Its Not About Me

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

Ephesians 1 · chapter mention

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

John 3 · chapter mention

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 · chapter mention

Romans 15 verses 5 and 6.

Romans 15:5

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

Proverbs 19 · chapter mention

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.

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

Ephesians 3 · chapter mention

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

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