How many of y'all glad you came to church this morning?
Would you slip your hand up?
Yeah, awesome.
Well, we're glad you're here too.
Would you take your Bibles with me and turn to Ephesians,
Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus,
the book of Ephesians.
We are gonna get through the first chapter today.
We're not starting a new series on the book of Ephesians.
We're just gonna stay in chapter one today,
and in the future we'll be in other passages
that have to do with the church, with us.
All right, so that is what we are doing
every time we come here and we gather in this assembly,
we are doing church.
If you have kids that normally be dismissed
and you haven't done that yet,
go ahead and send those kids off to children's church
at this time.
I believe that's four years old and under.
For children's church.
All right, so Ephesians chapter one.
This morning I'm reading from the English Standard Version.
It should be very close to what you're reading.
And let's get into it.
Verse one, Ephesians one.
Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
to the saints who are in Ephesus
and are faithful in Christ Jesus,
grace to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ.
So he's addressing the church in Ephesus.
Now we know from the instruction all throughout Scripture
in the New Testament,
the Bible was not just written
to its intended recipients at that moment.
It was written to all of us across all of time.
It was God's love letter to mankind,
God's instruction manual to mankind.
And it is just as relevant to us today
as it has ever been.
So we're gonna be studying throughout this passage
and many more to follow over the next several weeks.
What does it mean to be the church?
We are the church.
We call ourselves that.
It's out on our sign.
We invite people to church.
We say, I go to this church.
And what does that mean?
What does that entail?
What exactly are we saying
when we are saying that we are a church?
So this is gonna be a study in practical theology.
What is theology?
It is the study of God, theos.
It is a study of God.
And so this is the practical side of theology,
not just the academic side,
not just the research side.
This is the actual everyday practical
life application side of theology.
This is the concept behind the sermon today
and the series really.
We don't just go to church.
We are the church.
Would you say that with me now?
We don't just go to church.
We are the church.
We can do a better job than that.
Here we go, ready?
We don't just go to church.
We are the church.
Yes, we are.
The church is not a building.
It is the bride of Christ.
It is not just a place.
It is a people.
It's a gathering.
It's an assembly.
It's a called out body of believers.
So where do we get the word that we use for church?
It comes from the biblical word, the Greek word, ekklesia.
How many of you guys can read Greek?
I figure there might be a couple people in here who could.
You just never know.
That's all right.
There's the Greek version up there.
And then you can see the English lettering below.
Ekklesia.
It means an assembly, a congregation, a gathering.
This word would have been normal and understandable
to those back in the day that it was written thousands of years ago.
However, for us today, we understand it as a meeting together,
a gathering together, an assembling of people.
It's a congregation.
So we are the church.
The doctrine of the church is called ecclesiology.
That's where we get that word from, ecclesiology,
from the biblical word, ekklesia.
Ekklesia.
So it is the doctrine of that gathering,
that assembling of believers in Jesus.
We're going to be in Ephesians 1.
And I had my new King James, and then I left it at home,
so I grabbed my English standard.
That was my backup in my office.
So that's what we're doing today.
That's all right.
So let's look at verses.
Jump down.
Tell you what, we'll just read it.
We left off in verse 2.
Let's pick it up in verse 3.
We're going to pay special attention to verses 4 and 5.
Verse 3, Ephesians 1.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,
even as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world,
that we should be holy and blameless before Him.
Verse 5.
In love He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ,
according to the purpose of His will.
So we see in verses 4 and 5, God chooses us.
So the idea here is it's not about us, it's about God.
We didn't merit God's grace and favor by some amazing feat that we performed
or some sinlessness that we achieved.
There is nothing like that.
God chose us.
We can't earn God's grace.
There's nothing good enough that any of you or I could ever do
to merit or earn the grace of God.
God chooses us.
So let's jump back to verse 3.
We'll see it in just a second here.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing.
Okay, now jump down to verse 7.
We left off in 5, didn't we?
Let's read 6, then we'll get to 7 and 8.
Here we go.
Verse 6.
To the praise of His glorious grace,
with which He has blessed us in the Beloved.
Now verse 7.
Here we go.
In Him, in Christ, in Jesus,
in Him we have redemption through His blood.
The forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of His grace.
Verse 8.
Which He lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight.
So the truth we're drawing from this is God freely gives to us.
God chooses us and He freely gives to us.
We couldn't earn His grace and we can't earn His favor.
We can't earn His blessings.
We can't earn God's gifts to us.
We couldn't earn the free gift of salvation which He offered to us.
And we can't earn all the grace that He lavishes on us day in and day out.
We can't earn His favor.
Now verse 9.
Making known to us the mystery of His will,
according to His purpose,
which He set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time
to unite all things in Him,
things in heaven and things on the earth.
In Him we have obtained an inheritance,
having been predestined according to the purpose of Him
who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
not ours.
You catch that?
He works all things according to the counsel of His will.
He doesn't need to consult us on what to do.
He's got it all figured out.
He's got His will set, determined,
before the foundation of the world.
And that's what He works things according to that purpose.
Now verse 12.
So that we who were the first to hope in Christ
might be to the praise of His glory.
Verse 13.
In Him you also,
when you heard the word of truth,
the gospel of your salvation,
and believed in Him,
were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.
Check this one out.
God saves us for His glory.
We have no bragging rights.
God redeems us,
saves us,
grants us that saving grace,
that washing of our sins
by His blood.
And friend, if you're sitting here this morning
and you're not sure what I'm talking about,
you need to get sure before you leave today.
You need to come down,
talk to us after the service,
come talk,
I will stop everything else I'm doing
and talk to you
about how God can save you,
how God can forgive you,
how He can redeem you.
That is step number one.
And nothing else matters.
All the songs,
all the building,
all the everything we do in church
doesn't matter
if you are not born again,
the Bible says.
Saved.
Becoming a child of God.
That is number one.
Or else everything else.
is just distracting from that.
Everything else is pretending
that that's who you are
and you're really not.
So that is the most important step.
And God saves us for His glory.
He does it to glorify Himself.
Jesus said,
I glorify the Father.
The Father has glorified me
and I glorify the Father.
You and I have no bragging rights.
There's nothing that we could do
to earn God's favor.
Look over in chapter 2
and verse 8 real quick.
Cross the page,
chapter 2 and verse 8.
By grace,
you have been saved
through faith.
This is not your own doing.
It is the gift of God.
Not of works.
Not a result of works.
So that no one may,
what's that word?
Boast.
There's no boasting.
There's no bragging rights.
Look at me.
I'm a child of God.
Well, that makes me wonder
if you are.
Because a child of God
would understand
that He didn't do anything
to become one.
He was adopted.
That process
was born of God.
It was carried through by God.
And it will be sustained
by God alone.
Now,
let's pick it up
in verse 14.
Who is the guarantee,
the Holy Spirit,
who is the guarantee
of our inheritance
until we acquire possession of it
to the praise of His glory?
Verse 15.
For this reason,
because I have heard of your faith
in the Lord Jesus
and your love toward all the saints,
I do not cease
to give thanks for you,
remembering you in my prayers
that the God
of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of glory,
may give you a spirit of wisdom
and of revelation
in the knowledge of Him.
Having the eyes
of your hearts enlightened
that you may know
what is the hope
to which He has called you,
what are the riches
of His glorious inheritance
in the saints,
and what is the immeasurable greatness
of His power
toward us who believe
according to the working
of His great might.
God works through us.
You and I have no
boastworthy accomplishments.
There's nothing
that we can boast in
that we accomplish for God.
He does it all through us.
That's why He gets the glory.
In all things,
He is to have the preeminence
all throughout our lives.
Pick it up in verse 20.
The working of His great might
that He worked in Christ
when He raised Him
from the dead
and seated Him
at His right hand
in the heavenly places.
Far above all rule
and authority
and power and dominion
and above every name
that is named,
not only in this age
but also in the one to come.
And He put all things
under His feet
and gave Him as head
over all things
to the church.
Did you catch that?
He put all things
under His feet
and gave Him, Jesus,
as head over all things
to the church
which is His body,
the fullness of Him
who fills all in all.
Verses 20 through 23,
the end of this chapter,
teach us
God is the head
of all things
in the church.
He is the head
of the church.
He is the head
of everything
that's in the church.
He is the head
of everyone in the church,
everything else
is under His feet.
He is the head
of the church.
It's not about you
and it's not about me.
So that is the lesson
for today.
The church
is not about me.
The church
is not about me.
Would you join me
if you're able to
in saying that
with me ready?
The church
is not about me.
Now we can say that
and we might believe that,
we might want
to believe that,
but sometimes
it's hard
to live that way.
We are the church,
but the church
is not about us.
If you're taking notes
this morning,
jot this down
if you would.
My primary role
in the church
is to glorify God.
My primary role
in the church
is to glorify God.
Back in Ephesians
chapter 1,
we read it a moment ago
in verse 12.
I like how the
Revised Standard Version
reads this.
They're all good.
Sometimes the phrasing
is just slightly different
and I love how clear
this makes it.
Verse 12,
we who had first
hoped in Christ
have been destined
and appointed
to live for the praise
of His glory.
That's because
the church
is not about me.
My primary purpose
in this church
and on this earth
is to glorify God.
Now this is a Baptist church,
right?
The Baptists,
our creed is the Bible.
Our only creed
is the Bible.
Our only,
you know,
thing that we build
our lives around,
our foundation
of all of our lives
is the Bible.
There are other churches
and denominations
that will adopt
confessions or creeds
that take the Bible
and kind of put it
in their words
and we say,
this is what we hold to.
And that's fine.
I'm not judging them
for that.
Actually,
sometimes those
can be very helpful
summaries
of biblical beliefs.
And one of the most
effective ones
and long-standing ones
is the Westminster
Shorter Catechism
and it says,
the chief end of man
is to glorify God
and enjoy Him forever.
The chief end of man
is to glorify God
and enjoy Him forever.
You got to smile
when you say that
because you can't enjoy God.
There's nothing wrong
with that.
Sometimes when you meet
Christians who have been
Christians for a long time,
many, many years
and decades
and it just seems like
they have a perennial frown
on their face.
Like, man,
have you been enjoying God
all that time?
Maybe you've been missing
your chief end.
Maybe you haven't been
enjoying God as much
because you haven't been
glorifying God
as much.
So that is
my primary purpose
in this church
is to glorify God.
Number two,
I glorify God the most
when I glorify me
the least.
That's a hard truth
to accept, y'all.
We want to make
ourselves look good.
We put on our best clothes.
We take a bath
every once in a while
or a shower.
Those are more effective
sometimes.
We put on smell good,
you know.
We try to wash our clothes
and iron them
and look good.
Today,
I wore waiters
in the baptistry
for the first time.
These other baptisms
that have happened,
I brought a change of clothes.
That's why it takes me
so long to get back out here
because I changed clothes
and changed back into
all the full suit
and everything.
And I went out
and got some waiters
and so I wore those in
and I forgot
that the waiters
don't cover your arm.
So I'm thinking,
man, I don't have
to get undressed, you know.
I'm just going to
put my waiters on
and here we go.
And you can't really see it
but let me just tell you,
this entire side of me
is soaked
from the waist up.
So I thought I would
just come clean.
Shane and Kadron,
you know,
they were back there with me
and they're just trying
not to laugh
and be nice.
Coming clean.
Here we go.
But you know,
I was trying to show y'all
look like I had it all together.
It's like if I keep my
coat button
then nobody will see.
My shirt is wet.
We try to put on
the best version of ourselves.
We try to present ourselves
the best possible way
and that's just how we are
and there's nothing wrong
with that.
But listen,
there's got to be
a mind shift
for God's people
that says,
I glorify God the most
when I glorify me
the least.
How do we know that?
Is that in the Bible?
Well, yes it is.
John chapter 3
in verse 30.
He must increase,
I must decrease.
Where's Harlan?
Is Harlan in here?
There you go.
What time is it?
There we go.
Some of them
were a little shy
but yeah,
Harlan started teaching them
that at VBS,
Vacation Bible School
and he said,
what time is it?
And the kid would say,
John 3, 30.
He must increase,
I must decrease.
He's got them down
with that.
Austin does it sometimes.
The other day,
I was actually asking
what time it was
and Austin just busts out,
he must increase,
I must decrease.
John 3, 30.
I was like,
that's great man,
but what time is it?
I need to know
what time it is.
Anyway,
that is a biblical concept.
We glorify God the most
when we glorify ourselves
the least.
Verse 31,
the one who comes
from above
is above all.
Do you sense a theme here?
A trend?
God is above everything
in the church.
He is above everything,
everywhere,
all people,
each one of us.
God is above.
He must increase,
but I must decrease.
The one who is from the earth
is earthly.
That's us.
That was John the Baptist.
Speaks in earthly terms.
That's all the prophets.
That's all the great people
that we read about in Scripture,
all the heroes of the Bible,
and that's you and me.
We are earthly.
We speak.
We think.
We act in earthly terms,
but the one who comes from heaven
acts in heavenly terms,
speaks in heavenly terms.
He is above it all,
but he didn't just stay in heaven.
He came down.
He was born as a baby.
He grew up.
He went through
all of the difficulty of life
that you and I do.
He went through all the temptation,
all the struggle.
He subjected himself
to this sinful world,
and yet he did it without sin.
He maintained his deity.
He maintained his Godhead,
but he took on flesh,
humbled himself,
became a servant,
and set that as the example
for us to do,
to humble ourselves,
to become a servant,
to understand it's not about me.
It's about God.
So we are the church.
My primary role in this church
is to glorify God.
Glorify God the most
when I glorify myself the least.
And then number three,
I cannot glorify God
if I'm holding a grudge.
I can't glorify God
if I'm holding a grudge
because then God ceases to be God.
I'm allowing something else
to take precedence over God in my life.
So I cannot glorify God
if I'm holding a grudge
against someone else.
God is forgiveness.
God is all about forgiveness.
He forgave the worst of us.
He forgave the best of us
who are actually the worst.
There is no one who is good.
There is no one who is perfect.
There is no one who is sinless.
And God forgave all of it.
So we have no excuse
to hold a grudge
and say,
I won't forgive.
Romans chapter 15 deals with this.
Romans 15 verses 5 and 6.
Now may the God
who gives endurance
and encouragement
grant you
to live in harmony
with one another
according to Christ Jesus.
Live in harmony with one another
according to Christ Jesus.
God can grant us
the ability to do that.
Verse 6.
So that you may glorify
the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ
with one mind
and one voice.
Is God glorified
if His people come here
and lift their voices together
and sing songs of praise
to God together
and then walk out these doors
and fight
and bicker
and talk about each other
behind our backs
and run each other down.
Can God be glorified?
Because we're not of one mind
and one voice.
We might seem like we are
when we're all gathered here
in the sanctuary.
But when we walk out
the world will see
if we're glorifying God
living in harmony
with one another.
So I cannot glorify God
if I give
if I hold a grudge.
Proverbs chapter 19
gives
the entire book of Proverbs
gives life advice to us
and this is a particularly
applicable one
to this point.
A person's insight
gives him patience
and his virtue
is to overlook
an offense.
It is a virtue
to overlook
an offense.
God knows
offenses will happen.
You will get offended.
Others will offend
you
and guess what?
You will offend others.
And we always love
when someone
overlooks
our offense.
But it's hard for us
to overlook others.
Is that not right?
But that shows
your insight
into God.
That shows
your insight
your connection
to the heart of God
when we're patient
with each other.
When we overlook
an offense.
Not everything
has to get dealt with.
Not every wrong
has to get righted.
Jesus took
every wrong
on himself.
And he didn't come
with the hammer
of justice
and beat back
the Romans
who were oppressing
his people.
He didn't come
and fix
every injustice
that had happened
in this world.
But he paid
the price
for all the sin
for all of us.
because we're
all equally bad.
Maybe you and I
haven't killed somebody
like somebody else has.
Maybe we haven't
taken advantage
of a minor
or someone
who is defenseless.
There are certainly
degrees to sin
in how bad
they are.
But the truth is
it's all bad
and it's all
earning the same
punishment.
Which is eternal
death
in the lake of fire
we call hell.
God takes
sin seriously.
So seriously
Jesus had to die
for it.
He gave his own life.
Who are we
to say
I won't forgive
that sin.
That sin
that Jesus
died for
that sin
that Jesus
shed his life
blood for
cried out.
I love what
Cajun said
in the baptism
that Jesus
looked at his father
and said
my God
why have you
forsaken me?
The torment
the anguish
that our Savior
endured
for that sin
that's got you
hung up.
Can't forgive it.
Can't glorify God
until we forgive it.
You didn't think
you'd see Buddy Hackett
in church did you?
Younger people
don't worry about it.
He said
don't carry a grudge
while you're out
carrying the grudge
the other guy's
out there dancing.
There is a lot of
truth to that
isn't there?
Sometimes we can
carry a grudge
for months
for years
for decades
and the other person
has long forgot it.
The only person
that's hurting
at that point
is us.
But you know what
there's more to that.
The only person
that's hurting
is us
and those we interact
with
those who love us
those who care about us
those who want to help
it's affecting
more and more
ripples around us
when we carry
a grudge.
John Stott
is one of my
personal favorite
theologians
and he wrote this book
called Basic Christianity
and I like his
application of it
maybe a little bit
better than Buddy Hackett's.
He says
most quarrels
are due to a
misunderstanding
and the misunderstanding
is due to our
failure to appreciate
the other person's
point of view.
It is more natural
to us
to talk
than to listen
to argue
than to submit.
Many conflicts
could be resolved
if both sides
first examine
themselves critically
and then examine
the other side
charitably.
Did you catch
the difference there?
Examine ourselves
critically
and then examine
the other side
charitably
rather than
our normal practice
of being charitable
to ourselves
and critical
of others.
Our outlook
is one-sided.
We exaggerate
the virtues
in ourselves
and the vices
in others.
So
my primary role
in the church
is to glorify God.
I glorify God
the most
when I glorify me
the least
and I cannot glorify
God
if I hold
a grudge.
What are the takeaways?
Church is about God
it's not about me.
The church
is for us.
We identify
as the church
but it's not
about us.
We are not
to receive
the glory.
It is not
established
to promote
us.
It is not
established
to make us
look good
in this community.
it's not
established
for us
to feel
good
about
ourselves.
The church
is about God
not me.
I wrote down
some thoughts
and I want to
share them
with you
before we
leave.
the church
is not
a social
club.
The church
is not
a country
club.
The church
is not
a book
club
or a fan
club
or a secret
club
definitely
not a night
club
and it's
not a trophy
club.
The church
is a blood
bought
called out
sanctified
living
breathing
body
of born
again
believers
in Jesus
who are
set apart
to love
God
to seek
truth
and to
serve
people
by spreading
the good
news
of salvation
by God's
grace
through our
faith.
We give
them the
gospel
we baptize
them
we remember
Christ's
sacrifice
at the
Lord's
supper
and we
teach them
to follow
Jesus
according to
the whole
counsel
of the
word
of God.
That's
what the
church
is
and the
gates
of hell
will not
prevail
against it
and if
your idea
of church
doesn't fit
that
then I'm
sorry
but you've
got the
wrong idea
of church
it's not
about you
it's never
been about
you
and it
will never
be about
you
it's always
going to be
about him
in all
things
he gets
the preeminence
we get that
from Colossians
118
which says
Jesus is
the head
of the body
the head
of the church
in everything
he might be
preeminent
you want to know
why you're unhappy
why you're
unsatisfied
why you keep
getting bent out
of shape
why people keep
getting under
your skin
it's because
you're flipped
upside down
God is not
God is not in
first place
when it comes
to your pet
peeve
your golden
calf
so to speak
you've got
your favorite
pew
your favorite
class
your favorite
teacher
your favorite
song
and nobody
better mess
with that
or you'll make
sure they know
that they
messed up
aren't you
just God's
gift
to God's
people
what on earth
would this church
do without you
I'll tell you
what it might do
it might grow
the Holy Spirit
might take over
and have room
to work
if your spirit
of pride
and contentiousness
ever got out of
the way long
enough
for God to do
something
this goes for me
and it goes for you
every one of us
it's not about us
finally
you know why
the church isn't
about you
because your name
can't break
an addiction
but the name
of Jesus
can
your name
can't put a
family back
together
but the name
of Jesus
can
your name
can't forgive
sins
your name
can't banish
demons
your name
can't heal
your name
can't liberate
your name
can't wash
me clean
but the name
of Jesus
can
to him
who is able
to do far
more abundantly
and beyond
everything
that we could
ask or think
to him
be all the glory
in the church
forever and ever
amen
that's Ephesians
chapter 3
and verses 20
and 21
church
church is not
about you
it's not
about me
it's always
about Jesus
the leadership
answers to God
not you
not even me
the leadership
answers
to Jesus
this church
is accountable
to congregation
but we will
answer to God
someday
for what we did
with our leadership
of this church
so what are the
takeaways
my spirit
will either
help or harm
God's work
in his church
my spirit
will either
help or harm
God's work
in his church
would you bow
your heads
with me
please
quietly
I'm going to
ask these
questions
as our heads
are bowed
this is getting
down to the
nitty gritty
of our everyday
life here
would you ask
yourself
with your head
bowed
would you silently
in your own head
ask yourself
this question
is my spirit
helping or harming
First Baptist
Church of
Henrietta
we got visitors
here this morning
and I don't expect
you to be able
to answer that
question right
this moment
but for our
regular attenders
and members
I'd like to ask
you that
is your spirit
helping or harming
First Baptist
Church
the church
is not about
me
it's not about
you
it's about
Jesus
am I glorifying
God
is there anything
I'm doing
that's bringing
glory to God
or am I
glorifying myself
am I scratching
my itches
am I making
sure that
everything is
exactly as I
want it
and the minute
it starts to
get out
of shape
or something
that I don't
like
I'm going to
fight tooth and
nail to get it
back to how I
think it ought to
be
guys we can't
have that
if everybody
started acting
in that way
we would be
a church of
nothing but
strife
contentiousness
constant arguments
and we're not
that I thank God
that we are not
that kind of
church
but this is a
continual reminder
it is a
continual struggle
to say he must
increase I must
decrease
the church is not
about me
it's about
Jesus
maybe you're
here this
morning and
you don't
know for
sure that
you are God's
child
you're in
church we're
grateful for
that
but you say
I've never
taken the
step to put
all my faith
in Jesus
for the
forgiveness of
my sins
for God to
save me
if that's you
would you slip
your hand up
now no one's
looking around
but I'd like
to pray for
you
thank you
you can put
your hands
down
let me ask
this question
how many of
you would
say
God is
working on
my heart
and I need
prayer about
something
it might be
because
I've been
contentious
I've been
trying to make
it about me
and I know
it's about
Jesus
it might be
something else
but would you
slip your hand
up now
say I need
prayer
thank you guys
all around the
room
would you
put your
hands down
God
you know
every man
and woman
who raised
their hand
here today
you know
what's going
on in their
hearts
you know
intimately
what's going
on in every
heart
but Lord
I pray
specifically
for the
people that
raised their
hands
that
one they
would be
open and
sensitive to
the leading
of your
spirit
in their
heart
and life
that you
would make
them vessels
of mercy
vessels
of your
power
that you
would remind
every man
woman
child
in this
room
our
primary
goal
is to
bring glory
to you
to bring
honor to
you
to praise
you with
our lives
and that's
got to
happen in
this church
help us
to set
ourselves
our
preferences
everything
else
aside
and remember
that as long
as you
are being
lifted up
that's what's
most important
it's in
Jesus name
we pray
amen
on
love
that as long
so
ifodus
and
you
then
or