Ephesians 4 1 10 I therefore the prisoner

Ephesians 4: 1 -10 • "I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he captured captives; he gave gifts to men. ” Now what is the meaning of “he ascended, ” except that he also descended to the lower regions, namely, the earth? He, the very one who descended, is also the one who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things.

Ephesians 4: 11 -16 • It was he who gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God—a mature person, attaining to the measure of Christ’s full stature. So we are no longer to be children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes. But practicing the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ, who is the head. From him the whole body grows, fitted and held together through every supporting ligament. As each one does its part, the body grows in love. " (Ephesians 4: 1 -16, The NET Bible)

Outline Ephesians 4: 1 -16 • • • The effort of our calling (vv. 1 -3) The unity of the Spirit (vv. 4 -6 ) The gift of grace (v. 7) The gift of Christ (vv. 8 -10) The gifts to equip the saints (vv. 11 -13) Unity of the Body (14 -16)

One of the seven wonders of the ancient world

The effort of our calling (vv. 1 -3) • a theological summarization • blessed by God with every spiritual blessing (1: 3), chosen to be holy (1: 4), adopted as sons (1: 5), with redemption lavished upon us ( 1: 7) and being sealed by the Holy Spirit (1: 13), after we believed, now Christ is head over all (1: 22). We were once dead in our sins (2: 1) are now made alive (2: 5) by God's grace (2: 8) and He has united both Jew and Gentile in one body (2: 16, 3: 6). • What God has done for us we should now do for each other

School of Tyrannus

4: 1 -3 "Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. " • we are now free in Christ but should be bond- slaves – "Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. " (1 Peter 2: 16, NASB 95) – "and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. " (Romans 6: 18, NASB 95) – Dietrich Bonhoffer in his book The Cost of Discipleship. "When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die. ” • “Only those who obey believe” – ‘Therefore’ commonly used by Paul after doctrinal discourses Romans 12: 1; 1 Thessalonians 4: 1; 1 Timothy 2: 1

Dietrich Bonhoffer

4: 1 -3 "Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. " • ‘Walk’ is our lifestyle, or way of living • ‘worthy’ ἀξίως (axiōs) used six times in the New Testament "bringing up the other beam of the scales (Hoehner, 504)” one should live worthy of the gospel • humility of mind Philippians 2: 3 • tolerance ἀνέχομαι [anechomai] in classical Greek reference to lifting up the hands in prayer, or holding back in check, or hold oneself up. – In the New Testament it is used in the negative sense in 2 Corinthians 11: 19. – We should bear with one another in love Colossians 3: 13 "bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you. " (Colossians 3: 13, NASB 95) – we , as a body , should walk in a holy manner, individually conducting ourselves right, and corporately bearing with and forgiving one another not tearing down. – Tolerating differences, but not tolerating licentiousness or corrupting doctrines – in our culture tolerance is the supreme virtue, in God's economy love is the supreme virtue -- these are not the same thing

The unity of the Spirit (vv. 4 -6) • there is one Spirit who imparts grace therefore it follows that there must be one faith, one baptism, and one church

"We are all one body, we have the same Spirit, and we have all been called to the same glorious future. There is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and there is only one God and Father, who is over us all and in us all and living through us all. " (Ephesians 4: 4 -6, NLT) • The ‘body’ of Christ—the universal Church, not just the local assembly • ‘One hope’ is the resurrection in Christ (Col 1: 5; Rom 8: 24) – our hope is secure because it is in the power of God (1: 19) – and God is sovereign and plans all things (1: 11) • ‘One baptism’ is not water baptism or baptism into the Spirit, but identification with Christ in His death, resurrection and ascension (1 Cor 10: 2; Mark 10: 38; Rom 6: 1 -11; Col 2: 12)

"We are all one body, we have the same Spirit, and we have all been called to the same glorious future. There is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and there is only one God and Father, who is over us all and in us all and living through us all. " (Ephesians 4: 4 -6, NLT) • God the Father is: – sovereign and over all, He transcends His creation – He is in those who believe in Him, this stresses immanence – and He works through us in this present age (2: 10) • another triune statement: God the Holy Spirit, Christ the Lord and God the Father – in chapter 1 God the Father predestined us – Christ redeems us with His own blood – and the Holy Spirit seals us

The gift of grace (v. 7) • we are all saved by God's sovereign grace • Christ gives gifts to each individual by His grace

"However, he has given each one of us a special gift according to the generosity of Christ. " (Ephesians 4: 7, NLT) • grace means unmerited or undeserved favor and denotes enablement (Hoehner, 522) • ἡ χάρις The χάρις [charis] with the definite article is like the χάρισμα [charisma] or "gifts. " This is like the parallel passages in 1 Corinthians 12: 4, 9, 28, 30, 31, and Romans 12: 6. The χάρισμα [charisma] are a special enabling by God's grace χάρις [charis]. – ❍ B D* F G L P* Ψ 082. 6. 326. 1505. 1739. 1881 al co❙ txt P 46 א A C D 0278. 33 mit does have witnesses in the Alexandrian, Western, and Byzantine traditions

The gift of Christ (vv. 8 -10) • Paul quotes from Psalm 68, a very difficult Psalm to interpret • he changes it to third person, and rather than receiving gifts -- Christ gives gifts

"Therefore it says, “When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, And He gave gifts to men. ” (Now this expression, “He ascended, ” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things. ) " (Ephesians 4: 8 -10, NASB 95) • Christ as Victor is able to give gifts to those who participated in His victory – this was at the cross – not at Pentecost (as the Jewish tradition of Moses and the Torah may be as late as the 5 th cent) • Christ descended – to the earth in His incarnation and ascended after His death – there is good evidence this refers to Christ's descent to Hades (some don't believe this) – it is also probable it refers to the grave and His ascension • Christ did not cease to function as God when he took on flesh, at His ascension He resumed His place in heaven, now in human flesh

The gifts to equip the saints (vv. 11 - 13) • The purpose of the teaching gifts are to equip all the saints • these are gifts and not offices, it does not depend on the maturity of the believer, it is not a male or female gift (Hoehner, 539) • some such as apostles were given only for the New Testament age for the building of the church(2: 20) ; though many today are church planters in much the same fashion

"And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. " (Eph 4: 11 -13, NASB 95) • there were 12 apostles who knew Christ • there were many other apostles who were given for building the church • while the Canon was incomplete prophets spoke new revelation, but when John the apostle died the Canon was closed. • ‘Pastor and teacher’ could be the same individual because there is one definite article for both nouns – pastor is a shepherd, and all pastors should be able to teach – not all teachers may be able to be a good pastor – one may function as an elder or overseer, and that is his office, hopefully he has been selected because he also has the gift of teaching or pastoring – in like manner there are no modern-day apostles in terms of the office, for none have physically seen the resurrected Lord

"And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. " (Eph 4: 11 -13, NASB 95) • Everyone needs to be involved in the ministry • there needs to be unity before there is growth in maturity • the pastor needs to be instrumental in the maturing of all the saints • the ‘mature man’ is the local body of believers, we as individuals are to be mature, but in this context the Church needs to be made mature • in the mature church Christ is made manifest

Unity of the Body (vv. 14 -16) • The overall theme of the book • There has been many church splits since this was written • There is anything but unity in baptism and in our faith’s • Unity flows from a strong sense of the triune working of a sovereign God

"As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. " (Ephesians 4: 14 -16, NASB 95) • the body should be made strong by sound teaching and pastorally care • μεθοδεία [methodeia] the deceitful scheming of this world, we should be wise to the world (Matt 10: 16) • a believer should be truthful, their life should be transparent, and without reproach • every part of the body is in contact with every other part of the body, I like to think of this as a early developing embryo, a gastrula or a morula

Gastrula Electron Micrograph

Morula • The cells are more interdependent, and the cellular contact causes the gastrulating process in the preceding slide • We need to be diligent to cause good growth in the body

Summary orthy of your calling to maintain u____ nity of the • Walk w____ church and promote the growth of the body; with ifts to strengthen and each member using their g____ ature the body of C_____ hrist as He works in us and m_____ through us to demonstrate Himself to the world.

Next week • Ephesians 4: 17 -24