Ephesians 4

The foundation for obedient spiritual living is obedient spiritual thinking. For the first half of this letter, the Apostle Paul has presented the truth to the church in a way that should thrill the hearts of the redeemed. Here are some of the things we have learned: God is big. The Father has chosen us in love. The Son shed His blood for us. The Spirit is enlightening the eyes of our hearts. Our God has a wonderful eternal plan concerning heaven and earth. He is bringing about that plan in Jesus Christ and in the church that is united to Him. Our lives are full of meaning in Jesus. God is able to do far more in and through us than we can even ask or think. These are the ideas to which we must continually return if we want to grow spiritually.

There is a way to take in these truths, a way of thinking about and talking about the Lord, and a way of responding to God’s gifts which can yield real progress that brings glory to God. Paul explains this way of life in the remainder of this letter. We start with God. Paul calls himself a prisoner for the Lord. What a way of speaking! He is a happy prisoner, because he loves his Keeper and his Keeper loves him. Paul wants to walk in a manner worthy of the calling that we have. Yes, we are captives of Christ; yes, we are His servants; but we are so happy to discover that we are fellow-heirs with Christ, and sons of God in Jesus Christ our Lord, that we are willing to consider real change according to the command of the one who gave His life for us.

It seems ludicrous for us to even say something so weak as this, that we are willing to consider obeying God, but it is better for us to be honest, rather than to have overly high spiritual pretensions combined with low spiritual attainments. The humility, gentleness, patience, and love of Christ are not optional for us, but real progress in these areas does not come easily. We are still too ready for division in the church and too slow to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Because we would rather not deal with people, we might prefer anonymity in large crowds of worshipers who will not know us. We might choose to use some kind of technology that allows us to keep our spirituality private and personal. This is not God’s way. He wants us to be working with real people as we live out the oneness of the body of Christ. There is only one church with Christ as the one Head. Though we have particular assemblies and particular individuals within every church that have specific gifts, the individuality that we have should be working toward a unity that is ours to experience in Christ within local gatherings of worship where we come to know people in person.

According to Psalm 68, despite the separation we feel because of time and distance, Christ is our one King in all eras of the life of the church, and He has ascended to God’s heavenly sanctuary. Before He ascended, He first came down from heaven in order to do His great work of redemption. It was necessary for Him to become man in order to die for men. He descended from heaven for this purpose, but having accomplished that great atonement for us and having been raised from the dead, He then returned to heaven, and from that great height of the power of God, He showers His beloved “captives” with heavenly gifts. We are being taken up with Him, and He is with us here below by His Spirit. He gave some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastors and teachers in the church. They are gifts from Him, not for their own pride but for the good of the whole body. They are serving up the Word in all sorts of contexts that help the church to move forward in faith and love. The source of everything good for us is Christ, and the goal of every step of real spiritual life is Christ. He is the maturity we seek in the church.

The Lord has a plan for His worldwide assembly, and for each of us individually within each church. That plan involves not only the end result of what we will be like in heaven, but also the way that we grow toward that end now on earth. That way will come by His Word and Spirit working through all kinds of people. We are to do and speak the truth in love; not blasting people with everything all at once with no concern for their feelings, but living the truth of love in their midst, and seeking opportunities to build each other up in faith that can be received by those we want to bless in some way. Everyone in the body has a part in this life of grace.

What that means is that each us needs to be willing to put off old patterns of life that do not conform to the love of the cross and the glory of the resurrection. We will only do this if we have been renewed in the spirit of our minds. As we put off the old self of the man of the Fall, we simultaneously put on the new self of the Man of the resurrection. This will only happen if we are willing to confess our sins to one another, pray for one another, and help each other in this new way of life. It is best for each person to do their own confessing, and for those who love to speak words of forgiveness and life. This is the way for people to change patterns of falsehood, sinful anger, stealing, corrupt speech, and bitterness of heart. By the Lord’s blessing of the body working together in true Christian relationships of love we find divine resources by the Holy Spirit enabling us to walk in truth, forgiveness, diligence, and spiritual edification.

This kind of life must be lived together, since we are one in Christ. In His death we have all the sin-defeating power necessary to move ahead in a life that will be fruitful. The pathway of sin is not the final destiny of the church. As Christ has risen from the dead, we too can walk more and more in the newness of life He has for us. We are forgiven, and now we can help one another to walk in the way of His love by the Spirit He sends forth from on high and in accord with the Word that He speaks through His servants in the church.