Old Testament Reading: Jeremiah 31:31–34

“Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31–34, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Ephesians 4:17-24

“Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:17–24, ESV)

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[Please excuse any and all typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church, but without the benefit of proofreading.] 

Introduction

Brothers and sisters, I think it is very important that we follow the flow of thought of the Apostle as we journey deeper and deeper into his letter to the Ephesians. If we were reading Paul’s letter all at once it might be easier to follow his reasoning. But given that we are taking his letter piece by piece, Lord’s Day by Lord’s Day, it is easy to loose track of the progression. 

In the first half of his letter Paul described to us the awesome richness and beauty and our redemption in Christ. Though once dead in sin, guilty before God and alienated from him, God, by his grace, has made us alive, removed our guilt, and has reconciled us to himself by the blood of Christ, so that we are now his beloved Sons, through faith in him.

And having been called to faith in Christ, and thus reconciled to the Father, we are now to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which [we] have been called.” This is the theme of the second half of Paul’s epistle. Here in chapters 4 through 6 Paul urges us to walk worthy, “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, ESV).

Chapters 4, 5  and 6 are filled with commands — this we will soon see. These chapters are packed full of verbs in the  imperative mood in the Greek. Verbs in the imperative mood express commands or exhortations. [Please allow me to show this to you. On the screen you will see the text of Ephesians with all of the imperatives highlighted in red. Notice as we scroll through that there is only one imperative found in the first half of Ephesians. In 2:11 the Apostle commands the Gentiles to “remember” their hopeless and helpless condition prior to the arrival of the Christ. But notice as we scroll through all of the imperatives that begin starting in 4:25, which we will come to consider next week. “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:25–28, ESV). In fact, the rest of the epistle is filled with imperatives…]

Granted, in the Greek language there are other ways to express commands or exhortations, but I show this to you so that you might see more clearly the flow of thought of the Apostle. In the first half of his epistle he establishes truth. In the second half he issues commands based upon the truths previously established. 

So, what are we to think of this section that we are now in? What are we to make of Ephesians 4:1-24? This section clearly introduces the application portion of Paul’s epistle. The application began in 4:1 with the words, “I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…” (Ephesians 4:1, ESV). But, as you can see, Paul does not begin to string together his imperatives until 4:25. So what is he doing here in this section? Well, he is still teaching us, isn’t he? And if we pay careful attention to what he says we will notice that he is answering the question, how can a person who once walked in darkness begin to walk in light? Stated differently, how can a person change his or her way of life — ceasing to walk in an unworthy manner, and walking now in manner that is worthy?

Perhaps you have noticed how uncommon it is for a person to change his or her way of life for the better. 

Perhaps you have noticed how difficult it is for a person to cease from doing evil and to do good instead. 

It is not so difficult to for men and women to move from being good (relatively speaking) to evil. It is not so difficult for a person who is wicked to grow more wicked. Just as falling from some high place requires no physical exertion at all, whereas climbing from a low place to a high place requires great physical exertion, so too it is in the world of morality and sin. Sin has a gravitational-like effect on the human soul. It is always pulling downward. It is always discouraging upward movement. You have undoubtably experienced this yourself, and you can see the effects of it in the world all around you. 

So how will it be that the Christian will change? 

We know that we have been forgiven, cleansed, redeemed, and adopted by the shed blood of Christ and through faith in him. But notice that these are all positional realities. You were once guilty, but now you have been declared not guilty. You were one filthy with sin, but now you have been washed. You were once enslaved, but now you are free. You were once alienated and at enmity with God, but now you are beloved sons. By the grace of God, your position before him has been changed, and all of that was instantaneous, being brought about the moment you believed. But here the Apostle is addressing, not our position before God, but our walk —  our way of life — which is an ongoing and progressive development. 

Once again I ask you the question that the Apostle is here addressing: how can we change? How will we be transformed from liars and thieves into people who are honest, generous and kind? How will we be changed from sexually immoral and perverse people into people who live lives that are upright and pure? How will we be changed from people who are hateful and unforgiving into children of love?

I would imagine that many within this world would doubt if transformation such as this is even possible. To them it might seem to be the stuff of fairytales. But within Christ’s church, it is what we expect to see. We expect that those who have been forgiven by Christ, cleaned and adopted will then proceed to walk in manner that is worthy of their calling as beloved children of God. 

But how will this transformation take place? That is the question. 

What we learn here in the first half of Ephesians 4 is that God uses external and internal means to bring about the transformation of his people.  

The Apostle has already addressed the external means in verses 7 through 16. There we learned that God has given gifts to his people. Specifically, he has given his people the gift of his word along with ministers of the word — apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers (Ephesians 4:11). These are to devote themselves to “the perfecting of the saints… the work of the ministry… the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12, KJV 1900), through the preaching and teaching of the word of God. The word of God — the preaching and teaching of it — will be the external means that God uses to mature his people, and to bring about their transformation. 

Why have I called the ministry of the word of God an external means. Well, simply observe what is happening even now. The word of God is being ministered to you. It is being proclaimed and taught through preaching. And all of that is external to you. There are many in this room, I hope and pray, who, by the grace of God are also receiving the word inwardly and with  faith. But there may be some who are closed off to the word, who ignore or reject it. I pray that would change if it is the case. The point is that the preaching and teaching of the word of God only an external thing if the Spirit of God does not apply it to the heart with the gift of faith.

Here in verses 17-24 the Apostle identifies the internal means which brings about true transformation in the life of the believer, namely, the renewal of the inner man by the power and agency of the Holy Spirit.

Notice the title of the sermon: A Worthy Walk Proceeding From A Renewed Spirit.

Friends, you and I must choose to walk worthily. You and I must daily and momentarily choose to put off the old self and to put on the new — this is indeed true! But pay very careful attention to what the Apostle teaches here. This worthy walk — this new way of life — procees from a new creation. This worthy walk that we are to take up is only possible because God has renewed us by the gracious working of his Spirit within our souls.

The implications of this are massive. Stated succinctly, the church is not merely a school where men and women are taught morals, but the assembly of those who have been born anew who are presently being transformed into the likeness of their Savior by the power of word of God and by the agency of the Holy Spirit. 

The text that is before us today can be divided into two basic parts. In verses 17-19 the believer is exhorted to turn away from the old life. And in verses 20-24 we are encouraged to walk in the new life which is ours in Christ Jesus. 

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Turn Away From The Old Life

First, consider the strong exhortation from the Apostle to turn away from our old way of life. In verse 17 we read, “Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do…” (Ephesians 4:17, ESV).

I have called this exhortation a “strong exhortation”, for the Greek is unusually strong in its verbiage and construction — “Now this I say and testify in the Lord…”, the Apostle says. There is no imperative here, but the phrase has the force of a command. Paul is concerned to communicate that this is very solemn and important matter — those who are in Christ must “no longer walk as the Gentiles do…” It simply is not an option.  It cannot be. The one  who has been made alive in Christ must not continue to walk in a worldly way.

[APPLICATION:  I wonder, do you agree with the Apostle concerning sin? Do you agree with his solemn testimony, that those in Christ must not continue in sin? Or is sin of little concern to you? I am afraid that some in Christ have a careless and cavalier attitude concerning sin. Perhaps they have been so comforted by the forgivness of sins in Christ that they have failed to see sin as the vile thing that it is before God. The doctrine of free grace, if misunderstood, can have this affect on people. It can lead to us to excuse our sin, or to minimize its severity, saying, well, I am forgiven, aren’t I! But the Apostle is very concerned to protect us from this error. 

True, the forgiveness of sins is by God’s grace and received through faith in Christ. And true, we do not earn God’s love, nor keep it, by our obedience. And it is also true that God is always willing to forgive those who are repentant. But here Paul concerned  to say that it must not be — it cannot be — that the one who has been reconciled to God and adopted as a son would go on living as if still alienated from God and a child of wrath. No  friends, we do not earn God’s love by our obedience to him. But certainly, the one who has been made alive by the love of God will show their love for God through obedient living.]

“Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do…”, the Apostle says. We should remember that these were Gentiles to whom Paul was writing. They were Gentiles, ethnically speaking, and not Jews. And earlier Paul called them Gentiles, saying, “Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh… remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world” (Ephesians 2:11–12, ESV). And in another place Paul said, “For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles—” (Ephesians 3:1, ESV). These Christians in Ephesus  were in fact Gentiles. But here Paul exhorts them, saying, “you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do…” This indicates that  these Gentile Christians had made a break with their former life. They had a new identity. Whereas before they might have taken pride in the fact that they were Greek or Roman or Ephesians, now they had a new identity. They were children of God and citizens of his kingdom. The distinction between Jew and Gentile no longer mattered, for they had been born from above. And having been born from above, belonging now to a new family, and being citizens of a new kingdom means that they are now to abandon their old customs, and to adopt the new ones in  Christ. 

[APPLICATION: And this, by the way, is one of the reason the world will despise God’s people. No matter where the church exists, she is to be countercultural. The true Christian will not live the way the world lives, speak the way the world speaks, nor think the way the world thinks. The countercultural dimension of the church will look different from place to place, but the issue will always be the same. To quote Peter, the world will be “surprised when [we] do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they [will] malign [us]…” (1 Peter 4:4, ESV). The world will hate the Christian, in part, because the Christian will not walk the way the world walks.] 

It is at the end of verse 19 that Paul offers up a brief description of the way the Gentiles walk. There he says that they have “given themselves up to sensuality” and are “greedy to practice every kind of impurity” (Ephesians 4:19, ESV). This is a very generic description of the way the Gentiles walk. Paul is more specific in other places. Take for example 1 Corinthians 6:9ff., where he says,  “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9–11, ESV). Here Paul is more specific concerning the way of life of the non-believer. But notice that his point is the same. “Such were some of you”, he said to the Corinthians. In other words, you used to live that way! But having been washed, sanctified and justified in the name of Christ and by the Spirit, your walk is now different. Here in Ephesians Paul describes the walk of the non-believing Gentiles by simply saying, they have “given themselves up to sensuality” and are “greedy to practice every kind of impurity”.

The word “sensuality” refers to a lack of moral restraint, especially as it pertains to sexual licentiousness. Notice that Paul says the Gentiles have “given themselves up to this” way of life. They have given in to this temptation. The word “impurity” can refer to immoral behavior in general, but often refers to sexual sin. And notice the strong language that Paul here uses, saying, that non-believing Gentiles are “greedy to practice every kind of impurity”. This means that they are eager to be immoral — they have a strong desire to do that which is filthy in the eyes of God. And Paul is saying to the one who is in Christ — “you must no longer walk” in this way. 

[APPLICATION: Perhaps you have noticed this way of thinking grow ever more prevalent in our culture. Those who have “given themselves up to sensuality” and are “greedy to practice every kind of impurity” reason that if they have a desire to behave in a certain way, they cannot change it, and the behavior cannot be called immoral, therefore. Those who reason in this way will never be consistent in their application of this principle, I’m sure. Even they will continue to call some behaviors “wrong”  and will urge the one who has a strong desire to act in such and such a way to “fight against the temptation”. The one who practices homosexuality excuses his or her sin by appealing the attraction that is felt inwardly. And yet at the same time the one who practices homosexuality will condemn the liar, the thief, the adulterer, and the murderer, and will have none of it if these reply saying, “but the desires are just so strong!”  Now, granted, these sins that I have just mentioned do involve victims. And if sin is only defined as that which harms another, then I can understand the inconsistency. But not all sin involves a victum. It is possible for two or more consenting  adults to engage in sin. Indeed,  it is possible for a person to sin all alone. Sin does not always involve a victim. Crime does, but not sin. For sin is any lack of conformity unto or violation of the law of God. Sin, above all, is against God. And here I am saying  that even the one who practices homosexuality (or some other sin) will admit that there  are some desires that should not be acted upon, and that it is indeed possible to exercise restraint. Having a strong desire for some impure thing does not justify the sin. In fact, the desire itself is sinful and must be resisted. Clearly this is what the scriptures teach, for Paul is here calling the one who is in Christ to no longer walk in the way that the Gentiles do, who have “given themselves up to sensuality” and are “greedy to practice every kind of impurity”. Stated differently, in Christ you must not give yourself up to sensuality, and you must not be “greedy [or driven by strong desires] to practice every kind of impurity”, for you are a new creation.]

As  I have said, at end of verse 19 Paul briefly describes the Gentiles walk, but in verses 17 — 19a Paul identifies the source of their impure walk with the words, “in the futility of their minds.” Paul then expands upon this  saying,  “They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. They have become callous and [as a result] have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.”

Please understand this: people do what they do from the heart. A heart that is impure will produce a life that is impure. A mind that is twisted will produce a life that is twisted. This is why the Proverb says,  “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23, ESV). And this is why Christ said, “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:43–45, ESV).

Here Paul teaches that the non-believing Gentiles have  “given themselves up to sensuality” and are “greedy to practice every kind of impurity” because of the “futility [of] their minds.” This does not mean that the Gentiles to not have intelligence or mental capacity, but that their way of thinking is empty. There are very brilliant people in this world who’s minds are empty and futile. Indeed, if our minds are not directed towards the glory of God in all things, then our thinking is futile.   

Paul elaborates saying, “They are darkened in their understanding”. This means that they do not have the capacity to perceive the truth. 

The result is that they are “alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them”. To be “alienated from the life of God” is to be dead spiritually, and without hope in this world. And this, the Apostle says, is due to “their hardness of heart.” Sin hardens the heart. We are born in sin. Our hearts are not naturally soft to God or to the things of God, but hard. And as we sin, our hearts grow harder and harder. Indeed, “they… become callous” as Paul here says. 

[APPLICATION: Only God can give life to those who are dead, friends. Only God can break a heart of stone. Only he can soften the one who has grown callous. Teaching morality will do nothing at all to make a guilty man innocent, or a sinful man pure. Men and women might learn to put up a facade. They might learn to alter their behavior so as to benefit themselves somehow. But they will not be moved to  give glory to God through moral instruction, for we are by nature futil in our thinking, darkened in our understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in us, due to our hardness of heart. We are by nature, and apart from God’s work of regeneration, callous to God and to the things of God. If God is to reconcile us to himself and  truly change us, then he must make us new.]

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Walk In The New Life Which Is Yours In Christ Jesus 

And this is what Paul tells us that God has done for us. If we are in Christ it is because God has given us new life. In Christ we have been re-created. And it is in this new life which is ours in Christ Jesus that we are to now walk. That is the second  point of the sermon today: walk in the new life which is yours in Christ Jesus.

 In verse 20 Paul contrasts the walk of the Gentiles  with  the wall of the Christian, saying, “But that is not the way you learned Christ!— assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus” (Ephesians 4:20–21, ESV). I actually think the NIV provides a little better translation of these two verses when it says, “You, however, did not come to know Christ that way. Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus” (Ephesians 4:20–21, NIV84). To “learn Christ” is not to learn about him factually, but to come to know him truly. And Paul is not here doubting whether the Ephesians know Christ — he is sure of it! Here is reminding the Ephesians of their conversion and of the teaching they received before and after baptism. He is reminding them of their faith and repentance, of the instruction they received from the start, and how they buried the old man in the waters of baptism and we raised from the watery grave to walk then in newness of life. 

In verse 22 Paul reminds the Ephesians of how from the beginning they were taught “to put off [their] old self, which belongs to [their] former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of [their] minds…” (Ephesians 4:22–23, ESV). 

The phrase “and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds” might also be translated, “being renewed in the Spirit of your minds”. The verb “renewed” is in the passive voice in the Greek which indicates that the subject of the sentence is not doing the action, but is being acted upon. In other words, this is not a command to be renewed, but a description of what has and is being done to the Christian, namely, “renewal in the spirit of [their] minds”. And the verb is in present tense, indicating that the action is in process. Friends, in Christ, you have been renewed and you are being renewed in the spirit of your minds. 

In verse 24 we read, “and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:24, ESV).

Here we find another passive verb which is translated, “created after the likeness of God”. Again, this is not a command, for this is not something that we can do to ourselves, but it is something that has been done to the Christian. If you are in  Christ, God has created you anew. And here the verb (which is in fact a participle), is in the aorist tense, indicating that the action logically precedes the main verb.

If we pay careful attention to these two verbs in the passive voice the meaning becomes clear. 

Given that we have been “renewed [by God] in the spirit of [our] minds” we are to daily “put off [the] old self, which belongs to [our] former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires.”

And given that we have been “created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” we are to daily   “put on the new self”. 

Stated differently, what has God done for us? 

He has “renewed the spirit of our minds”. At one time we were “given… up to sensuality” and “greedy to practice every kind of impurity” because our minds were futile, and our understanding darkened. We were alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that was in us. Our hearts were hard and callous. But we have been renewed by God. The old man is dead and gone, therefore. Where there was once  futility , there is substance. Where there  was once darkness, there is light. Where there was once death, there is life. Where there was once a hard and calloused heart, there is now a  heart that is tender with love for God and neighbor. The old man is gone, friends. Put that old way of life off. Cast it away, for you are no  longer that old sinful creature, but have been renewed. 

Indeed God has created you anew in his likeness in true righteousness and holiness. It is hard to read Ephesians 4:24 and to not think of Genesis 1:27, which  says, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27, ESV). Adam and Eve were created in the image of God. And they were created upright, with true righteous and holiness. This was lost when man fell into sin. By nature we are not right with God, and we do not live right, nor  are we holy. But this is what God has done for us in Christ  — in Christ, through faith in him, we have been created anew. As Paul  says elsewhere, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation…” (2 Corinthians 5:17–18, ESV). It is this new man — the man that  has  been created anew in Christ Jesus — that we are to daily put on or cloth ourselves with, so that we might walk in a manner that is worthy, to the glory of the God who has redeemed and renewed us.

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Conclusion

How does God change his people? 

Well, he changes us through the external means of the preaching and teaching of the word of God.   

But here we learn that God also changes his people inwardly through the  transformation of the mind and heart by the  power of his Holy Spirit. 

Friends, if any one is truly in Christ, they will keep his commandments. I am not saying that they will always obey Christ. I am not saying they will never sin. Corruptions remain. Sometimes we fail to put off the old man, and to put on the new. Sometimes we walk in a way that is inconsistent with our new creation self. But if we are truly in Christ — if we are truly born again — we will not remain in sin. Living in sin is a tortuous affair for the believer, for the life of sin is a contradiction  to the new life that has been wrought in us. The light that is in us will hate the darkness. The life that it is in us will hate the stench of death. But here the Apostle is solemnly warning us to walk worthy — to walk in a way that is fitting, given our calling. We must no longer walk as the Gentiles  do, but, having been renewed and retreated in Christ Jesus, we must daily put lay the old down, and be clothed with the “new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:24, ESV).

Old Testament Reading: Psalm 1

“Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” (Psalm 1, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Ephesians 4:7-16

“But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, ‘When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.’ (In saying, ‘He ascended,’ what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) And 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, until we all 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, 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. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:7–16, ESV)

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[Please excuse any and all typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church, but without the benefit of proofreading.] 

Introduction

Previously in Ephesians we have been strongly exhorted by the Apostle, based upon all that God has done for us in Christ Jesus, to now walk in a worthy manner, to be humble, gentle and patient, “bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” within Christ’s church. This is our reasonable and fitting response to the grace of God that has been lavished upon us. Having been called from spiritual death to spiritual life, we are now to walk worthy of this calling. 

The Apostle has also encouraged our hearts by reminding us that God has not left us without supply. He has redeemed us by the shed blood of Christ, but in Christ he has also lavished us with gifts. We are well equipped, therefore. Indeed, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…” (2 Peter 1:3, ESV).  

The act of redemption does not necessarily guarente a rich supply. You can imagine a king providing salvation for a people in bondage, but then leaving those captives that he has set free to fend for themselves. That would not be unreasonable. A redeemer is not obligated to also be a generous benefactor, is he? And those freed from bondage would be grateful for their redemption, even if no other gift were given. But our heavenly Father is generous and kind. He has redeemed us from the curse of the law, from sin and from death. More than this, he has adopted us as his children. Think about that! Not only have our sins been washed away through faith in Christ, we have also been adopted into God’s family, though we were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind.  And as his children he has lavished us with gifts so that we are well supplied to walk in manner that is worthy and to bring glory to his name. When we think about our salvation in Christ we must learn to think of it as involving much more than just the forgiveness of our sins. No, we have been forgiven so that we might be reconciled to the Father as sons. And as sons of the King we are very well supplied. 

Christ has given gifts to all who belong to him by faith. All have spiritual gifts that they are to use for the edification of the body of Christ. And he has also provided the church with ministers of the word. This was the emphasis of the previous passage — God has gifted and called men to serve the church with the word of God so that “the word of Christ [would] dwell in [us] richly.” (Colossians 3:16, ESV). In the early and foundational days of the New Covenant church there were Apostles and Prophets who ministered the word in an authoritative and foundational way. After the age of the Apostles, evangelists, shepherd and teachers remain. And what to do all of these callings share in common? These are all ministers of the word of God. Evangelists, shepherd and  teachers are to preach and teach the scriptures, they are “to equip the saints”, the are to devote themselves to “the work of ministry”, they are to labor  for the “building up the body of Christ”, which is the church, the visible manifestation of the kingdom of God on earth today. 

And what is the intended result of a faithful ministry of the word? In other words, Lord willing, and with God’s blessing, what will be accomplished as the word of God is proclaimed and taught faithfully within the Christian congregation? This is the question that the passage before us today answers. And in brief the answer is maturity in Christ. It is through the constant ministry of the word that the church will be moved along to maturity. And this maturity amongst the members will have many benefits indeed. Four byproducts of a faithful ministry of the word are mentioned in this  passage. The primary byproduct is maturity. Believers will grow up to be mature in Christ as they come to know, believe, trust and obey God’s word. Stability within the congregation will flow from this. And so too will unity, Lord willing.  

I say, “Lord willing”, because none of these things are automatic or guaranteed. Just as a farmer might work diligently to plant, water and tend to his crop, things beyond his control might threaten his harvest. And so too a minister of the word might labor faithfully only to see the fruit of his labor diminished or destroyed by circumstances beyond his control. Ordinarily, though, a faithful and constant ministry of the word of God within the Christian congregation will produce maturity, stability and unity in Christ’s church. 

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Maturity

In verse 13 the goal or purpose of the minister of the word is established. The minister’s purpose is to lead the believer on to maturity. The Christian minister — that is to say, the evangelist, shepherd and teacher —  is to have the maturity of the members as his aim. This was the goal of the apostles as they ministered the word in the earliest days of the church. Paul himself says so in Colossians 1:28 with these words: “[Christ] we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me” (Colossians 1:28–29, ESV).  What did the Apostle have his sights set on? Maturity in Christ! He proclaimed the word of God faithfully so that in the end he might present those who were under his care to God,  “mature in Christ”.  

Stated differently, the goal of the minister of the word — be they evangelists, shepherds, or teachers — is not conversion only. The gospel is to be preached. Men and women are to be urged to turn from their sins and to believe upon Christ for the forgiveness of their sins. But repentance and faith leading to salvation is not the end. It is only the beginning. When someone believes upon Christ to the salvation of their souls, they are to baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Spirit, and they are to be taught to observe all that Christ has commanded, for we are his disciples, which means “learner”. Again, cultivating maturity in the believer is to be the objective of every minister of the gospel. 

Christ gave ministers of the word to the church so that believers might grow to maturity. But notice that Paul describes this maturity in three different ways. 

One, those mature in Christ will “attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God”.

Here the word “faith” refers,  not to personal belief or trust (as it often does in the scriptures), but to the body of  doctrine that is contained within holy scripture. Notice the definite article. Ministers of the word of God are to do their work with the objective being that believers “attain to the unity of the faith.” The goal here is that we would all come to believe the same things and to be of the same mind as it pertains to “the Christian faith”. How is this possible? Well, it is possible because “the faith” has been delivered to us. God has spoken. We have his word in the Old and New Testaments. The apostles and prophets have spoken and written with authority. The evangelists, shepherd and teachers are to receive this word, and they are to preach it, building upon this foundation. And the church is to “receive with meekness [this] implanted word…” (James 1:21, ESV). And what is at the heart of this faith except “the knowledge of the Son of God”? The scriptures tell the story of our redemption in Jesus the Christ, who is the eternal Son of God come in the flesh. To be mature in Christ involves having firm grasp on Christian doctrine. In particular, maturity in Christ means possessing a true knowledge of the Son of God. 

I have said this before, friends. Doctrine matters. Knowledge matters. Knowledge will not automatically produce maturity. There are certainly some who possess knowledge, but lack maturity. But knowledge is indeed a vital element of maturity. And this is the calling of the minister of he gospel — to preach and teach the word of God so that men and women, boys and girls, might grow in their understanding of “the faith” and in their “the knowledge of the Son of God”.

Two, Paul explicitly says that ministers of the word were given so that through their ministry believers will attain “to mature manhood”. Here I will repeat what I have just said — knowledge of Christian doctrine does not equate to maturity. No, but it is a vital component. The goal of the minister is to, by teaching the faith and by preaching Christ, move men and women on to mature manhood or womanhood. I am reminded of that rebuke that the writer to the Hebrews delivered to his audience, saying “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil” (Hebrews 5:12–14, ESV). Here I want for you to see the connection that the author makes between knowledge of the “oracles of God” and maturity. Knowledge does not automatically produce maturity, but it does pave the way. We must be weaned off of milk and learn to eat solid food so that we might grow to maturity, having the “powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.”

Three, Paul describes maturity as Christ-likeness. The objective of the minister of the word is to move men and women on to maturity, until we all attain “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” What does a mature man look like? Well, one way to put it is to say, look to Jesus Christ! He is the epitome of maturity, for he alone loved God with all of his heart, soul, mind and strength and his neighbor as himself. To be mature is to attain “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

The word “until” at the beginning of verse 13 indicates that ministers of the word must do their work until these things are accomplished. The apostles and prophets have completed their foundational work, and the church today builds upon this foundation. Evangelists, shepherds and teacher are still active. And they must minister the word of God — they must preach it and teach it — “until” we all 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…” When will that be? Well, although progress will be made in this life, we will not truly attain to this maturity until Christ returns or takes us home. Therefore, these ministers of the word — evangelists, shepherds and teachers — must be diligent in the work of the ministry to build upon  the foundation of the apostles and prophets until the end of time. 

[APPLICATION: I would like to make just a few points of application before moving on to points two through four of this sermon, which will be brief. 

There is obvious application for minsters of the word found in this text. They are to understand that God has called them and equipped them to serve within Christ’s Church. They are to be diligent, therefore, in the work of the ministry. They are serve Christ’s people with the word of God. It is the word of God that will produce maturity in the people of God, and the maturity of the believers is to be our objective.

But there is also application for the members of the congregation. I might ask you, are you pursuing maturity in Christ? Are you striving to grow in your understanding of “the faith” and “in your knowledge of the Son Of God”? Are you eager to arrive at “mature manhood”? Are you looking to Christ, not only for the forgivness of your sins, but also as your standard for Christian living? Are you pursuing maturity? And do you understand the means that God uses to bring about that maturity. One of the primary means that God uses is to mature his people is the ministry of the word of God faithfully discharged within the Christian congregation.  

Friends, we should not forget that we are here reading Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus. We are not reading, let’s say, Paul’s letter to Pastor Timothy. Paul’s purpose, therefore, is not primarily to instruct Pastors concerning their responsibility, but to instruct the entire congregation — officers and members together — concerning the vital role that the ministry of the word will play within the Christian congregation, until Christ returns to make all things new. Ministers are to be faithful. But members are also understand God’s purpose for, appreciate, and desire the ministry of the word in the context of the Christian congregation. 

Let me make a couple of specific points of application. 

Friends, if you understand God’s purpose for, appreciate, and desire the ministry of the word within the Christian congregation, you will not willingly forsake the assembly. There are good reasons to forsake the assembly. We have spoken enough about that in the past couple of months. But ordinarily the assembly is not to be forsaken, for, among other things, it is where the word of God is ministered in word and in sacrament. And no, friends, there is no substitute for being personally present. Mind you, Christ did not accomplish our redemption remotely and from a distance.  No, the eternal Word of God took on flesh and tabernacled amongst us. And so too the living and active word of God is to be preached by a minster who is living and active, to a people who are living and active.

I wonder, are you eager to sit under the ministry of the word on the Lord’s Day? Do you understand God’s purpose for it? Do you appreciate and desire the ministry of the word in the context of the Christian congregation. And notice that it is the word that I am imploring you to desire. Brothers and sisters, develop an appetite, not for well crafted and eloquent sermons, but for the word of God. If the word of God is delivered in skillful way, all the better. But if the eloquent sermon is devoid of God’s word, then learn to reject it.

Do you have an appetite for the word? Are you teachable? Do you come being eager to learn and to humbly receive the implanted word which is able to save your souls? Do you desire substantial teaching, which will move you, along with the rest of the congregation, on to maturity in Christ? 

Last week I revealed to you something that has been on my mind for some time now, namely, evening worship on the Lord’s Day. Our previous facility played a part in the decision to not move forward with the idea in the past. I am hopeful, though, that this new facility will enable us to begin to gather for evening worship. But I do not wish to impose this upon you, brothers and sisters. Instead, it is my hope and prayer that the congregation would be eager for it. It is my hope and prayer that you would see the value of assembling again at the conclusion of the Lord’s Day so that the word might be ministered again, but in different way, so that we might “attain”, ever more so, “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, ESV). There are many things that we will need to discuss before moving forward with this, but for now I am simply appealing to you to see the goodness of the thing. I pray that you would desire more of the ministry of God’s word. 

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Stability

There are two more points to this sermon, but as I have already said, they will be brief. Remember that our question is, what will be accomplished as the word of God is proclaimed and taught faithfully within the Christian congregation? The principle answer is, maturity in Christ.  But maturity will will bring about others benefits as well.  

In verse 14 Paul communicates that the maturity will produce stability — stability within the life of the believer, and stability within the Christian congregation. Verse 14 begins with the words, “so that…” The words “so that” indicate that Paul is about to elaborate on the fruit of maturity — “…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, ESV). 

The individual Christian, and the church as a whole, will always and forever in this life be assailed by violent winds and tumultuous waves. These storms which buffet the church take many forms. Indeed, we face trials of many kinds. But here Paul has in mind the threat of false doctrine, especially those that originate from human cunning, crafty and deceitful schemes. Sometimes false doctrine in the result of ignorance or honest error. But at other times it is the result of human cunning. Men are sometimes crafty and deceitful. They twist the truth to benefit themselves and to feed their own passions. And here Paul is warning that those who are immature in the faith — those who are children, spiritually speaking — will be easily “tossed to and fro by [these] waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine.” But the one who is mature in the faith, who has grown up in the knowledge of the Son of God, will stand steadfast and will be unmoved by the wind and the waves.

This stability in the individual believer will inevitably lead to stability within the Christian congregation. A congregation filled with spiritual children who are untrained in the faith, ignorant concerning the Son of God, and lacking maturity is prone to volatility. When the winds blow and the waves beat against that house, it will be easily shaken. But congregation filled with mature believers who have built their lives securely upon Christ and his word, will weather even the most violent of seas, and will stand against the fiercest of winds.     

Christ’s words to the individual in Matthew 7:24ff. can also be applied to the local church: “[Every church] then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise [church] who built [its] house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And [every church] who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish [church] who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:24–27, ESV)

The minister of the word is to be faithful in his ministry so as to produce maturity in the believers, and this maturity will produce stability. 

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Unity

Thirdly, this maturity and stability will promote unity within the Christian congregation. And we should remember that this is what Paul has exhorted us to be eager to maintain — unity within Christ’s church. He urged us “to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which [we] 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, ESV). Now he reveals one of the ways in which that unity is maintained, namely, through the ministry of the word which will cause us to grow up to mature manhood and to a stable existence. 

Unity was already mentioned in 4:13 where Paul identified “unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God” as a byproduct of the ministry of the word.  And here in 4:15 Paul contrastes the volatile existence of the untrained and immature with the preferred alternative. He writes, “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:15–16, ESV)

Notice a few things about verses 15-16. 

One, notice the contrasting word, “rather”. Instead of persisting in a childlike state of instability we are to, “rather”, choose a different path. 

Two, instead of being tossed around by every wind of doctrine we are to “[speak] the truth in love”.  To speak the truth, is to speak the truth of God’s word into the situations of our daily existence. Ministers of the word are to do this. And in fact, all Christians are to do this for one another. Paul put it a little differently to the Colossians, saying, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Colossians 3:16, ESV). The wording is different, but the meaning is essentially the same. The word of God is to dwell richly in the midst of the Christian congregation. We are to speak the truth to one another. But notice the phrase, “in love”. We are to be moved by our love for one another when we “speak the truth”. It is common for people to withhold the truth and to appear loving. And it is also common for people to speak the truth but to lack love. The Christian is called to speak the truth, but  always in love.  

And notice that unity will be the result. By speaking the truth in love we will [verse 15] “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”

Here Paul uses the metaphor of a body to describe the church. When the truth of God’s word is the lifeblood of a congregation, the church grows up into Christ who is the head of the body. Christ is the central and unifying part of the body. He is the head. He is the one joins and holds every part of the body together. Every unique joint and every unique part of the body is held together by Christ and by virtue of our union to him. And when ever part is united to Christ and working properly, the body grows and builds itself up in love.

[APPLICATION:  Friends, I hope that you can see that there is no substitute for membership within the local church. There is a lot of good preaching and teaching available online. And I have no problem with you making use of that (but discernment is needed). But there is no substitute for pastors who are present with you, living and active. There is no way to recreate the benefit of living in the midst of a Christian congregation where the truth of God’s word is spoken to you in love. That cannot be replicated online. How crucial it is to be joined to a body of believers with Christ as the head.] 

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Conclusion

Truly, the word of God  is the lifeblood of the Christian congregation. It is through the word that each individual Christians is nourished and strengthened to grow up to maturity. And it is the word of God which binds us together so that we might “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, 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 4:13–14, ESV).

Ministers must be faithful to preach and to teach the scriptures, therefore, if we hope to see the church grow in maturity, stability and unity. 

Indeed, we all must learn to “[speak] the truth in love” so that we together might “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in lov” (Ephesians 4:15–16, ESV).