EPHESIANS 4:1-7,11-16
WE ARE UNITED AND STRENGTHENED BY GRACE.
In the name + of Jesus.
St. Paul encourages us to do two things in our Epistle lesson. The first is that we “maintain the unity of
the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
(Ephesians 4:3) The second is that we “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.” (Ephesians
4:14)—in other words, that we grow in the faith. Ironically, we can't do either of these
things. Both are gifts of God which he
delivers to us in Christ. Both are
aspects of the Church which the Holy Spirit works in us and sustains among us. We are united and strengthened by grace. The unity we enjoy with one another is what
God has worked among us through his word.
If we are growing in the knowledge of God's word, if we are maturing in
both our understanding of God's truth and in lives that reflect God's good
will, that is also God's work in us through his word and by his grace.
Nevertheless, St.
Paul's encouragement stands. While it is
true that the unity we enjoy is God's work among us, it is also something that
we strive to retain. St. Paul directs us
this way: “I … urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which
you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing
with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond
of peace.” (Ephesians 4:1-3)
We are united to each
other by grace. Our unity is based on
God's word; so, our unity remains as long as our faithfulness to God's word
remains. Our Lord has united us in a
common confession. We are not all
individuals who are exercising our Christian faith as we see fit. Nor do we live our Christian lives
independent of each other. There is no
such thing as one's own personal Jesus.
We do not make our own personal confession. We confess what our Lord has made known to
us. While the Nicene Creed is your
confession, it is because it is the confession of the Christian Church. It expresses what the Bible teaches. There is one hope that we all share, based on
one truth which is revealed in sacred Scripture. We are united in one Lord Jesus Christ who
has suffered and died for sinners. We
are united by one Holy Spirit who inspired the prophets and the apostles to
give us the very word of God. Our Father
in heaven is the same loving, merciful Father of us all.
By grace, our Triune
God has united us to each other as the body of Christ. This does not rob you of your
personality. It does not take away what
is unique about you. Rather, it takes
what is unique about you and joins you to others who have been blessed with
different gifts and abilities. We all
serve each other and seek the good of one another; for God has given us all to
each other and united us for our good.
We are united to each
other by grace. St. Paul also encourages
us to be strengthened in the Christian faith—to “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.” (Ephesians 4:13) Once again, this is not something that we
do. You cannot make yourself grow any
more than you can go into a farmer's field and make the corn grow fuller or
taller. Strengthening and growth are
both God's work. God carries this work
out through his word which is preached, read, and studied. When we come to God's house to hear and study
his word, or when we read our Bibles at home, we are giving God the opportunity
to work in us through that word to increase our faith, our knowledge, and our
maturity. In that word, God reveals who
he is, what he is like, what he wants, and what his will is. And the more we are strengthened in those
things, the more we are conformed to the likeness of Jesus.
We are united and
strengthened by grace. It is God's will
that you grow in the knowledge of his word and become more mature in your
faith. St. Paul gives you a most
significant reason why: “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.” (Ephesians 4:14) To nelgect the word of God is to open yourself
up to being deceived by false teachings.
Satan has not stopped being crafty, and he seeks to lead you astray.
St. Paul reminds us: “Even
Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14) Satan's lies are cloaked in godly-sounding
language. If Satan told you a bald-faced
lie, you would be smart enough to recognize it for what it is. But Satan tries his hardest to sound like
Jesus. He distorts God's word just a
little bit so that you will turn away from God's truth to trust in something
else.
There are too many
examples of these deceitful teachings to consider, so we will limit ourselves
to one. It is quite popular to hear
people say, “I just felt that the Lord wanted me to do this or was
telling me to do that.” But, how can you
know that the Lord is the author of your feelings? In an extreme example of this claim, there
have been Christians who have murdered doctors who perform abortions. They know that abortion is murder, and that
those who commit such murders are sinning against God and taking human lives. They claim, “I just felt the Lord
wanted me to put a stop to their horrible actions.” Do not doubt their sincerity, but they are
horribly wrong. The Lord has not
assigned us to take the law into our own hands and to prevent all of society's
ills. The God who decreed, “You shall
not murder,” does not sanction the murder of anyone, even criminals, no matter
how much you might feel compelled to act.
God's name is invoked
on much smaller issues, too. We just feel
God wants us to do something. How do you
know that it is God who makes you feel that way? How do you know it isn't the devil? Or is it perhaps something that you really
want to do, but it sounds better to put God's approval on it? Even if your desire to do something is
helpful, by saying “I feel that God wants me to do this,” it also means that
you are sinning against God if you change your mind or find out your plans
won't work.
If you put your faith
in your feelings, you have abandoned God's word—no matter how pious or powerful
your feelings are. If you want to guard
against being deceived, then devote yourself to God's word. God has spelled out very clearly what his
will is in the Holy Bible. He tells you
what is good so that you can devote yourself to it and do it. He exposes what is evil so that you can rid
yourself of it and flee from it. In many
places, God remains silent, granting you the freedom to do what you like. God does not dictate what kind of car you
should drive, who your favorite team should be, or what color you should paint
your bathroom. But when God's word
directs you, you don't have to wonder if you are being deceived. You have the confidence that your life and
your faith are firmly founded on God's word.
We are united and
strengthened by grace. We join together
at church for the benefits God prepares and gives to us. For “he gave the apostles, the prophets,
the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work
of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-12) The Lord does not give you a Bible and tell
you to do your best with it. He joins
you to a church where his ministers preach that word to you—to instruct you,
admonish you, enlighten you, and comfort you.
He joins you to fellow Christians who make a common confession for
mutual consolation, encouragement to walk in a manner worthy of your calling,
and to bear with one another in love and prayer. These things do not happen by accident. God has graciously worked in your lives to
bring you together for each other's good.
God has united you to himselff and sustains and strengthens you by his
word. That word is where you will know
God's saving truth. That word makes you
sure of his grace.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
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