Ephesians 4 - Unity and Maturity in the Body of Christ
4 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
- As a prisoner for the Lord then (because we choose to be a steward of grace)
o A steward is trusted to increase that which he is given in trust
- I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received (I urge you (it’s urgent);
o Worthy of the calling (well-worth the cost; the rewards are eternal!)
- live a worthy life
o a worthy life is one distributing the grace as a good steward
- of the calling you have received
o you were called by God Himself to do this work
- that you received
o you received this as a great gift and an honor from God
o you freely received it – freely give it out (multiply it as a good steward)
- Be completely humble
o (completely, completely, completely humble) for grace you have been saved.
o And gentle (handling with care the hearts and eternal lives of others)
- Be patient, bearing with one another in love
o it’s a command from God that we be patient and bear with one another in love
o It’s not easy but God told us to do it. You and I have just been reminded.
- Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace
o unity of the Spirit means together
o through the bond of peace
§ peace is the glue that will keep us together
- There is one body and one Spirit, just you were called to one hope when you were called
o if there is only one body
o and one Spirit
o and one hope
o how then should we walk and talk and act?
- One Lord
o One faith
o One baptism
o One God and Father of all
o Who is over all and through all and in all (WOW)
- This is 100% complete saturation. It’s all about God and what He is doing!
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says:
“When he ascended on high,
he took many captives
and gave gifts to his people.”
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
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