Sermon Tone Analysis

March 7, 2012

By John Barnett

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As we open to I Timothy 3 today, turn your minds towards one of the most amazing parts of our faith—the new relationships God gives to us.

• First, all of us in Christ this morning are brothers and sisters (I Tim.

5:1-2); and that even includes our children, our parents, and our marriage partners, if they are believers.

And that list of relatives extends up and down the streets of Tulsa, across the country, and around the world.

We have blood relatives in every part of this world.

The key is, if they are born-again believers—they are our siblings.

• Second, God is our Father (Mat.

6:6-15).

We have a perfect, always-there Dad who loves us without any conditions, who will never change, pull back, leave home, or divorce our mother.

He knows what’s best, gives us everything we need, stays in touch constantly, and goes with us everywhere we are.

• Thirdly, Jesus Christ has become our brother as well as God and Savior (Hebrews 2:11-12).

That means He knows all of our struggles, pains, weaknesses, and temptations—and is right there with us as we go through them.

• Finally, we live in God’s house (I Timothy 3:15), His Church, and as family members the Bible, God's Word is the plan He has for us how we are to behave, all of our family duties, and so on.

This morning we are the house of God.

Each of us are a spiritual piece of that building.

We are built upon the foundation of truth that is in Christ Jesus.

Listen again to what Paul said in I Timothy 3:15:

/“…but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in *the house of God*, which is *the church of the living God*, the pillar and ground of *the truth.*”/

NKJV

We are in the midst of a study of Titus 2:2, where Paul explains the “house rules”.

All believers are called saints.

And those saints who believe right and behave right are “sound in faith”.

A believer, who has healthy faith, believes truth and lives truth.

As we will see, grace-energized men and women are to be mended (equipping) and built up (edification) by the truth, to function properly in God’s Family.

Only spiritually healthy people can men and build up others.

Are you functioning as a healthy member of Christ's church this morning?

For just a moment remember that there are no less than twelve metaphors in God's Word for the Church .

Each metaphor is a powerful way for us to see how God looks upon us who are Christ's church.

Let me just list them off for you.

We are—*A family* (I Tim.

5:1-2); *The Bride of Christ *(II Cor.

11:2);* Branches on a vine* (John 15:5); *An olive tree* (Rom.

11:17-24);* A field of crops* (1 Cor.

3:6-9);* A new temple *(1 Peter 2:5)* built with “living stones”; A new group of priests* (1 Pet.

2:5), that can offer “spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God”; *A building *(1 Cor.

3:9); and God’s house: (Heb.

3:3, ), with Jesus Christ himself viewed as the “builder” of the house; *The pillar and bulwark of the truth *(1 Tim.

3:15);* A harvest* (Matt.

13:1-30; John 4:35); and* The body of Christ* (1 Cor.

12:12-27).

*Our Responsibilities to Christ’s Church*

We are responsible as believers, to apply each of the metaphors used for the church into our daily lives.

As we do so we begin to appreciate more of the richness of privilege that God gave us by placing us into His church.

Stir up your mind by thinking about these truths.

1. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as a* family*—should increase our love and fellowship with one another.

2. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as *the bride of Christ*—should stimulate us to personally strive for greater purity, deeper love for Christ, and swifter fuller obedience to Him.

3. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church* as branches of a vine*—should cause us to rest in Him more fully.

4. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as* an agricultural crop*—should encourage us to continue growing in the Christian life and obtaining for ourselves and others the proper spiritual nutrients to grow.

5. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as *God’s new templ*e—should increase our awareness of God’s very presence dwelling in our midst as we meet.

6. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as *a priesthood*—should help us to see more clearly the delight God has in the sacrifices of praise and good deeds that we offer to Him (see Heb. 13:15-16).

7. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as *the body of Christ*—should increase our interdependence on one another and our appreciation of the diversity of gifts within the body.

8. Knowing that God looks on Christ's church as *a house that is being built*—should stir each of us to be a part of the process of building up, edifying, and discipling one another.

This morning if I could ask each of you to remember just one concept from this entire message it would be this:

*Are you doing what God made you to do?*

God looks to each one of us to do our part in His Church that He is building; and each of us is a unique tools in His Hands; and each of us can do something God designed only for us to do.

In other words…

*Are you a part of His Team?*

All of us have a responsibility to be a part of God’s building process.

It was 13 years ago that we began constructing our home here in Tulsa.

Like many of you we followed the same process.

We had to choose a builder, buy a lot, then watch as the land got cleared and ready, the slab or foundation was prepared and poured, then the framers came, the windows were put it, the electricians showed up and strung wires, plumbers, sheet rockers, cabinet makers, trim carpenters, painters, flooring specialists, and on and on it went.

The whole process took months, and all the various workers came and went from our house and each did something whether large or small that was a part of the construction process.

We all know this is true about our houses, but do you understand the same is true about Christ's church?

Just as it took an army of different craftsmen and workers to construct that house—God has the same planned for His Church.

Each of us has a different giftedness for use in building and maintaining Christ's House.

To construct and maintain a house we can’t all be electricians, or where would we get the plumbing done.

We can’t all be painters or how would we get the roofing done?

In house construction, each one does a different part, *and all must work together.*

In Christ's church each of us has a different giftedness God wants to use in His construction of the Church.

If you come to the building site and do not do what He made you to do—the entire process of building up the Church suffers.

And that brings us to the essence of our study this morning.

All of us are to be a part of God’s two part construction plan.

Open with me to Ephesians 4:11-13.

Last week we left off in this passage explaining how to apply this message of believing and living the truth.

Ephesians 4:11-13/" And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 *for the equipping* of the saints for the work of ministry, *for the edifying* of the body of Christ,13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."/

NKJV

*Mended and Built By The Truth*

Did you notice the two words Paul emphasizes in v. 12? Equipping and edifying.

That verse contain God’s goal for all of us in Christ's church this morning—bringing believers to spiritual health and spiritual growth through truth in Christ.

Do you really understand why you are here?

Let’s get a hold on these twin truths of Ephesians 4:12.

First look at the words God chose to use to describe our purpose:

Ephesians 4:12 “…for the equipping (Gk.

# 2677, n. from v. #2675 lit.

“mending”; KJV ‘perfecting’) of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying (Gk.

#3619 lit.

“building up”) of the body of Christ…” NKJV

How is this done within a local church?

Paul introduces us to the twin concepts of the “equipping church” and the “edifying church”.

Both ministries are vital.

We all need to grasp our responsibility, so that we come to church and operate as a church in the way that God designed us to serve Him.

What exactly is equipping?

Earlier in our Titus 2 study we bumped into this concept, but today we want to dwell on it and soak in this life changing truth.

Because we know God's Word teaches us that every word of God was inspired, we first study that word.

The word “equipping” is *kartartismos* and is a noun used only here in the New Testament.

But the verb form of this noun is very descriptive; and its meaning is most clearly seen in the way this word is used in our Bibles.

2675 katartizo { kat-ar-tid’-zo}: v; AV - perfect 2, make perfect 2, mend 2, be perfect 2, fit 1, frame 1, prepare 1, restore 1, perfectly joined together 1; 13x in N.T.

*Definition:* to render, i.e. to fit, sound, complete; to mend (what has been broken or rent), to repair; to complete; to fit out, equip, put in order, arrange, adjust; to fit or frame for one’s self, prepare; ethically: to strengthen, perfect, complete, make one what he ought to be.

Turn there with me to the first use of this word in the New Testament, Matthew 4:21.