If you have your Bibles please turn with me to Ephesians chapter 4. We’re going to be looking at verses 1-3 during this time in God’s Word.
In his work entitled, “The Word and Power Church,” Doug Banister writes this: The spring of 1940 found Hitler’s panzer divisions mopping up French troops and preparing for a siege of Great Britain.
The Dutch had already surrendered, as had the Belgians. The British army foundered on the coast of France in the channel port of Dunkirk. Nearly a quarter million young British soldiers and over 100,000 allied troops faced capture or death.
The Fuerhrer’s troops, only a few miles away in the hills of France, closed in on an easy kill. The Royal Navy had enough ships to save barely 17,000 men, and the House of Commons was told to brace itself for “hard and heavy tidings.”
Then while a despairing world watched with fading hope, a bizarre fleet of ships appeared on the horizon of the English Channel. Trawlers, tugs, fishing sloops, lifeboats, sailboats, pleasure craft, an island ferry named Gracie Fields, and even the America’s Cup challenger Endeavor, all manned by civilian sailors, sped to the rescue.
The ragtag armada eventually rescued 338,682 men and returned them home to the shores of England, as pilots of the Royal Air Force jockeyed with the German Luftwaffe in the skies above the channel.
It was one of the most remarkable naval operations in history.
The church, likewise, is God’s ragtag armada. The church is a mix of imperfect individuals on a rescue operation commissioned by God.
The Church is a diverse ragtag armada of people who all have different strengths and weaknesses, a mix of people with different gifts, at different levels of spiritual maturity, who are all needed and who all need each other.
And this armada is called to serve together as one, as a Body, in God’s power, to use our God-given abilities to build up one another, and to “make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery,” and to beseech all men everywhere to be reconciled to God.
God wants the local body of Christ, and His Church as a whole, to be a light to their local communities and to this world of His love and grace.
G. K. Chesterton once said, “We do not want, as the newspapers say, a church that will move with the world. We want a church that will move the world.” This can be so as we walk worthy of our calling, and as we are a testimony for Christ and the gospel of grace.
Here at the midpoint of Ephesians, the Book swings and turns in its subject matter from doctrinal teaching for the Body to practical instructions for the Church.
Chapters 1-3 speaks of our position in the heavenlies, and chapters 4-6 speak of our practice on earth, in light of our blessings in Christ in the heavenlies.
R. B. Shiflet writes, “As the first three chapters of Ephesians have explored the wealth of the believer in Christ, chapter 4 begins an explanation of his walk.
“Chapters 1 through 3 declare the calling of the church; chapters 4-6 describe the conduct of members of the church.”
Paul’s first practical subject he addresses is unity in the church. What he shows that leads to unity is a spirit of lowliness, meekness, longsuffering, forbearance, and love.
And he shows that we are to be bound together by doctrine, by the “unity of the Spirit.”
Ephesians 4:1 says, “I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called.”
Paul says, “therefore,” here in verse 1 to refer back to the first three chapters of Ephesians. And in view of our heavenly calling, in light of our riches in Christ, Paul now speaks of our responsibilities in Christ.
On the basis of what Paul wrote and explained in chapters 1-3, Paul pleads, urges, and implores the Ephesians to walk worthy of it. How we behave in the Christian life is based on what we believe and what we know from God’s Word.
Doctrine and practice can’t be separated. Our salvation and position in Christ and all our blessings in Him are to affect the way we live. We are to live in light of God’s grace to us, to have it transform our thinking and our lives.
In the Old Testament, God’s dealings with man under the law was “Obey me, and I will bless you.” Here under grace, in light of us being eternally and richly blessed in Christ up front by God’s grace, we are urged to obey and live for God.
Chapters 1-3 tell us what God has done for us, chapters 4-6 tell us what we are to do for God. In what we are to do for God, we are to be motivated to obey by how much God has done for us in His grace and love.
Paul “beseeches” or pleads with the Ephesians to “walk worthy of the vocation [or literally “calling”] wherewith ye are called.” The term “walk” speaks of our day-by-day living, and the word “worthy” means “in a manner worthy of.”
The term “worthy” also has the meaning of “balancing the scales, weighing as much as another thing.” The word was used of scales that weigh by balancing weights with the object weighed. God wants our “walk” to balance in weight with our “calling.”
God wants our experience to measure up to our standing in grace, for our daily living to balance and correspond with our high calling of God in Christ, to our honored and exalted position in Him as a joint-heir with Christ, seated in Him.
As we have a high calling, so our lives should be lived on a higher plane, higher than the ways of this world, in a manner that pleases Him, that brings glory to Him, in a way that reflects the gratitude of our heart for all He has done for us.
We have a tremendous high calling in Christ, and it is our responsibility to strive to live up to that calling. The only way we can approach living up to that high calling we have in Christ is by living out Ephesians 3:16:
“That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man.” Only through the power of God, by yielding to it by faith, can we “walk worthy” of our calling.
Notice how Paul says, “I…the prisoner of the Lord” in verse one. Paul reminds the Ephesians once again of his imprisonment in Rome, as he did in 3:1.
As a prisoner of Christ, Paul makes his appeal here to show that he would not ask them to live in a way in which he himself had not lived. His life belonged to Christ. It was lived in servitude to Him, and in obedience to His will.
He lived in a manner worthy of his high calling, above the ways of the world, and for Christ and for His purposes.
Paul was also showing that a worthy walk can be costly. But knowing the faithfulness of Christ, they like him, could fully trust Him, which is why Paul would call himself not a prisoner of Rome, but “of the Lord.”
Paul has shown up to this point how we belong completely to God. We are members of Christ’s Body, we are saints, or set-apart ones to God, we are heavenly citizens, accepted in the Beloved, we are God’s workmanship, part of the household of God, and we are sealed in Christ by the infinite power of the Holy Spirit.
We belong to God, and Paul demonstrated this in his practical experience, as should we. And regardless of the cost, Paul followed the Savior. Paul was a prisoner of the Lord whether he was in prison or not. And true freedom is found in this.
Ted DeHaas writes, A popular magazine once listed the five most-common things guests notice when they enter our homes. First, they spy piles of mail laying around. Second, they notice dust and cobwebs. Third, they notice a messy bathroom.
Fourth, they notice dishes in the sink. Fifth, our guests notice full trash cans. People check our houses, and they also look at us. A good question to think about is: When they view me, what do they see? Do they see a walk worthy of our calling?
Ephesians 4:2 says, “With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love.”
Paul goes on to speak of characteristics of a worthy walk, characteristics or graces which also lead to the unity Paul desired for the church.
We have a highly honored position in Christ, but we see here that God doesn’t want that to go to our head. Our high calling should not lead to pride, but to the opposite: lowliness.
John Beukama tells the story of a strong young man at a construction site who was proud and bragging that he could outdo anyone in a feat of strength. One day he made a special case of making fun of one of the older workmen in this regard.
After several minutes, the older worker had had enough. “Why don’t you put your money where your mouth is?” he said. “I’ll bet a week’s wages that I can haul something in a wheelbarrow over to that building that you won’t be able to wheel back.”
“You’re on, old man,” the young worker replied.
The older worker reached out and grabbed the wheelbarrow by the handles. Then he turned to the young man and said, “All right. Get in.” That was going to result in a walk back with all lowliness! Life has a way of teaching lowliness. We need it.
“All lowliness,” means we are to walk worthy with “all possible lowliness.” J.M.: “Humility allows us to see ourselves as we are, because it shows us before God as He is.”
Lowliness comes as we realize how we don’t deserve the grace God has shown. God wants us to live with a right estimation of ourselves and a true understanding of Him.
We find this through studying God’s Word. And what we find in it is the infinite greatness and goodness of God, and that we are sinful and weak and we need Him. As we learn and grow in the Word, it will promote “all possible lowliness.”
When one is saved, it is done through humility, in acknowledging our absolute inability to save ourselves, our need of a Savior, and believing that Christ did it all, that Christ paid the penalty for us and died on the Cross, was buried and rose again.
And humility is needed for our Christian lives, for a worthy walk, so that we surrender ourselves, and allow God to lead us, and yield to His instruction for us in His Word. And God is able to work through us as we are humble and know our need of Him.
It’s been said, “The branch that bears the most fruit is bent the lowest to the ground.” This is true because God can work thru a heart bent in submission to and in dependence on Him, allowing Him to use us and not try to serve in our own strength.
It’s been said, “Humility is terribly elusive, because if focused on too much it will turn into pride, its very opposite. Humility is a virtue to be highly sought but never claimed,” because “when you know you have it, you’ve lost it.”
But as we grow and are transformed by God’s grace, and as self is crowded out by an increasing Christ in our lives, allowing Him to have more & more of us who “humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross,” we will be like Christ and walk worthy “with all lowliness.”
Proverbs 13:10 says, “by pride cometh contention.” “All lowliness” is needed for unity in the Church, so that we don’t let stubbornness and our selfish pride cause contention and disunity in the church and in our relationships.
God wants us to also “walk worthy…with meekness.” Biblical meekness is not timidity or cowardice, but an inward power under control, that is, under the control of God. It speaks of a disciplined will in submission to its Master.
Outwardly, toward men, it speaks of being mild and non-aggressive and demonstrating a gentleness and a consideration of others.
Meekness is not weakness; it is real strength, inner strength through the power of God.
Numbers 12:3 says, “Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.”
While Moses was meek above all men, he confronted Pharaoh fearlessly, and he boldly confronted Israel with her rebelliousness, and he bravely interceded for Israel before the Lord when the Lord was ready to wipe Israel out and start over with Moses.
Meekness is a characteristic of Christ. Paul told the Corinthians in II Corinthians 10:1: “I Paul…beseech you by the meekness…of Christ.”
You’ll recall that our Lord, who was “meek and lowly of heart” as Matthew 11:29 says, how He with a righteous anger drove those out of the temple who had made it a den of thieves. So meekness has nothing to do with weakness, especially when we know that our Lord, who is all-powerful, is called “meek.”
Scripture shows that a meek person can show emotion and become angry. But that righteous anger is controlled and carefully directed, and rears up when God’s name or work is maligned or others are harmed.
Meekness is necessary to a worthy walk so that we discipline and submit our wills to God, and serve in Christ’s gentleness toward others.
Meekness is necessary for unity in the church, so that we don’t lose control of our emotions, so that we attack problems and not people, so that we are considerate of others, and we show control through God’s strength when we might be attacked or slandered.
God also wants a “worthy walk…with long-suffering.” Long-suffering is the opposite of being short-tempered. Manford Gutzke once said: “To become long-suffering one has to be long-bothered.” That’s the idea here.
It is to not easily be provoked and to be patient, to patiently endure with those who may try our patience to the limit.
God wants long fuses as misunderstandings arise, cutting words are said, or unkind actions are done. The flesh seeks to lash out, seeks retaliation, is impatient, wants to fight and argue, but longsuffering exercises self-restraint.
God is “slow to anger” the Scriptures say, and He expects the same out of us, His children.
And in our worthy walk we need to be “forbearing one another in love.” This means to be bearing with each other, making allowances, putting up with faults, failures and weaknesses. It’s recognizing that we’re not all perfect on this side of heaven.
Ruth Graham, wife of Billy Graham, once said, “I saw a sign on a strip of highway once that I would like to have copied on my gravestone. It said, ‘End of construction. Thank you for your patience.’”
And this is what we are to keep in mind as we are long-suffering and forbearing with one another, that God is still working on all of us, and God is not finished with us yet, and we make mistakes, and we all fail and stumble.
Carl D. Windsor writes: “Even the most devoted couple will experience a ‘stormy’ bout once in a while. A grandmother, celebrating her golden wedding anniversary, once told the secret of her long and happy marriage.
‘On my wedding day, I decided to make a list of ten of my husband’s faults which, for the sake of our marriage, I would overlook,’ she said.
“A guest asked the woman what some of the faults she had chosen to overlook were. The grandmother replied, ‘To tell you the truth, I never did get around to listing them. But whenever my husband did something that made me hopping mad, I would say to myself, Lucky for him that’s one of the ten!’”
That’s forbearance! And we are to be forbearing in God’s “love” meaning we love unconditionally and continuously. We need unconditional love for forbearance. And God’s love suffers long, is not easily provoked, bears all things, and endures all things.
Joseph McKinney states, “Anyone can love the ideal church. The challenge is to love the real church.” We are called to this in the Body of Christ.
In the real church there will be opportunities to exercise these graces for the sake of unity. But like Christ in love we are to seek the good of others and lift others up.
Jay Kesler says, “Christian love means putting the other person first, seeking the other person’s well-being regardless of what it costs.”
We are called to this in the Body of Christ. In the real church there will be opportunities to exercise these graces for the sake of unity.
And in light of our oneness in Christ, God also desires that we seek the good of others and serve and help one another in Christ’s love, as the following story illustrates.
After an accident in which she lost her arm, a girl named Jamie refused to go to school or church for an entire yr. Finally the young teen thought she could face her peers.
In preparation, her mother called her Sunday school teacher and asked that he not call attention to Jamie. The teacher promised, but when he got sick on Sunday and had to call a substitute, he forgot to tell the second teacher.
At the conclusion of the lesson that day, which was about inviting friends to church, the sub led the class in doing the hand motions to the children’s poem: Here’s the church, Here’s the steeple, Open the door, See all the people.
Jamie’s eyes filled with tears. A 13-year-old boy looked at her and realized how she must be feeling. So he went and knelt beside her. And with one hand apiece, they supported each other, making the church, steeple, and people. (Billy Waters)
And so may we, the Church, support each other and treat one another with selfless love, and be humble, meek, patient, and forbearing, and serve as one Body, and as we do the church can be a strong witness for Christ.
Ephesians 4:3 reads, “Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
A worthy walk before God also consists of endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. The word “endeavoring” speaks of making every diligent effort, doing something with an eager, zealous, dedicated and fixed determination.
“Endeavoring” is in the present tense and is something God desires to be a constant concern of every believer. We are to constantly strive for it with God’s help.
And we are to continuously make every effort to “keep,” not form, not produce, but to guard, to protectively watch “the unity of the Spirit.”
God is asking us to recognize the unity He Himself has formed and with all our might to safeguard it, to stand for and protect this unity. It is the ground of unity, and it should bind and knit our hearts together in the bond of peace (2:14).
Ephesians 2:14 says that Christ “is our peace.” Christ is to be the bond that binds believers solidly together.
But unity must always be based on truth, God’s truth, not under a banner of false unity, making light of and allowances for false doctrine and error.
Paul warns us again and again, for our good, to remove ourselves from error and from those who teach it.
As he says in Rom. 16:17: “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.”
In essential doctrine and truth there is to be unity, and the seven-fold unity of the Spirit in Eph. 4:4-6 is essential doctrine and truth for the Church, the Body of Christ.
And since the Spirit established it, adherence to it isn’t negotiable, it is required.
Join us next time as we break down this seven-fold unity in verses 4-6. Thank you for watching.