I have two requests to make of you this morning as we continue. Two things I need for you to do:
First, I am going to ask our ushers to distribute a little document that I have prepared for you. It is something of an outline of today’s message, but it is also a starter kit for your vision of church. I’ve already spent a lot of time this morning just identifying the need for a vision of what our church could be. But all of us need to get involved and stay involved with that vision-making process. What we are doing today will by no means finish the job. And so I am going to be encouraging every one of you to keep working at the task of creating your vision for your church. This document will give you a Biblical outline with which you can work. Use it today to make notes if you wish. Take it home to mull over and write on. I think you’ll see this statement coming back over and over again as in the coming months we face decisions that will test our dreams for our church.
Second, I am going to ask you to turn to Ephesians, the third chapter. You’ll find it on page 950 of the pew Bibles. You are going to need this text in front of you this morning. This is going to be what is sometimes called an "expository" sermon; that is, I am going to work right through the text and pick up on several ideas you’ll find in it. So it will mean a whole lot more to you if you have the text before your eyes as we move along.
Ephesians 3:7-21
Look up here for a second. What does this gesture mean? (One thumb up) If I take one hand, fold in the fingers, and lift up one thumb, what does that mean?
Well, actually, there are two possibilities.
It can mean I am testing which way the wind is blowing. If I wet that thumb and stick it out, it means I am trying to find out where the winds are blowing.
But it can also mean "victory." "We did it." "We won." "Success." One thumb stuck up is a gesture of victory. We tried to accomplish something, and we did it. We tried to achieve something, and, look here, we did it.
A thumb stuck up can, then, mean either I am testing the wind to see which way it is blowing; or it can mean, "We won, we did it, we are successful."
But now under that thumb are four fingers. Let me try a little image with you this morning. The thumb and the four fingers stand for the ingredients in our dream. Follow me on this.
One finger stands for the things we say we believe. We all bring a lot of official doctrines here. We say we believe these things. Whether we do anything about them is another matter. For example, a recent survey of more than 200 churches revealed that 89% of those responding agreed with the idea that Christ is the only way to salvation. That sounds good and we will agree to it in principle, and then just park it. One finger on my hand stands for our official doctrines.
A second finger stands for the things we will actually act on, the beliefs we will really put into action. A second component of the life of this church are the things you really do believe. We’ve found out, in a wide variety of interesting ways; that you really do believe in racial understanding. Anything that comes in here and seems to suggest any form of racism you are very quick to jump on. And so one component of the church’s vision are the things you will respond to, the things you not only say you believe but you act upon.
But now there is a third finger, and that has to do with leadership. There are certain ideas, certain themes, that have been taught from this pulpit and in my work with lay leaders arid in my pastoral visits and counseling; there are certain things that I have said over and over and over again. I do not always know whether you take them to heart. Every now and again someone will tell me of the power and the meaning of something I have said, and that is truly exciting. And then every now and again someone will tell me how meaningful it was that I said something or other, and to me it doesn’t sound like anything I ever said or could say. So who knows how important this one is? But nonetheless as you have called me to be your pastor, that means that I am going to inject, constantly, certain ideas and values and visions that I have.
Then, obviously, there is a fourth finger. And it is just like the second finger. If you believe certain things (the first finger), but only actually act on some of them (the second finger), then it is also true that I teach and preach certain ideas (the third finger) but only get around to doing anything about some of them, and that’s the fourth finger. It’s an ingredient, it’s a component that’s important, because this means there are some things about which I will not let you off the hook. There are some things in the life of the church I can live with and tell myself I will do something about some day; and there are ether things I cannot live with the way they are and I will pester you to death until we get at them.
Four components making up our value system. But there is still that thumb. What about that thumb?
Lift up your hand with me. Look. Over and above all these other ingredients in the vision of the church – what you say you believe, what you actually will do; what I say I believe and what I actually will do – over and above these stands one more thing: and that is the word of God. That is God’s dream for the church. That is the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. And that one is the key to success.
And so today we are going to fold everything else under, and we are going to stick up a thumb. That thumb is not testing the winds for popularity. That thumb is pointing the way to victory; that thumb stands for God’s call for our church. And as my thumb points upward to Him, let it remind us that the vision for our church, composed as it is of all these other bits and pieces, must finally be subjected to the will of the Lord of the church.
Not our many wills, but His be done. And that is the way to victory.
Now if you still have a free hand or thumb, let’s go to the Bible and go to work on God’s dreams for the church. The church of my dreams and your dreams, yes, but the church of God’s vision above all.
There are five dimensions. You’ll see them on your pink sheet. We are not going to take a lot of time with each today. My strategy is to get basic ideas in your mind and let you go to work on them over the next weeks and months.
First, now, God’s dream for the church is that we be affirmative of one another’s gifts. God’s vision for our church, as I see it, is that we should be so caring and so affirmative a fellowship that no one here would feel put down or devalued, but rather that everyone would find an appropriate place of service.
Look at verse 8. "Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ."
Isn’t it striking that the apostle Paul would call himself the very least of all the saints? You and I think of his matchless mind, we know about his missionary zeal, we have read and heard about his tremendous success, and call him the greatest of the saints. But Paul, unselfishly and humbly describes himself as the very least, and then attributes to the gift of God everything he has been able to do.
The power of the early church, the power of Paul, was that they saw the way God had gifted Him, they affirmed His gifts, even though they did not always agree theologically. And nearly everyone who reads Paul’s story sees him as a difficult personality; but they affirmed his gifts and loved him and let him loose to do what God had called him to do.
I see that as a key aspect of God’s dream for our church: we must truly care about one another, we must look for the gifts each one brings rather than trying to suspect the hidden motives. Do not assume that your fellow believers cane here with selfish, negative, agendas. Assume rather that they come with a mixture of motives, with good intent and with certain unique gifts. I see in our church at least the potential of being a truly caring, affirmative church, where the boundless riches of Christ could be shared.
"Although l am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me … "
Thumb up for a church where each one’s gifts are affirmed!
Second, God’s dream for our church is that we be evangelical in spirit. This is one of those things we say we believe and I say that I believe, but I am afraid we are still a long way from putting into practice. We just don’t do evangelism in any kind of consistent way; I do not think I am far from the mark if I say that most of us would be ashamed to admit how long it has been since we spoke to anyone about his relationship to Christ or even invited someone to worship.
And yet, listen to God’s dream for the church. Verse 9: "To make everyone … everyone … see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things"
Do you hear the powerful sense of compulsion in that text? "To make everyone see the plan." Someone may react negatively to that word "make". How can we force others to come to Christ? Well, we can’t, of course. But we surely can do all that is in our power to make certain that the word gets out and that the word gets taught.
Friends, we are, as I said earlier, an introverted people. It is not easy or natural for most of us to confront others about the things that really matter. But we are going to learn to do so. And we can learn. We can learn.
Do you remember that I had said last week that we would have various lay voices speaking on the church of their dreams? Well, a funny thing happened on the way to Sunday. I did call several of you to speak and share this morning, and every one of those I called said something like, "Oh, I can’t get up in front of people to speak. It would take me weeks to prepare to do this." Never mind that I was only asking for three to five minute speeches; you all said No and then I just ran out of time, so canceled the idea.
Here is that thing about our personality again. You didn’t want to speak out because you are shy and introverted. Did you know that I too have trouble speaking out because I am shy and introverted! Yes!! As much a ham as I may seem to be up here, it is just not natural for me. If I did not work constantly to overcome it, and if I did not spend the time and effort to prepare carefully, I would be stammering all over the place, with my tang tungled up! We can learn, we can learn to overcome our personality styles and to share our faith.
Why? Why should we? Because God’s dream for our church is that it be evangelical in spirit: "to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery."
Thumb up for the evangelical spirit!
Next, God’s dream for our church is that we be inquiring in mind. God’s dream for our church is that we know, we be aware, we have a thirst for knowledge, we be inquiring in mind.
Paul’s sentence in verse 10 is "so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known". "The wisdom of God in its rich variety might be made known.”
I frankly do not understand Christians who are not committed to personal growth. I do not understand believers who choose to remain ignorant of fundamental truths and basic Biblical information. If God has given us minds, then without question He calls us to develop them.
Oh, it would pay us to dwell longer than I can possibly do so on this phrase, "the wisdom of God in its rich variety". Doesn’t that speak to us about being multicultural? Doesn’t that instruct us about learning from others’ perspectives and examining others’ experiences? I think it does. I think that the apostle here is reminding us that God’s dream for His church is that we be inquiring in mind, never satisfied with what we already know, striving to learn and to teach others, and just enjoying the rich variety of God’s wisdom.
Thumb up for God’s dream that we be inquiring in mind.
Fourth, Paul tells us that God’s dream for the church is that we be
comprehensive in compassion. It is not enough for church just to represent calm and comfort for us. It is not enough to pray, as the old fellow did, "Lord bless me, my wife, my son John, and his wife; us four and no more." God’s dream is that we be a compassionate people and that our compassion be comprehensive.
It’s sort of curious how he puts this, but it’s very relevant for Christians in this nation’s capital city. Paul says in the latter part of verse 10, "that the wisdom of God … be made known … to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places." I don’t have time this morning to explain what this business of the heavenly places means, but let’s just leave it at this: Paul is saying that God’s truth, God’s wisdom, needs to be carried to every nook and cranny of our society. It needs to be shared with the humble, but it also needs to carried to the uppity. It needs to be put out on the street where there are folks who make us uncomfortable with their lifestyles, and it needs to be brought into the offices and the boardrooms where there are those whose lifestyles we’d like to imitate. The wisdom of God made known to the rulers and authorities.
What an opportunity we have! We embrace a lot of folks who are just ordinary salt-of-the-earth types; but we also have others who are salt shakers! There are people among us who can make a difference in what is happening in the world. Just think: what if we had at least provided a forum during the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings? What if we were able to provide support in the aftermath of gun use at two neighboring high schools? What if we could gear ourselves up to a comprehensive compassion, "so that the wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities"?
God’s dream for our church is that we be comprehensive in compassion.
Can I get a thumb up for that?
But finally, and above all, God’s dream for our church is that we be empowered with Christ. Everything else really depends on this one thing. Every task that we undertake, every decision that we make, every dollar we spend and every activity we promote, must do something that empowers us with Christ.
Look at verse 16 with me: "I pray that he may grant that you be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."
Men and women, the vision for our church is that it be Christ-centered. The vision and the dream for our church is that it be focused on the life-changing power of Christ. The hope and the saving possibility for us as a people of God is that we be empowered to know and to understand Christ in all His wonderful beauty.
My friends, we must be a church marked with a passion for excellence. Nothing else will do for Christ. We must be a church which is no longer satisfied just to make do; we must do everything well, and we can. We are empowered by Christ!
We must be a people with a passion for excellence, no longer satisfied to pitch in a couple of dollars here and there, but empowered to sacrificial giving by the spirit of a sacrificing Christ.
We must be a people with a passion for excellence even in our facilities. It is going to take work and sacrifice to do it, but I believe it must happen. I believe it will not be long before we are ready to take some steps in the direction of improving a building that has serious, serious problems. And when that comes, I hope we will not speak only of days gone by when hundreds filled our Sunday School, but that we will speak and work to fill it with hundreds again. When that comes, I hope we will not speak only of getting by and making do, but that we will speak and work so that this building will say to the world, "These folks believe in the excellence of their Christ, and they are clearly empowered by Him."
God’s dream for our church: that in all that we do we be empowered by Christ.
(Thumb up -- wait)
If there is any one prayer I have today, it is perfectly expressed by the great apostle in the glorious benediction which ends this chapter. I’m going to invite you to say it with me and to make it your prayer and your commitment as well. And I’m inviting you to join me in thumbs up. Verses 20 and 21:
"Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine: to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."
