Walk in Unity (Ephesians 4:1-16)

Well, good afternoon, it's great to see you all and it is been a crazy week. We have had the start of the Seminary this week and Tuesday Wednesday. And then we had the Pastors conference Thursday to Saturday and so I ended up teaching about 20 hours this week and it was really wonderful a bit of good news that I want to share with you all that. I know that we prayed for the school last week and we have the highest enrollment in the history of the school since 2004. So we have 72 students enrolled as of today which is just remarkable and it really is a blessing and a joy to see what the Lord is doing. There we started the Spanish-speaking certificate program. I told you about last week and we Have this class going in Sacramento and just be praying for for what the Lord's doing. I was invited to all of the missionaries were at the Pastors conference that are a part of our circles and exalting Christ Ministries. And I think I was invited to about 10 different locations around the world for next year. So I have to have some wisdom if I actually go train. These pastors. I mean it's not hard. It's it's actually hard to say no because, you know, suffering for Jesus in Portugal or Spain or wherever it is. But actually, we do need to be praying for our brothers and sisters. They're the church plants that they're doing. If we think Ministry in the Bay Area can be difficult because so many people need Jesus and don't see their need for Jesus in Europe. It's except it's even even worse than so keep them in your prayers and we are in the book of Ephesians chapter 4 For today vs 12 16 and this is a great section of scripture. I'm excited to to bring it to you today. And and I want to talk by way of introduction about what Paul's doing in his letter, just remember that the book of Ephesians as six chapters was meant to be read in one church service when Paul wrote it. So when Paul gives us all of the wonderful truth in chapters, 1 2 3, that we've been hearing for the past couple months, he intends the application to be chapters, 4-6 what he's going to now, talk about, in fact, a god through Paul's going to get in your business a little bit today. If he's going to give you some commands and at least exhortations today and and how you should live in light of everything that the Lord Jesus has done one commentator. Earnest best says, behavior is the scene in Ephesians has both a response to what God has done in Christ. And there's a Proper accompaniment to the praise of God. The two things that were already present in chapters 1 through 3. So let me read these verses, I'm going to actually break it up into two sections. I'm going to start with verses 1 to 6 and talk through that first half of this thought and then versus 7216 beginning inverse one, I therefore a prisoner for the Lord urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you've been called with all humility and gentleness with patients bearing with one another and love eager to maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond of Peace. There is one body and one Spirit just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call. One Lord, One Faith, one baptism, one God. And Father of all, who is over all and through all, and in all So this first paragraph in this section that we're covering today. We see here, the body of Christ, Paul's beginning to talk about this imagery. He had used it earlier in Chapter 2. The Christ is the head of the church, his body. And now he is beginning to explain the implications of that. And the first thing we see in versus 126 as we have unity in Jesus, we heard it from Jesus himself when he was praying in John 17, in our scripture reading that, we would be one that we would have unity. And as a result, we would have witness, we would be on Mission in the world would see the unity we have and say I want that. And they would see in us that because we have Unity that the father has loved us as much as he's loved the Sun. So he begins in versus 123 to explain this Unity. He says, I therefore a prisoner for the Lord urge you. This is the transition and if you go read Paul's letters, he always has this pattern, this transition. He first gives instruction, we could call it Doctrine, and then he gives the implications, or what we would call the ethical commands. So in Colossians chapter 1 and 2, or mainly Doctrine. And three, and four are mainly application. Romans he goes, eleven chapters, that's mainly Doctrine, but there is little applications woven in. But by the time he gets to 12:1, he says, therefore brothers and sisters in light of the mercies of God, I urge you to offer your body as a Living Sacrifice, which is your spiritual act of worship. So it's like basically there's the transition and then we have way more commands in the second part of the book of Romans. This is Does pattern and it's instructive to us because this pattern is the pattern of the Gospel. I was just teaching on it this past week at the Pastors conference. I was giving them tools and tips for their expository preaching. And I talked about this indicative imperative Paradigm that Paul's modeling for us that all of scripture models for us, this is what gives us the motive for the commands. And we see it in the word there, for inverse one in there for because of everything that's true. In chapters 1, 2 3, that you've been chosen in him before the foundation of the world that you in love. Have been predestined for adoption that. You've been you've been created your God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus. For good works that he prepared in advance that you'd walk in them that the dividing wall the partition was torn down and so there's no more separation between Jew and Gentile. those of us who were Gentiles who were without hope and without God in Chapter 2, he is now brought near and we could go on and on chapter 3, he prays that we would know how high and wide and deep and long. The love of Christ is. So we'd be filled with all the fullness of God. So when he gets to 4:1 and he says, therefore I'm a prisoner of the Lord, I ordered you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to what you've been called. He's just explained what that calling looks like in chapters 1 2 3 and it gives us the proper motive. For obedience in the Christian Life. Sometimes I joke with my students at the school that we don't want tadpoles we don't want big heads and no bodies in the Christian Life. Some Christians. Think that if I just hear a good sermon and I learned something that now I'm a good Christian. Like the mark of a good sermon is I learned something? I didn't know before. Will Tad tadpoles, you know what? Tadpoles look like. You know what? They had get so big. You can't even walk through the door is that? That's the mark of Pride that. Hey, I am so great as a Christian because of what I know. Have you ever met Christians like that? I have I probably been a Christian like that. Who I think that I must be more Godly because I know more about the Bible but those two things don't necessarily go together. And so, what this is, is learning for the sake of living, In light of the Gospel walking in a manner worthy of the calling to which we've been called it back. Paul loves to do this. He he loves to tell his audiences who they are in. Jesus Christ, the indicative to see how they then must live because of their Union with Christ. The imperative Paul says, oh yeah, remind yourself of who you are in Jesus, you're adopted as a child. You're brought into the family of God. You've been justified in declared righteous in the sight of God. So that when he looks at you, he no longer sees your sin. He sees the righteousness of his son and you've been forgiven in your sins are as far as the East is from the west and you've been reconciled to God. So that now you're called a friend of God, you're no longer an enemy and you're part of his kingdom and you're going to rule and reign with Jesus. In fact, Paul and said, and chapter 2, you've been seated in the heavenlies, in Christ. Jesus Christ is all of this glorious news that I need to hear this morning that we all need to hear this morning. And then when Paul says, now walk in a manner, worthy of the calling, to what you've been called, we go, of course, of course, it makes sense because I'm not who I was Think of a good illustration of this. But I think the greatest, or the most famous orphan story that we know of is probably Annie the musical. I only know of it, cuz, you know, the one line she had to go bathroom. I don't know why. That's the one line in the whole movie. I remember, but you remember the story of Annie, she's an orphan. She's singing and dancing are talking bad about the person who's caring for them and then Daddy Warbucks. What a name comes in. And he adopts her and brings her into his home. And now she doesn't live, she shouldn't live like an orphan anymore but she does doesn't she falls back into that pattern of living like an orphan? And she has to come to this realization of who she is now that she's in Daddy Warbucks his family. And, of course, the heartwarming story is that he takes care of, all of those orphans and a far far greater with greater picture. Our Father in Heaven is adopted us into his family and he's called as his own. But aren't we so tempted to think? Oh, I don't really belong. I ate you. No really I'm just one sin away from being kicked out. And so because of that, I don't think I should maybe it is still liable. Not to clean myself up before I get back to church. You ever said that to yourself I said that. I thought that No, the one that makes you clean as the Lord Jesus and the father, except you and him. And what we saying earlier, this is what we have to preach to our hearts Arise. My Soul arise, shake off these guilty fears, but there are implications as we begin to understand and recognize who we are in Jesus. That I do want to walk in a manner worthy of the calling, with which I've been called, I do want to please him in every way. Ed Clowney, a pastor from a previous generation. He writes this. The scriptures are full of moral instruction, and ethical exhortation, but the ground and motivation of all is found in the mercy of Jesus Christ. We are to preach all the riches of scripture. But unless the center, hold all the bits and pieces of our Pulpit, Counseling of our thundering, its social sins, and of our positive or negative thinking all fly off into the Sunday morning air, and then he exhorts these pastors specialize in preaching Jesus. That is what I was sharing with my pastor friends, who are at the conference. If, and this is why, if Jesus isn't the center of the biblical story that were proclaiming, then you all his listeners us, his hearers, conclude, he's not the center of our personal story either. see, but when we preach Jesus as the center, Well, then he's the center of our Lives as well. And it has been plication for a sow back here to to 4:1 Paul is urging them, exhorting them, he doesn't is actually is not a command. Instead, it's a pleading with them and he urges them based upon his own example and costly commitment. I've been put in jail in Rome but it's worth it. It's worth. I'm a prisoner of the Lord, but it's worth it to walk in a manner conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the calling live a life, worthy of the calling that you've received and he's going to explain what this means here. And then in the verses that follow, he had told the church at Phillipi in Philippians 1:27, conduct yourselves in a manner, worthy of the gospel of Christ to parallel thought Now, when he uses the word, walk in a manner walking in Jewish tradition in Old Testament understanding as well as probably the Greco-Roman culture, the less certain was used of this is our conduct. Its it's just a picture of how we live. Now he said we in Chapter 2. We once walked our former lifestyle was sin and darkness 2:2 in which you once walked these trespasses and sins following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air and then verse Tandy it said is I quoted earlier where his workmanship created for good works that God prepared beforehand that we would walk in them. And now he says in chapter 4 walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you've been called, God's calling sets the bar for our conduct. And what a bar it is in the good news of of, of the scriptures in the New Testament and what we're going to see is that you're not alone in this God, pours out his spirit in the New Covenant so that you're able to obey him, but we couldn't do apart from Jesus. We can now do in Jesus. We do get these bars set in our life. Don't we. We have role models that we look up to. Maybe it's the family name. That there's a bar set because of the reputation of our our dad and in our mom, and we want to walk in a way that is keeping the bar of the family name, or the reputation of our role models. How much more when the bar is the Lord, Jesus Christ. What is a life worthy of our calling? What would he goes on to say is, it's a life characterized by unity. Unity Unity of the spirit in the bond of Peace Harmony and these for Spiritual Graces that he is going to talk about in verse to explain. What verse three is unity of the spirit in the bond of Peace. Look like, So first humility humility is closely related to gentleness. Now in Greek literature. Humility was a weakness. I don't know if you knew this but Greco Romans that the Greeks and the Romans Pride was a virtue. Humility was a weakness.

But here we see in Scripture that humility is one of the virtues in the marks of what it means to live in unity, as the body of Christ. Why? Because we don't look out for our own interest. We look out for the interests of others. We maintain unity in the bond of peace. And Jesus is our example, Philippians 2. We turn over there. I know, you know, this passage well Olympians to beginning and verse 6. First five have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. Who though he was in the form of God did not account equality with God. A thing to be grasped, but he emptied himself, and by taking the form of a servant and being born in the likeness of men and being found in human form. He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name, that's above every name. So that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on Earth and under the Earth. And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the father. So even though the Greco-Roman World said, humility is a weakness. We see that humility from scripture is God like After all the Lord Jesus the second person of the Trinity humbled himself and took on a human nature forever so that he could die in our place for our sins so that we could be brought to God. He is the one who is the model of humility. Likewise back in the fusions, gentleness is the next word, sometimes, translated, meekness against the Greeks and the Romans considered this weakness. But the Lord Jesus himself in Matthew 11 said, come to me and learn from me, for take my yoke upon you. My, my burden is easy. My yoke is light, I am gentle. And lowly in heart. That you remember what he says later. He says a bruised Reed. I won't break a smoldering Wick. I won't put out. And isn't this what brought us to Jesus, those of you who are Christians, is it that you came to him and you came to realize that he is a gentle Shepherd. He's a good shepherd. His yoke is easy. It's not a heavy burdens to Bear its freedom, its freedom in Jesus. It's it's it's a joy and it's a light burden because he is gentle and lowly in heart and it's interesting that in Galatians 6. Paul tells us that we should bear one another's, burdens like Jesus Bears. Our burdens while we can't do it the same way. We don't we don't die in the place of others but we can share one another's and bear one another's burdens. And when we do, so Paul says, we fulfill the law of Christ. Now this maintains Unity because we're willing to waive our rights and consider others and to Bear their burdens ever have that happen. Where are you? You open yourself and you use, you tell what you're struggling with, and someone prays for you and care about you and they follow up with you and they check in to see how you're doing, and it means all the world cuz they're bearing your burdens That promotes unity in the body of Christ. In the amazing thing here. Paul is going to say is this isn't just the average bearing of burdens. This is the spirit empowered Ministry, a bearing burdens that maybe we couldn't even bear in our own strength, And it ends up being a witness for the gospel. Third patients, back in the Fusions for this is long-suffering. It's used of God's patience with his people.

I think of Jonah. God is slow to anger, and abounding, in love and kindness. Remember this, this is the name. God revealed back in, Exodus 33 and 34 when Moses said, Show Me Your Glory than God, cries out his name, the gracious and compassionate one slow to anger and abounding in the steadfast, love, loving kindness. And then Jonah. He gets called to go to Nineveh who was their enemy and Jonah, says, no. I don't want to do that and he gets on a ship to tarshish. The other way to Spain, the other direction from Nineveh, and then get swallowed by a fish. We know the story, he gets spit up. What, what's amazing to me in chapter 4 of Jonah, is that when he finally is so mad, he's so mad he can dies as Lord. Just take my life. I'm mad that you didn't nuke Nineveh. I sat here on the hill for 40 days. Waiting for you to Newton in a bun. You didn't do it. Just kill me now. Jonah. Accuses God and says, God, I knew you were like this. I know that you're slow to anger and abounding in loving kindness. That's why I tried to hightail it to Spain. Because I knew this is how you were. This kind of patience and long-suffering and enduring people. In fact, the next phrase in 4:3 when I reverse yeah, 3. When he says to bearing with one another in love, you can translate that putting up with one another in love. That's the idea, you're burying people that man. I really don't want to put up with you, but because of what the spirits doing in my life, I want to love you and put up with you and bear along with you. This idea of showing tolerance. The Practical Expressions expression of painting a patient's. This only can come from God's love, for us. It comes out of his character. It's why he had prayed earlier in chapter 3 that you and I would be rooted and grounded in his love because this is the fruit of that being rooted and grounded is that we love others. Were patient with others, were gentle with others. That we show humility towards others and exhorting them, it's an urgent appeal that has a sense of a a crisis to it, do it now. Not like maybe later when you get around to it. He saying this is of utmost importance to the very first application out of everything. You said in chapters 1, 2 3 is, you need to have unity and you do this by walking in a manner worthy of the calling with what you've been called. You basically practice greatness in the Kingdom, which is being a servant of all not looking out for your own interests, not lording it over. But instead serving one, another loving one another, it's incredible. Now this is really easy to understand. There's no deep Doctrine here. That's hard to understand. I have to love people and be patient with them and be gentle towards them and show humility. Very easy to understand. But I would argue is probably one of the hardest things to live out which is why we need the spirit of God to help us. Which is why he says in verse 3 being eager to maintain the unity of the spirit in the bond piece, we desperately need the spirits work we didn't create the unity, we don't create Unity. The spirit of God created Unity. We're to maintain and preserve it in his power which is why Paul turns into this confession of unity in versus 426. There's one body one Spirit just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call. One Lord, One Faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is overall in through wall and in all

I would point out just kind of as an aside that this is not Unity at any price. This is Unity rooted in a common confession. But there is one God and one, Lord, and one baptism. And one face. This isn't the unity that our world desires that says compromise your beliefs compromised. What you're thinking. We just have to all get along and have Unity no matter what. And if you don't, then somehow, you are being evil. Know this is Unity rooted in a common confession. And it's right here in versus 426. We have the same identity verse for there is one body in one Spirit. Just as you were called to one hope that belongs to your call. Here, we see the third person of the Trinity. God, the Holy Spirit. Placing us into one body. The church, even though we're a local congregation, there is the church Universal. That is one body in Jesus, every church meeting on Sunday. Proclaiming the name of Jesus is the same body. Once. He's the person of the godhead who brings this Unity One. Hope this goes back to chapter one, this one hope is the hope of the Gospel to the hope of glory. Then we see that. We have the same testimony, verse 5 one Lord, One Faith, one baptism. And when he says one Lord, that's a little bit subversive because in Polish sitting in a prison cell in Rome and who's sitting on the throne there, Caesar. and, Because of the cult of the emperor, especially in Asia, Minor. Where Ephesus was located. Those people were told they had to offer a pinch of incense and say Cesar is Lord. And instead, what Paul is saying, is Jesus is Lord. We have one testimony, one confession, One Faith, one baptism. He's Lord on the basis of his resurrection and Ascension and exaltation this common body of belief. This one Faith since there's only one Faith, there's only one Lord, this is why Paul to the Corinthians. I am bringing two of first importance that Jesus died for our sins. According to the scriptures, he was buried according to the scriptures and he rose on the third day. According to the scriptures, that's the gospel message. And the good news of the Gospel is you can have forgiveness of sins and you could be right with God and adopted into his family and have all of these things from chapters 1, 2 3, not by your words. Not by doing good things. But simply by receiving and taking by faith alone, this great gift. And we say, hallelujah, this is good news. And there's one baptism. There's only one baptism because there's only one. Lord Jesus Christ and baptism, is a mark of unity, isn't it? That we are so identified with Jesus, that what we do is we go and we dunk ourselves in water to be a picture that just as Jesus died and was buried as if he had gone under the water and Rose to New Life. We are so identified with him that we go under the water in baptism, having died with him, having been buried with him and then we come out of the water in baptism, having been raised to New Life, what a glorious picture of our unity in Jesus? And then we have the same family, verse 6, one God, and Father of all who is overall in through all and in all God is our father and his Universal Rule and presence is with us and because it's being exercised. Paul and said in chapter one, he's going to sum up everything. In his son, Jesus things in heaven and things on earth. Everything's going about it. Jesus, every knee will bow. And every tongue confess that he's Lord, Now Paul says, this is our Unity our Oneness but then what Paul has to go to in his mind is he's thinking but we also have a great diversity in the body of Christ and that's versus 7216. Rebecca, 4:7 But Grace was given to each one of us, according to the measure of, Christ's gift there for. It says, when he has send it on high, he led a host of captives and he gave gifts to men and saying he ascended, what does it mean? But that he also descended into the lower regions of the earth. He who ascended, as the one who descended is, the one who also ascended far above all Heavens that he might fill all things and he gave the apostles, the prophets, the Evangelist the Shepherds and teachers to equip the Saints for the work of Ministry for building up the body of Christ until we attain to the unity of the faith. There's the idea of unity again and the knowledge of the Son of God to mature, manhood to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. So that we may no longer be children tossed to and fro by the waves carried about by every wind of Doctrine by human cunning by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather speaking the truth in love Where to grow up in every way into him who's the head into Christ from whom the whole body joined and held together by every joint in which it is equipped with each part is working properly makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love another reason. I took this whole large passage verse 1 to 16 as I want you to see the context of the body of Christ hear the unity, it goes from 1 to 16. And we see that what Paul is saying is we have Unity we have one this in Jesus because there's one missing the Trinity God the Father God the son God the Holy Spirit are not three Gods but one God whom we worship who exist in three persons and that blows our mind, but this is how God has revealed himself. And so we believe it because we have one faith in one lower than one baptism. But then he says, let's get practical about this Unity. Not only are you to show the virtues the characteristics of gentleness and humility and patience and bearing with one another putting up with one another he says you also have been given gifts to serve one another and he starts with verse 7 that they are all of Grace. Christ is The Giver of the gift and verse 7. Verse 8. He's the one who gives gifts to men verse 11, again, he's the one who gave the apostles, the prophecy, evangelist Shepherds, and teachers the pastors and teachers soap Christ, is The Giver of the gift and he gives these gifts to each one of us and not a single one of us misses out on these gifts. Only encourage you, if you feel like you've never been used of the Lord in your Christian and you feel like, well I just I don't think I could ever be used. That is not what scripture teaches, scripture teaches you've been gifted by the Lord. Jesus himself to serve the body of Christ, and you may not know what that gift is. You may not be able to identify it and a test won't tell you my encouragement. To you is just begin serving and you will find it out. Begin to meet the needs of others and serve in the church and you will begin to see where the Lord has gifted you. And these are not simply talents. These are not, you know, simply personality traits or material objects. This is a spirit empowered gift that is given to you so that you can serve the body of Christ is illustration in 1st Corinthians 12. If we were to turn over there, every member is necessary and every member is gifted in the. I can't say to the foot. I have no need of you. You remember this, right? There's no Mike wazowski's in the church. Just a big eye and nothing else.

He pulls out two important words here. Grace. And the measure of the gift Grace, it's all of Grace. So even if we have a measure of the gift that's greater than someone else, it's not ours to boast about its Christ was given the measure because it's all of Grace. Grace is of course receiving something undeserved. You ever had someone be gracious towards you and give you what, you don't deserve.

If we get pulled over by the cops.

Never ever. No, and then you begin to brag about how many tickets you got out of which were really Grace on the officers part if you were speeding. Because you deserve the ticket for breaking the law.

I haven't been pulled over in recent memory, you know, just couple years ago that's all I can't say it was before I knew Jesus, but Okay, next Egos. And he quotes Psalm 68. It's an Old Testament song. That is the example of giving gifts. And any, he quotes it, it's a little confusing about when he ascended on high. He let it hosts. He led a host of captives and gave gifts to mend. His point is to, to, to show that Jesus is The Giver of the gifts because in Psalm 68, Yahweh is The Giver of gifts and he pulls out this idea of ascending and giving and just like God comes from cyan dye in a sentence to Zion to Jerusalem, and just like Moses ascends to Sinai to receive the tablets of the law Christ, ascended from Earth, to the right hand of the father and we need to send it, I take it to be here, it was down to earth, and his Incarnation, some take it to be is burial and his death that he descended to the depths of the earth. I take it here to be talking about his Incarnation but the emphasis Is not on the descending, the emphasis is on the ascending and then the giving in order that he might fill all things and he gives gifts to men. so, It goes back to 1:3. God, the father has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the Heavenly places in Christ Jesus. But he's given us salvation. He's giving us forgiveness of sins in Jesus, we have adoption all of these beautiful truth of chapter one and now he says you even have gifts that are not vertical between you and God. You have gifts that are horizontal just serve the body of Christ.

Bruce 11, he gave the apostles, the prophets, the Evangelist, the shepherd, the pastor's Shepherds and teachers to equip the Saints for the work of Ministry for building up of the body of Christ. So what is the reason the function of these gifts? Their purpose is for equipping and building up. now, it's interesting here that when he says, Apostles Prophets, Evangelist and Pastor teachers. He's considering them the gifts. The people are the gifts, not just the gift of Pastor teacher, or the gift of evangelist. But the very people themselves, and I think what Paul is getting out in this context, is the scripture itself has been given to us through the Old Testament prophets, the New Testament, Apostles, the Evangelist and Pastor teachers then are the ones who have brought the book of Acts. We see this happening and then we have the scripture, the purpose of it being preached and taught from the pulpit on Sundays is to equip you all to do the work of ministry. To equip the Saints to do the work of ministry. So it is not a clergy laity distinction where the priesthood has this, this responsibility and Authority, an extra giftedness that the people don't have no, what scripture teaches is that all of us. You and I all of us are a priesthood of Believers. And that we all have gifts. In fact, this imagery is Temple imagery from the Old Testament in the temple. The Levites were to offer both gifts and sacrifices. So they were to use their giftedness in the temple and they were to offer sacrifices in the New Covenant, the New Testament. Now, Paul it said in Chapter 2, we are the temple. He doesn't say where the priesthood, but he says, you've all been given gifts and your to offer gifts and serve one another. So that you be a fit Place dwelling place for the Holy Spirit, chapter 2, chapter 4. He says, you'll have Unity for the building up of the body of Christ to do, the work of ministry that will attain to the unity of the faith. And then knowledge of the Son of God to maturity maturity to the intended goal, the intended purpose. See the purpose is equipping the building up. The goal is Unity. Christian growth does not occur in isolation. We need each other. We need each other and the result is maturity in Christ. Practice was the goal in 1:4 that God chose us in Christ. Before the foundation of the world that we would be holy and blameless before him in his presence. And now he's saying here in chapter 4 that when you serve one, another as you gather together and you're equipped by the pastors and teachers and you do the work of ministry, your building up the body of Christ, into the unity of the faith and then I'll do the Son of God into maturity and this word maturity here is the intended goal. Sometimes it's translated, Perfection. Like the Book of James says if you're able to tame your tongue you're a perfect person doesn't mean without mistake. It means maturity be intended end in goal, like we raised our kids. With the goal that they would go out and move out and have their own families. There's no there. I'm not making any eye contact with my dope children in the room. This is not a this is the this is the idea about parenting is that we raise them up that we want them to be parents and have kids so that we can have grandkids again not push on anything. This is the intended goal. This is a mark of maturity into adulthood, isn't it will? Paul here says, in the Christian Life, The Mark of maturity is unity. And unity happens when we serve one another as the body of Christ. As we gather together. Growing up into every way into Jesus. He concludes verse 16, verse 15 into him. Who's the head into Christ? The body metaphor, reflects this already, not yet. Tension of scripture, we're already completing him and yet we still grow. And as we walk in unity, the lordship of Jesus remain Central. He's the one Lord of our confession in verse 5. He's the one who gives Grace To Us individually verse 7, as well, as ministering to us through the word verse 11, to the whole church. And as the head of the church, he rules over us and he's the source and the goal of our growth verses 15 and 16. When I close with, I thought on another virtue, another characteristic that's been running. Through this whole passage, it's love, he says verse 15 speaking. The truth in love we're to grow up in every way into him. Who's the head in Christ? Love In this passage actually ascends to The prominent place and to The prominent place in the letter as the whole. Why love is the atmosphere in which Unity gross. If we don't have love for one another, we won't have Unity. Just as Unity begins and ends the passage. So does love look back at 4:2 with all humility and gentleness with patience bearing with one another in love, the reason we put up with one another is cuz we love one another. And this kind of love is a love. That is Supernatural. It's a love. That comes from the father we love because he first loved us, John tells us in his first epistle Love is the atmosphere in which Unity grows. not only that, it's the goal of Christian growth that we speaking the truth in love grow up every way into him, who's the head into Christ and what had he just said, at the end of chapter, 30, that you would know how high and wide and deep and long, the love of Christ is so that you be filled with all the fullness of God, So connected to the previous section. He says, listen, this is the ultimate test of our church is Health, our churches maturity our churches growth. It's it's not merely the numbers, it's not that we have Rock and music. I don't know if we do or not, we don't, I mean on a cajon. I don't know how much rock you got, you know, it's it's it's the maturity in the test of our are held as a church is, do we love one another? Do we have Unity? Are we showing gentleness and humility and patience and bearing with one another? This is what it means to walk in a manner, worthy of the calling, to which we've been called, as he said, inverse one, it's walking in the love that's given to us from the father in Jesus and made known to us by the spirit. This is the heart of Paul in this letter. It's the very first exhortation. He runs too and all of the rest of the book when he begins to talk about husbands and wives. Parents and children. The household relationships even putting on the armor of God and spiritual warfare. It's rooted and grounded in. Love God's love for us, and our love for him, and our love for one another. what an incredible thoughts you so

No more. I'm going to end, I'm going to pray. Father, thank you for this time. Thank you for this passage before us.

May you? Do what work at Trinity Church in a way that promotes Unity. The promotes love love for you and love for one another.

That we would be marked by these virtues of gentleness and humility and patience and bearing with one another in love. That we would serve one another forgive one another that we would be equipped from the word as we hear it. Preached and teached that we would be about doing the work of the ministry, which means we aren't just serving and loving one. Another were serving and loving our community and sharing the hope of the Gospel with them. That though they are disobedient to you and rebellious and deserve your judgment. They can be forgiven In Jesus. I believe in alone not by works. But by faith.

Father has returned to the table. Now, May this one. Common confession. This common communion that we share. May it be a picture of our unity in Jesus. I pray this in his name, amen.