Ephesians 2:1-10 1/18/26 a.m.
My Aunt passed away last Sunday evening. She was a good woman, and I’m gonna miss her. She was 88 and she was a sweet lady. Don’t tell my brother Mike but I think I was her favorite nephew. Please keep her son Brian in your prayers and also pray for me as I preach her funeral on Tuesday.
She died on January 11, 2026 but she shouldn’t have lived as long as she did. You see, back on April 19, 1981, she was at the Liberty Heights Free Will Baptist Church down off of South Sheridan. It was Easter Sunday and she was there at their Sunday evening service. Back then weather forecasting wasn’t as good as it is today. Well, that evening an F3 Tornado came roaring through. It LEVELED that church, flattened it, but inside, just before it hit, the people, including my aunt, had crawled underneath the pews. NO ONE in the church died that day but a family of 5 were killed just down the road. Very sad.
ILLUS: And can I make a little side note here . I’m glad we still have PEWS because I don’t think FOLDING CHAIRS would have taken the ROOF FALLING on top of them and it would have been awful hard to crawl underneath a FOLDING CHAIR!
And so, my old aunt, lived ALMOST another 45 years.
And our Sister Church, the Barnsdall Free Will Baptist Church was hit by an EF4 Tornado back on May 6, 2024. Do you all remember that? It was damaged so badly that all they could do was bull doze it down. That’s sad but what’s worse, 2 people were killed in the neighborhood next to the church.
In Matthew 16:18, Jesus told Peter and the rest of the disciples,
“And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
I guess some might say, “Well the GATES of HELL sure prevailed against those two churches. Wiped them out. Flattened them. They’re GONE!!!”
And they would be right IF the CHURCH was just a BUILDING. But it’s NOT. Those two CHURCHES, the Liberty Heights Free Will Baptist Church and the Barnsdall Free Will Baptist Church weren’t BUILDINGS. They were a GROUP of people meeting together to worship the Lord. And both of those CHURCHES are still alive today. Both of those churches REBUILT their buildings, their meeting place, and they are ACTIVE TODAY. Why? Because the CHURCH is NOT a BUILDING. It’s a GROUP of people.
And the Skiatook Free Will Baptist Church is NOT a BUILDING. It is YOU and I. We make up the CHURCH.
And listen, we are just a small part of the WORLD WIDE CHURCH. You and I are PART of that group of people that WORSHIP and PRAISE GOD all around the world.
And so that’s what I want to talk to you about today. THE CHURCH. So let’s turn in our Bibles to the Book of Ephesians and we’ll look at Chapter 2. Alright, Ephesians 2 and we’ll read Verses 1-10.
“And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
So let me ask you THREE QUESTIONS today. Who is the church? Where is the church? Why is the church?
But before we get into the message let’s go to the Lord in Prayer.
Brother ______, would you lead us?
I. And so WHO is the church?
Well, I already hit on this a little bit. The CHURCH is PEOPLE. It’s NOT a BUILDING. It’s NOT CONCRETE, WOOD and DRYWALL. It’s PEOPLE.
And the first three Verses of this Chapter tell us WHO THE PEOPLE ARE who make up the CHURCH.
Well, it’s people who ARE NOW ALIVE but LISTEN, they were ONCE DEAD.
“And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;”
I’ll tell you WHO makes up the church. SINNERS who have been SAVED, CHANGED, BORN AGAIN, MADE ALIVE by the GRACE of GOD. That’s WHO the CHURCH IS.
It’s NOT a BUNCH of LIITLE ANGELIC BEINGS who are PERFECT in every way.
NO, it’s a GROUP of PEOPLE who may have SCARS from the PAST from when they were DEAD!!!
It’s a GROUP of PEOPLE who may still be PAYING for the SINS they committed when they were DEAD. You say what? You still have to PAY for your SINS? I thought Jesus did that on the Cross of Calvary. Absolutely!!! He did that.
Psalms 103:12 “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.”
He has thrown them in the SEA of FORGETFULNESS.
Micah 7:19, “He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”
But if you PICKLED YOUR LIVER living the life of a DRUNKARD, you have a NEW LIFE in JESUS but NOT a NEW BODY. You will someday but NOT TODAY.
If you robbed a bank back when you was DEAD in TRESPASSES and SIN and NOW you have a NEW LIFE in JESUS that’s GREAT!!! Hallelujah!!! But you still have to spend time in the POKEY!!! There’s still a DEBT you owe to SOCIETY.
Do you see what I’m saying here. THIS CHURCH is a GROUP of IMPERFECT PEOPLE SERVING a PERFECT GOD. I’ve said it before and I’m gonna say it again. “If you find THE PERFECT CHURCH they ain’t gonna let you in because you ain’t perfect and the church wouldn’t be PERFECT with you in it.” There is no perfect church. We are ALL SINNERS SAVED by the GRACE of GOD. Look on down there in Verses 2 and 3. This Church there at EPHESUS was made up of people who ...
A. “Walked according to the course of this world”
B. “Walked according to the prince of the power of the air”
C. “We all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh,
D. “We all fulfilled the desires of the flesh and of the mind”
E. “And look, they were by nature the children of wrath”
You talk about some ROTTEN PEOPLE. How in the WORLD could GOD USE SOMEBODY LIKE THAT? Well, let me answer that. THE SAME WAY HE USES US TODAY.
You see this church right here. OUR CHURCH. This group. We’re made up of the same kind of people. People who AT ONE TIME went right along with the rest of the world as we let SATAN LEAD US where he wanted us to go.
This church is MADE UP of people that AT ONE TIME LUSTED after SEX. LUSTED after MORE PLEASURE. LUSTED after MORE MONEY.
Look around you folks. This church has people in it that AT ONE TIME were in PRISON. There are people here who AT ONE TIME were DRUG ADDICTS. ALCOHOLICS. And WHORE MONGERS.
ILLUS: Somebody better lock the DOORS to keep people from RUNNING OUT of here because of all of these ROTTEN PEOPLE. Don’t leave because here’s the GOOD NEWS.
THE WHO of the CHURCH SHOWS the POWER of GOD. He is a GOD who can take a BUNCH of DEAD PEOPLE and make them ALIVE AGAIN. DEAD in their TRESPASSES and SINS and then HE MAKES THEM GOOD. You know what, we have a GOOD CHURCH HERE through the POWER of GOD. A little later on in this letter, Paul tells the Church in Ephesus there in Ephesians 5:25-27,
“Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”
That’s WHO the CHURCH IS. A GROUP of PEOPLE who have been SAVED by the POWER of GOD and made CLEAN and HOLY by HIS SACRIFICE on the CROSS of CALVARY.
II. And now we look at the SECOND QUESTION that I asked. WHERE is the CHURCH?
At the beginning I said the CHURCH was a worldwide church. People from every nation and every tongue. And it is but let’s go a little deeper than that. Let’s read Verses 4-6 again.
“But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:”
Look at what it says there in Verse 6.
A. First of all this church, this group of believers there in Ephesus had been RAISED UP. They weren’t DOWN where they used to be. They were RAISED UP above it all.
I talked earlier about what they ONCE WERE. They were a ROTTEN BUNCH of people. Not anymore.
You know, I think the MOTTO of the CHURCH needs to be “Come as you are but don’t leave the same way.”
There’s not a person out there that I wouldn’t welcome to our church if they will set and listen. Now if they want to cause trouble, they can hit the road. There’s enough of us around here that we can send them packing. But I’m telling you what I truly believe.
If the HOMOSEXUAL, LESBIAN, TRANSVESTITE wants to come here and listen to the Word of God, that’s a WONDERFUL THING.
If the MURDERER, PORN ADDICT, ADULTERER wants to come, bring them on. Now I didn’t say that they would be working in Children’s Church or back with the TEEN GROUP. I said if they want to come and here the Word of God. If they want to come and here the PRAISES SUNG to HIM. That’s a WONDERFUL THING. Do you know why that’s SO WONDERFUL? Because I SERVE a GOD who is SO POWERFUL, SO MIGHTY, SO FULL of GRACE that He can RAISE THEM UP above it all. I serve a GOD who can QUICKEN THEM and make them ALIVE AGAIN.
B. And because of that, ALL OF US can SET RIGHT NEXT to each other in HEAVENLY PLACES. And if the LORD does a work in THEIR HEART and LIFE, He can do a work in our HEART and LIFE where we won’t mind setting next to them.
So where is the Church? Well, we’re ABOVE IT ALL setting in Heavenly places. We’re NOT LIVING down in the MUCK and the DIRT of the PIG PEN of SIN. We used to live DOWN THERE but we don’t anymore.
Can I tell you what the MAIN PROBLEM of the church is today? The CHURCH has become a RESORT for those still living in SIN instead of a REFUGE for those who have been RAISED UP out of that SIN.
The MOTTO of many churches today is: “Come as you are, enjoy the performance and leave the same way you came.”
That’s NOT God’s plan. 2 Corinthians 5:17
“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
Who is the CHURCH? It’s people. People from all walks of life. People with a PAST and people with SCARS from the PAST. Some who are still PAYING for the PAST.
But most importantly, it’s PEOPLE who have been made NEW CREATURES through the Blood of Jesus.
Where is the CHURCH? Well, it’s all over the world. It’s people from all walks of life who have been DELIVERED from their SINFUL PAST. People who have COMMITTED their LIVES to Him. It’s the people setting next to you today who are living ABOVE where they used to be. JUST LIKE YOU and I.
III. And lastly, Why the CHURCH?
What is the REASON for the CHURCH TODAY?
Why are we here today?
Why does the CHURCH EXIST in Skiatook, Oklahoma?
Well, some would say to REACH the LOST. And that would be true. I hope and pray that our CHURCH, SHINES the LIGHT of Jesus to our COMMUNITY.
But sometimes I’m afraid that the CHURCH FORGETS the MAIN PURPOSE for being created. Look at Verse 10,
“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
“Created in CHRIST JESUS unto good works”
We are here to GLORIFY HIM our CREATOR. EVERYTHING we SAY and DO should REFLECT upon Him.
ILLUS: You know when I see a BEAUTIFUL PAINTING I realize that there had to be a TALENTED PAINTER.
Every time that I see a BEAUTIFUL BUILDING I realize that there had to be a TALENTED ARCHITECT.
And when someone sees YOU and I as His CHILDREN, HIS CREATION, it SHOULD GLORIFY HIM as our CREATOR. He has CREATED US to do GOOD WORKS.
He has CREATED US, the CHURCH, for HIS GLORY.
Isaiah 43, Verses 5-7,
“Fear not: for I am with thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west;
6 I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the ends of the earth;
7 Even every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.”
And I’m afraid a lot of CHURCHES, GROUPS of BELIEVERS, DON’T GLORIFY GOD.
I’m afraid some churches have become SOCIAL CLUBS where only the ELITE are welcome, while other churches have LOST ALL REVERENCE for God and HIS HOUSE. It’s NOTHING but a SHAM. A PARTY.
Some churches have become ENTERTAINMENT VENUES for people to come for a GOOD TIME. The BEST SINGERS, the BEST BANDS, the BEST PRAISE TEAM and NONE OF IT Glorifies God. There’s NOTHING WRONG with a GOOD PERFORMANCE and GOD GIVEN TALENT but it MUST be PLEASING to GOD.
Listen, we don’t HAVE to ALL worship God in the same way but there are some REQUIREMENTS when it comes to WORSHIPPING HIM. In John 4:23 and 24, this is Jesus speaking to the woman at the well and He says,
“But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
So WHY THE CHURCH?
MOST IMPORTANTLY, to GLORIFY HIM.
But also according to Matthew 5:16, to be a LIGHT to a LOST and DYING WORLD.
And thirdly, according to Ephesians Chapter 4, to EQUIP, TEACH and ENCOURAGE the FOLLOWERS of Jesus.
That should be our GOAL as the Church of Jesus.
A. So WHO is the CHURCH? It’s many all around the world and we’re a small part of it.
B. So WHERE is the CHURCH? It is a GROUP of PEOPLE all around the world who have been RAISED UP above their own SIN. Sanctified and Cleansed BY JESUS.
C. Why the CHURCH? #1 To HONOR and PRAISE HIM. #2 To Shine HIS LIGHT to a LOST and DYING WORLD. #3 And thirdly, to EQUIP and ENCOURAGE other believers.
ILLUS: Adrian Rogers, to me, was the greatest pastor and preacher of our time. Just my personal opinion. He pastored the Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee until his retirement in 2005. He died in November of that same year. But this is what he said about church attendance. “People say, ‘you don’t have to go to church to be a Christian” and that’s right. But if you’re a Christian you’re gonna LOVE what Jesus LOVES and He LOVES the church. When you go to church you are saying TWO THINGS.
#1 God is important to me and
#2, these other people that are here today are important to me.”
God is THE MOST important to me and you all are important to me also.
I’ve never written a poem and after I finish this one that I wrote you’ll see why I have never written a poem. But I wrote this and entitled it, “The Church”
“You don’t have to agree with me today.
You don’t have to like me and what I have to say.
You can go home ANGRY, but I really hope that you can
See that I LOVE YOU, and that’s why I’ve shown you God’s plan.
It’s a CHURCH, a group of BELIEVERS, that honor and glorify JESUS
It’s NOT the PEWS, the PULPIT or the BUILDING, NO FOLKS, it’s YOU, IT’S ME, it’s US.
And so let’s live out each day of our LIFE,
In the way that we NOW KNOW
So that others will look at us and SEE JESUS,
and by that, HIS LOVE to them SHOW.”
Let’s Pray
