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He’s insulated them from the mutually-exclusive claims of Christ by predisposing them against any absolute truth
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We need to be careful to not bring the enemy’s definition of tolerance into our theology
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We will tolerate mistakes among us as Christ does for us
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But we not declare evil to be good for that is never the loving thing to do
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Finally, Paul says we need patience
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Patience was an essential requirement for any long journey
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Impatient people usually don’t even start long journeys, much less finish them
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Our walk with Christ may last 3, 4, 5 decades or even longer
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We have to bring an attitude of patience to this walk, or we’re likely to burn out quickly
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If you’ve ever watched a Christian begin their walk of faith with a burst of energy and then quickly flame out, you’ve almost certainly seen someone start with the wrong attitude
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Excitement and anticipation is good, but it must be accompanied by patience
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Perhaps no one sat them down and explained from scripture that our walk with Christ isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon
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And so how we start will have a lot to say about how we finish
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We need to start with humility concerning ourself and gentleness for others walking with us
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We need to devote energy, but not in bursts…we must measure out the energy to ensure we give attention to our walk in a daily way
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We need to persevere for the tests we know will come against us
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And we need to seek the counsel of God in His word throughout the journey so we don’t lose our way
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And for all these things, we need patience in our heart
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Patience for ourselves and patience for others
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And with patience and love and tolerance, we’ll preserve our unity
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We’ll give grace to others, remembering no one is perfect
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And speaking as a pastor and on behalf of your elders, we especially value and need your patience and tolerance and love
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We’re on the same walk with you
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Which means we’re also walking away from sin and weaknesses of one kind or another
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And we’re moving toward a destination of godliness and sanctification
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We’re going to stumble, we’re going to have our bad days
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We don’t ask you to excuse our sin, much less approve it
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But we do ask you to tolerate it with patience for the sake of our unity, even as you pray for us to do better
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And we’ll do the same for all of you
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Which leads us to the next part of Chapter 4
Eph. 4:4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling;
Eph. 4:5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
Eph. 4:6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
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Paul supports his call for the church to act in unity by reminding us that we are already united spiritually
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It’s like telling two siblings to treat each other in brotherly love
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I always wondered what brotherly love was
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For the longest time I thought brotherly love was intended ironically to mean dislike
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Because my relationship with my brothers growing up was anything but loving
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But Paul isn’t speaking ironically, of course
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He’s saying the body of Christ is united in important, eternal ways
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So let’s act like it
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And to illustrate his point, Paul lists seven ways we’re already united with one another
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These seven aspects of unity are all spiritual
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They are markers that identify us as part of the same family and destined for the same eternal future
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Therefore, they argue strongly for us to live and think in ways that reflect our unity
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So let’s take a brief look at these seven aspects of Christian unity
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First, there is one body Paul says
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The word body refers to the universal church
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Every person on earth who has been born again by the Spirit of God through faith in Jesus Christ is a member of the Church
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We are one body of people
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The point is that there are not multiple separate bodies
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In human terms we may break up the body of Christ in various meaningless ways
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Different denominations, theological views, affiliations and even just multiple campuses work to divide us in earthly ways (often regrettably)
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But these things don’t change the fact that we are one institution
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Therefore, no one can come along and claim to have “rediscovered” the true church (like the Mormons)
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And no one can claim that their unique style of worship or teaching or location or whatever defines the true church
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The body of Christ transcends such superficial things
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A true confession in the Name above all Names is the one and only requirement to become a part of that body
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And no one has a monopoly on the name of Christ or His body
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And secondly, that one body is held together by the indwelling of the one and only Spirit of God
Rom. 8:16 The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God,
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Our membership card for the Church is the Holy Spirit
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We don’t check your ID as you enter this building
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But Paul says the Lord certainly checks for that ID card before you enter His body spiritually
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In Acts 8 we see a case where a man wanted to enjoy the benefits of membership without possessing the proper ID card
Acts 8:18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,
Acts 8:19 saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
Acts 8:20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
Acts 8:21 “You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
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Simon was an unbeliever seeking to enjoy the power and recognition that came to the apostles by the Spirit of God
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But as Peter observed, his heart was not right with God, which is why he lacked the Spirit
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He had attached himself to the body of Christ, but he was not part of that body because he did not possess the Spirit of God
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Thirdly, Paul says we have one hope in our common calling
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We have the same hope concerning our future, the hope of resurrection and eternal life
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Our common eternal hope is perhaps one of the most powerful unifying principals of Christianity
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No matter how diverse our socio-economic backgrounds
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No matter how different our dreams for the future
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No matter how differently our lives turn in this life
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Nevertheless, we all share exactly the same understanding and expectation for what we will have waiting after our death
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What other group can you say that about?
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Knowing we share an eternal future should silence any petty difference that divides us now
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One day we’ll both be living in eternal bodies in the kingdom serving Christ
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I expect that some day you and I will run into each other
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And when we do, we’ll probably laugh at ourselves, at our foolishness and our meaningless disagreements
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And we’ll marvel together at our shared blessings in Christ
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You know, we could skip the first part and just jump to that second part now
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Fourth and fifth, we serve one Lord by one faith
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These points should be self-explanatory
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There is one Lord, meaning one Savior God
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As Peter declared
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Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
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Here again, the world would call us intolerant for our unwillingness to accept there may be other ways to heaven
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But holding to the truth is not intolerance…it’s love
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Our message is the only one that saves
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Likewise, we have entered into the family of God by one faith, which means one confession
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The only way to salvation is by faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ
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As Paul said simply
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Rom. 10:9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;
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Faith in a specific church does not save you
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Faith in a good work does not save you
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And faith in your own goodness or worthiness will not save you
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The word “faith” requires an object, something you place your faith in
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And if you don’t place your faith in the right thing, you will be disappointed
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But as Peter wrote
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1Pet. 2:6 For this is contained in Scripture:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone,
And he who believes in Him will not be disappointed.”
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Christ is our cornerstone, and so we are united by a shared faith in the one and only Savior
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No matter what other disagreements or disputes might divide us, we have agreed on our Savior
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And that common faith unites us just as much as it divides us from the unbelieving world
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Sixth, we have all experienced one baptism
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Paul is speaking about the spiritual baptism that comes by the Spirit of God
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The baptism of the spirit comes at the moment of our faith
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And in fact, it is inseparable from the moment of faith
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That common experience unites all believers
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It is our common experience of being born again
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In a way, it’s like all of us had the same spiritual womb
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We were all birthed in the same process
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Just to clarify, Paul isn’t talking about water baptism, because clearly we didn’t all experience the same water baptism
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Some believers are never water baptized whether by disobedience or lack of opportunity
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For example, the thief on the cross was never baptized in water
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Yet Christ said he would be in paradise with Jesus
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Furthermore, different churches practice water baptism in different ways
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I believe that scripture teaches that there is only one correct way to practice water baptism
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Nevertheless, I cannot say that my brothers and sisters in Christ who were water baptized in a different way are less a part of the body
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We all share the same spiritual baptism, and therefore we are no less one simply because we performed different rituals
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Finally, we are all the children of the same God and Father
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I mentioned that my brothers and I didn’t get along very well growing up
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Now that we’re adults, we’ve mostly put those things behind us
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Recently, my father has been enduring some difficult health issues
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He’s required care and attention from me and my siblings, which has caused us to come together as a family
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My father’s situation has reminded my brothers and I that we are part of the same family and from the same father
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And so it should be with us as the family of our God and Father
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No matter what differences mark our earthly lives
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No matter how much we disappoint, disregard or annoy one another
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No matter how often we may fail to show love to one another…
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Blood is thicker than water, as the saying goes
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We are all children of the same God and Father Who called us into His family
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None of us had reason to expect or deserve our adoption
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We are all in need of God’s grace and we’re all brothers and sisters
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So let’s act that way as we walk this journey together
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