Play Your Position

Play Your Position!

Ephesians 4:1-16

The key to success in any team sport is that the players function and play their position.  When analysts look at a specific game, they will talk about ‘breakdowns’ where a player is caught ‘out of position’. In hockey, a  classic example is when a defenseman tries to pinch and keep the puck in at the blue line and fails in his attempt.  It is at this point, he leaves his partner vulnerable and very quickly the opposing team may now have a fast break creating a two on one!

In the first three chapters of Ephesians, Paul has been focusing primarily on our position in Christ, who we are.  It is all about what God has done for us and now it is game time.  He gets very practical in how all these inherent qualities get played out in our lives.

Live in light of who you are.  You have a calling, now step into it and don’t be shy about it.

The Greeks crowned champions in the games with a stephanos, a wreath made of leaves. We who are followers of Jesus already are wearing a stephanos. We are all victors in Christ, we have all been given our gold medals!  James, challenges us as he wrote: "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown [stephanos] of life that God has promised to those who love Him." (James 1:12) So, as we persevere in the power of the HS and learn the lessons of faith, we are given life itself, we are doing it wearing that invisible crown on our heads. Jesus warned in Revelation, "Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown." (Revelation 3:11)  We are the son and daughters of royalty and we are playing for the King of kings and Lord of lords and with Him will be His called, chosen and faithful followers!  Revelation 17:14

Playing with your God given attitude! v1-6

Humility -  For the Greeks humility was not a virtue.  To live in the fullness of life as they described it left no room for this character quality.  However for the believer, humility is an indispensable part of who we are.  We recognize that it only by the grace of God we stand.  We are overwhelmed that we have been chosen to play in spite of our weaknesses and failures.

Gentle – Gentleness is the spirit of one who is so absorbed in seeking some worthy goal for the common good that he refuses to be deflected from it by slights, injuries or insults directed at himself personally.  Gentleness is also power under control.  It is also the realization that while I could do a ‘power play’ in this situation by throwing everything I have at the person, I take into account their spirit, their makeup and recognize where it is coming from. 

It is true that when we choose to go against the status quo and become a champion for a God-given initiative that there will always be resistance.  How we handle that resistance will speak volumes about who we are as people.

Patience – is very closely related to gentleness in that it speaks to our decision to choose not to retaliate

Bearing with one another in love – is our decision not to give up on loving others especially with those whose faults keep resurfacing.

The tone of these words is that we recognize and see how God is working in us.   There needs to be consistency between my everyday life and my identity in Christ.

The other really important truth in all of this is getting over ourselves.  Every one of these words deals a huge blow to selfishness.  If we keep struggling with being prickly and demanding, we have the problem.  It is one thing to work through our issues with others dealing with their inadequacies, but it is the responsiveness that Paul is calling us to deal with in ourselves.  We have to learn HS initiated response-ability.

When he begins to emphasize our oneness, we need to see that this doesn’t somehow have to manufactured, unity already exists.  We need to commit ourselves to continuing to experience it, to celebrate it and to hold on to it.  We must do whatever it takes to resist what drives wedges between us, to stop listening to the innuendos, the complaints that seek to divide us and pit one against another or a group against a group

Playing with your God given gifts! v7-13

There is incredible unity in diversity.

He is showing how Christ fulfilled this prophecy in his incarnation, resurrection and ascension which of course led to the impartation of the Holy Spirit.  Paul is using army like metaphors and God was the Commander and King who delivered his people out of Egypt and defeated their enemies in the wilderness and in Canaan, so Jesus is our Commander and King who defeated Satan and his kingdom at the cross.

As a result of that victory, Jesus is able to give grace-gifts to his people. Now, the most important of all the spiritual gifts our ascended Lord gave us is His Holy Spirit. The second is the very presence of our risen Lord Jesus who lives in us.

If we received nothing else that would be all that we need because it is in the giving of the HS and the indwelling Christ that we are empowered and can do all things!  Now while we will breakdown the gifts, the point is this.  When it comes right down to it, if God wants you to do something, telling Him you don’t have the gift is not an option!

Spiritual gifts are to be used by us, his sons and daughters to build up his church, and so the apostles, prophets, evangelists and pastor/teachers are to equip the saints within the body of Christ for the work of service and to help bring them to maturity. This in turn will bring the church as a whole into the maturity of Christ Jesus. The purpose in all of this is for us to bring His presence, His power, and His blessings into our world.

Now, while this list is certainly not exhaustive, it speaks to foundational gifts that are needed in the church.

1.       Apostle – means one who is sent. ‘an apostolic gifting’ It is the prayer of Jesus in John 17 where he states I am sending them into the world.  We have been sent with the good news of salvation.  The credentials of an apostle of Jesus Christ was to have seen Him and they were commissioned to spread the news of the gospel.

The apostolic gift is seen today in those who are used of the Lord to begin new works, establish new ministries.  We see this gift in those who are called into church planting and in missions ministry especially to unreached people groups.

2.      Prophet – ‘a prophetic gifting’ is the ability to speak the mind and heart of God.  They are used to speak and bring confirmation in a very unique way by God.  God speaks to them through dreams and visions and revelations.  They often can see spiritual realities that others cannot readily recognize in their own life.  In the purest sense they speak about realities of the future, judgments and warnings as well as blessing.

This church is filled with the gift of the prophetic from every walk of life and they are godly people who don’t contradict Scripture. By the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit they are able to take God's word and make it shine into the lives of their listeners even by simply giving them a verse of Scripture.

Acts 2:17,18

It has also been reported that Islamic Arabs in Morocco and Algeria have been receiving visions of Jesus Christ and accepting him without any guidance from Scripture or other Christians at all.

3.      Evangelists are those who are called of God to speak boldly into the lives of others and call them to faith in Jesus Christ.

Philip was a great example of an evangelist to us in Acts 8.  He began simply serving in the church in Jerusalem as a deacon and then we catch up with him 25 years later in Acts 21:8 still ministering and sharing the Word in Caesarea.

All Christians are called to be witnesses of the love Jesus has for them and the love they have for him as their Lord and Savior. We are to testify to the work of God in our lives. However, not all Christians are evangelists as God often gives an evangelists favour especially with those outside of the faith. 

Pastor / Teacher -  This gift is the spiritual ability to shepherd the flock of God (guard, guide, encourage, warn), to feed them the word of God, and equip the people of God to find and use their spiritual gifts so they too can do the work of ministry. 

Again it is important that we understand that these gifts are not just in title, but in function and that it is not just the paid staff that only have these foundational gifts.

The whole point in all of this is that we make the invisible Christ visible in the lives of those we minister to.  It is the outflow of our lives 

In verses 14-16 Paul challenges us to play with our God-given confidence by living in maturity.  He is calling to live it out and start building a winning record!

1.  In what areas should we as believers have unity and what areas should we have diversity?

2. Do you know what your spiritual gifts are?

3. Do you know what their purpose is?

4.  As a Christian, God has given you a ministry to suit your gifts...have you discovered it?

Loved From The Inside Out!!

I am really inspired by this prayer and it definitely a favourite prayer of mine.  It is especially significant in that it focuses on the whole trinity and the part that they all play in the glorious outworking of our faith.  It's a prayer that serves as an example to me, as a pastor, of the kinds of qualities that I should pray to invade the souls of each and everyone of you. I believe it should also serve as an example of how we, as individual members of this church family, should pray for one another\.

But most of all, I believe this prayer is meant to motivate us! It is meant to impact us with a sense the wonder and value of the spiritual riches that are ours in Christ. It is meant to take hold of every fiber of our being and let the truth of those riches sink deeply into our hearts and lives and transform us from the inside-out. It is meant to inspire us to truly capture the very essence of who we are and what is ours in Christ.  It is for us to live out the implications of those spiritual riches in everyday life.

For this reason I kneel before the Father

Our best attempts at spiritual formation unless they are empowered by the Spirit of God.  Otherwise prayers just become spoken words, Bible study is just words read, worship music is just words sung and music played. Once Paul had emphasized and reemphasized the grace by which we stand, he now takes us another step downward in the evolution of worship and that is when we are brought to our knees.  In that day it was typical for the Jews to stand in prayer as we can see in Matthew 6:5; Luke 18:11,13.

Kneeling was significant because it showed an expression of deep emotion and earnestness.  We see Solomon kneeling at the dedication of the temple(1 Kings 8:54), Stephen kneeling as he was being martyred, Peter kneeling at the deathbed of Dorcas, Paul as he made his farewell to the congregations and most significantly, Jesus, as He knelt in the Garden of Gethsemane. 

For us who find it natural to kneel in prayer, it would be the type of desperate prayer that would lead us to lie face down on the floor.

From whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name

Paul is praying specifically for those who are part of the family of God.  This is not a prayer for just anyone, it was for those who had crossed the line of faith, those who had a defining place of giving their life over to Jesus as Saviour and Lord

We derive our significance, our purpose, our modus operandi through our identification as Jesus followers.

It was out of his glorious riches, that He is calling us to discover just how much confidence, power and resolve we have in our very being!

Prayer request #1  going  INSIDE  - supernatural strength to dwell in Christ

Dwell = It was a presence that He wanted to remain in us continually.  It was something for us to discover in its fullness; not sporadically feel  from time to time.  There are some of us who feel his presence stronger in certain places more than others

Because of your relationship with Him, there is not a single spiritual thing you will ever need that is lacking from your spiritual treasure-store!!  The fact is that you, as a believer, have already been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ!

 

I want you to write a love letter to Jesus.  It can simply start, ‘Jesus I love you because’.  Now, here is where it will become more stretching because as you share your heart and love with Him, you may sense a spontaneous flow of impressions coming back to you.  God may be telling you of His love for you. 

Prayer request # 2 more INSIDE -  go to the very places where you can know the power to experience the depths of Christ’s love. 

to grasp (understand that this is hard work) 

The decision to remain still and be before God instead of ‘doing’ for God is a very difficult desire for us to wrap our minds and hearts around.  However it is often that in those extended times of stillness where we give ourselves over to listening to Him that He washes over us with His love.  For some of us it is doing something that we absolutely love that is of a pure heart and feeling His joy there.

I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.       Eric Liddell

It is a single sentiment signifying the breadth of His love in every direction of our life.  It is similar to one of the statement that Zophar got right in his counsel to Job in  Job 11:7-9

Here is the paradox: Paul prayed that we would “know” that which is beyond knowledge.

Realize this that as he prayed for his readers to have this experience.  He was unable to describe it nor was he going to try to teach it happening in a certain way.  He recognized that we are all unique in the ways that we feel our way to God.  We also know that true spiritual formation is caught rather than taught.  It is the gift of God rather than the achievement of humans to say that I have achieved a certain level or experience with God and therefore I have achieved a certain level of spiritual awareness.  This is the danger when we describe our experiences with God and make them the standard for others to also attain or live up to.

Being still is the first step.  Stillness doesn’t necessarily mean the absence of movement because often it is movement takes us there whether that is through music, dance, running, walking as we have seen.

The second step is to fix your eyes on Jesus and ask God to give you a fresh awareness of Himself,  a vision, a picture.

Journal!  Write your thoughts down!

Ask your Heavenly Father that you will understand and know in a very real way the significance of Jesus’ love for you.

God’s words to us are often like spontaneous thoughts that light up on our mind.  However as we long to hear God’s voice, we first need to quiet ourselves in His presence and then fix our eyes on Jesus.  You could ask a very simple question like, ‘Dear Lord Jesus, what is it today that you want me to know about your love?’

This is all a very small taste of what Sharon and I were able to experience over the last two days as we took part in a seminar on hearing God’s voice by Mark Virkler.

Prayer request #3 unleashed to go OUT!  dream big dreams for the church for the glory of Christ

that is at work within us”; “at work” translates energoumai, meaning to be energized!  Be energized by that very work that He wants to carry out through all of us collectively as a body of believers...a fusion that creates an undeniable synergy in our ministry and focus!

Unveiling The Mystery

Life is mysterious isn’t it? For the most part we have a pretty good idea of what is going on, but then life sends us a curve ball and there is this automatic tendency to pull insight from other sources apart from what God reveals to us. When I follow up with people, I’m always surprised by those very sources and the stock that is placed there.

I’m even surprised by Christians who turn to horoscopes to reveal some of the mystery of their destiny or talk about their ‘sign’ as if carries absolute relevance. Throughout human history, we have come up with so many different ways to try to end the mysteries of our destiny and the divination industry is a multi-billion dollar one.

When it concerns our very own or our loved ones futures we want to know the answer now. However, for all believers, we cannot look to any other source to discover our destiny other than the Bible. Indeed, the Bible prohibits believers from looking anywhere else.

Leviticus 19:31; 20:6

I have had many conversations with people in and out of Southside about all the different denominations? They ask questions like, ‘why one church will absolutely refuse to participate in any activities with another church?’ This raises a good point about the mystery of the Church and that being the fact that if we are Christians, why can’t we all just get along? In all of this there are some very clear truths that we must commit for absolute unity on and where we can’t compromise the richness of the mystery of grace, our union with Christ and the eternal purpose and wisdom of the Church. When we get this right, the Church is at its best. May Southside be an ever increasing representation of all these things in the county of Halton whose visible minorities have grown 781% in 8 years!!

As you know, last year I was able to go the Israel and there I took a picture of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. I have since discovered a story that so clearly illustrates the sad fallout of division within the community that follows Jesus.

Now, the church is the traditional site of the hill of Christ’s crucifixion and burial. It was built during the time of Constantine, roughly 326AD. This church has gone through many different owners in its life and now there are at least six faith groups that stake claim to it. The three main ones are the Greek Orthodox, the Armenian Orthodox and the (Latin) Roman Catholic. Three other communities - the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox,the Ethiopian Orthodox and the Syrian Orthodox - also possess certain rights and small properties in or about the building, and – get this – with the key to the church is owned by a Muslim family.

While there, I saw a ladder resting on the church’s ledge. The story goes that in 1860, one of the faction noticed a broken window pane. They put a ladder up but before they can fix the window, another faction pointed out that the window belonged to them. So since the broken window pane belonged to one faction and the ladder belonged to another, the end result was that the ladder was left leaning against the wall under the window pane, from 1860 it remains there today.

Why can’t we all just get along?

We may laugh at this but isn’t there some truths applicable for us? How many of us refuse to be on the same team with another member from the same church? How many of us here are harboring resentment and deep hurts for one another?

If history is any indication, there are more than we want to admit!

THE MYSTERY OF GRACE v1-3

The unveiling of unmerited favour

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles v1

He knows that being called as an apostle to the Gentiles has landed him in this very prison. He is living his life with no regrets over the understanding of why he is facing the very persecution and marginalization at the hands of those in authority.

It is also interesting to note that he sees himself as a prisoner of Christ Jesus, not of the state, not to the religious leaders. He is a prisoner of Christ and wears it as a badge of honor.

Surely you have heard about the administration of God's grace that was given to me for you, v2

The word administration here can be better understood as ‘stewardship’. He hears the clink of his own chains and it is a constant reminder of the stewardship of his life.

Peter M. shared a great definition of stewardship this week with me. He was on my sermon research team this week and didn’t even know it!!

Stewardship is simply an attitude. It is acknowledgement and recognition of God's sovereignty and one's response to that - surrender. Stewardship is a subset of discipleship and includes the management of one's life, talents, time, money, relationships and resources.

The opportunity to be a good steward is only because of the unmerited favour of God toward me that I am even able to stand...by grace we stand.

For Paul, this is a stewardship of his life that God has entrusted him with.

The stewardship of grace

Without grace we are subject to the demands of justice. Holy justice demands that the retribution of sin is paid for.

Grace is showing favour and goodness instead of punishment when disobedience has taken place. It is forgiving someone in our lives when they don’t deserve it. It is God’s favour towards us when we have done nothing to deserve it.

Romans 5: 6-8

In post Apartheid South Africa, at one [of the Truth and Reconciliation] hearing, a policeman named van de Broek recounted an incident when he and other officers shot an eighteen-year-old boy and burned the body, turning it on the fire like a piece of barbecue meat in order to destroy the evidence. Eight years later van de Broek returned to the same house and seized the boy’s father. The wife was forced to watch as policemen bound her husband on a woodpile, poured gasoline over his body, and ignited it.

The courtroom grew hushed as the elderly woman who had lost first her son and then her husband was given a chance to respond. "What do you want from Mr. van de Broek?" the judge asked. She said she wanted van de Broek to go to the place where they burned her husband’s body and gather up the dust so she could give him a decent burial. His head down, the policeman nodded in agreement.

Then she added a further request, "Mr. van de Broek took all my family away from me, and I still have a lot of love to give. Twice a month, I would like for him to come to the ghetto and spend a day with me so I can be a mother to him. And I would like Mr. van de Broek to know that he is forgiven by God, and that I forgive him too. I would like to embrace him so he can know my forgiveness is real."

When justice demands ultimate retribution, grace comes in and covers the offense in love like a blanket given to someone in shock who has been pulled out of icy waters. It covers the cold act of their sin in forgiveness, love, acceptance and relationship.

that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. v3

The term ‘mystery’ that Paul used would have grabbed the attention of his audience of that day. Mystery for the Greeks was all about a secret passage into a chosen belief that was now open to those initiated into it.

When Paul speaks of the mystery, he reflects on many characteristics of its revelation from the mystery of Christ in you the hope of glory in Colossians as well as the mystery of the gospel in Romans 16:25.

It all flows into the mystery of our union together in Christ...

THE MYSTERY OF CHRISTv4-9

The unveiling of the promised union in Christ

One word used for the body here is synsoma in the Greek and it is the fusion of two becoming one to create and form an undeniable synergy. It was radical because it flew in the face of the common religion of the day which was all about exclusion and purity of race and pride in nationality and all those barriers are crashing down. The picture that readily comes to mind for those of us who remember is 1989 when the Berlin Wall came down and signalled the end of the communist bloc. There was a celebratory atmosphere then but Paul’s news as we know did not receive that kind of welcoming.

Literally we are now all members of one new body and as Pastor Mike shared last week, ‘the ground is level at the foot of the cross’.

The mystery is that we become connected to people we have nothing in common with. We become friends with people we would never have imagined could be our friends. We walk arm in arm and side by side people that we probably would have snubbed before we knew Jesus. In Christ all that separates us is put aside for one very strong and compelling reason. We are now brothers and sisters in Christ.

No matter how diverse our racial, cultural and political backgrounds maybe, it is the one thing that we can go with to any part of the world and the fellowship of believers is sweet. You don’t have to go on a missions trip to know and experience this....just stay for the second service here at 2pm! The connection and friendship that I have experienced with Pastor Jung has been really encouraging.

The truth of this really goes deeper because today I also realize that that person who is sitting on the opposite side of the church that I really don’t get along with....Jesus died for him too...and that person who cut me off in traffic today, Jesus died for him as he died for my neighbour who has all those loud parties or that friend who I know cheated on their taxes. It goes on, the prostitute, the homeless, the atheist teacher,...Jesus died for all of them. He died for everyone of them and is calling them to Himself. Am I getting in the way or praying them into the WAY? The mystery of the gospel is that Jews and non-Jews, name their background. They all deserve to belong, they all deserve a place at the table, they all deserve the riches of God’s goodness. Why? Ultimately because we are all undeserving but it is our mission to pursue Jesus passionately and connect people to their God given family!

The 1^st half of v7,8

And the quicker we can get rick of our sense of entitlement, the better. Paul got it when he said.. I became a servant v7a

Although I am less than the least of all God's people v8a

I think Lehman Strauss said it best when for those of us in ministry get to the place where we speak of ‘having earned it’ through our decrees, experience, diplomas which qualify us for the ministry.

I have never taken for granted the ministry that God has entrusted to me here at Southside and for that matter since the first day I began serving in full time ministry.

The 2^nd half of v7,8

by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of his power. V7b

Again Paul is emphatic about who is doing the work, it is being done by a twofold gift:

God grace and the working of his power – it is that same energy that Paul speaks of in Colossians 1:29 that is operative by the Spirit’s indwelling.

this grace was given me: to preach to the of this gospel Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, v8b

The unsearchable riches for Paul were not the gospel, not the doctrine, it was Christ Himself

THE MYSTERY OF THE CHURCH v10-13

The unveiling of the wisdom and eternal purpose of God

When Paul speaks about the heavenly realms, he is attacking a prominent kind of thinking that was prevalent in his day. It was the teaching of Gnosticism which was being developed and spiritual beings were being given a prominent place in their teaching. It was so much so that they sought this type of intermediary gods instead of Christ.

As it relates to unity in the church...

This was not intellectual belief but a real faith and belief that really changed the things that we care about.

Why can’t we get along?

It is for this reason...we haven’t fully submitted our lives to the lordship of Jesus Christ.

We make excuses like when I get my act together God, then I will give it over to you.

When we make our own demands for justice

When we don’t submit our desire for control, for direction, for purpose, for fulfillment to God, that is when we the ugliness all too easily can spill out in our conversations with others whether that is gossip, envy, greed....you name it.

We can’t get along when...

we fail to see God’s grace

we fail to embrace our unity and oneness in Christ

we fail to undertake God’s purposes and justify our own...

However, when we do get along; we are witnessing to the world the power of God... v10

it is witnessed by the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms.

“When the church is united, it slaps Satan in the face and confirms that God’s eternal plan is in motion.”

It is we, the blood bought servants of Jesus Christ together who become Christ with flesh on.

Our unity also leads us in him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence v12 Hebrews 4:16.... ACCESS! Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence that we may receive mercy and find grace in our time of need.

Questions For Discussion

What had they heard concerning Paul and the administration of God’s grace, mystery, and revelation given to him? vv. 2-3. See Galatians 1:11-17.

What is God’s purpose in forming the church? v. 10.

Although the mystery of the gospel in Christ has been fully revealed for nearly 2000 years, why do so many still misunderstand and obscure the gospel? What about Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons and Seventh-Day groups?

What is the essence of the mystery of Christ that we need to keep at all costs?