Wayfinding Week 4
The local church should be a shining light to its community and world. But when we become individualistic and lazy, we become the stumbling block.
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” - Ghandi
Eph Intro:
Read- 3:14-21..Immeasurably More, but how???
Ephesians 3:14-21
14For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Matthew 16:18
18And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Ephesians 4:11-16
11And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
V.11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
LOVE/TRUTH
God is a God of order: Creational theology
WHY does the church exist???
V.12-13 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,
“to equip his people for works of service”
“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” - Ghandi
Eph Intro:
- Eph 1-3 All about remember what Jesus has done
- Eph 4 "Do" as a result of what was communicated in 1-3
Read- 3:14-21..Immeasurably More, but how???
Ephesians 3:14-21
14For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Matthew 16:18
18And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Ephesians 4:11-16
11And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
V.11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
- Apostles: “Ones Sent out” LOVE/TRUTH
- Large “A”/ small “a”
- Prophets: bring forth the word of God- foretell the future or to forthtell the word of God
LOVE/TRUTH
- Evangelist: Preach the gospel to the lost LOVE/TRUTH
- Pastors: shepherding the flock of God LOVE/TRUTH
- Teachers: Those who exegete the word of God LOVE/TRUTH
God is a God of order: Creational theology
WHY does the church exist???
V.12-13 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,
“to equip his people for works of service”
- Jesus dies…resurrects…reveals himself to the disciples and tells them to start the church…then leaves, WHAT???
- You are the plan, and he’s given you the tools.
Activity: Lego build- (Pass and build)
Question: What happens when this becomes the goal of the church???
Statement: This is so much bigger than you. So much bigger than your individual needs.
Vs.14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.
Who are the Christian infants???
Mature
Vs.15-16 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
"Truth in love"
Loving is what God desires for them/with them
Supporting passages:
1 Corinthians 13
1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
13So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Colossians 3:12-14
12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
We should be in a constant state of truth (TRUTH-ing)
Statement: Individual truth (in love) is guarded by the community as it's connected to the body and led by the church leaders.
Question: What happens when this becomes the goal of the church???
Statement: This is so much bigger than you. So much bigger than your individual needs.
Vs.14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.
Who are the Christian infants???
- See your posts
- See you not in community
- See you complain about everything
Mature
- Multiply-always about others
Vs.15-16 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
"Truth in love"
Loving is what God desires for them/with them
- If you enjoy dropping truth bombs on people…then you are not loving.
- If you find joy in being right…you are not loving
- If you give truth without relationship…you are not loving
Supporting passages:
1 Corinthians 13
1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
13So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Colossians 3:12-14
12 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
We should be in a constant state of truth (TRUTH-ing)
- Whole person presents the whole gospel
- Ill: Twitter vs. marriage
- It's practical theology Not just proclamational theology - Theology, not Meology
- Statement: You are living truth, but are you living truth???
Statement: Individual truth (in love) is guarded by the community as it's connected to the body and led by the church leaders.
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