Ephesians 4:11-16, The Intended Plan Of God To Use Offices And
Gifts In The Church
By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study, we looked
at verses 1-10 of chapter 4.
1.1.1. We saw that
we had now entered into the second half of the epistle to the Ephesians. Paul spent the first half of his letter
telling the church about the things that the Lord had done for them and the
second half detailing what their response to what the Lord has done for them
ought to be.
1.1.2. Paul in that
section was teaching them to act in a Christ-like way and also to strive to
walk in unity in the Holy Spirit.
1.2.
In our study today, we are going to look at verses
11-16 of the fourth chapter of the book of Ephesians.
1.2.1. We discussed
in the introduction to this study that the book of Ephesians is a book that is
about the church. Then in our last
study, we saw that Paul had mentioned that when Christ raised from the dead
that at that time He also distributed spiritual gifts to each of His disciples. Next, we looked at 1 Peter 4:10 where Peter
wrote telling us that each and every believer in Christ had been given at least
one spiritual gift, 10 As each one has received a special gift,
employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
1.2.2. After the Protestant
Reformation, church leaders began examining the scriptures to see how they
instructed us that the church was to be organized and function. Over time it became evident that the Roman
church had strayed from the scriptures in different ways including making a
separation between the clergy and the laity and in not recognizing that
spiritual gifts were given to all believers and meant to be utilized by every
single believer in Christ. This
understanding of spiritual gifts for every believer revolutionized the church
by bringing in a powerful new dynamic.
Now, ministry was not just to be performed by the paid professional but
by every member of the churches.
1.2.3. In the New
Testament, we see that there are three places where spiritual gifts are listed
by Paul. In 1 Corinthians chapter 12,
Romans chapter 12, and Ephesians chapter 4.
We should not get too dogmatic about defining precisely what every
spiritual gift a believer might have is since each of those three lists are
different.
1.2.4. All of the
spiritual gifts that are mentioned in the New Testament as operational in the
church are gifts that are to be used for the spiritual building up of the
church (those who are saved), that is, with the exception of the gift of
evangelism which is to be used on the non-believer.
1.2.5. All
believers receive a spiritual gift from the Lord, however it is not the case
that a person will necessarily only receive one spiritual gift, nor that the
Lord will not later give him a different gift or modify the usage and
expression of his gift. `
1.2.6. Paul will
discuss in our study today how that for the building up of the foundation of
the church that the Lord called men to be apostles, prophets, evangelists,
pastors and teachers, and He gave spiritual giftings that continue today.
1.2.7. We will look
at the purpose for the various offices in the church as well as the various
gifts that exist in the body of Christ.
2. VS
4:11-12 - 11 And
He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists,
and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the
saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; - Paul enumerates various offices in the church
and explains the purpose for their existence
2.1.
One of the questions that always comes up when we
consider these verses is whether or not these offices and gifts in the church
have ceased to exist or whether they are perpetually to be found in the church
throughout the ages. We in the Calvary
Chapels believe that the first two offices listed, apostle and prophet, may
exist in the church today, however they will not function in the same manner as
they did in the first generation of the church because in that generation these
gifts were foundational offices. The
rest of the gifts of the Spirit exist in the church today much as they did in
the early church.
2.1.1. Apostles.
2.1.1.1. The word
itself means one sent out.
2.1.1.2. There were
the capital A apostles of the first generation of the church who laid the
foundation doctrinally for the church.
Since that generation we have lower case a apostles because the
foundation for the church is already laid, and, we must reject any other
foundation. The foundation of the church
is Jesus Christ as He IS Gods revelation to mankind and there is no other
revelation needed or coming in this life.
Every page of our Bible reveals Jesus Christ to us.
2.1.1.3. Today, there
are lower case a apostles who are doing ground breaking ministry planting
churches in various parts of the world.
They are not determining anything new doctrinally since there is no need
for this as that foundation was laid 2,000 years ago.
2.1.2. Prophets.
2.1.2.1. The word
means primarily to bring forth the word of God. However, the emphasis when this gift is
employed can be either to foretell the future or to forthtell the word of
God. This is primarily how the gift of
prophesy manifests itself.
2.1.2.2. From the
book of Acts we can see that in the first generation of the church the prophets
functioned much more like they did in the Old Testament. Receiving direct leading from the Lord they
were used in determining the direction and to some extent beliefs of the
church. Without having the various
letters and books of the New Testament the prophets in the early church were
essential to the church for this role.
However, since the first generation of the church the emphasis for this
office has primarily been that of bringing out the word of God that is already
revealed in the scriptures rather than the foretelling of the future.
2.1.2.3. Since that
first generation of the church the gift of prophesy functions more in line with
what Paul wrote about it in 1 Corinthians 14:3, 3 But one who
prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation.
2.2.
Evangelists exist in the church today, as
they did in the first generation of the church, and as was mentioned
previously, their function was and is to preach the gospel to the lost and win
people to saving faith in Christ. This
is always a very important function in the church. It appears in the early church that evangelists
not only preached the gospel but also followed up on new converts and were used
in the early stages to plant new churches.
2.3.
Pastors is a term that refers to the work of
shepherding the flock of God.
The use of this gift involves the teaching of Gods word, yet it also
involves discipleship, giving counsel, intercessory prayer, visiting the sick,
etc. Pastors in the early
church were also leaders over a flock (as we infer from Pauls letters to
pastors Timothy and Titus) and they typically entered the church after it had
initially been planted.
2.4.
Teachers have always been an important part
of the church and are used to bring out exegesis, interpretation and
application of the scriptures to the lives of believers. Teaching ministries are extensive in the
church and entail Sunday School, mens ministries, womens ministries, youth
ministries, home fellowship Bible studies, discipleship Bible studies, and
Sunday morning teaching by pastors from the pulpit.
2.5.
It is very important to note that the purpose for
which these various offices and ministries in the church were given is for
the equipping of the saints for the work of service. In the wisdom of God, the officers of the
church are not called to do all of the work of service, rather their function
is equipping others in the church so that they can do the work of
ministry. Simple mathematics should
reveal that if we equip others to do ministry that we have multiplied our
efforts and effectiveness.
2.6.
There are different philosophies of church ministry in
the world today, and one that has come about in this past generation is that of
church being for the lost rather than for the saved. The Seeker Friendly churches and now the
2.7.
To further emphasize the purpose of the various
offices and spiritual gifts in the church, Paul writes that these are here for
the building up of the body of Christ.
3. VS 4:13 - 13 until we all
attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a
mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of
Christ. - Paul tells us how long the
duration of the offices in the church will be:
until we all attain to the unity of the faith
3.1.
One might ask the question of to what extent or for
how long the offices and spiritual gifts are to be in operation in the
church? Paul gives the answer here in
this verse: until we all attain to
the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man
and to that which belongs to Christ Himself.
In other words, until all of us who are Christians are perfected in our
character and understanding of the things of God we have need of being
ministered to by the offices and spiritual gifts operating in the church. Since perfection will only occur when Jesus
returns for the church then these ministries will continue to be needed in the
church.
3.2.
We Christians must realize that it is always the case
that we have a lot to learn about the Lord and a lot of character that is still
needing to be worked into our lives. We
must never become content or satisfied with where we are at in our spiritual
walk and understanding. It is always
Gods will that we continue to grow spiritually and learn.
3.3.
Teaching must be carried out also until all who are in
the church come to have unanimity in the Lord, and thus unity of the faith
with each other.
3.4.
Teachers of Gods word need to always consider how
best to encourage, stimulate, and challenge those under their ministry in the
things of the Lord.
4. VS 4:14 - 14 As a result, we
are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about
by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful
scheming; - Paul tells
the Ephesians that we (Christians) are not to be tossed here and there by waves
and carried about by every wind of doctrine
4.1.
Paul here brings up the need for Christians to truly
grow in spiritual understanding and maturity so that we are not deceived by
those who are teaching things that are contrary to Gods word. We Christians are accountable by the Lord to
have real discernment of what is right and wrong, and in this way we will not
be acting like children in our understanding and behavior but rather adults.
4.2.
We Christians need to take Pauls exhortation to
Timothy in 2 Tim. 2:15 to heart for ourselves and, 15 Be
diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to
be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.
4.3.
Nothing has changed in this world. Today, there are numerous false teachers of
various types, and they are all operating in the same manner as they were in
Pauls day. This verse also brings out
the hidden motives that false teachers have in their teaching for Paul speaks
here of the trickery of men and craftines in deceitful scheming.
4.4.
I have personally known many Christians that are
constantly being blown by winds of doctrine in any and every direction. Some believers never seem to get grounded in
their faith and they never seem to gain discernment concerning what the
scriptures teach. Many of these type of
people just bounce from church to church and thus hear different doctrinal
concepts everywhere they go and because of this they dont know what they
believe nor why. A tree or a plant needs
to stay planted if it is to truly grow and be healthy, so also with Christians
and the church.
5. VS 4:15 - 15 but speaking the
truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the
head, even Christ, - Paul tells
the Ephesians to speak the truth in love to one another
5.1.
Paul tells us here that one of the key aspects
necessary to grow up in all aspects
into Him is that of speaking the truth in love to each other in
the body of Christ. There is given no
explanation of this verse however it surely implies many things including that
the unity that we as Christians are to have is never to be a unity gained at
the expense of truth. Rather, the
fellowship in the church amongst believers must always center around seeking
for and living the truth found in Gods word.
5.2.
We Christians sometimes error by avoiding
uncomfortable subjects with brothers and sisters, subjects that really ought to
be approached at an appropriate time and place.
We often mention in our teaching the applying of Matt. 18 when we
believe that a brother or a sister is doing something that is sinful or when we
believe they have done something against us (going in private to that brother
or sister and rebuking them in love), but in reality most Christians are not
brave enough to speak the truth in love in those very important
situations. However, this type of loving
confrontation is important to do in the church if we are to truly grow and
mature into the body of Christ that God desires that we be.
5.3.
Again emphasizing the continual need for spiritual
growth and improvement and the teaching and ministries that promote those
things, Paul writes that we as Christians are to grow up in all aspects into Christ. We Christians
must realize that it is important for us to apply all of scripture to our life
and to become like Christ in every single aspect of our life.
5.4.
The growth that is to occur in the church is always to
occur as Christ is maintained and looked up to as the head of the
church.
6. VS 4:16 - 16 from whom the
whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according
to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body
for the building up of itself in love. -
Paul tells the Ephesians about how the body of Christ function led by
Christ
6.1.
In this verse we see the Lord Jesus Christ working
dynamically in the body of Christ in various manners:
6.1.1. He is
fitting each member into the body of Christ.
6.1.1.1. The Lord
calls each one that He desires to be a part of His body. Each person has a unique function in the body
and it is the Lord who shows how each member is to fit in with the rest of the
body.
6.1.1.2. When I have
begun to attend the various fellowships that I have attended I have always held
back being really involved for a period of time so that I could determine how I
was supposed to use my gifts in that body.
It has always also been the case whenever I have begun to attend a
fellowship that initially there was someone or several people who were already
doing ministries where I have normally been used. However, in time either people in those
ministries moved on to other ministries opening up the door for me or the Lord
opened up a new ministry for me to be involved in, and it has always been
exciting for me to be used in these new types of ways.
6.1.1.3. For about
seven years I played the bass guitar in the worship teams of the churches I
attended. I did this not because my
strong musical gift is playing the bass guitar, it is actually more playing
improvisationally on the guitar, however for those years there were always lots
of guitarists in the church but no one but me who could play the bass
guitar. God blessed me and used me
during those years because of my faithfulness to use my gifts in the ways that
He opened up to me. Even today I do not
consider myself a worship leader however God has now opened up the door for me
to be a worship leader for about 8 eight years and Ive tried to be faithful to
the Lord in that ministry He has given to me.
God always opens the doors He wants to open for our lives.
6.1.1.4. I have
always believed that Proverbs 18:16 is a promise that is for the body of
Christ, 16 A mans gift makes room for him And brings him before great men. If we are faithful to the Lord He will make
room for the using of our spiritual gifts in His timing and in the way that He
wants to work through us.
6.1.2. He is
holding together the body and all of its various parts.
6.1.2.1. The Lord in
the working of His grace and love holds the body together in unity and
love. This is a very important task
because there are so many temptations and snares in this world that the evil
one places before us that are designed to cause the church to dissimulate. The Lord Jesus holds us together.
6.2.
Notice here in this verse how that Paul describes the
building up of the body of Christ through the various offices and spiritual
gifts of the Holy Spirit that are employed, the building up of itself in
love. This is an indication by Paul
that all of the activity of the church should really be activity guided and
propelled by Gods love working through the body of Christ.
7. CONCLUSIONS:
7.1.
As we consider this study and how it might apply to
our life, we first of all ought to recognize that those who have been placed in
the church over our lives are there to equip us for the work of ministry. Thus, we need to try to learn as much as we
can from them so that we can be equipped as He desires to equip us.
7.1.1. If you were
being trained for your job or a class you were taking in school you would want
to take notes and if you missed any lecture you would want to get the notes for
it or listen to the lecture on tape. In
the church, I encourage note taking and we always have tapes of our services
available after the services for those who have missed the services.
7.2.
We also need to recognize that each of us have a
ministry within the body of Christ, at least God desires that for our life in
His timing and after we have come to the place of spiritual maturity where we
can be used of God.
7.3.
Lets commit ourselves to the Lord to be faithful in
the use of our spiritual gifts in the body of Christ, and lets use them in the
ways that He opens up to us. Lets be
faithful with our gifts where we are today and watch the Lord make room for our
gift.