Battle Ready:" Not For Your Entertainment" Ephesians 4.11-14 Pastor Daniel Reese

Well, if you have your Bibles, Ephesians 4 is where we are again this morning.

Last week we looked at how Jesus is able to give us gifts, how he is able to set the captives

free, how he descended down to the earth so that he could initiate a relationship with us.

Every other belief system out there is trying to ascend to make peace with their God.

Ours descended to make peace with us because of his incomprehensible love for us.

This morning we're going to look at the why.

He did that and what our response to him doing that should be.

Now remember, all of this is part of the same idea of unity within the body of Christ.

We are to bear with one another in love.

We all need to be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

And then Paul tells us exactly what we are united under.

One Lord, one faith, one hope, one baptism, one God and Father of all.

So everything that Paul has been writing for the last several weeks is all with the understanding

of why we should be unified as believers in Jesus.

So with all that in mind, let's look at our text this morning.

We're going to do 11 through 14.

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,

to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,

until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God,

to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,

so that we may no longer be children tossed to and fro by the waves,

and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness and deceitful schemes.

Now I have come to the conclusion that as I've gotten older,

just because I believe in my mind that I am able to do something, doesn't mean that I can actually do it.

My mind still feels like I'm 18, but my body reminds me frequently that I'm not 18.

If I go to a basketball game, or football game, or baseball game, or whatever,

I'm sitting there thinking, I still got it.

I could make that play. I could make that shot. I could have done that hit.

But then I realized there is a reason why I am sitting in the stands,

and not on the field or not on the court.

I am a spectator, no longer a participant,

unless we all decide to unify together and form some sort of middle-aged league of some sort.

I grew up in a church where I thought the pastor was on some sort of pedestal,

and it was his responsibility to do the work of the Lord.

I was just someone that he ministered to.

I was a spectator as I sat in the pew, weekend and week out,

instead of viewing myself as being a player on the field.

Now, as I've grown up, I've realized that there are many people that have that mentality.

It was the work of the pastors, it was the work of the staff to fulfill the Great Commission,

and we had the responsibility of being able to watch them do it.

My hope is that if you have that mindset, I'm hoping that will be changed today.

So, I would like to begin by looking at this text, but looking at the people that Paul mentions in this text.

He mentions five different groups of people.

When Paul references apostles and prophets, he usually clumps them together.

He's done that in the past few chapters. He did that in chapter 2 and chapter 3.

Now, when he's mentioning the apostles, he's mentioning himself as well as the eleven other men that God called to follow him.

Plus, he's adding Matthias on there, who replaced Judas as one of the twelve disciples.

These were the men who had been commissioned by Jesus to proclaim the gospel,

but it also been witnesses to the resurrected Jesus.

That's who the apostles are.

The prophets worked alongside the apostles to interpret and explain the authoritative words of the apostles.

Men like Mark, men like Luke, men like James, who were not apostles, but helped in the writing of the New Testament.

They helped the church understand what was being said through the apostles as they were being led by the Holy Spirit.

When I think of the role of prophets, I think of someone who has to explain what is meant.

Now, I am no apostle. My wife is no prophet, but there are times that I will say something

and people take it the wrong way because they don't know me well enough.

And so, Sina has to come behind me and clarify that's not what he meant, just so there's not any confusion.

Then we get to the role of evangelist.

I believe all Christians are commanded by Jesus to be witnesses for God in the world,

but he's also gifted certain people with a special gift of being able to communicate the gospel effectively in a way that brings in non-believers.

These were the people who were primarily responsible for the numerical growth of the church.

When you think of evangelists, I want you to think of people like Philip in Acts chapter 8,

Acts 8 · chapter mention

who comes across encounters this Ethiopian eunuch, and through conversation the eunuch becomes a believer.

Think of Billy Graham, but I also believe that every local church body has men and women who have the gift of evangelism,

where you just have a way of communicating the gospel truth in a way that people understand and never see it.

Then there are pastors and teachers.

Now, literally, these are teaching shepherds who care for the people under their care,

similar to how a shepherd would care for their flock.

Their responsibility includes feeding and protecting and leading and guiding the body of believers.

God gives this group with the ability to explain what the Bible says,

interpret what it means, and help you apply it to everyday life.

Now, those are most of the people that Paul references here,

but next I want us to look at the reason for the gift.

So why did he give the apostles and prophets?

Why did he give those gifts?

Verse 12 says, the reason for the gift is to equip the saints.

Now, here's where our modern translations mess up our understanding sometimes.

This is a perfect illustration.

In the original manuscripts, there's no punctuation marks.

There's no verses or chapters.

So when I was growing up in the church, and we used the King James version of the Bible,

which somehow hasn't left me because I still have all those verses memorized in the King James Bible,

because of the punctuation, it made it seem like the apostles and the prophets and evangelists

and pastors and teachers are given to the church for the purpose of doing the work in the ministry.

The idea gained more attraction with the development or the formation of the Catholic Church in the third century.

There was this distinction between clergy and laity.

I'm a member of the clergy because of my profession, and you are a member of the laity because you don't work for the church.

I'm different than you because I'm ordained and you are not.

The problem with that mindset is that it's not in the Bible.

Tradition over the centuries has created the church to be a spectator sport,

and clergy are the ones that we watch play the game.

There's a story about three boys during recess bragging about their dads.

The first boy said, my dad scribbles on a page.

He calls it a poem and they pay him $100.

The second boy says, well, my dad scribbles on a page.

He calls it a song and they pay him $500.

The third boy says, I got you both beat.

My dad scribbles on a page.

He calls it a sermon and it takes eight men to collect all the money.

If we're not careful, that's how we can begin to view a worship service.

We come in, we sing a few songs, and then the professional paid clergy gets up and gives a speech.

We pay our admission fee by putting money in the box as we leave and then we go home,

living our lives the same way we did before we came to church.

A proper reading of our passage this morning makes it very clear that the purpose of the apostles

and prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers is to equip all believers to carry out the work of this ministry.

To continue our sports analogy, my job as a pastor teacher is really a lot like a coach.

My role is to prepare and equip all of you to actually do the ministry of our church.

The word equipping is an interesting word.

The original root word was a medical term used for setting bones.

It carries the idea of making something or someone completely fit or ready for service.

It's the same word that's used to describe what James and John were doing when Jesus called them to follow him.

In Matthew chapter 4, we read that they were mending their nets.

Matthew 4 · chapter mention

The word translated mending in that passage is the same word translated equip here in Ephesians.

In other words, James and John were getting their nets ready to be used.

Think about our church and how we do things here.

Our vision is every Christ follower, a disciple, every disciple, a disciple maker.

That's our vision.

It's not every pastor, a disciple, every pastor, a disciple maker.

Our goal as a church is to equip you to be disciple makers, to equip you to do the work of the ministry.

Think of a good football team.

I said good football team. Remember that.

We're not talking about the Bears.

You knew that was coming.

You have a quarterback, running back, receivers, you have linemen.

All have different responsibilities, but they all have the same goal.

The goal is get the football into the end zone.

Now, a lot of times you might have the most talented roster.

You might have the best players, but you don't have a good coordinator who puts them in the right position,

who calls them the right, who calls the right place in order for them to succeed.

That's why coaches get fired all the time.

For 28 years, this church had a great coordinator.

Not perfect, but Pastor Scott did a great job of shepherding people.

A great job of equipping you.

And he created a culture that equipped the saints for the work of ministry.

If we were a sports team this morning, and if this were a stadium, we would retire his number.

He led to legacy that I hope to have after 28 years in one week.

I think the problem that many of us have with this statement is that we have a really narrow idea of what the word ministry means.

We think that ministry means I have to teach a Bible study.

I have to sing on the worship team.

I have to be a greeter. I have to help in the nursery.

Now, believe me, we certainly do need people to do all of those things.

But perhaps we can get a better idea of what Paul is thinking about if we spend a little bit of time looking at that word service.

Some other translations render the word ministry, both here and in other places in the New Testament.

The word is from the same root word in which we get our word deacon from.

It is a word Jesus used to describe himself in Mark chapter 10.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.

And he gave his life as a ransom for many.

That's what ministry is. It's how do we serve? How do we use our gifts to serve?

So here's a way we are going to help equip you.

On the back of your sermon notes, if you have sermon notes.

If you don't have sermon notes, raise your hand and we'll get people to bring them in.

If they're listening to me. I don't know if they are.

But on the back of your sermon notes, there's a place where you can write your name.

And then there's a few lines to write some needs that you might have.

Now, if you're like me, you're going to struggle with this part.

Because I don't need any help. I can do it on my own.

I am pleading with you. I'm asking you to join us.

And write down any need that you might have or have in the future.

For instance, you might need help shoveling your driveway in a couple weeks when we start getting snow.

Maybe that's a burden to you.

Maybe that overwhelms you. Write that down.

You might need help because you have a light fixture that isn't working.

Maybe you can't reach the top of your ceiling and your smoke detector is going off and it's beeping every so often.

You need to change the battery, but you can't quite get it.

Maybe you need prayer for something.

And you need to make that need known.

Maybe you're worried about paying a bill or getting your car fixed.

I want you to write it down.

And I want you to tear it off.

And then in a little while, we're going to collect all of those.

I am asking our church to make known hundreds of needs.

Together.

We will make those needs known.

We will not publish your name or phone number.

We will make those needs known.

And then we're going to ask the members of our church to help serve and meet those needs.

If your kid is bad at math and needs help, write that down.

If you haven't gone on a date with your spouse in six months, write that down.

Whatever the need, write it down and we're going to all see how God works in the next few weeks.

Because the flip side to all of this is many of you have gifting that you're not using.

And what we're going to do is we're going to create a list of these are all the needs that we know of in our church.

Pick and choose which ones you can help with.

Now as I continue, please write those things down.

Rip it off. We'll collect those here in just a little while.

Because that leads me to the point of the gifts.

It is your responsibility as a believer in Jesus to care for the soul of everyone you meet.

It is your responsibility to serve and not just wait to be served.

Now we will help guide you. We will pray with you.

We will pray for you.

We will create opportunities for you to use your giftings.

But I can't do it for you.

But even if I could, even if I could do it for you, the reality is that you would be more effective in the circles that you're running in.

The purpose of everything we do here is not to fill you with knowledge, but to get you ready to be used by God.

The pastors are here and we're mending nets, weekend and week out and we're mending nets, getting ready to throw them into the water.

And some of you are ready to be thrown into the water.

Because there's a difference between philanthropy and ministry.

Both are good things, but philanthropy makes the individual look good.

It gives them a good name in the community. It helps grow their business.

It is the reason why so many corporations have departments specifically called public relations.

Some of you are out there serving others every day.

But if you're doing it for the recognition from others or to feel good about yourself, you're not being a minister.

But if you're out there meeting the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of others so that the wisdom of God would be made known,

then you are doing ministry.

And I'm here to do everything I can to prepare you to do that.

We do a lot of good things in the community.

And I feel like we have a good reputation in the North Scott area.

When people think of cornerstone, they're probably thinking, oh, they're the ones that do surface.

They're the ones that do whatever.

But if that's the whole point, if that's all we're known for, then we're just doing philanthropy.

I would rather us be known as that's the place I found healing.

I would rather us be known as that's the place to find hope.

That's the place where everyone is welcomed.

That's the place where I can get some help for my addictions.

The place where I can strengthen my marriage.

The place where God is magnified above all else because every member of the body is using their gifts that Jesus has given them for the purpose of unity.

I'd rather us be known for that than, oh yeah, they do some stuff around town.

Because if that's what we're known as around town, we're just doing philanthropy.

That is the point of the gifts.

And as I use my gifts to equip you to use your gifts, Christ is magnified.

Not you or me.

We point people to the one Lord.

We share our one faith with others.

We give glory to the one Father and one God above all.

And as we do the work of the ministry, it's not to make us look good.

It's not to give Cornerstone a good name.

It is to make him look good because of what he is doing through us.

And as we enter into seasons of receiving the work of the ministry, which I hope all of you are thinking about right now,

we give thanks to the Lord who gave the gifts that are being used.

So many of you are so encouraging to me.

And you lift me up when you say things like, that really spoke to me today.

That was a great message today.

I really needed to hear that today.

I am so grateful for those words.

They fill my soul.

And I give thanks to the Lord for you.

But my hope is not that you walk out of here talking about me.

But you walk out of here talking about his word.

I promise you.

I promise you I do not belong on any pedestal.

He does.

And if you need any sort of explanation for why I do not belong on a pedestal, speak to my wife.

I am just trying my best to use the gifts that God has given me.

And I'm challenging you to do the same.

Finally, we see in verses 13 and 14 that we need to grow up in the faith.

And every baby that is born is brought into this world completely helpless.

They are all dependent on someone else to feed them and bathe them and clothe them and protect them.

And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

But there is something wrong when that baby remains an infant and never becomes able to do those things for themselves.

The same thing is true for Christians.

Every one of us is like a newborn when we become a follower of Jesus Christ.

And we need others to help us mature.

Now here is the thing about infants.

They are unstable.

They come with a self destruct button on the top of their head.

Their head has to be supported so they do not break their neck.

If you are new to the faith, then you need more mature Christians to help nurture you in the faith.

We will help care for you, feed you, and hold your hand until you are stable enough to stand on your own.

I mean, that is what the church is for.

There is no shame in that.

There is no shame that you need help.

We don't expect you to be able to do this on your own.

There has been no greater joy in my ministry besides when somebody comes to the Lord,

but when I can watch someone get it.

When you can see that light come on.

But when that light comes on, it is now their turn to walk with someone new in the faith.

If you are still in the infant phase, then you have been so for years or even decades.

You need to own that and then you need to begin to take steps for your growth.

You are not going to be properly nourished if the only food you get is here on Sunday mornings.

Try new things.

Jump into places to serve.

Ask questions.

Bring your doubts.

There are too many Christians I know that treat the church like a hospital.

But they only come for a band-aid when they have a bullet wound.

We need each other to grow.

I want to help you grow.

I want to help you mature.

There is a whole bunch of other people in this church that want the same for you.

Join a Bible study.

Ask people to hold you accountable.

Serve where there are needs.

And soon you will become a full-fledged, mature believer.

Infants are also easily deceived.

When Asher was a little boy, he loved to go to McDonald's and get a happy meal.

I don't think he cared for the food as much as he cared for the toy.

So we were able to get a happy meal.

We were able to get a happy meal.

We were able to get a happy meal.

We were able to get a happy meal.

We were able to get a happy meal.

Toys.

So we were going out one day.

It was just the two of us getting some stuff done.

We were going to go get some lunch together.

And he wanted to go to McDonald's to get a happy meal.

I didn't want to go to McDonald's.

So I deceived him.

I told him, buddy, McDonald's ran out of happy meals today.

So we had to go somewhere else.

And don't judge me because I know you all have done the same thing.

In this passage, Paul uses four different words to describe how susceptible immature Christians are to deceit and trickery.

Certainly he was referring to false teaching of many who were trying to draw these new believers away from their faith.

But it seems to me, based on both what Paul writes in this passage, plus the rest of the context of this letter,

that that is also a reference here to Satan, who uses deceit as one of his main weapons.

The Gospel is so easy to understand, it seems too good to be true.

Do you know why? Because Satan makes you think it can't be that easy.

Satan makes you believe what's the catch.

Satan will lie and deceive you to believe that the person sitting next to you is the enemy,

so that he can disrupt the unity of our church.

He will deceive you to believe that you aren't good enough.

He will deceive you to think that what the Bible describes as a sin isn't because the Bible is out of touch with reality.

That's just how he works.

This is why a body of believers is so important to your spiritual health.

You cannot flourish on your own.

Satan and I recently went to a conference, and one of the topics was human flourishing.

Now, if you were here for the women's conference, and you heard all this,

Sina stole my thunder, so this won't be news to you.

But the question was, what makes people flourish and become the best version of themselves?

What makes people flourish and become the best versions of themselves?

Men who are much smarter than me, that do research and teach in places like Harvard and Duke,

who have done countless hours of research.

We're trying to figure out what makes a human being flourish.

They did a whole bunch of case studies.

They had their charts in their graphs.

They had all their work peer reviewed, and do you know what they found out?

The number one contributing factor for humans to flourish was weekly church attendance.

Those that attend a weekly church service have a higher probability of being content.

Have a higher probability of understanding their value.

Have a higher probability of thriving.

Science is catching up with what the Bible has been saying since it was written.

But the enemy is going to deceive you, and he's going to make you believe that church doesn't matter.

You can have a relationship with God on your own.

Now, it is true, you can have a relationship with God on your own, but you aren't going to flourish.

You're not going to be the person that God created you to be.

When you look at this text, where do you see yourself in this text?

Because believe it or not, we don't come up here every week for your entertainment,

but to equip you for the work of ministry.

Find any of us after the service, and we will help you.

If you need a place to serve, we'll plug you in.

If you need to grow in your understanding of who God is and the knowledge of God,

we can plug you into different opportunities.

If you want to learn how to make disciples, we will go with you and walk with you as you do it, and we can do it together.

Where do you see yourself in the text?

Some of you are pastors and leaders in evangelists,

and you have been given to the church to help us equip every single one of you for the work of the gospel.

If you are a spectator, if you've been a spectator, we're calling you into the game.

We're calling you into the game.

As we close, I'll ask the ushers to grab the baskets and pass the baskets out.

I want you to put those needs. I'm asking you, please write down a need that we can help me.

If you're really struggling with that, write it down. You can make it up to us because when I get those all together, I'll make that known.

That's the work of the church. We are here to serve.

We are here to serve one another.

Make those needs known.

I'm going to pray for us. We'll have time to respond. We'll collect those as they come around.

I really just want you to see where you are in that text.

Maybe you're not a pastor. Maybe you're not an evangelist.

But if you're a believer in Jesus, you are for sure a saint. And the saints do the work of the ministry.

So let's get off the bench. Can we pray for us?

Father God, I pray that as needs are being made known, I know that's a hard task sometimes.

Father, I pray that you bless the humility that that takes. I pray that you...

I pray God that you will use this time to minister to the needs of your people.

I pray God that as we sing and as we respond, Father, that you will soften our hearts.

Let us hear your voice.

So God, I pray for our church, all the saints that you've collected in this place.

Father, I pray that you will help us all be on the field of ministry.

I pray that you will continue to equip each and every one of us.

I pray God that you will use each and every one of us. I pray that you give us opportunities to share the knowledge of your word.

So we've got to pray that you move in this time.

I pray that you speak to our hearts. We ask all these things in your name.