Grace for Española
 
We’ve been looking at Ephesians 4 for many weeks now in this blog. Is the divine plan for the growth of the church clear enough? Understanding it is the easy part. Living it out is the more difficult part. Growing into maturity as a church and individual believers requires effort, patience, love, and sacrifice. It will cost you to be part of the church, but it is worth it. What is it costing you?

I’m reminded of the time when King David was making provisions for the building of the temple in Jerusalem. He wanted to build it himself, but God wouldn’t let him since he was a man of war. Rather, God said Solomon, David’s son, would build the temple. But God allowed David to provide all the materials. David wanted to buy the land for the temple but Araunah, the land owner offered to give it to King David. Notice David’s response:

Then the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God with that which costs me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver (2 Sam 24:24, emphasis added).

True worship is costly worship. It will cost you to obey God and serve Him in His church. There will be responsibilities to meet, people to forgive, erring brothers to confront, as well as money, time, and sweat to give. As we do what is required of us by God’s Word, we will notice changes take place over time. We will grow into Christlikeness. The church will become healthy and strong. New believers will be added to the church. Significant ministry will take place. Lives will be forever changed. God will be glorified. Doesn’t that sound exciting? People who work out say, "No pain, no gain." In ministry, we can say, "No sacrifice, no joy."

Seven Dangers to Guard Against:
* Politics without principle
* Knowledge without character
* Wealth without work
* Pleasure without conscience
* Business without morality
* Science without humanity
* Worship without sacrifice

Let’s review where we’ve been in our study so far. We saw that (1) God has given us participation in His eternal purpose; (2) God has given us the structure for fulfilling His eternal purpose; (3) God has given us a calling to contribute to His eternal purpose. We are to continue in this process, "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" (Eph 4:13, NKJV). So the goal is spiritual maturity defined by likeness to Jesus Christ.

How do we achieve spiritual maturity? "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" (Eph 4:16). Did you catch it? "Every part does its share." Are you growing in your faith and knowledge of Christ? Are you doing your part to build up the body of Christ?

If the book of Acts were still being written, what would it say about you? "So and so lived out his life in comfort and ease?" "He kept to himself and kept his nose clean?" Or, "She lovingly and faithfully served the Lord through His church all her life. The lives she touched by her personal ministry were encouraged and blessed. She found Jesus’ words true, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’ (Acts 20:35)."

We are the body of Christ. Jesus wants our hands, that’s how He works. He wants our feet, that’s how He goes. He wants our voices, that’s how He talks. He wants our hearts, that’s how He loves. True worship is costly. It means denying self to be used by God in the lives of others. Have you come to a point in your Christian walk that you have consciously yielded your life to God to serve Him in whatever way He calls you? If you do, it will cost you. But the reward is out of this world!

To know, to do; the Head’s commands, For this the body lives and grows;
All speed of feet and skill of hands, Is for Him spent, and from Him flows.
-author unknown
 
 
You and I were created with two needs that knowing God and participating in the church provides—meaning and belonging. It is now scientifically demonstrated that human beings are biologically wired to seek meaning and belonging. This observation explains a lot of what we see in society, doesn’t it? Of course God knew about this long before we did; He’s the one who formed us this way!

We are blessed to live in an era when we have a complete Bible that reveals to us the plan and purpose of God. This plan and purpose was once a mystery in previous ages.

9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, 10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him (Eph 1:9-10, NKJV).

8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, 11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him (Eph 3:8-12).

In Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians we learn about God’s purpose for the Church. We learn that this purpose was a mystery. A mystery is a previously unrevealed truth related to God’s redemptive plan. We might fairly describe the theme of Ephesians as “The mystery of God’s eternal purpose was hidden in ages past, but is now revealed in and through the church.”

Ephesians helps us answer questions surrounding our identity and purpose in Christ: What has God done for me? Who am I in Christ? What is my aim? What should I be doing as a disciple of Christ? How do I relate to the church? We will look at some of these questions in more detail the in forthcoming weeks.

First, we must understand that God has given us participation in His eternal purpose. Is our ultimate purpose worship or evangelism? John Piper said, “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church, worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When people from all nations are before the throne, missions ends. Missions is a temporary necessity, but worship is eternal.”

And they sang a new song, saying: "You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation (Rev 5:9).

The purpose of the Great Commission is to be the means of gathering worshippers together in Christ to the praise of the Father’s glory.

11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory (Eph 1:11-14).

So when somebody asks you why you go to church, you could tell them you do so because you find God and His people to be your all-satisfying source of joy, meaning, and belonging. The church is at the very center of what God is doing in this age and we get to be a part of it! God has met two of our deepest needs by creating the church and calling us to participate in it. This is why there’s no place I’d rather be when the church gathers for worship then with the people of God to the praise of the glory of God. The next time the church gathers, will you be there to find your meaning and belonging?

Pastor Massimo