"Equipped for Unity" Ephesians 4:7-16 (08/23/2026)

Pastor Brian's gonna be preaching through Ephesians 4 verses 7 through 16.

Ephesians 4:7–16

And the word says, this is the word of God.

It says, But to each one of us, grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.

Therefore it says, when he ascended on high, he led captive a coast, a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.

Now this expression, he ascended, what does it mean except that he also had descended into the lower parts of the earth?

He who descended is himself also he who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.

And he gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.

As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried around, carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness and deceitful scheming.

But speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself and love.

You may be seated.

This is the word of God.

Brian, would you come proclaim it to us?

What a joy it is to be able to proclaim the word on Sunday mornings.

Thank you again for this wonderful gift.

Father, lead us, guide us, shepherd us as we dive into the truth of your word here.

Father, whether it's difficult things, whether it's just easily encouraging things, whatever it is, we ask you that you would line us up by the power of your Spirit to the truth of your word, that we would be conformed and transformed into the image of Christ in this.

Lead us.

Oh, we are so desperate for you in this.

We pray this all in the name of Christ.

Amen.

Well, today, continuing with our theme of what we've been seeing here and there in the passage so far in Ephesians in the last few sermons, we've seen the unity that we already have in the local church.

This is an absolutely beautiful truth that is spoken of actually quite often in the New Testament, so much so that we need to realize its significance in our lives as Christians.

I mean, we see in Philippians and in Colossians and in Romans and 1 Peter, the Gospels, and on and on the list go that speak at varying lengths of the need that we have for unity in and among the people of God in the local church.

And so for today we get the privilege of looking into the fact that, in one sense, unity is a gift, along with how we get that gift and how we are to foster it in light of the Lord's grace.

So let's just begin.

Let's begin with looking into verse 7 in our first point.

Go there with me if you're not there already.

And let's just be reminded of the fact that each and every Christian has been given a gift, has been graced with gifts to be deployed for others.

And so if you are a Christian, if you're in Christ today, then you have undoubtedly been given a gift, a spiritual gift by the Lord, at least one.

There are many, many gifts that the Lord gives to us, some of which are listed out in verse 11.

We find, though, that in 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12, for example, so many other numerous kinds of gifts.

Now, if you're saying to yourself that, oh, I don't think I was there that day.

I got bypassed.

God has forgotten me because I don't preach, or I don't teach, or because maybe you're not a gifted evangelist, or you have the ability to lead musically before the congregation.

If that's you, then just be encouraged today.

Paul lists out such a thing as being a servant in Romans 12 7 as a spiritual gifting of the Lord.

It's being a servant.

And as Romans 12 6 says, that they've all been given according to the grace bestowed upon us.

Paul says there, since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly, very similar to what Paul is saying there in verse 7.

So again, if you're a Christian, you have at least one, if not many gifts, that the Lord has given to you by his grace.

And this grace here isn't primarily speaking of the grace given in the gospel in regards to salvation.

This is speaking of the grace he gives us to be able to bless others with the gifts that we have.

And here's something just fantastic.

I love this.

Here's something that we understand fully as we study through passages that teach on the gifts given to us by the Lord.

And that is this, okay?

You ready?

They are given, these gifts are given for the edification of the church.

It's such good news.

Here's what I mean: the spiritual gifts or any gift that you've been given by the Lord are given by the grace of God, we see here in verse 7.

They are given according to the grace of God, and they are not for you.

Your gift is not for you.

That's good news.

It's good to hear.

If you have the gift of preaching, if you have the gift of singing, if you have the gift of service, if you have the gift of exhortation, it is for others.

It is for the local church of Jesus Christ.

Isn't that good?

It is to promote.

Now look at the context here.

It is to promote and foster the glory of Christ and the unity of the body.

That's what the gifts are for.

It's a great truth the Lord has put in place.

Again and again and again in the Bible, we see that our Lord reminds us hey, Christian, it's not about you.

It's about what the church needs for his glory.

And as we see here, Paul speaks of this unity in the church as he speaks of the gifts that are given according to the grace of God.

In Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12, we see him use the analogy of the body and its members, teaching us what the gifts are for and the obvious nature of what the gifts must be for in light of the fact that we are a body in Christ, needy.

And so again, if you're in Christ, you have a gift, at least one, and it's for the glory of God, and it's for bringing unity in the body as you display his grace through those gifts.

And he's given you those gifts to employ for that purpose.

Paul says that his gift is to preach and teach, as we saw in verse 8 of chapter 3, and that he was given the grace of being a steward of the gospel, as it says in verse 2 of the third chapter here in Ephesians.

So what's your gift, Christian?

Do you know?

How are you employing it or deploying it for the good of the Christian next to you and for the church at large?

How are you going to glorify God with your gifts?

How are you promoting unity with your gifts?

Since we know biblically of gifts, here and elsewhere it says in the Bible, so that we can glorify God and rejoice in those gifts.

If that's all true and what we're saying and what we're diving into here is true, then we've got to understand that since we've been given gifts to deploy for one another, where did those come from?

We've got to see where they came from.

How did that come about?

Let's look at our second point, verses 7 to 10.

So, how do we get these gifts?

This is awesome, by the way.

It clears up what Paul says in verse 8 and why he draws from the Old Testament there.

And it's just beautiful to know that we are given gifts by somebody.

Starting once again in verse 7, please notice and rejoice in the fact that they are gifts of Christ.

He's given these to you.

You didn't wake one day and decide to be an exhorter.

I didn't wake one day and decide to be a shepherd.

You didn't meditate and decide that being an excellent giver or server, and that's just going to be who you are.

Whatever gift or gifts you have, they were given to you by the Lord Jesus Christ.

As he led, as he took you and by the hand and led your captive soul by his side.

He gave you gifts in that.

This is glorious.

And so Paul decides in this moment to open up the Psalms.

And he takes a part of chapter 68 out of the Psalms and he says, that since Christ has done this for you, since he has led out the captives, it is in this way that you received your spiritual gift.

Now, do you realize what this means?

To me, this is stunning.

Okay, as Paul quotes Psalm 68, 18, and here in verse 8, he then explains in verses 9 to 10, and what we find is that it is through Christ's atoning work on the cross and his subsequent resurrection and ascension that we find the gifts given to us by his grace for the church.

That's how that comes about.

So turn with me to Psalm 68 briefly.

We gotta see this.

This is why he draws, and it just explodes on the page when we see the resurrection of Christ and the gifts that come from it.

There in Psalm 68, David is praying for God to be highly exalted as his enemies are scattered abroad.

God has done this work for him.

Verse 2, David says in Psalm 68, Drive them away and let the wicked perish.

Verses 3 and 4, let the righteous be glad, let his people resound praise.

Verses 5 and 6 speak of God's fatherly care and provision for his people.

Verse 7 speaks of God as this highly exalted leader marching before his people.

Verse 8 says that this warrior king, he quakes the earth as he leads, as he marches his people toward and at Sinai.

Verses 9 to 10 speak of his constant provision.

Verses 11 to 14 speak of the Lord's commanding presence and how the enemy just flees before him.

That's our God.

Verses 15 to 17, again, speak of this warrior king who's now looking from Sinai over toward Mount Zion and Jerusalem, and how he's gonna march on it with thousands and myriads, and how he's gonna conquer it.

Then in verse 18, we see the result.

David is recounting for us, of course, the exodus from Egypt and what transpired after that.

And so he is leading, God is leading the former captives from Egypt, and they're gonna receive great gifts.

They're gonna receive great gifts as they arrive in this conquered land, living among a conquered and defeated people.

A people the Lord is now utterly devastated and plundered and given those things to his people out of that.

So do you see the glorious connection here?

Why Paul brings this up?

You see, our Lord Jesus Christ, in a far more important and far more decisive victory, came to the lower parts of the earth, verse 9 says.

That is speaking of when Jesus came and took on flesh.

It's not talking about him going to Hades or something.

He came and lived among his mortal and fallen creations, and he came to die in their place.

And as he did this, as he took their place on that cross, he marched on the enemy, and he defeated his strongholds, and he crushed the enemy's rule, and Jesus ended the eternal lot of all those who are his.

Now we're saved.

And so he raised on high and he led those who were once captive to the evil one.

He captivated them who would repent and follow him.

He tore them, if you will, from the devil's grip, and now they we follow him as he blesses with good gifts.

So it's through his or this eternal victory that we receive not only salvation, forgiveness of sins, and eternal life, but we also get the privilege of spiritual gifts for the unity of the body and the glory of his bride, the church.

This becomes, therefore, the substance of the shadow that we see in Psalm 68.

That's what it pointed to.

Jesus is the fulfillment of that, as with so many other things.

And now his people receive good gifts.

That's why Paul grabs Psalm 68, 18 and says, those gifts were given to them as God conquered them in the land and gave his people all these good gifts.

Well, Paul says, guess what?

In Christ and His grace, according to His grace, his people get so many other gifts for each other.

This is wonderful.

Because this good conquering warrior king now showers and inundates us with gifts.

And these gifts are those that are intended to be a blessing to his people in a church.

Don't we serve a kind God?

Did he have to do any of that?

No.

Because you and I were once prisoners, like the Egyptians.

We were prisoners to a dark and dank dungeon.

We were in the chains of evil, in the pit of despair, as Satan's offspring through our sinful ways that line up with his.

Remember early in Ephesians 2?

That's what it's saying.

We rejected our Lord when we sinned.

We were brought forth into this pattern through our birth, and we have all chosen to forsake the gospel at some point in our lives as we have clung to what is evil.

That was us, if you're in Christ.

But for those who are Christians, the chains have not just come off.

They've burst, they've flung off from us.

We've been freed from the dark dungeon of living for self.

And we have been led by the Lord of all to his side, and he has shattered the chains, and he's grabbed us by the hand.

And as he does this, he gives us these gifts to foster this family unity in the church that promotes his own glory.

It's a wonderful plan of salvation.

We receive gifts based on his victory.

That's what Paul's pointing us to.

In light of this marvelous grace.

Let's employ these gifts to one another.

Paul moves on in this passage to verse 11.

This leads to our third point.

Look at verses 11 and 12 with me, and let's just seek to answer this question in light of the need we have for unity in the body through these gifts.

Here's the question.

So we've we've we've got, okay, we've got God, God is giving us gifts according to his grace, and these are according to Christ's work as he led us captives into freedom and now gives us gifts.

And then Paul, and he talks about how that's through Jesus' work of coming down to the earth and raising on high.

And now Paul says, here's a handful of gifts.

And there's a reason he lists these out here and not all the others that I mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and other places, 1 Peter 4, 10.

He lists these out because of what they do, because of the nature of what these gifts are.

So the question is, what and who are these leadership gifts for?

These are leadership gifts we see.

Verse 11 is a very specific set of giftings.

And this set includes two, you could even say three giftings that have ceased to exist because we have the complete Word of God, and one that is very much relevant still today.

And you could say even two, kind of, and I'll explain that in a moment.

But I want to say this at the outset given our culture, given uh our propensity to soften to the culture, and given the conversations that many of us have had recently, even in our network of churches, these positions, or these, yeah, these positions, these offices, these giftings, are reserved for men.

Bear with me as I explain.

As we know, the scriptures clearly teach that the apostolic office was reserved for those who had physically seen the risen Lord Jesus Christ.

Those that were specifically called to that office by Christ as he was on this earth, and they were given great gifts to assist in inaugurating the new church.

Okay?

So those ceased to exist.

The prophets also absolutely needed, vital to give us what we have today.

It was the prophets and the apostles that gave us the Bible, the Word of God.

God would speak through prophets and apostles, and they would take that to the people as the authoritative voice of God as they spoke on his behalf, as he chose to reveal himself and his truth to us.

Again, both of those offices have necessarily ceased since we have the Bible.

And that's not a bad thing.

Praise God.

Because we now have the very Word of God, the complete and sufficient, and that word that's without error because of the ministry of those men.

Praise God.

There's also a similar gifting with this next position.

Evangelist.

So the other ones cease.

This one, I would say, in terms of the office here, kind of the same, primarily.

This isn't speaking to the person who goes to the grocery store and communicates the truth of the gospel, the gospel of Christ to somebody.

Anyone can, should, and is called to do that if they're in Christ.

Male, female alike, doesn't matter.

Praise God.

We're all to be evangelists in that sense.

Some are better at it than others, that's for sure.

By the grace of Christ, or maybe their own broken hearts for the lost.

But contextually, what Paul is speaking of here is an office that was a vibrant and present office in his day, as would have been seen by the first century audience.

They would have understood this because these guys were typically the apostles' companions or helpers.

Today, I guess we could, and this is why I say it's kind of open, we could describe this as a man that plants churches in unreached people groups.

That kind of evangelist.

That kind.

It's really a teaching office, if you will.

One such man in the scripture is a man named Philip.

Philip is in the book of Acts, and he's described as, guess what, an evangelist.

There's a specific, unique gifting.

And church history teaches us that through his work, the Ethiopian church got started, and that was by far one of the biggest churches in all of church history early on.

And I don't mean one church, I mean multiplying.

Again, all of us, I need you to hear this.

All of us are called to serve in the church.

All of us are called to proclaim the good news of Christ to the lost.

But some are given the ability here with this office and now today to do this in such a way that maybe they would plant churches in an area where there is no church presence.

It's a unique gifting, the office of evangelists.

More on that can be said, but I want to focus a little bit on the last one.

You may see in your Bible it says pastors and teachers or shepherds and teachers.

Most theologians have come to conclude that that is speaking of the same office.

And I would totally agree with that.

Well, preaching and teaching are two different things.

In a sense, the role of the man is the same.

It is to teach and proclaim sound doctrine while also being able to refute that which is false.

That's a shepherd to the whole church.

Which is why this is reserved for men as well.

Again, as uh as we studied in 1 Timothy, uh, we see you.

You know, that gift is reserved for men, but guess what?

It has nothing to do with importance.

It's just role.

Some women, of course, are called to teach other women, of course, children in the things of the Lord.

But as Paul says in 1 Timothy 2, indicated here in Ephesians, the office of elder, pastor, preacher, teacher to the whole congregation or to men in general is reserved for biblically qualified males.

That's what the Bible teaches.

And to get around that, you have to skirt around Scripture.

So these last two pastors, teachers, teachers, should be taken together as they describe the same role, the same function.

Okay, do you see how why Paul gave us these leadership gifts here?

In Acts 20, Paul reminds us that these gifts are actually not just gifts in and of themselves, that the men themselves are gifts.

Kind of weird for me to say standing here, but this is a unique gifting that they are given to promote faithfulness to the Lord and to protect the people from the wolves that would invade.

And there are wolves.

Again, a lot more could be said about these gifts and positions.

Go back and see the series in 1 Timothy if you would like.

It's online.

But what I want to focus on today, though, and in light of, so there's this unity that's still the theme, the grace gifts according to what God has given.

Unity is a theme.

Paul says, God gave us these leaders to lead us in this unity.

But I think we've got to focus on something here today, given the theme, the unity theme.

And that's what's stated in verse 12.

Now, these things are going to be challenging for us to hear.

What are those gifts, those positions for?

Now, here's the thing that may be one of the most foreign concepts in many modern-day churches and modern-day Christians' minds.

Paul says here that the leaders of the church, those who shepherd the flock as elders, pastors, teachers of the word, they are gifted to the church to promote right worship.

We see that in the rest of Scripture, unity and what Paul's talking about here.

But what Paul specifically says that these leaders, these gifts are given for the equipping of the saints for the work of service.

Now that's not where we would automatically go in our minds to see what Paul says they're for.

Because of how we've structured the church in America for a hundred years-ish.

But what Paul is saying here, this is huge.

All of those positions have been given to the church for the church, and they are given to the church so that the church can be built up, as it says at the end of that verse, 12.

But you see, for many years, it has unfortunately been the common thought that you've heard the jokes, right?

That it is the pastor who does that stuff, right?

The pastor does the discipling and all the evangelism in the local church.

I mean, what do we say?

That's what he's paid for.

Sometimes we feel good about kind of hiring out our missionary work to that one crazy couple that wants to go to North Korea or Iran or something to preach the gospel and plant churches, and we feel like, okay, good, whew, got my basis covered on that evangelism piece.

But here's the thing.

According to the Lord and his word, which is the only thing that really matters for us, right?

According to the Lord and his word, the job of these men, these leaders, is to equip the church, the congregation to do those things.

Of course, as one of the congregation.

For example, the job of a pastor-elder, again, those two words, those two terms are synonymous.

It means shepherd.

The job of the pastor-elder is to teach the people how to walk with the Lord, to challenge them in that, how to understand the scriptures, how to apply the scriptures, and how to daily disciple one another in the faith, all while promoting unity.

There's more can be said, but essentially.

Unfortunately, the job descriptions for most pastors look something like this.

Now, maybe you've looked into that.

Maybe you've looked into being a pastor or an elder of a church.

Maybe you've been on the team to find that guy.

And this is a lot of the times, most of the time, what this looks like.

Let me give you just a few examples of the qualifications that we hand out or send out or see.

It is to preach, teach, lead an administrative staff, conduct weddings and funerals, head up our outreach programs, lead our other favored programs, evangelize our community, engage with the community, and then be involved in the public local events and so forth.

Now, on the surface, of course, none of those things are bad.

And of course, most pastors will gladly participate in those things, especially preaching and teaching.

But it is a very, very rare church that says when looking for a pastor, we want you to fulfill Ephesians 4.12, because our pastor's job is to equip us to do the work.

Please, Pastor.

Equip me to go out and proclaim the gospel to the nations, even if it means my life.

Please, Pastor.

Give me the tools I need to meet with people and disciple them in the faith.

That's what I'm called to do.

Please, Pastor, equip me to do what I'm called to do as a Christian.

Please, Pastor, help me to lead my family and train up my kids in the home in the faith.

Please, Pastor, help me to be saltier in a good way.

And a brighter light for those who need you.

Please, Pastor, help me to walk in holiness before a dying world.

Please, Pastor, help me to be able to counsel that brother, that sister.

Please, Pastor.

Help me to be totally committed to the bride of Christ.

Oh, please, Pastor, preach all of it.

The hard things.

So that I can be equipped as a Christian in the dying world.

You don't see that very often.

But I say that because if that's the mindset, if that's the heart, if that's the countenance of the church, then I guarantee you unity is being fostered and lived out.

And the glory of God is in that place.

That is why Paul speaks of those giftings here.

He is concerned for unity in the church, and so he speaks of the positions that have great influence on the unity.

And that influence is no more felt and useful than when the people are excited about being equipped to do the work of the ministry as is commanded here.

This requires effective and hardworking pastors and elders, as well as eager and equally hardworking congregants who desire to do the Lord's work.

This doesn't necessarily mean, you know, this one thing that I want to do on my own.

It's talking about the church together doing the ministry.

And just look at what the results are.

Our fourth point.

Verses 13 to 16.

What does this mean for unity in our daily lives?

I want us to just simply marvel at these truths in the last four or a few verses of our text for today.

Back in verse 12, Paul says that the result is that the church is built up.

Who doesn't want their church built up?

Right?

The church is, I would say, constructed appropriately if we are being equipped by the leaders, those gifted leaders, for the work of service.

Basically, if we are enacting true and biblical discipleship, that's what he's talking about.

Verse 13, true unity, he talks about.

Unity in the faith is what he's talking about.

Real, lasting, wonderful, joyful, eternal unity as a church will be the result.

He says, since we've been given gifts, since we have people who help us with those gifts, we're going to live with real and lasting knowledge as well.

Knowledge of God, of the Son of God.

And so the equipping and the building up of the body of Christ brings with it not only godly unity, but a knowledge of Jesus Christ that we simply couldn't have before being equipped.

Now, this is speaking of an in-depth knowledge of the things of the Lord that comes as the word is studied and prayerfully considered and applied.

And Paul is saying this that this comes as we do this together, as we're built up, as we're under the teaching, as we're working together, side by side.

Paul says there in verse 13 again that this means that the church is going to be full of, here's a challenge for us, it's going to be full of mature people.

Please understand this.

It is an absolute requirement for you and I to mature in the Lord.

That's not a negotiable.

We don't get to just be saved and be like, alright, I'm coasting.

That's not how Christianity works.

It's not for salvation that we mature, but a proof of.

That's one proof of.

Maturity, therefore, is a sure sign the Lord is at work in your heart, and this comes in part through his people and his appointed leaders.

We all need to mature on a daily basis.

It's a requirement of the Bible.

We wouldn't tolerate a toddler at 45, if he's in his right mind.

Right?

That would just be odd, awkward.

Just, you know, you could go down the road on that.

Why do we say it's okay to not mature in the Lord, though?

If we mature in life, we better mature in the Lord, especially.

Therefore, if you're not growing in your understanding of his word, if you're not growing in your love for the church, his people, if you're not being equipped, then it could be multiple things.

One is your church could be utterly failing you.

Or possibly you're in rebellion.

Because here's the thing: unity, the unity Paul's talking about, is fostered as maturity in Christ is gained.

Our unity is going to be stunted and eventually destroyed if we don't grow in Christ.

If we don't mature in Christ.

That's what Paul's getting at.

As Paul goes on to say here in 13, we're called to be like Christ.

We're called to continue to look more and more like Christ to the people around us and less and less like Brian.

Or like Joel.

Or like Titus.

It is true that we can never measure up to the fullness of Christ, but it's still the fervent aim of the Christian.

So daily, as we seek unity in the church, we are to put on Christ and forsake who we once were.

More on that next week.

But Brian can only live in eternity if I'm in Christ.

Therefore, Christ-like living has to be my aim, right?

That just kind of makes sense.

But we all need to be reminded of it.

That's why Paul writes about it.

And if I live like Christ, then the church is benefited and unity is fostered.

Isn't that a neat result?

And so, as Paul says in verse 14, that as we grow in knowledge, as we are equipped in the church, as we mature in our faith and understanding of his truth, we are no longer seen as children.

That's why he talks about that.

We're no longer seen as children who are just tossed around.

Like waves in the ocean or like a little toy boat in the ocean.

Just tossed around by all these cunning and crafty doctrines that come about, these newfangled things.

We don't just read a book that talks about God and says, oh, it's this new thing, and we just latch on to it if it isn't the word of the Lord.

No, we test it against the whole counsel of God's word.

We're not sucked into that easily.

Because the Bible is so full of this.

Evil men will try to trick you.

And they're going to try to cause you to stumble in the faith.

Men who know better, but who are evil, that teach unsound doctrine.

And what Paul is telling us here is that, and here's the crazy part for us, and in our American mindset, our individualistic mindset, this is actually kind of weird to grasp, but Paul tells us here that it is the church itself that is one of, if not the greatest, preventative, for falling prey and becoming a victim of that, you could call it a sneaker wave that may sound nice but will drown your soul.

Your brothers and sisters help guard you.

So don't be that lonely, rudderless sailboat.

Instead, be like, I don't know, I've seen, you ever seen those speedboats with way too much horsepower with this eight-cylinder monster just weighing down the back?

That boat can go anywhere and get away from anywhere, right?

It can push past the choppy waves, the unseen undertow.

It's not just roaming about.

That's who we need to be.

Together.

And since we've all been given gifts to deploy to the church in this way, we find something awesome.

That the gifts that you've been given, the gifts that I've been given, those gifts are in part given as a protection for the church.

As we're equipped in the church, as we open ourselves up to one another in the church, that's necessary, as we are built up together in the truth in the word, we are buffeted and protected against the schemes of the evil one.

That's how God set it up.

Isn't that good?

We get to do that for one another.

We're protected against the evil one that would cause us to just endlessly swim around in an ocean of maybe relativistic nonsense that only distracts from the truth.

And this is why I absolutely love verse 15.

Paul says some of the most important words in Scripture when thinking about how we are to interact with one another.

He says, you gotta speak the truth in what?

Love.

Speak the truth in love, in your unity, as you deploy your gifts.

This especially carries over for leaders.

Of course, this carries over to our interactions with the world as well, but it is pointed right here, most important in the church.

So when that dear saint is falling for those ear-tickling doctrines, and they're beginning to abandon their God-given senses, and they're swimming out to no man's land, and they're giving the enemy every opportunity to just drown them, we are to swim out after them with the life preserver named the Word of God.

We don't leave them.

We ought to be ready to speak that which is absolute and objective truth, but with greater love than man has ever known.

It is to say what is true with urgent compassion and passion.

It is to align yourself with the word, not only in what is true, but what is full of grace.

Because truth without love, we've heard all that, that's hardness and not really truth at all in the end.

We can speak the truth and yet be evil.

Remember, the demons believe in God.

They can speak the truth that God is real.

But they're evil.

And on the flip side, though, love without truth is not love in the slightest.

If we love somebody, we will tell them the truth.

If we care about somebody, we're going to be honest.

And if we love, we will follow that which is true together.

Do you see how these work together?

Our speech should convey an equal mixture, therefore, of truth and love, all with a winsome attitude that seeks to promote unity, not uniformity, but unity in Christ.

And since we all have different gifts, it's obvious that our Lord meant for us to have unity even though we're different.

If we all had the exact same gift and the exact same thought patterns, would we need the conversation in the Bible about unity?

Probably not.

He's equipped us differently, praise God.

So we've got to work hard for unity.

That's why there's such a need for following after truth together and doing it in a loving and grace-filled way.

And I gotta tell you, uh I love what Paul says next in verse 15, but it's also hard to say and hard to hear.

It hits me right between the eyes many days, and it is true and loving speech from our God.

And that is this.

Essentially, what Paul is saying there is grow up.

Grow up.

Grow up and stop acting like little immature children.

Stop acting like a child who wants your way.

Again, the Bible's clear, it's not about us, is it?

It's about Him.

And so here's the thing: our gifts are to be deployed for each other, and they're there in a sense to help us call to each other, all call out to each other to grow up in the faith and in life in all aspects, Paul says here, in every way grow up.

If Christ has won the victory and has given gifts for you to use for each other, if you're being equipped by the church and its leaders, if you are being discipled, maybe by the person next to you, if you are learning about the Lord, then just grow up, is what Paul's saying.

Speak the truth in love and receive it.

When your brother or your sister does the same.

And realize that in the end it's all for the glory of God and the unity of his bride.

And that's exactly what Paul speaks of in verse 16.

You know, in reality, I like to think of this portion, this is Paul's version of a church growth model.

So many times we today we have this new thing that comes out, this new thing to watch, this uh, you know, how to grow your church by Friday, or what you need to do to bring them in, you know, get the bouncy house going.

Paul doesn't go for any of that.

In fact, in Colossians, he tells them, don't get caught up in all of that.

Don't get caught up in the festivals and the other things that the people want you to be about.

Instead, be about the ministry of the gospel and his word.

The ministry of the gospel in one sense is nothing less than speaking the truth and love.

You see, if the church is to be about the preaching of the gospel, employing their giftings to one another in the church, seeking unity in these things, having believers equipped for the work of the ministry, growing up in the knowledge of Christ, and all these things that Paul tells us here, if that is what the church is to be about, then what we find is that the gathered church is primarily for the believer and not the lost.

I know, countercultural, but please hear me in this.

Not that we don't open our doors wide for those who would come and hear the gospel, see the unity of the people of God.

No, we earnestly desire for that, we invite for that.

But that our primary function as we gather together as a church is to be equipped so that we can live for Christ, use our gifts for one another, and go proclaim the gospel to the lost.

And if that's true, then our church growth model is to just simply be built up and grow up in Christ.

And as we see in verse 16, the whole body, as he talks about, equally important, equally vital, the whole body being fitted and held together by every joint and what it supplies according to what the Lord has given, this causes the growth.

You see it?

Our gifting caused the growth by the grace of God.

That's how important these gifts are.

First and foremost, growth in our own walk with the Lord as a church.

That's the growth Paul's talking about.

And then, if the Lord so chooses numerical growth, but either way, it's up to him.

If Christ determines that in our faithfulness he supplies us with new workers and worshippers, praise his name.

But if he so chooses that we become a church of ten, because of that faithfulness, praise his name.

It's his church.

He will do what he pleases.

We're just stewards called to be faithful and to speak the truth in love as we pursue Christ's likeness and unity and worship in all of life.

It is Christ that causes growth.

Our job is to just be faithful followers, deploying our gifts as one body, under one head, seeking one thing: God's glory.

Godly unity is truly a gift of his grace.

And each gift that we have been given is meant to grow the body into his image as we mature and live out what he has called us to in his word.

And as Paul finishes verse 16 with, this is all done in love.

If it's not done in love, we don't do it.

Real, lasting, godly, growth-promoting, truth-supporting love.

Like the world can't know.

It is so good to be loved, wouldn't you say?

And nobody can love you like Christ and his bride.

I don't care how long you've known him.

Praise God.

So, together, pray Baptist, let's grow up.

Let's grow up.

Let's seek unity even further.

Let's serve one another even further.

Let's speak the truth in love as we're built up together as one body, as a family in Jesus Christ.

United around the gospel.

Let that be our call today.

Let's pray.

Father, we thank you that you have gifted us with salvation, that you have gifted us with eternal life.

And that you have gifted us with each other.

That you have united us together right here in Grand County.

You've called us to live for your purposes.

Oh, Father, give us strength to speak the truth in love.

To be full of grace and compassion and yet full of absolute objective truth.

Lead us and guide us in these things.

As we honor you, as we worship you, as we tell others about how great and grand you are, even in light of how sinful we are.

We thank you for the gift of this church family, this body.

Oh, how good it is to be together.

We pray this in Christ's name.

Amen.