Training a Community

Ephesians 4v1-16

The mp3 of this talk can be downloaded from the Bethany City Church website here 

Introduction

January 2010 has seen the political world in Northern Ireland rocked by scandal.  Centred on issues of sex, money, power and sickness, the problems facing First minister Peter Robinson and his wife Iris have caused a tidal wave of opinion, debate and outrage, not to mention thousands of column inches.  Right at the heart of the discussions in the media are questions of trust.  Can the First Minister now be trusted to do what he has been called to do by the Northern Irish public?  Can he continue as First minister?  Their lives have been rocked in ways that, were they in a different profession, would not necessarily mean their jobs was on the line, but their status as prominent political leaders means the questions about whether they, and in particular he, has lived up to his calling are inevitable.

This idea of ‘living up to your calling’ is an important Biblical theme, and the apostle Paul, in Ephesians 4 tackles it head on.

 

A worthy life

God’s desire for his people is that they live a life worthy of their calling. 

This is a wonderful privilege, and responsibility. The first 3 chapters of Ephesians elaborate what this calling is, and just a snapshot should get your pulse racing.

‘He chose us in him to be holy and blameless in his sight.’ (1v4)

‘We have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished upon us with all wisdom and understanding.’ (1v7)

‘We might be for the praise of his glory’ (1v12)

The life to which God has called his people, those who follow him is great!

Lives set apart and redeemed to show the weight and wonder of the glory of God, and to bring him praise.  The ultimate purpose of all things, and the universe is our calling.  And we’ve only looked at the first 12 verses!  We have been called by God, to be children of God.  Notice, the calling is Gods, he has called.  To live a life worthy of it is to live in such a way as to be worthy of the name – ‘a child of God’.  This is a high calling indeed.

Now, of course we can’t do this.  We read these worlds and feel our inadequacy, but the emphasis here is on the value of the one who calls and on the calling, rather than on the ability of the person called to do it.  It is about what we are aspiring to become, and by God’s grace which is all consuming in our lives and experience, are becoming!

Again, it is a high calling indeed, and not least in the way we relate to one another.

We are to always be humble, gentle, patient with each other, bearing with one another, making allowance for each others faults.

God has in mind here more the way we function as a community than who we are as individuals.  What a distinctive community the church would be if she, corporately, lived up to the calling upon her.

Just take humility and love for example...

• Humility – ‘Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves...look not only to your own interests but to the interests of others.’ (Phil2v3).  What a difference that would make if we lived like that, with the attitude of Jesus!
• Bearing with one another in love – or ‘make allowance for each others faults because of your love.’  We are to be a community that is realistic about who we are, and how we got to be apart of this community.  We are brought in as sinners, because that is who we are!

So, walking in a manner worthy of your calling is addressed to the body, to the church.  It is not just a personal thing, it is corporate.

 

Just look at v3-5 again.  We have been called into a united body – so maintain it.

But this unity is not just a sentimental thing.  So often we function as though to be united with someone is to have no disagreements with them.  But here, the unity we are speaking of is deep.  It is about the central building blocks of our faith, it is rooted in the things we most fundamentally of all, stand upon.  These are the things that unite us, and are also the things that define us.  You may be a member of many other organisations, groups of friends, clubs, activities.  But there is none that you are united too like this, and living a life worthy of your calling means actively investing in and maintaining that unity is of real importance.  This should shape our priorities, which will shape what you do, think and say. 

So, how are you striving to live a life worthy of your calling? 

Are you striving with effort, spiritual sweat?  Or are you just dipping your toes in?

How are you involved in this community? 

 Are you just here on a Sunday morning, because if you are you can’t do what God asks with just that!  A Sunday morning alone won’t do it!

Living this life is worth everything – is it God’s call so live a life worthy of your calling, and love one another.

 

God’s gift(v7-11)

God has created communities of his people in such a way that, together we can do this.  We can live a life, together, worthy of our calling.  He has given us what we need.

I want us to notice 2 things from the beginning of v7, and v11.  ‘...to each one of us grace has been given’, ‘It was he who gave’

The picture painted in v8-10 is that of Jesus leading a victory procession back from battle, and as he does so, from his chariot it distributed gifts, booty from the battle to his people.

Notice, these gifts were given (v7) to each one of us.  God’s grace poured into our lives, coming out in our own distinctive way.  God has gifted us all to live for him and serve him.  Jesus is the one who apportioned it, so if you don’t like it...!

And remember, we are told this in the context of thinking about how we together we live lives worthy of following Jesus Christ.  What you have been given – your natural abilities and talents, your gifts are needed by the church and the church will be deprived without them.  Your gifts and talents are needed by your church and your church will be deprived without them.  How are you giving?

But v11 turns its attentions to a particular group of gifts.  No more valuable than any of the others, but a group of particular influence.

Jesus gave...LEADERSHIP to the church.

Elsewhere the list of gifts given by Jesus is much fuller and longer, but here gifts of influence, leadership are mentioned.  Why?

We will see in a minute that it is because of what they, in particular, do.  But notice something about the gifts mentioned here.  Apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (or pastor teachers).  Personally I see no biblical reason to assume that any of these have ceased functioning today.  They are God’s gift to the church and are still functioning, and they all speak Gods word in different ways into different contexts.  They administer Gods word to the church so that it can live up to its calling to follow Christ.

The thing is, the list of attributes in v2 – humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another in love are not things that you just decide to put on.  Right living, in any area or field of life, doesn’t just happen.  Right living requires right thinking.  The link between what we believe and who we are is really very important, as we shall see in a minute.

So, God gives leadership, and leaders to the church so that the church lives a life worthy of its calling.  In fact, not just ‘leaders’ in the established sense.  Leadership is about influence.  We all influence each other – we all lead each other.

 

I think this fact counters 2 attitudes towards leadership, and leadership in the church today. 

The first is a critical, cynical attitude towards leaders and leadership.  People often say ‘Jesus was a man of the people’.  So he was.  ‘He knew where the everyday man came from’.  Yes he did.  Nowadays, our society is naturally cynical towards leaders, leadership and authority – and so the assumption is that Jesus would be cynical towards leaders too!

But no.  HE gave leadership to the church.

Sometimes our cynical attitudes are born out of our experience and I can really understand that.  But, would we have any problems learning from, and being lead by leaders who are humble, gentle, patient?  Who rather than being over-bearing, ‘bear with one another in love’? 

Much of leadership is actually about example.  We can all think of people who have influenced us and therefore lead us by living lives that match up, lives with integrity and submission to God.

 These are people who inspire!

The second attitude towards leadership is that they are different people who can dictate and stipulate what should happen and we are expected to blindly follow.

All are gifted by God not just leaders, but all are being lead too.  Leaders should be pointing people to the ‘leader’ if they are administering God’s word.

 

So God gifts all people, and gives leaders so that we, as a community can walk in a manner worthy of our calling.

How are you using your gifts in the life of the church and for the benefit of the church and the kingdom?

If God gives leaders to the church, how teachable, how leadable are you?

 

Equipped to grow (v12-14)

How do the leaders do this?

Leaders aim to equip God’s people for works of service.

• Equip God’s people for works of ministry

This is important.  Just as God has gifted everyone with gifts that serve him, so the ministry of the church is not just down to a few.  This is where being in a right functioning church is a real blessing.  The gifts that God gives to leaders are aimed in the direction of others – equipping them to serve him.  And this is done primarily as we hear Gods voice instructing us which affects what we believe and therefore who we are.  Of course, we are not just talking about public, up front preaching.  We are talking about small groups, intentional conversations and in other ways too.

• Building up the church

As the church, the body of Christ, is equipped for works of service so the it is built up.  This is not primarily referring to numbers, but to the strength and security and ability the church has to fulfil its calling.  We are meant to be oak trees, with strong roots that go down deep, thick limbs built to withstand the elements.  We are not mean't to be like rubber dingys, subject to the whim of the waves, easily swept from one thing to the next.  (see v14)  And how is that prevented?  By leaders leading, administering God's word to the church.

•  Until we reach unity and maturity.

God knows we are a work in progress.  We are united and so should maintain it.  But we are also becoming united.  Again, notice what this unity is about.  It is not a sentimental, comfortable unity.  It is a unity in the faith and in the knowledge about Jesus.

‘Unity in the faith’ is expressing we are on the same journey to the same goal.  It is having our faith in God as a topic of conversation that we encourage.  It is asking – how is your walk with God at the moment?  It is learning together to trust God for what we know is best rather than settling for something second best which is easier.

And unity in the ‘knowledge of the Son of God’ is shared convictions, beliefs that we can speak of and put into practice.  It is growing in our understanding together of who Jesus is and what he came to do.  It is not about leaving it to someone else, but about us all growing together in our knowledge of the Son.

 And the goal? Maturity.  Again, this is plural, about us together as a church.  Our goal together is to be like Christ – attaining to the measure of the stature of Christ.  We can’t do it on our own, by definition!  To try and do it alone is like trying to make a car from one wheel.  It is impossible and you need all the parts!

 

These verses paint an exciting picture.  It is a picture of a community that is together growing and together being trained to walk in a manner worthy of its calling.  Every part of the body taking its place, with equal value and importance.  Together growing and becoming better equipped to do ministry, living in peace with one another.  A community that grows in its understanding of God’s Son and therefore in its ability to serve him.

And verse 14, which we have referred to briefly already, shows what the challenges to God’s people are.  What happens when we aren’t aspiring to live lives worthy of our calling, where each person fulfils the role they have been created to fulfil.  It warns about not being infants stranded at sea, carried by every doctrine or scheme

 

Conclusion

Rather than life on a Rubber Dingy, in v15-16 we are pointed once again to Jesus Christ.  And it is a great place to end.  We are to speak the truth in love.   We are to grow up into him in every way, into the Head, Jesus.  And as the body grows, it builds itself up in love.  We have this great picture  of Jesus being the head and his church, you and I being the body that grows, attached to him, building itself up in love.  What a fantastic privilege, what a purpose to aspire to.  Do you?

 What the world needs now is communities of people who are training hard, willing to weigh up the costs and sacrifice in order to be the communities that God wants them to be – living life worthy of the calling, communities whose goal individually and corporately is to reach maturity and be like Christ as their beliefs shape their actions.  So lets be those people!