Introduction
“An architectural magazine is responsible for the statement that the members of a Presbyterian church in Waterloo, Iowa, have constructed a new church building out of a single large rock. Stone was scarce, and while looking about for a possible quarry their attention was called to this huge boulder which stood in the middle of a plain about eight miles from the town. This mass of rock was like an island in the midst of a vast sea. About eight feet of it projected above ground. The work of excavating this gigantic boulder was at once begun. When exposed to view, it was found to be twenty-eight feet high, thirty feet long, and twenty feet wide. On this monolith the workmen began their labors with drill, hammer, and dynamite, and the enormous rock was converted into building-stones, which were removed to the town and built into a beautiful church.”
Transition
So it is with us. While the Church is comprised of many parts, we are hewn of one will, one mind (God’s), one faith, one baptism. We are called to live in unity.
CIT: The Church is one body. / CIS: Unity is worth the effort.
His glory is worth it! Our stability is worth it! Our growth is worth it! Our witness to the world is worth it! Our testimony at the judgment seat of Christ is worth it!
This passage of Scripture, indeed the entire New Testament in many ways, is about active tense living out of unity in the Body of Christ. There is more to my salvation than me. We are saved into the Body of Christ.
My text today, as we walk through the book of Ephesians, has led us to a topic that we have discussed at some length more than once of late – Church unity.
The wonderfully providential thing about this is that while we have addressed this topic, I had remained desirous of addressing it in some very simple, concrete, and directly practical terms. The text for today in Ephesians chapter 4 not only lends itself well to this, such concepts are inherent to the text. This morning we will mine the text practical, simple, applicable ways to increase unity.
Exposition
Foundationally, we must live a life worthy of our calling to salvation in Christ. (vv.1-3) Before
The devil would greatly prefer to send you and me to Hell from a pew than a sidewalk. The enemy accomplishes far more in a person who thinks that they are right with God from a pew than a person who knows they are not right with God but doesn’t pretend to be.
Earlier this week I was at Liberty University for their mission’s week. I had a great conversation with a missionary from England. He said that in England people are either on fire with the Holy Spirit, in love with God followers of Jesus or they have absolutely no interest in the things of God and are out and out atheists or agnostics. In his experience in his home country there are no halfway believers.
He went on to say that it is an amazing phenomenon that he finds fascinating, particularly in the Southern United States. Here? If asked, everybody’s a Christian. Yet, most don’t go to Church. “You ask them,” he said, “they’ll tell you well I grew up over at so and so and such and such church.” But when pressed with the question “Do you go there now?” The reply nine times out of ten, “Well I’m between churches right now…” We both spoke in spontaneous unison saying “Ya, in between churches for 20 years!”
Sadly, there is as much lukewarm Christianity in the pews as there are false professions in the street. Why do we act like thieves who steal their own possessions? Why do Christians break into their own darkened spiritual homes, smash their own spiritual windows and rob themselves of the treasure of full commitment to and trust in God?
Friends, why do we trade joy for sorrow? What backward wisdom compels us to choose helplessness over strength; isolation from our Heavenly Father rather than connection to Him and His Church?
the man of God of the last generation, A.W. Tozer, who wrote that “It is either all of Christ or none of Christ! I believe we need to preach again a whole Christ to the world - a Christ who does not need our apologies, a Christ who will not be divided, a Christ who will either be Lord of all or will not be Lord at all!”
What constitutes a life worthy of our calling? It is the surrender of our will, our heart, and mind, our entire life to Christ. Though we do it imperfectly, to live a life consistent with our calling in Christ we must do it completely.
“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” (Romans 8:12-17 ESV)
Back to the question at hand, what specifically, in simple terms constitutes, living a life worthy, as the text says, of our calling to salvation in Christ Jesus?
Another way to state the question is, “How do we maintain unity in the Church?”
The answers are plain as to potentially seem commonplace and pedestrian; stale and mundane. However, they are the bedrock of Christian living and that is what we came here this morning to learn how to do. We came to raise our hearts in worship and then go out of those doors and offer our lives in worship!
(v.2) Complete humility. Don’t be like the woman who when she was accused of being vain retorted angrily “I’m the most humble person I know, just ask any one of the seven ladies who attend my hair, nails, skin, and other necessities weekly down at the beauty salon!”
Don’t be like the man who, while attending a Bible study where the topic was humility, boasted that “He was twice as humble as any man present and twice as smart to know it.”
Humility is the fruit of a right assessment of self in light of God, not other people. Humility is fleeting because as soon as you know you’ve got it you boast of it, even if only to yourself, and its gone because of your boasting!
Humility is not for display. In fact one writer says that “Being humble involves the willingness to be reckoned a failure in everyone’s sight but God’s.”
Humility though doesn’t come from knowing how unworthy we are but in knowing how inherently full of worth He is. Humility has to be developed.
That development also may come from seeing what God does in the lives of others and learning to be happy for them rather than jealous, wondering “why doesn’t God do that for me?” Nothing kills humility more quickly than jealousy.
Have you ever looked at someone’s life, I know I have, and said “God why don’t you do for me what you’ve done for them?! It’s not fair.” Why don’t you bless us with a new building like the Church over on the corner of Turlington Road and 13 whose name we dare not utter at Cypress Chapel?
Or perhaps you’ve been on the other side, I know I have, and had someone look at your spiritual gifts, spiritual happenings with God, times of great answer to prayer, and wondered why God didn’t do that for them?
Friends, the humble man or woman of God recognizes that God has a specific sovereign plan for each one of us that cannot be compared to another person. Perhaps God blesses one person with great spiritual revelation not because they are great but because they are too stubborn to get it any other way!
Perhaps God’s plan for the greatness of one church involves size in this season while His plan for another church involves great unity, great love, great humility, great worship, great depth of prayer life cultivated, and lasting impact in people’s lives in Christ name, not new buildings! Perhaps? Perhaps.
Just as jealousy destroys humility, so gentleness nurtures it. Successful leaders of Churches and any organization really, know that those in any kind of authority can accomplish a great deal more through gentleness than with aggression.
Jesus was the king of kings and He exercised His authority gently. So should we.
Patiently showing mutual submission in love is how we become a people characterized by gentleness with one another.
Conclusion
Holocaust activist and Nazi Germany survivor, Corrie ten Boom, once wrote “Be united with other Christians. A wall with loose bricks is not good. The bricks must be cemented together.” Weak things united become strong but they must be united in love, gentleness, humility, patience, and love.
Here is a simple but effective and memorable illustration. Perhaps you remember the childhood story of the three little pigs? The first built his house from straw and the wolf came and blew his house down.
The next little pig built his house from sticks and the wolf likewise, though he had to blow a little bit harder came and blew his down as well. The third pig showed far greater pig prudence and built his house out of bricks, just like the ones I have stacked here. The wolf came and he blew and blew but he couldn’t blow down the house made from bricks.
But let us cast a little bit of speculation upon the last pig. What if he had forgotten the mortar? Would his house have stood up to the wind of the wolf? Would he have been safe from the destruction that his enemy sought to bring upon him? Surely not!
Yet, how many churches build wonderful edifices of brick and mortar and stone and glass and yet when it comes to the actual Church, the people united, they do so without the mortar of love holding the body of Christ together. Surely when the winds blow and the rains come, the house will fall, as we have seen Church bodies torn apart. (Matthew 7:24-29)
Friends it is not enough to hear about love for the brethren. We must put it into practice. It’s not enough to talk about the Church’s one foundation, we have to live in unity if we are to enjoy the blessing of being the people that God has created us to be. Amen.
