Giving
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The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.”
Today we continue our series based on the apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians The theme is “Making a New World”.
Today we are talking about Privilege Brings Obligation.
Text
Ephesians 4:1 NKJV
Walk in Unity
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
Scripture Reading
Ephesians 4:1-16 NKJV
Walk in Unity
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
Spiritual Gifts
7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
8 Therefore He says:
“When He ascended on high,
He led captivity captive,
And gave gifts to men.”
9 (Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth?
10 He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting,
15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—
16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
Prayer
In Jesus name we pray.
Amen.
Introduction
A small boy asked a woman who he was sitting next to at the pool, “Do you believe in God?”
The woman was stunned, she replied, “Of course I believe in God.”
On hearing this answer, the boy said, “Good, then you can keep an eye on my money and my other things while I go swimming.”
The boy felt that belief and behaviour belonged together.
So did Paul.
In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul followed up his instructions with exhortations.
He set forth the great doctrines in the opening chapters and applied the doctrines to life in the last three chapters.
As Paul entered into his series of practice exhortations, he wrote in Ephesians 4:1, “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,”
Paul had already talked about the numerous privileges of believers.
The word “therefore” suggests he wants to move to the practical application of those privileges.
Paul presented the obligations connected with having benefits.
- Christians are obligated to walk worthy.
- Believers should live lives consistent with God’s intention.
The word “walk” is used repeatedly throughout the last three chapters of Ephesians.
It refers to the course of someones life.
To walk worthy means to live a life in harmony with God’s will.
The word “vocation” speaks of the calling that belongs to every Christian.
B. Believers have a description of the worthy walk.
Paul described the worthy walk in verse 2, “with all lowliness and gentleness, with long suffering, bearing with one another in love,”
Paul listed four spiritual virtues that characterise Christians who walk worthily of their calling.
“Lowliness” speaks of their creative dependance on God.
“Meekness” describes those who are gentle in their relationships with others.
“Forbearance” is a trait of those who bear with the weakness and failures of others.
“Love” is the quality of seeking the highest good in others.
2. Christians are obligated to maintain unity.
- Believers live under orders to maintain unity.
Verse 3, “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
The word that is translated “endeavouring” suggests the idea of eagerness and zeal.
It could be translated as, to give diligence.
The disposition of a believer’s life is to guard the unity of the body of Christ.
The redeemed should make a continuous effort to cooperate with the Holy Spirit.
B. Believers have a basis for unity.
Fundamental inward experiences bind believers together in spiritual oneness.
In Ephesians 4:4-6 the oneness of believers can be seen in three trilogies.
The first trilogy speaks of “one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling”
Here Paul was teaching about the churches one body of Christ, the Spirit who energises the church, and the common goal toward which the body is progressing.
The second trilogy is, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism.”
The first trilogy focuses on the Holy Spirit.
The second focuses on Jesus.
Faith is the experience with Christ, and baptism is the sign of faith in Christ.
The third trilogy is, “one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”
This statement teaches that the one sovereign God is the ultimate source of spiritual unity.
God is the basis for the believer’s unity.
3. Christians are obligated to maintain ministry.
Believers have two supreme obligations, to make disciples of all nations and to disciple the saved.
Each member is to do their part in these facets of ministry.
- God provides the church with gifts in order to maintain the ministry.
God has bestowed various gifts on believers to maintain His work.
In Ephesians 4:8-13 Paul dealt at length with the diversity of the gifts bestowed by the Father and explained their purpose, namely, to glorify God, to serve others, and to bring believers joy.
To accomplish His purpose, god gives people special abilities.
Each person in the kingdom of God has a gift and has a responsibility to maintain the ministry.
B. God gives gifts to believers for a specific purpose.
“For the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”
The leaders are to prepare and equip all the members for the service each can render in strengthening the life of the church.
Ministers are not appointed to do the work for the members, but to prepare the members for their work, that the whole church may be built up as the body of Christ.
Conclusion.
If you have believed in Jesus Christ, you have some obligations.
Belief is tied to behaviour.
Until next time
Stay in the Blessings
Giving
I really want to encourage you to be diligent with your Bible study time, because God has so much more for us than we can get from just going to church once or twice a week and hearing someone else talk about the Word.
When you spend time with God, your life will change in amazing ways, because God is a Redeemer.
Theres nothing thats too hard for Him, and He can make you whole, spirit, soul and body!
You’re important to God, and you’re important to us at www.refinerylife.org
When it comes to prayer, we believe that God wants to meet your needs and reveal His promises to you.
So whatever you’re concerned about and need prayer for we want to be here for you! Or even if you just want to say Hi, you can contact us
2021 IS A YEAR OF REFORMATION
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