The Church's 4G Network
Ephesians 4:1-8
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/4G.html
I want to know how rich you are. Do you know why? Is it for tithing purposes? No. It's for your sake. I mean true riches. Add up everything you have that money can't buy and death can't take away, and that's how rich you really are! All we tend to count important in life we can lose, and yet what's truly important none can ever take from us! We can have unity with God, and with one another.
A. The Graces of Unity.
vv. 1-3
Unity is not the same as uniformity.
Unity comes from within. Uniformity comes from pressure from without.
Unity brings us together. Uniformity brings us to compromise. [And it comes at the expense of convictions and beliefs.]
Unity is not the same as union.
Today's ecumenical movement [one church] says we must tear down walls of doctrine which divide us. I say, tear down walls of prejudice and jealousy, but don't touch a wall which God built, like the wall of doctrine!
Tie 2 cats tails together and throw them over a clothesline. You will have union. You will not have unity.
Unity in the body of Christ says the arms and legs can work together, and don't have to look like each other. We don't all have to agree on everything...just agree on Jesus! Each differing body part serves its own role. You don't have to shift flesh from one area to another to have unity. [I have that furniture problem where your chest falls into your drawers!]
Unity allows us to work together, but not at the expense of our core principles. With that said, we don't have to be exactly alike to work together, or that would be uniformity. Two Pastors can work together without completely agreeing on every minor detail. Now it would be a problem if they disagreed on major things, but otherwise we can agree to disagree, formulate a plan, and go with it in unity. You and your spouse can compromise on little details, but it gets ugly if you can't get together on something big like your philosophy of raising children. So when a man and woman have a tiff over something like what TV show to watch next, it can usually we worked out easily by the man just deciding if he wants to eat or not!
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There are 4 graces of unity: [you need all 4 to have unity]
v. 2
1. Lowliness=not pride.
This quality of humility is strange because once you find that you have it...you just lost it!
ill.--A guy won a button in s.s. that said 'most humble'. Then they took it away the next week because he wore it.
The way to know you truly have a servant's heart is by the way you act when you are treated like one. It's easy to say the words, I have a servant's heart, until someone asks you to take a lower place and asks you to do something that is beneath your dignity.
Humility is not thinking low of yourself, but not thinking of yourself at all. The opposite of lowliness is pride, which destroys unity.
v. 2
2. Meekness=not weakness.
It's power under control. It's a strong horse that has been broken and will obey the reins.
Jesus was meek, but certainly not weak.
Moses was meek. Think about the day he came down off the mountain and found his assistant had led the people to fashion the golden calf. God threatened to wipe them out and start over with just Moses. Many prideful, self serving men would go for that plan, but Moses pleaded with God to spare them, for restoration, and not to throw the clay away!
Sometimes we in leadership may have some success and feel some sense of power and authority and respect, and want to show it off, throw our weight around, and remind everybody who's boss. That isn't meekness. That destroys unity.
v. 2
3. Longsuffering=not defensive. [and it's not patience either]
It's the ability to be mistreated without fighting back.
"I'll be your friend, unless you cross me...and then, watch out!"
ill.--a Quaker had a mule that would not plow. He'd say giddy up, and the mule wouldn't budge. He walked around and looked the mule in the eye and said, Thou knowest I am a Quaker, and canst not hit thee. What thou dost not know is that my brother in law is a Baptist, and if thou dost not plow, I will sell thee to him, and he shall kill thee.
Baptists have the reputation sometimes of defending ourselves more than we defend the faith! This isn't about us...it's about the good of the sheep in this fold!
When you are longsuffering you let God be your defender, and He does a much better job of defending you than you ever could.
v. 2
4. Love=not bad!
1 Corinthians 13:7
Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
"Beareth" means umbrella of protection. This is forbearance in love. The sky can drop all it wants on you, if you have the umbrella of forbearance you remain mostly untouched by it all.
ill.--did you ever notice that you could do just about any cruel thing to your sibling growing up, but if somebody else tried something, they'd better watch out?! You'd stand up for them. You open up the umbrella of protection.
YOU can call your parents the old man or old lady, but nobody else can. You'll defend their honor. You open up the umbrella of protection.
WE can criticize our children, but nobody else can. You open up the umbrella of protection.
Love beareth all things...imagine the unity in the church if we all had forbearance in love, and protected each other's reputations, feelings, integrity, etc.
"Believeth all things" doesn't mean love is gullible, but it gives the benefit of the doubt. It's time we put to bed our suspicions and just give people the benefit of the doubt and get back to working on our own problems anyway!
ill.--the person who is good at spotting a liar usually has an advantage...an inside scoop from personal experience, and is eventually caught in lies himself!
Proverbs 18:13
He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.
Have you heard all sides to the story? Do you know the truth? Shouldn't you check it out? That's giving the benefit of the doubt [believeth all things]. If you hear something that doesn't sound good or right, consider the possibility that it might not be the whole truth!
Or, you can do as some have always done in the history of the church, hear about something bad and immediately write the person off for life - in the spirit of judgment. "That's it for them!"
That's not a good picture of what God's family is supposed to be!
"Hopeth all things" is the optimism of love. Don't look for the worst in people, but for the best. If you are looking for wrong, you are sure to find it! But beware, because God insists on measuring you by the same standard that you measure others with. "Judge not that ye be not judged!"
"Endureth all things" means love stands strong thru a trial or test. And God gets the glory when this happens!
Lowliness / Meekness / Longsuffering / Love
These 4 graces must be present to have good unity in the church.
The Graces of Unity are in v. 2. Now, the grounds.
B. The Grounds of Unity.
vv. 4-6 We are family, no matter where God puts us!
Here are seven uniting forces for all believers. They are foundational...they provide the grounds of our unity. They are the 'bond of peace' written of in v. 3.
These 7 things are the fundamentals which we must agree on in order to have unity. Unity built on something other than Bible truth will not stand.
1. One body.
This is not just the local church, but the universal body of believers everywhere. I don't believe that just the Baptists are saved. I don't believe that all of the 'Grace Baptists' are saved...though I wish they all were. But you have to do something other than join this church to be saved. You must be born again! And people of varying churches do just that.
The fact that every believer is a part of the 'one body' does not excuse any from belonging to and ministering thru the one body of the local church. Get involved, have a ministry, always moving forward, not backward. If you need to give up a ministry that's not for you, fine, as long as God is leading you to take a step up to something bigger and more your style and that requires more of a commitment, not less.
2. One Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is to us what breath is to our body. As a church we can operate in the power of the flesh if we want to - but better in the Spirit's power.
God's Spirit is a ground of our unity because He leads us and guides us where we should go. We can have multiple pastors, deacons, teachers and leaders. How will we get together in leadership? We have the same Holy Spirit leading us as we pray about the future. Everyone has a personal opinion on things, but the Spirit will bring us together if we will allow it.
Acts 1:14
These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication...
Acts 4:31-32
31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken ... and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost ... And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul...
That's the family of God! On the other hand...
Proverbs 16:28
A froward man [disagreeable to the consensus of the majority] soweth strife: and a whisperer separateth chief friends.
We all have our opinions. That's ok. But the devil wants it to go further. So he plants a rumor and we develop a theory. God's isn't in all of that! But when we pray and are filled with the Holy Spirit, God's opinions become our opinions!
My ideas and opinions are just like yours...not worth a flip unless they come from God.
3. One hope.
Salvation is our eternal hope. And we will all get along forever in eternity, even with those who won't look at us or shake our hand now! Shouldn't we be able to get along before heaven? This fact should unify us!
The 'blessed hope' is the return of Christ which we look forward to. We believe in it literally! But why is this a unifying factor for us?
ill.--during the Civil War, rival armies camped on opposing sides of the Potomac River. The Union band struck up a patriotic tune of their liking. Then the Confederate band struck up one of a southern flavor. Back and forth they went in competition. But at a certain point one band started playing "Home Sweet Home", and rather than seek a competing tune, the other joined them in the same.
The thought of going home was unifying...they all wanted the same thing!
4. One Lord.
Before you hook up with a group of quote 'Christians'...you'd better make sure which Jesus they follow, because there are many today.
ill.--ask them about the virgin birth, because many 'educated' people no longer believe in that kind of thing. [sinless Jesus? / God in flesh or just great man? / simple salvation or second blessing? / creation account or evolution? / miracles of the Bible? / homosexuality? / all the Bible inspired or just parts?
If we serve the same Lord, then as we draw closer to Him, we automatically will be closer to one another.
5. One faith.
This is the body of truth which the Bible calls 'the gospel.'
Jude 3
... ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
"Faith comes by hearing...the Word of God."
You take it all or leave it all. If you can't believe the Bible about creation how can you believe what it says about salvation? If the Red Sea didn't part, then maybe the greatest of all miracles didn't happen in your heart! Our faith should be the root of our unity...not sideline squabbles!
6. One baptism.
Spirit baptism is what we are talking about, not water baptism. This is what places us in the body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:13
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
This is not some extra sensation to seek after salvation. This happens AT salvation. This is why we are commanded to be filled with the Spirit but never commanded to be baptized of the Spirit...because that happens automatically at salvation!
Water baptism is a visible symbol of the Spirit baptism which has already taken place in a believer. And if we have the same Spirit, we can have unity!
7. One God and Father.
v. 6 The universalist believes that we are all children of God, and all going to heaven. But Jesus told a group of people, you are of your father, the devil! You are a child of God or Satan.
Notice the 3 prepositions: above, through, in
Above all is the greatness of God.
Through all is the goodness of God.
In you all in the nearness of God.
My God is great, He is good, and very near!
These are the grounds of our unity.
C. The Gifts of Unity.
The Gifts of Unity are where we are to differ from one another. There is strength in our diversity! We are not to be cookie cutter Christians, all stamped out in the same shape, color, and flavor. Our church is not supposed to be a melting pot, but a salad bowl, where every ingredient compliments the others...and each part of the body works together in tandem.
ill.--tandem bike
vv. 7-8 Every believer has at least one spiritual gift. What is yours? [I Cor. 12 / Rom. 12] Don't confuse these with talent and natural ability, which come from our natural birth. Spiritual gifts are given at the new birth.
1 Corinthians 12:7
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.
God has gifted you for the purpose of profiting the whole body.
With our differing gifts we have diversity. Not only unity, but also harmony. When I walk, every part of my body works together. But if even just my big toes decided to take the day off I couldn't walk right! So be careful about laying aside your gift!
Our gifts are not toys to play with, but tools to work with and weapons to fight with. And by the way, our fight is against the forces of evil, not against each other!
D. The God of Unity.
It's all about Him, and we've made it about the church.
Churches are changing spiritually, and not for the better. [ear tickling, more love, less prophecy]
ill.--In Revelation, Jesus said that in the last days some churches would be like Laodicea, the lukewarm church. They believe the right thing, but they are not on fire about what they believe. This could describe some in our church...make sure you're not one of them.
The liberal church at Sardis was alive in name only, with hardly any genuine believers. They were a 'has been' church that used to stand for the graces and grounds of unity, but no longer. They no longer believed the right thing. They became wrong in their doctrine.
Now, which is worse? To believe the wrong thing, like cold, dead Sardis, or to believe right and not be excited about it, like lukewarm Laodicea? Amazing indeed is Jesus' words, that He would rather us be cold [liberal, dead, doctrinally errant] than lukewarm!
ill.--Abraham took Isaac up a mountain to sacrifice him. He said to his father, we have wood and fire, but where is the lamb? Today I say, we have the wood [cross] and the Lamb [Jesus]...but WHERE'S THE FIRE?
There's one church that will not only survive this century of change, but it will thrive in it! It's the Philadelphia kind of church. They made it all about God, and not man. They kept God's Word and didn't deny His name, and Jesus said I have set before you an open door and no man can shut it! That's a church that is united by the graces and grounds of unity, full of people who possess the gifts of unity, and know that having a church is all about the God Who is here in our midst, longing to bring us together at His feet. How rich we truly are!
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/4G.html
