WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.179 You know, I remember a few weeks ago, probably like many of you, sitting with my children 00:00:11.179 --> 00:00:19.859 and trying to explain why we live in a society where someone would try to assassinate a former 00:00:19.859 --> 00:00:24.560 president and current presidential candidate. 00:00:24.559 --> 00:00:31.320 And as we sat there having that conversation, it reminded me of other conversations that 00:00:31.320 --> 00:00:40.159 we've had recently about Gaza, as we watch things on the news unfold, as we talk to and 00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:47.480 know and pray for people who are being directly affected by these things, or Ukraine, same 00:00:47.480 --> 00:00:48.239 is true there. 00:00:49.099 --> 00:00:52.620 Conversations that we've had as they've gotten older and recognized that there are a lot 00:00:52.619 --> 00:00:58.500 of issues in our own city, issues around racial and economic disparity, for instance, division. 00:00:59.739 --> 00:01:04.000 Or the fact that there are some members of our extended family who barely speak to one 00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:04.239 another. 00:01:05.319 --> 00:01:08.120 There are some members of our extended family who haven't spoken in years. 00:01:09.519 --> 00:01:13.560 And as we've had all these conversations, we come back again and again and again to this 00:01:13.560 --> 00:01:17.979 core truth that we live in a world that is, in fact, deeply divided. 00:01:17.980 --> 00:01:21.660 I know this is something that everyone in this room has experienced. 00:01:22.560 --> 00:01:25.719 And often these days, it feels like things are only getting worse. 00:01:26.500 --> 00:01:28.040 The divisions are only deepening. 00:01:30.000 --> 00:01:32.939 This was not God's original plan for the world. 00:01:34.500 --> 00:01:42.020 And the good news that we come back to again and again every time we gather on Sunday is that 00:01:42.020 --> 00:01:44.900 God intends to put the world right again. 00:01:44.900 --> 00:01:52.180 Ephesians chapter 1 verse 10 lays out God's purpose in salvation. 00:01:52.380 --> 00:01:58.580 It says that God's great purpose in history, which he set forth in Christ, is to unite all 00:01:58.580 --> 00:02:04.400 things in him, to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth. 00:02:04.780 --> 00:02:07.800 That is God's great purpose that he has laid out. 00:02:07.920 --> 00:02:13.040 God, he plans to unite all things, all of creation in himself. 00:02:13.039 --> 00:02:17.539 Now, the church plays a key role in this. 00:02:19.199 --> 00:02:23.759 Christians are meant to be a living preview of things to come. 00:02:24.620 --> 00:02:30.120 The church is meant to be a sneak peek of what things will be like once God has accomplished 00:02:30.120 --> 00:02:34.219 all of his purposes and all of his plans have been fulfilled. 00:02:34.219 --> 00:02:41.080 And specifically here we see that the unity of the church is meant to be a glimpse of what 00:02:41.080 --> 00:02:45.479 the world will be like once God has united all things in himself. 00:02:46.639 --> 00:02:51.699 So we're looking this morning at Ephesians chapter 4 verses 1 through 16, this great passage, 00:02:52.419 --> 00:02:57.860 where we see these two major themes emerge and they are very much intertwined. 00:02:58.240 --> 00:03:00.800 Unity and maturity. 00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:00.920 Unity. 00:03:01.480 --> 00:03:04.580 And so what we're going to do this morning is to look at these themes and then we're going 00:03:04.580 --> 00:03:09.560 to look at how they relate to one another and then what that means for us and how we 00:03:09.560 --> 00:03:11.939 live together in this community. 00:03:13.080 --> 00:03:14.620 Unity and then maturity. 00:03:14.820 --> 00:03:19.680 Let's ask God to help us understand what he's saying to us this morning. 00:03:20.240 --> 00:03:24.740 Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for being a God who does speak, who is present. 00:03:24.740 --> 00:03:32.560 Lord, we need, I need, we all need our hearts to be softened and our ears opened. 00:03:34.580 --> 00:03:40.020 Lord, there are people here who are desperately in need of comfort and you pray that, we pray 00:03:40.020 --> 00:03:40.939 that you would comfort them. 00:03:41.900 --> 00:03:47.120 There are people here who are perhaps a bit complacent and we pray that you would stir them 00:03:47.120 --> 00:03:47.379 up. 00:03:47.480 --> 00:03:52.620 We pray for the people who are here who need to repent, Lord. 00:03:52.620 --> 00:03:53.900 We pray that you would convict them. 00:03:54.700 --> 00:03:58.580 Lord, there are people here who feel lonely and isolated and we pray that you would enfold 00:03:58.580 --> 00:03:59.580 them into community. 00:03:59.800 --> 00:04:04.439 Lord, in whatever ways we need to hear from you and experience you this morning, we ask 00:04:04.439 --> 00:04:09.719 your Holy Spirit, who knows better than we do what those things are, to do your work. 00:04:10.700 --> 00:04:12.200 We pray this in Jesus' name. 00:04:12.400 --> 00:04:12.599 Amen. 00:04:12.599 --> 00:04:12.680 Amen. 00:04:13.879 --> 00:04:18.719 So first of all, let's look at unity and how Paul talks about unity. 00:04:19.659 --> 00:04:27.339 You know, when I was 12 years old, I remember seeing on TV the iconic footage of the Berlin 00:04:27.339 --> 00:04:29.379 Wall being torn down. 00:04:29.939 --> 00:04:38.480 For decades, that wall had, it ran right through the middle of this city, dividing east from west, 00:04:38.480 --> 00:04:46.120 dividing families, dividing friends, dividing two worldviews and ways of thinking about flourishing. 00:04:46.700 --> 00:04:53.759 And I remember how powerful it was to see people with sledgehammers literally breaking 00:04:53.759 --> 00:04:57.580 that wall down and standing on the rubble and celebrating. 00:04:58.340 --> 00:05:01.160 Those memories are sort of pressed into my mind. 00:05:01.160 --> 00:05:07.260 And in the first half of his letter to the Ephesians, Paul says that Jesus Christ has torn 00:05:07.260 --> 00:05:09.180 down the ultimate dividing wall. 00:05:09.939 --> 00:05:12.400 That ultimate dividing wall has come down. 00:05:12.500 --> 00:05:22.340 For all of human history, this wall of sin has divided human beings from God and it's divided 00:05:22.340 --> 00:05:23.940 human beings from one another. 00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:28.320 It's resulted in factions and tribalism and all kinds of things. 00:05:28.319 --> 00:05:37.779 And through the death and resurrection of Jesus, God took a sledgehammer to that wall and he 00:05:37.779 --> 00:05:38.759 tore it down. 00:05:39.839 --> 00:05:44.300 And now, Paul says, God is creating a new humanity. 00:05:45.259 --> 00:05:53.539 He's building a new kind of humanity that is no longer divided, that is united in Christ. 00:05:53.540 --> 00:05:57.120 And in Ephesians 2, he uses an amazing image. 00:05:57.220 --> 00:06:03.600 He says that these Christians, these new humans, are being joined together into a holy temple. 00:06:04.920 --> 00:06:11.500 What he's saying is, is God building this new humanity and God intends to live in that new 00:06:11.500 --> 00:06:12.040 humanity. 00:06:13.379 --> 00:06:13.759 Right? 00:06:13.840 --> 00:06:16.920 So just pause for a second and ask, so okay, what does it mean to be a Christian? 00:06:17.360 --> 00:06:21.000 You know, a lot of people think that being a Christian just means, well, you know, I believe 00:06:21.000 --> 00:06:24.399 the things and I, maybe I go to church and, or maybe not. 00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:28.740 But really, it just means being a nice person and a good person and doing the right thing 00:06:28.740 --> 00:06:29.879 and helping the less fortunate. 00:06:30.560 --> 00:06:32.579 You know, okay, you know, that's all part of it. 00:06:33.500 --> 00:06:39.259 But the way Paul would answer that question is, very simply, a Christian is someone who has 00:06:39.259 --> 00:06:40.839 the Trinity living inside you. 00:06:42.720 --> 00:06:45.480 You have the Trinity living inside you. 00:06:45.480 --> 00:06:47.480 Right? 00:06:47.860 --> 00:06:52.180 And then beginning in chapter 4, Paul lays out the implications of this for how we live. 00:06:52.980 --> 00:06:58.220 He says, I therefore, in chapter 4 verse 1, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk 00:06:58.220 --> 00:07:01.060 in a manner worthy of the calling to which you've been called. 00:07:02.640 --> 00:07:10.500 In other words, he says, if all this is true, I now call you, I now urge you, live lives that 00:07:10.500 --> 00:07:11.460 reflect this truth. 00:07:11.459 --> 00:07:14.039 And he goes on to talk about unity in the church. 00:07:15.139 --> 00:07:20.159 He says, there's one body and one spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that 00:07:20.159 --> 00:07:21.259 belongs to your call. 00:07:21.560 --> 00:07:25.259 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. 00:07:26.419 --> 00:07:27.459 So here's what he's saying. 00:07:28.240 --> 00:07:34.859 One of the primary marks of a community where the Trinity lives is unity. 00:07:36.319 --> 00:07:39.779 And of course, that makes total sense if you think about it. 00:07:39.779 --> 00:07:45.159 Because the Trinity itself is actually a perfect union of three persons. 00:07:45.299 --> 00:07:51.419 You have Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, distinct persons who are at the same time one, perfectly 00:07:51.419 --> 00:07:51.819 one. 00:07:52.399 --> 00:07:58.479 And so it makes sense that a community where the Trinity dwells would reflect that reality. 00:07:58.619 --> 00:08:04.259 You would have many persons, individual persons, who are at the same time able to live as one 00:08:04.259 --> 00:08:04.659 together. 00:08:04.660 --> 00:08:08.900 You would have the diversity and the unity of the Trinity. 00:08:10.200 --> 00:08:13.240 So Paul says, therefore live lives that reflect that. 00:08:13.320 --> 00:08:18.140 This is God's desire for the church, that unity would put his glory on display. 00:08:19.700 --> 00:08:23.500 People would have an easier time understanding the Trinity when they look at the church. 00:08:25.140 --> 00:08:26.760 Oh, I kind of get a sense of how that works. 00:08:27.700 --> 00:08:28.100 Right? 00:08:28.140 --> 00:08:30.260 That we would be living previews of the world to come. 00:08:30.259 --> 00:08:32.580 So the question this morning is, how do we get there? 00:08:34.000 --> 00:08:39.580 And the answer is, we don't just sit down after this and say, guys, we got to start being 00:08:39.580 --> 00:08:40.059 more unified. 00:08:41.500 --> 00:08:43.039 We got to get on this. 00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:45.299 Unity is a fruit. 00:08:47.319 --> 00:08:53.419 It flows out of the thing that Paul spends the rest of the passage talking about, which 00:08:53.419 --> 00:08:54.360 is spiritual maturity. 00:08:54.360 --> 00:08:58.960 How do you know that a community is spiritually mature? 00:08:59.899 --> 00:09:04.259 Well, you see this Trinitarian unity running throughout it. 00:09:05.659 --> 00:09:08.279 So now let's look at what he says about maturity. 00:09:10.899 --> 00:09:11.560 Pardon me. 00:09:11.559 --> 00:09:17.239 If we look at how Paul describes spiritually mature people, what you'll see is that all 00:09:17.239 --> 00:09:24.119 the qualities that Paul picks to describe maturity are qualities that would immediately lend themselves 00:09:24.119 --> 00:09:27.799 to unity in a community like ours. 00:09:28.599 --> 00:09:35.539 Humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another in love. 00:09:35.619 --> 00:09:38.639 These are qualities that are lived out in relationship. 00:09:38.639 --> 00:09:43.779 Consider each one of these qualities and what they look like on a practical level. 00:09:44.059 --> 00:09:46.699 Maturity, first of all, means humility. 00:09:48.059 --> 00:09:48.860 What is humility? 00:09:49.000 --> 00:09:52.960 Well, essentially it's people who aren't really overly focused on themselves. 00:09:54.879 --> 00:09:58.799 It's people who don't really spend time worrying about what other people think about them. 00:10:01.039 --> 00:10:06.039 It's people who don't worry about whether or not all of their needs are being met because 00:10:06.039 --> 00:10:10.159 they trust God to meet them in his timing and they know that some of them might not get met. 00:10:12.639 --> 00:10:18.539 Instead, mature people who are humble tend to focus on the needs of others. 00:10:20.019 --> 00:10:21.379 They're trusting God to meet their needs. 00:10:21.500 --> 00:10:24.399 They're worrying more about where are the needs around me. 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:29.879 And ironically, you know, if you can imagine a community where this were true of everyone, 00:10:31.079 --> 00:10:36.379 then most if not all the needs in that church would be met because you'd have so many people 00:10:36.379 --> 00:10:39.860 serving and volunteering in all kinds of ways that you'd have a surplus. 00:10:42.159 --> 00:10:44.720 He says also maturity means gentleness. 00:10:45.879 --> 00:10:46.699 What is gentleness? 00:10:46.840 --> 00:10:49.439 Well, again, it's lived out in relationship. 00:10:49.440 --> 00:10:54.600 Mature Christians are people who are able to work through their disagreements. 00:10:54.720 --> 00:10:56.160 It doesn't mean there aren't disagreements. 00:10:56.860 --> 00:10:59.460 It doesn't mean there aren't differences, right? 00:10:59.600 --> 00:11:05.380 But mature Christians are able to work through those things with calmness, with mutual respect. 00:11:06.880 --> 00:11:06.980 Right? 00:11:07.120 --> 00:11:09.740 They're very quick to admit when they're wrong. 00:11:10.000 --> 00:11:13.320 They're very quick and eager to repent when necessary. 00:11:13.320 --> 00:11:16.360 And we see this all over Scripture. 00:11:16.580 --> 00:11:19.000 I think Jeff preached on it last week. 00:11:19.280 --> 00:11:22.660 Mature people are very careful in how they speak to one another. 00:11:23.120 --> 00:11:24.620 That's an aspect of gentleness. 00:11:25.160 --> 00:11:29.540 They're very careful in how they use language because they know that language can do a lot more damage 00:11:29.540 --> 00:11:31.480 than most people realize. 00:11:31.700 --> 00:11:33.420 They don't talk behind people's backs. 00:11:34.460 --> 00:11:35.540 They don't gossip. 00:11:36.760 --> 00:11:37.780 They don't slander. 00:11:37.779 --> 00:11:37.899 Slander. 00:11:38.959 --> 00:11:43.399 Now, most of us, when we gossip, you know, or when we slander, it's not malicious. 00:11:44.159 --> 00:11:45.879 Here's how it actually happens. 00:11:46.600 --> 00:11:50.959 It's somebody tells you something or you become aware of something and they say, don't tell anybody. 00:11:51.079 --> 00:11:52.299 I'm a vault. 00:11:52.379 --> 00:11:53.139 I won't tell anybody. 00:11:53.639 --> 00:11:57.879 And then you think, well, you know, but I've got my triad that I meet with. 00:11:58.459 --> 00:11:59.399 I mean, I tell them everything. 00:12:00.559 --> 00:12:01.699 And so you tell them. 00:12:02.019 --> 00:12:03.139 But, hey, don't tell anybody. 00:12:03.199 --> 00:12:04.480 And they all say, we're not going to tell anybody. 00:12:04.480 --> 00:12:07.360 And then they say, well, yeah, but I have my prayer partner. 00:12:09.159 --> 00:12:10.519 I mean, I tell my prayer partner everything. 00:12:11.460 --> 00:12:13.080 So, and then they tell the prayer partner, right? 00:12:13.139 --> 00:12:17.600 And then they have a friend and then they have, you know, and then before long, everybody's talking, right? 00:12:17.680 --> 00:12:18.539 That's how it happens. 00:12:18.620 --> 00:12:24.240 It's well-meaning people who don't really take seriously how damaging things like this can be 00:12:24.240 --> 00:12:27.220 and how they can spread like wildfire, right? 00:12:27.500 --> 00:12:30.779 Gentle people don't speak harshly to people. 00:12:30.879 --> 00:12:33.360 They're not harshly critical or judgmental of people. 00:12:33.360 --> 00:12:40.899 They tend to want to use words in ways that build up and give life and encourage and inspire faithfulness. 00:12:42.360 --> 00:12:48.840 And then Paul says maturity means patience and it means a willingness to bear with one another in love. 00:12:50.200 --> 00:12:52.100 Bearing with one another essentially means this. 00:12:52.159 --> 00:12:57.240 It means you recognize that when you live in any kind of community, whether it's your immediate family or a big church, 00:12:57.240 --> 00:13:04.460 that things are going to happen all the time, that if you wanted to get offended, if you wanted to get angry, 00:13:04.580 --> 00:13:09.139 if you wanted to take it personally, you would have an endless list of reasons to be upset. 00:13:09.139 --> 00:13:17.580 And bearing with one another simply means people who recognize community can be messy, relationships can be imperfect, 00:13:18.319 --> 00:13:22.379 nobody around me can read my mind and know what I'm thinking or what I need or how I feel. 00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:23.699 I can't read their minds. 00:13:24.019 --> 00:13:27.600 Most of what I think I know about why people do what they do is based off my assumptions. 00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:32.080 And so bearing with one another goes along with humility. 00:13:32.240 --> 00:13:37.399 It's just a recognition that, hey, being in community means I just need to be willing to forgive a whole lot of things. 00:13:38.340 --> 00:13:41.460 Maybe on a daily basis all the time because community can be messy. 00:13:43.360 --> 00:13:43.620 Right? 00:13:43.700 --> 00:13:46.879 So people who bear with one another, people who are patient, they don't get easily offended. 00:13:47.019 --> 00:13:52.460 They don't worry about who has slighted them or disrespected them because they're eager to forgive. 00:13:52.460 --> 00:13:56.840 Mature people always assume the best about other people's motives. 00:13:58.160 --> 00:13:58.420 You know? 00:13:58.900 --> 00:14:03.100 In the case of an ambiguous situation, they assume, what's the best possible explanation for this? 00:14:03.920 --> 00:14:06.160 They always give people the benefit of the doubt. 00:14:08.080 --> 00:14:14.720 So in mature communities, instead of factions and divisions, there's a deep sense of interconnectedness. 00:14:15.800 --> 00:14:21.660 You know, for example, in a community like this, people know that whatever political differences, 00:14:21.659 --> 00:14:27.139 whatever cultural differences there might be, whatever familial differences there might be, 00:14:28.100 --> 00:14:33.679 those pale in comparison to the spiritual bonds of baptism and the Holy Spirit. 00:14:34.779 --> 00:14:35.899 This is no comparison. 00:14:38.019 --> 00:14:41.079 So mature communities, because of all this, tend to be diverse. 00:14:43.179 --> 00:14:45.179 Socioeconomically, racially, politically. 00:14:45.939 --> 00:14:48.579 Because everyone coming into the church feels welcome. 00:14:48.720 --> 00:14:50.860 Like, this is a place I could belong. 00:14:51.659 --> 00:14:54.500 You know, in a community like this, you wouldn't dread going into the election. 00:14:55.559 --> 00:14:58.000 You wouldn't be terrified to talk about what you think politically. 00:14:58.240 --> 00:15:01.039 Because you wouldn't be afraid of being criticized or judged for what you think. 00:15:01.939 --> 00:15:07.120 And you would know that even if we completely disagree on everything about what's happening this fall, 00:15:08.360 --> 00:15:12.299 that doesn't even come close to the bond that we share in baptism in the Holy Spirit. 00:15:12.379 --> 00:15:13.419 It doesn't even come close. 00:15:14.579 --> 00:15:15.679 We don't get worked up about it. 00:15:15.679 --> 00:15:18.120 This is God's vision for the church. 00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:23.659 And I imagine, as I say this, maybe it's only me, this is the kind of church we all want to be a part of. 00:15:25.319 --> 00:15:25.959 Here's the question. 00:15:26.059 --> 00:15:26.879 What do we do with this? 00:15:27.459 --> 00:15:27.639 Right? 00:15:27.959 --> 00:15:30.439 Because this, on its own, can kind of get a little bit like this. 00:15:30.440 --> 00:15:33.120 So, what do we do with this? 00:15:34.020 --> 00:15:36.560 Well, we have to hold a couple of things together in tension. 00:15:36.940 --> 00:15:37.040 Okay? 00:15:38.440 --> 00:15:41.000 On the one hand, what is this saying? 00:15:41.460 --> 00:15:49.120 We should never be surprised when we encounter spiritual immaturity in other people or in the church. 00:15:49.940 --> 00:15:51.660 We should never be surprised. 00:15:52.520 --> 00:15:55.620 We should never say, oh, I thought this was a more mature place. 00:15:55.620 --> 00:16:00.179 I thought that person was a little more grown up in their faith. 00:16:00.259 --> 00:16:01.320 Look at verse 13. 00:16:01.539 --> 00:16:04.440 Maybe the most, arguably, one of the most important words in the passage. 00:16:06.279 --> 00:16:09.460 Paul says, let me just get back to it here. 00:16:09.580 --> 00:16:21.080 Paul says, the word that he uses when he's talking about growing up into the image and the stature of Christ is not you, but we. 00:16:21.080 --> 00:16:28.100 He says, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God. 00:16:28.280 --> 00:16:34.379 This is the Apostle Paul, trained as a Pharisee, top of his class, graduated magna cum laude, right? 00:16:34.620 --> 00:16:37.840 He's a rising star in the world of the Pharisees. 00:16:38.200 --> 00:16:41.759 Sees Jesus face-to-face, massive, dramatic conversion. 00:16:42.139 --> 00:16:45.300 Has all the gifts, plants churches all through the known world. 00:16:45.840 --> 00:16:47.000 Rock star Christian. 00:16:47.000 --> 00:16:50.879 He's like, I'm still spiritually immature. 00:16:52.019 --> 00:16:54.240 I still need the church. 00:16:54.740 --> 00:17:00.659 I still need all of you to help me grow until we all attain, right? 00:17:00.919 --> 00:17:06.400 So never be surprised when you encounter immaturity in other people. 00:17:06.480 --> 00:17:10.740 If this applies to the Apostle Paul, with all due respect, it probably applies to you. 00:17:10.740 --> 00:17:18.579 So there are people who hear sermons like this and they say, I can already think of people that I want to send this sermon to. 00:17:18.799 --> 00:17:22.240 That is not what you do. 00:17:24.380 --> 00:17:25.940 So don't be surprised if you've seen other people. 00:17:26.019 --> 00:17:31.339 On the other hand, we should take it very seriously when we see this in ourselves. 00:17:31.339 --> 00:17:38.639 We should take it very seriously when we see this in ourselves, in our own lives. 00:17:39.679 --> 00:17:40.939 Because Paul is very clear. 00:17:41.019 --> 00:17:43.500 We need to devote ourselves to growing in maturity. 00:17:44.679 --> 00:17:49.959 We should be able to look back over the last year, over the last three years, over the last five years. 00:17:52.179 --> 00:17:53.359 You know, this is one of the things there. 00:17:53.439 --> 00:17:57.240 Every summer we try to spend a couple of weeks away at a cabin in West Virginia. 00:17:57.240 --> 00:18:00.519 One of the things I do with that time is to try to look back. 00:18:01.859 --> 00:18:08.759 Because a lot of the times that I was struggling through stuff, praying through stuff, making hard decisions, have been at that cabin. 00:18:09.420 --> 00:18:15.279 And so I will look back and the last time I was here, what was I wrestling with and how was I wrestling with it? 00:18:15.420 --> 00:18:19.480 And can I see evidence that over time I'm somehow growing and maturing? 00:18:19.859 --> 00:18:21.200 Am I becoming a little more patient? 00:18:21.460 --> 00:18:22.680 Am I becoming a little more gentle? 00:18:23.240 --> 00:18:24.160 If not, why not? 00:18:24.180 --> 00:18:25.099 What's happening in me? 00:18:25.220 --> 00:18:27.099 We should be able to see growth. 00:18:28.019 --> 00:18:31.519 So if you see it in yourself, you should take that very seriously. 00:18:34.539 --> 00:18:38.019 If we want to grow, how do we devote ourselves to growth? 00:18:38.220 --> 00:18:39.359 Last thing we'll talk about. 00:18:41.140 --> 00:18:42.960 Paul gives us a few ways to get started. 00:18:44.059 --> 00:18:47.120 Number one, serve faithfully. 00:18:48.980 --> 00:18:49.880 Serve faithfully. 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:57.420 Maturity cannot be found off on your own, reading books, in your quiet space. 00:18:57.640 --> 00:18:58.480 That's a part of it. 00:18:59.220 --> 00:19:01.360 But it has to be found in community. 00:19:01.359 --> 00:19:11.039 God has designed the church in such a way that it actually requires every single person in the church to be actively serving in order for us all to grow. 00:19:12.539 --> 00:19:13.419 He's designed it. 00:19:13.459 --> 00:19:14.919 He hasn't designed it to be efficient. 00:19:14.920 --> 00:19:18.680 Because that's probably not the most efficient way to go about it. 00:19:19.480 --> 00:19:21.060 But efficiency isn't his goal. 00:19:22.080 --> 00:19:24.860 Unity and holiness and maturity and righteousness, those are his goals. 00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:27.019 And those are accomplished very differently. 00:19:27.019 --> 00:19:31.019 So God is not ultimately about smooth logistics. 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:34.180 The messiness is a part of it. 00:19:35.180 --> 00:19:35.379 Right? 00:19:35.579 --> 00:19:38.539 The volunteers, like, no showing the last minute. 00:19:38.720 --> 00:19:38.900 Right? 00:19:39.079 --> 00:19:40.759 The having to work out who does what. 00:19:40.960 --> 00:19:44.200 The people who are willing to do the most menial jobs because nobody else will do them. 00:19:44.319 --> 00:19:45.339 That's all a part of it. 00:19:45.379 --> 00:19:47.139 Now, you can hire people to do all that stuff. 00:19:48.039 --> 00:19:49.199 But that's not God's goal. 00:19:49.279 --> 00:19:50.480 That's not what God is aiming at. 00:19:52.000 --> 00:19:54.519 God could take care of all the needs by himself. 00:19:55.199 --> 00:19:56.439 It's not about really the needs. 00:19:56.439 --> 00:19:59.699 It's not about God has designed a system. 00:20:00.639 --> 00:20:06.399 He's designed the church in such a way that it requires every single person in the church to be actively serving in order for us to grow. 00:20:06.519 --> 00:20:07.740 That's how he's designed it. 00:20:08.500 --> 00:20:10.839 And that's really what the spiritual gifts are all about. 00:20:10.839 --> 00:20:17.779 Now, these are essentially ways that God pours his grace into the lives of believers. 00:20:18.980 --> 00:20:27.279 Instead of just dumping it all at once, here's all the grace, he pours some of that grace through every life, through every person. 00:20:28.919 --> 00:20:29.119 Right? 00:20:29.259 --> 00:20:35.519 Through every single person in the church, God is pouring some of his grace into the community. 00:20:35.519 --> 00:20:43.900 So what that means is if there are people who aren't engaged, they aren't serving, then the community is deprived of that grace. 00:20:46.200 --> 00:20:53.180 Now, there are, as we see in verse 11, a few people in every church who have equipping gifts. 00:20:53.539 --> 00:20:53.639 Right? 00:20:54.859 --> 00:20:56.700 Pastors, shepherds, ministry leaders. 00:20:56.700 --> 00:21:03.279 But their role, as we see in verse 12, is to equip the saints for the work of ministry. 00:21:04.720 --> 00:21:09.559 Is to get the rest of the church engaged so they're using their gifts to serve the whole. 00:21:10.319 --> 00:21:18.840 One of the great dangers that we have to constantly fight against in the church, especially as we grow as a church, is the professionalizing of ministry. 00:21:19.920 --> 00:21:21.860 It's the professionalizing of ministry. 00:21:21.859 --> 00:21:25.879 The idea that ministry is really the job for people on staff. 00:21:27.279 --> 00:21:32.339 And that the best way to address unmet needs in the church is to hire more staff. 00:21:33.539 --> 00:21:35.879 That's a trap that we can always fall into. 00:21:36.699 --> 00:21:45.500 What you see statistically is that as the percentage you spend on staff goes up, volunteer engagement drops. 00:21:46.719 --> 00:21:50.339 And attendance and ultimately engagement drops. 00:21:50.639 --> 00:21:51.019 Why? 00:21:51.019 --> 00:21:56.000 Because people are falsely told there's no longer a need for you here. 00:21:56.099 --> 00:21:59.480 You no longer have a, you know, you can come, you can leave. 00:21:59.779 --> 00:22:03.119 There's, nobody's going to notice because it doesn't matter because you don't matter. 00:22:03.920 --> 00:22:06.819 Because we're paying somebody to do that. 00:22:08.599 --> 00:22:09.000 Right? 00:22:09.879 --> 00:22:12.220 There's a couple of problems with this way of thinking. 00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:13.680 Number one, it just doesn't work. 00:22:13.680 --> 00:22:22.240 Hypothetically, if we had a massive influx of money and say we could, say we could quadruple our ministry staff. 00:22:22.320 --> 00:22:26.480 Say we could hire, let's call it 20 full-time ministry professionals. 00:22:26.480 --> 00:22:27.600 All with seminary degrees. 00:22:27.920 --> 00:22:29.120 All licensed therapists. 00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:30.700 Whatever we want them to be. 00:22:30.940 --> 00:22:31.120 Right? 00:22:31.119 --> 00:22:32.939 Ten men, ten women, all that. 00:22:34.019 --> 00:22:35.119 Imagine we could do that. 00:22:36.119 --> 00:22:41.579 If they're the only ones doing ministry in a church our size, most of the needs are never going to get addressed. 00:22:41.579 --> 00:22:43.939 It's just sheer math. 00:22:45.259 --> 00:22:49.899 The only way to care for everyone in the community is for everyone in the community to care. 00:22:50.899 --> 00:22:52.960 For at least a handful of people around them. 00:22:53.099 --> 00:22:54.000 It's the only way it happens. 00:22:54.839 --> 00:22:58.740 So this is why it's crucial to make sure that if you're in a church, whether it's ours or another church, 00:22:59.119 --> 00:23:04.559 it's crucial to make sure you have some smaller group outside of Sunday that you're a part of. 00:23:04.619 --> 00:23:05.599 It could be a core group. 00:23:05.699 --> 00:23:06.759 It could be a ministry team. 00:23:06.839 --> 00:23:07.799 It could be a Bible study. 00:23:07.859 --> 00:23:08.679 It could be a prayer group. 00:23:08.740 --> 00:23:09.460 It could be a triad. 00:23:09.460 --> 00:23:10.980 But anything will do. 00:23:11.259 --> 00:23:12.100 Sunday school class. 00:23:12.840 --> 00:23:18.319 But some place outside of Sunday where you were able to form deeper relationships so that when you get sick, 00:23:18.360 --> 00:23:20.660 when you go into the hospital, when the bottom drops out, 00:23:21.059 --> 00:23:25.740 there are two or three people at least in this church that you know you can reach out to and they'll be there for you. 00:23:27.860 --> 00:23:28.640 That's essential. 00:23:29.480 --> 00:23:30.600 So number one, it doesn't work. 00:23:31.160 --> 00:23:37.120 Second reason why professionalizing ministry is a bad idea, it robs us of what we need most. 00:23:37.119 --> 00:23:45.459 As I said already, God designed the church to function the way he did where everybody has to serve in order for us to grow. 00:23:45.579 --> 00:23:47.859 He designed it that way because he knows what we most need. 00:23:48.619 --> 00:23:52.939 The thing that we most need to grow spiritually is not to get our immediate felt needs met. 00:23:53.559 --> 00:23:55.119 Now, we have legitimate needs. 00:23:56.000 --> 00:23:56.719 Don't get me wrong. 00:23:56.899 --> 00:23:57.919 The needs are legitimate. 00:23:57.920 --> 00:24:01.840 But there is a need that we have that goes deeper than that. 00:24:02.360 --> 00:24:04.580 And that's the need to give ourselves away. 00:24:06.200 --> 00:24:08.600 It's the need to love and serve others. 00:24:09.880 --> 00:24:13.360 Because doing that is an active response. 00:24:13.440 --> 00:24:16.759 You can't do that unless you ultimately trust that God's going to meet your needs. 00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:23.559 You can't do that if you have this mentality, it's like if I don't do it, then nobody's going to do it and I'm on my own and I've got to make the best. 00:24:23.859 --> 00:24:24.000 Right? 00:24:24.099 --> 00:24:25.559 That's a kind of orphan mentality. 00:24:25.700 --> 00:24:30.420 If you're thinking that way, then you can't really serve and engage and meet needs around you. 00:24:31.000 --> 00:24:36.660 Only if you trust that God is going to meet your needs, that God is there for you in your life, then you can give yourself away freely. 00:24:38.220 --> 00:24:38.539 Right? 00:24:38.539 --> 00:24:42.279 Jesus said the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve. 00:24:43.039 --> 00:24:45.379 And I would say the same is true for Christians in the world. 00:24:46.220 --> 00:24:48.139 That should be our primary orientation. 00:24:49.639 --> 00:24:59.240 So, number one way that we can devote ourselves to growing toward maturity as a community is just to move in the direction of every single person figuring out how can I serve? 00:24:59.339 --> 00:25:00.139 How can I contribute? 00:25:00.480 --> 00:25:03.879 How can I give life to this greater whole that I'm a part of? 00:25:06.079 --> 00:25:06.920 That's the first thing. 00:25:06.920 --> 00:25:10.900 Number two, grow theologically. 00:25:12.680 --> 00:25:24.960 Paul says in verse 14, maturity means growing in our knowledge of Scripture so that we can tell the difference basically between solid biblical doctrine and deceptive erroneous doctrine. 00:25:25.720 --> 00:25:35.779 If you have an infant and you set a bunch of food down to that infant, thanks, and you set a bunch of food options down and say, well, I mean, you wouldn't do this because you're good parents. 00:25:35.779 --> 00:25:41.720 Say the infant sits down and there's some healthy food, there's junk food, and there's poison, rat poison. 00:25:41.720 --> 00:25:49.140 Now, I don't know about your kids, but I wouldn't have trusted my kids in that environment when they were infants. 00:25:50.079 --> 00:25:50.259 Right? 00:25:50.279 --> 00:25:51.120 An infant can't tell. 00:25:51.160 --> 00:25:57.500 If it looks good, if it smells good, if it looks like something that might feel good in the mouth, they're going to put it in their mouth because they can't tell the difference. 00:25:57.819 --> 00:26:01.180 So they're just as likely to eat poison as they are junk food or healthy food. 00:26:01.180 --> 00:26:08.680 Now, as a kid gets older, hopefully, ideally, they're learning. 00:26:09.259 --> 00:26:10.420 They can identify poison. 00:26:13.039 --> 00:26:15.580 They maybe know a little bit about what healthy food is. 00:26:17.320 --> 00:26:18.960 They know exactly what junk food is. 00:26:20.279 --> 00:26:23.420 And there's probably still a strong tendency for junk food. 00:26:23.420 --> 00:26:31.580 And if you're not looking, if you're not there, if you're not enforcing, chances are, you know, if no one's around, they might sneak into some of that junk food. 00:26:31.960 --> 00:26:35.500 You know, if they know where the snacks are, they're going to get into it. 00:26:36.039 --> 00:26:44.820 Then ideally, as an adult, you know the difference between poison, you know junk food, and you have a pretty good handle on what's healthy. 00:26:44.819 --> 00:26:54.000 And ideally, and I say ideally, ideally, as a mature adult, you not only know what healthy food is, but you actually have developed a taste for it. 00:26:54.059 --> 00:26:55.519 You've developed a preference for it. 00:26:56.339 --> 00:26:59.799 You actually want the salad instead of the burger, right? 00:27:00.779 --> 00:27:05.659 Now, we all have a long way to go, and some of us longer than others, okay? 00:27:06.139 --> 00:27:06.960 But here's the point. 00:27:07.039 --> 00:27:07.980 The same is true spiritually. 00:27:08.519 --> 00:27:09.579 Same is true spiritually. 00:27:09.579 --> 00:27:09.879 Right? 00:27:11.139 --> 00:27:19.399 As we grow, the goal is not just to figure out the difference, to learn enough about Scripture, to know it in our hearts, to know theology. 00:27:19.619 --> 00:27:33.019 The goal is not just to know the difference between lies that will destroy you and half-truths that sound good and appeal to the base parts of us but aren't really that true biblically and in solid biblical truth. 00:27:33.519 --> 00:27:39.179 The difference between those things, right, you should be able to discern with greater clarity when you hear something, 00:27:39.180 --> 00:27:46.600 when somebody says something, you know what is true about God, you know what is true about human beings and human nature, and you know how the world works. 00:27:47.580 --> 00:27:53.779 And so you can say that's a lie or that's a half-truth that is pretty dangerous or that's solid truth. 00:27:54.240 --> 00:27:58.240 But ideally, maturity is not just growing in our ability to discern it, it's preferring it. 00:27:58.840 --> 00:28:06.220 It's saying I always, at the end of the day, want what is biblically true regardless if I have a taste for it right now. 00:28:06.600 --> 00:28:08.580 And I want to grow in my taste for it. 00:28:08.579 --> 00:28:16.439 I want to get to the point where, you know, Jonathan Edwards said that one of the greatest signs of spiritual growth and life in a person is not just that they know biblical truth but that they love it. 00:28:17.460 --> 00:28:19.619 They don't just know God's Word, they love God's Word. 00:28:20.259 --> 00:28:24.500 Even if it means immediate challenging implications for them, that's what they want. 00:28:24.819 --> 00:28:27.099 This is the vision of maturity that Paul lays out. 00:28:27.099 --> 00:28:30.919 So we should be seeking to grow in this way. 00:28:32.779 --> 00:28:37.659 The third thing, the final thing that I'll say about devoting ourselves to growth goes with that. 00:28:38.359 --> 00:28:44.740 We're not only growing in our theological maturity, but we're learning how to speak the truth in love with one another. 00:28:45.119 --> 00:28:46.339 Speaking the truth in love. 00:28:46.339 --> 00:28:51.599 In order to grow, friends, we cannot just grow in our head knowledge. 00:28:52.299 --> 00:28:56.459 This is not just about writing a good exegesis paper or passing a theology exam. 00:28:57.119 --> 00:29:09.500 We need people in our lives to speak truth in love to us, which means encouraging us and helping us apply these truths to our lives so that we can live it out faithfully. 00:29:09.500 --> 00:29:14.279 We need people who can speak the truth in love, and both are vital. 00:29:15.980 --> 00:29:17.799 Love without truth is deadly. 00:29:18.579 --> 00:29:23.359 You would never tell your child, eat whatever makes you happy, if you know they can't tell the difference. 00:29:23.680 --> 00:29:25.200 That might lead to sickness or death. 00:29:25.660 --> 00:29:29.640 In the same way, it's not loving to tell somebody, go and do whatever makes you happy. 00:29:30.440 --> 00:29:36.200 Unless you have a very clear understanding of who God is, who you are, and what human nature is like, 00:29:36.200 --> 00:29:40.519 how the world works, where true joy and happiness are to be found, 00:29:41.140 --> 00:29:45.000 you can't answer that question any more than an infant can answer what they should eat. 00:29:46.080 --> 00:29:47.620 You don't know what makes you happy. 00:29:48.059 --> 00:29:51.940 You know what looks bright and shiny and might taste good for a few seconds. 00:29:52.420 --> 00:29:54.440 But you have no idea of the long-term consequences. 00:29:55.960 --> 00:30:00.480 At the same token, truth without love can also be deadly. 00:30:00.480 --> 00:30:05.160 Because you begin to realize that apart from God, when you look at the truth about you, 00:30:05.539 --> 00:30:12.120 and the truth about God, that can and should lead most of us to utter hopelessness. 00:30:14.019 --> 00:30:14.380 Right? 00:30:14.480 --> 00:30:17.079 So we need truth and love together. 00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:20.839 And I don't have time to get into it because we need to wrap this up. 00:30:21.339 --> 00:30:23.779 But if you want to know a shorthand way to know, 00:30:23.900 --> 00:30:26.200 am I speaking truth and love to this other person? 00:30:26.599 --> 00:30:28.180 You can ask yourself this question. 00:30:28.180 --> 00:30:32.380 Is what I am wanting to say to this person, 00:30:32.840 --> 00:30:36.920 is it ultimately something that will benefit them? 00:30:38.700 --> 00:30:40.200 Maybe even at my own risk? 00:30:40.900 --> 00:30:43.640 Or is it something that is actually meant to benefit me? 00:30:44.740 --> 00:30:49.240 Am I saying this to this person because I'm trying to manage my own internal anxiety? 00:30:49.820 --> 00:30:53.019 Am I saying this to this person because it's going to make me feel superior? 00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:57.539 Am I saying this to this person because it's going to help me vent my anger? 00:30:57.539 --> 00:31:02.599 Am I saying this to this person because I need to feel like I control their perception of me? 00:31:02.759 --> 00:31:05.460 And unless they're okay with me, I don't feel okay. 00:31:06.759 --> 00:31:06.980 Right? 00:31:07.059 --> 00:31:10.819 Am I saying this or doing this ultimately to manage my own internal world? 00:31:12.279 --> 00:31:15.480 Or am I saying and doing this thing because it will truly benefit them? 00:31:16.539 --> 00:31:17.940 But it might mean I'm taking a risk. 00:31:18.139 --> 00:31:19.379 It might mean I'm not going to be as comfortable. 00:31:19.480 --> 00:31:21.319 It might mean I'm not going to feel as good about myself. 00:31:21.319 --> 00:31:25.159 That's a good shorthand way to know if you're heading in the right direction. 00:31:27.740 --> 00:31:33.139 All of this though, just to bring it together, is why in order to be a community of people who speak truth and love, 00:31:33.539 --> 00:31:35.639 we need to be able to keep the gospel central. 00:31:36.659 --> 00:31:40.779 Because the gospel brings truth and love together by grace. 00:31:40.779 --> 00:31:41.339 Right? 00:31:42.279 --> 00:31:47.180 It says the truth about us, apart from God's grace, is that we are utterly hopeless. 00:31:48.639 --> 00:31:56.740 And yet it also says that God's love is so strong, so powerful, that he was willing to take on our sin and die in our place. 00:31:56.740 --> 00:32:08.039 And so when we step back and we look at this great vision that God lays out to bring all things together in Christ to unify the heavens and the earth, 00:32:08.859 --> 00:32:10.779 the gospel is the key to that plan. 00:32:11.920 --> 00:32:17.539 Because the gospel says that Jesus Christ, who was perfectly one with the Father and the Spirit, was cut off. 00:32:17.539 --> 00:32:25.180 But because of that, we who were far off, far away from God, far away from one another, 00:32:25.920 --> 00:32:32.779 we can now, because of the cross, be welcomed in and become members of the new humanity, the great household of God. 00:32:33.119 --> 00:32:33.599 Let's pray. 00:32:35.759 --> 00:32:37.740 Lord, we thank you for your word. 00:32:38.659 --> 00:32:41.779 Lord, we ask that you would do in us what only you can do. 00:32:41.779 --> 00:32:52.319 And we ask that as we come together to pray, to confess your creed, our creed, 00:32:53.700 --> 00:32:56.339 Lord, as we come together around this table, 00:32:57.879 --> 00:33:02.339 Lord, as we confess our sin, as we hear grace pronounced, as we share the bread and the wine, 00:33:02.819 --> 00:33:08.980 we pray that in all these ways we would have a celebration and an embodying of the unity that we have in you. 00:33:08.980 --> 00:33:13.319 And we pray that through these things, you would give us the strength to live it out, 00:33:13.420 --> 00:33:15.880 to live lives worthy of the calling to which we've been called. 00:33:16.559 --> 00:33:18.019 We pray this in Jesus' name. 00:33:18.319 --> 00:33:18.559 Amen.