Battle Ready: "Building a Home":Ephesians 2:19-23 Pastor Daniel Reese

Amen. Hello, good morning.

If you have your Bibles, we are going to finish chapter two of Ephesians this morning.

And then we were going to, we're going to take a few weeks break.

We'll pick up chapter three after Easter.

And so that will hopefully give you time to catch up on some memorization as we're,

as we continue to try to memorize the book of Ephesians together.

So I hope you will be encouraged to catch up, if you will, with that.

We'll be, we're going to finish and start here, starting in verse 19 here this morning.

I ran across this question that was posted on Yahoo Answers this week.

Here's the question.

How do you raise a Christian without going to church?

My wife and I are Christian and we have a 10 month old daughter.

I wanted to have Christian beliefs and thoughts, but I hate organized religion.

I pray on my own.

I thank God when things, when good things happen and I pray over difficult things.

I got my background from church, obviously, but I hate going and always have.

I've always seen going to church as a waste of my day.

I don't need to sing and all that stuff to believe in Jesus.

If it was just the sermon I could deal.

Well, we take our daughter to church like twice a month.

I work six days a week and if I go to church, the day is shot.

I can't work in the yard or relax on my day off.

So my question is, can I give my child a good Christian background from home?

So I read that and apparently this person who posted the question isn't the only one with that opinion of the church.

A survey was done by Barna that reported that in the United States about 10 million self-proclaimed,

born again Christians had not been to church in the last six months apart from Christmas or Easter.

Nearly all of these born again Christians say their spiritual life is very important,

but for 10 million of them, spiritual life has nothing to do with church.

Another study completed by the LifeWay Research Group gives some good insight into why these people are leaving the church.

The top four reasons these formerly church people gave up, gave for leaving the church were,

59% said that there was a change in their life situation.

Either they moved, got a new job or divorced.

37% became disenchanted with the pastor.

26% said church had not fulfilled their needs.

And 22% said change, they had a change in beliefs or attitudes towards the church.

Now those don't even address the whole generation of people who would be considered church shoppers,

that frequently move from one church to another in order to find a church that meets their needs.

As part of that same LifeWay study last year, the researchers also surveyed people who had switched from one church to another

for several reasons other than moving location.

The top 10 reasons as to why somebody left one church for another can basically be broken down into three main categories.

The church wasn't fulfilling their needs, they became disenchanted with the church or pastor, or they experienced too much change.

Now, at first glance, all of these statistics and numbers may seem to be unrelated.

But I think that what Paul writes here at the end of Ephesians shows that all of these findings are the consequences of one underlying attitude that has gripped our culture.

There's a tendency on our part to view our relationship with God as something that impacts me.

Now, there's no doubt that there is an individual aspect to our faith.

Much of what Paul wrote about in the first chapter and the beginning of the second chapter deals with how God has entered into the lives of individuals in order to draw them into a personal relationship with Jesus.

But even there, Paul has hinted that our Christianity is not just our own.

Our faith is intended to be experienced within the body of believers that God has created.

Our faith is meant to be experienced within the church.

And so Ephesians 2, 19 through 22 focuses on the building of God's new temple, the church.

So let's read it together.

Paul says, So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone in whom the whole structure being joined together grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

In him, you are also being built together into a dwelling place for God by the spirit.

So the passage that we just read begins with the two word phrase, So then now some translations if you have one some start with the word consequently.

Now that is a pretty big hint that we are in the middle of a thought here.

Okay, and so we need to look back to see what Paul is summing up here in this passage verses 11 through 18 have focused on Jesus's work of reconciliation of bringing together both the Jews and the Gentiles and making them into one body one new creation that that is reconciled to God.

The point of these verses is that Jesus came to tear down to destroy to abolish the barriers and make us into one new United people as his children.

Okay, so with all that in mind, Paul says, Here is the result.

Because he is unified, you and Gentile, because he has torn down the barriers.

Here is the results and he lists two specific things. First, that we are now citizens and second that we are members of God's household.

Paul expands the second picture in verses 20 through 22.

And he's using a building analogy to communicate what the nature of the church is.

These verses are some of the most explicit scripture texts in the Bible dealing with the nature of the church.

The first thing we see in this passage is that we have a new residency.

In Jesus, we have a new residency.

The contrast which Paul has been pointing out of all of chapter two is summed up in the first line.

You are no longer strangers. You are no longer aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people.

Now, as a consequence of what Christ has done, we are no longer on the outside.

We are no longer strangers. We are no longer alien. We have been brought in.

A few months ago, I had to do the tragic thing of turning in my Texas driver's license.

It was a sad day.

I was no longer a resident of Texas, but of Iowa.

And let's be honest, that doesn't sound as cool as it does.

When we surrender our life to Jesus, that is what happens to you.

You are no longer a citizenship here on this earth. Our citizenship is now in heaven.

We are just visiting here for a limited time.

Now, I can go back to Texas and visit. I can go back and do those things, but my residency is here in Iowa.

We are on this earth visiting, but our residency is in heaven.

Now, I don't know if you've ever lived or experienced living in a foreign country, somewhere where you are not a citizen.

Now, I haven't, but I know that there are restrictions. There are limitations.

Sometimes there are places that you may not go, things that you may not participate in because you don't belong.

You are not a citizen.

That is how the Gentiles, how the Gentile people were in relation to God.

If you are familiar with the Old Testament, you'll remember that in the temple in Jerusalem, there was physically this place.

The temple was physically the place where God dwelt. It's where His presence was.

Before the building of the temple, it was the tabernacle.

Even before that, it was called the tent of meeting. God was actually present in that structure.

He was there. The temple was built with very specific places for very specific people.

Only the Gentiles could go to the court of the Gentiles, which was the farthest thing from the presence of God on the temple structure.

It is significant that it was part of the temple, but I want to point out that they weren't allowed to go any further.

We kind of discussed this last week with the wall of hostility. This is where they stopped.

We have discovered archaeological evidence of an inscription on the actual pillars of the temple forbidding Gentiles to enter any further for risk of death.

Paul has all this in mind. He knows the temperature of the room. He has all of this in mind.

He says, but now you are fellow citizens. You're no longer on the outside. You're no longer separated by a barrier.

You are now fellow citizens. Being a fellow citizen means that you belong, that this place is home.

It means that you are entitled to all the rights and freedoms and privileges of that society.

As a citizen of the U.S., we have access to all kinds of great things. We have access to medical care.

We are protected by our police and our justice system. We have the right to vote on who our leaders are and who our decision makers are.

We have the right to seek protection from the U.S. anywhere in the world if we get to the embassy.

That sounds pretty good, especially as we watch other places in the world. We understand that we have it pretty good here.

We should thank God for that. We should thank the men and women who have fought for those freedoms, for those things.

But all of that is nothing compared to the rights and freedoms of being fellow citizens with God's people.

Where God's presence actually dwells with us. We have a new residency because of Jesus.

The next thing is we have a, in Jesus we have a new home.

Paul moves from this big idea, national image to a personal one.

From large scale citizenship to an intimate scale member of a household.

We have seen this theme already as we have gone through Ephesians. In Ephesians 1.5 it says that God adopted us as His children.

In 1.13 it says that we are included in Christ. In 1.14 it says the Holy Spirit guarantees our inheritance.

In chapter 2 verse 6 it says we have been sealed with Christ in the heavenly realms.

In 2.15 it says that Christ has torn down the walls and made us one.

The point is that the church is God's family.

We have been included in God's household with all the rights and privileges and responsibilities that comes with that.

Most of all the second image is one of intimacy and belonging.

So Sina and I have had the privilege to travel together all over the world.

We've seen some really cool places, some really beautiful places.

We have seen many of God's wonders in creation.

We love to travel and we love to experience different things that the world has to offer.

There is always something though about traveling. Once you've been gone a certain amount of time.

There's something though that makes you long for home.

That makes you want to just get home.

There's just a sort of peace that comes from being home.

There's something about sleeping in your own bed, right?

Yes, yes.

Now I don't share the story for you to be concerned for me.

But I did some research and I found that I suffer from a condition called parkopresis.

That hurts.

Many of you might suffer from it as well and not even know about it.

In fact, I did some research and according to research,

16.4% of the population suffers from parkopresis,

which means that there are several of us in this room who suffer from it.

Parkopresis is a condition that is also known as shy bowel.

It means that we don't like to use public restrooms

and we prefer to handle our business at home.

The problem for me though is that my body knows when it's almost home.

It knows when I turn onto my road.

And it lets me know that I will soon be at peace.

Now, I don't feel like my calling in life is to raise awareness

for people who suffer from parkopresis

because I just don't think we want to be defined by it.

Just know that when we say we need to get home,

it's nothing personal.

So, where do you think of?

What do you think of when you think of home?

Your answer likely depends on what stage of life you're at.

But most people have a place that they call home.

It is a place of warmth and acceptance and honesty.

Of a no need to wear a mask here

and pretend to be somebody that you're not.

How did it get to be home?

Like how do we understand what home is?

The main factor is that there are people who love and accept you.

That's what makes it home.

Another key factor is time.

It is a place you would go and be.

It's not a place you run in and out of like a convenience store.

But it's somewhere you would relax and spend time with the people who are there.

A third factor is likely that you let your guard down.

You take off your mask.

You stop pretending and you are yourself.

That's what makes it home.

This passage is talking about the church.

And God wants it to be home.

It is his home.

And the point of verse 22 is it is also to be our home.

How do we become that as a church?

First, we love for and care for one another.

Actively, persistently and tenaciously as needed.

Second, we spend time together.

Far more than simply running in for a worship service on Sunday morning.

We need to be real with one another.

We need to be willing to take risk of letting other see our hurts

and letting other see our flaws and needs

so that we can truly love and care for one another.

Practically speaking, accomplishing that kind of mindset where this is home

just by coming to a worship service is virtually impossible.

That kind of home needs to be found in smaller groups of people

where there is more interaction, where there is more opportunity to grow with one another.

That is why we are constantly putting before you the need and the desire

for you to be a part of a small group or a D group

because they are so important to our church.

We can and we need to strive for this in our worship services

but in small groups is where we really become known

and where this place will feel more like home.

Now the rest of this passage describes the household of God

and he is going to use some building metaphors through it.

The first one is he says to look at the foundation.

You might expect this to be God but in fact it isn't.

The foundation is the apostles and the prophets.

When Paul is referring here to the apostles and the prophets

he is describing those like himself

who are the authoritative representatives

and proclaimers of God's revelation in Christ.

The apostles is a term that Paul almost always used to refer to himself

and to the 11 others that Jesus had appointed

to go and become messengers for his purpose.

The prophets are undoubtedly the New Testament prophets

who worked alongside the apostles to proclaim the gospel of Jesus.

The principle that Paul is referring to here that he is laying out here

is that the church needs to be built upon the accurate

and authoritative proclamation of the gospel of Jesus.

That's what the foundation is.

For us it's the Word of God.

It's the Bible which consists of the writings of the apostles and prophets

that have been passed on to us.

If we build our church on anything other

than the Word of God we will not last.

If a church uses culture or emotion as their foundation

you will not be a church for very long.

The scriptures are never changing.

The culture is.

The scriptures are true and steady.

Our emotions are not.

If we twist the scriptures

to fit what we think sounds good

if we twist the scriptures in order for them to not be as offensive

then we will fail to be the church that God wants.

The gospel is offensive

and has been offensive to each and every one of us at one point or another.

In a culture that likes to cancel anything that hurts our feelings

we have to remain committed to the Word of God.

That is the foundation.

The second thing is we see is the cornerstone.

So Paul says Christ Jesus is the chief cornerstone.

Now to understand that point

you have to understand some sort of some building terms

when it comes to building a house or building a building.

The most important part of the structure was the chief or the first cornerstone.

It was carefully chosen as the strongest and the truest

and it was laid down first.

It set the direction where the walls came out horizontally.

It set the direction where the walls came up vertically.

It supported the weight and it tied the rest of the structure together.

That is exactly who Jesus is for the church.

The one who ties us all together.

The one who holds us all together.

That's what verse 21 tells us.

In whom the whole structure being joined together grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

Here's the issue with our culture right now.

We will take the words of Jesus out of the scriptures

and we'll base everything on that and we'll twist his words.

We have to understand that there's nothing in the scriptures

that Jesus' words will contradict.

He holds all things together.

He ties all things together.

Jesus' words fit into what is a consistent theme throughout the Bible.

The third part of the building we see is the bricks.

Verse 22,

In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

So the apostles and the prophets are the foundation.

Christ the cornerstone.

What makes up the walls?

We do.

You and I do.

The picture is of individual bricks,

each being placed and put into the right spot.

That is you and I.

We are each a brick being placed somewhere in the wall of the church.

Look at what God is building out of us together.

A holy temple of the Lord, according to verse 21.

A dwelling place in which God lives by his Spirit.

I mean, isn't that incredible to think about?

Like when you think about the church and as we come together,

God himself living in us.

Now this is, he's talking corporately.

He's not talking individually here.

Living in us and us together becoming a holy temple.

Us together bringing more of the presence of God into this place.

I take great comfort in understanding the fact that God is the builder.

Notice it, it's nowhere it doesn't say that we are to create.

It is in him.

And then the verb there is passive.

It is being done to us.

It's being done by someone else.

God by the Spirit is the one building the holy temple.

And that is good because I don't know how to build a church like that.

I can't build a church like that.

I can't make us into a holy temple.

We can't build it.

We can only be obedient to the builder.

And if we aren't obedient, we can mess everything up.

We can blow this thing apart.

We can make it so that it is not a holy place.

But that is not the point of the image.

The image is of the whole joined together and becoming a holy temple.

Working together, building the walls.

So where does your brick fit in?

What is most exciting to me is that it is clearly evident that God is at work amongst us.

God is working in this place.

God is leading us.

God is in control.

Calling us to know who we are as his children.

To know that he has called us and equipped us and empowered us to be witnesses for him in our world.

And he has sent us out of this place to do that.

We respond in obedience.

So where do you fit in with that purpose?

Where do you fit in with the building?

I believe beyond any hint of doubt that God has brought us together as a church.

He has brought us together as a body of believers for such a time as this.

That God has given us each gifts and abilities and called us each to use them in service to God's kingdom.

We need each brick in its place.

Maybe a better question is how do you find out where your brick fits in?

One way to do that is to do a long study on spiritual gifts.

Talk about all the different ones.

Maybe even do some sort of self-analysis.

But frankly, we don't have time for that.

And many of us have done those things already and done nothing with it.

Instead, let me offer you a few things.

The first thing you need to do is you need to look around for the needs.

Where do you see needs in this place?

Where do you see needs in the kingdom of God?

Second thing is pay attention to what kind of needs grabs you.

Which ones stick out to you?

Which ones interest you?

Even if you've never dreamed you would or could do anything like that.

Which ones are grabbing your attention?

Third thing is let's pray about it.

Pray, God, how can you use me to fulfill that need?

And most important, most important, if you're not sure, just try it and see.

Now I know a little bit about teaching and learning and I believe that the best way to learn something

is to go try it and get someone else to walk beside you to teach you as you do it.

In any household, there are responsibilities and there are privileges.

Now of course if you have an infant or a toddler, it's all privilege and no responsibility,

but that begins to change as we grow, hopefully.

We come to know our role, how we contribute.

We find out where our particular brick fits in the wall.

It is the same with God's household.

We have a responsibility to serve God in His kingdom wherever He leads.

And the tricky part and the fun part is that we get to do that together.

We get to work together.

Together in our brokenness we are being built to become a dwelling place

in which God lives by His Spirit.

Now none of us make up the church alone.

We need each other because we are all broken and handicapped and unable to fight the battle ourselves.

The bricks together form the wall built on the foundations of the apostles and prophets

as recorded in God's Word with Christ Himself as the chief cornerstone.

And the result is a structure that is strong and can stand firm at whatever Satan throws at us.

But only when the wall is all tied together.

When there are no big gaps or bricks that are not secured.

We have to work together.

Let me leave you with this picture.

During a vacation Bible school one week a teacher had an experience with her class

that she says she will never forget.

Her class was interrupted on Wednesday about an hour before dismissal

when a new student was brought in.

The little boy had one arm missing.

And since the class was almost over she had no idea, no opportunity

to learn any of his details about the cause or his state of adjustment.

She was very nervous and afraid that the other children would comment on his handicapped and embarrass him.

Because kids say the darnedest things at the wrong times. Am I right?

So there was no opportunity to caution them.

So she proceeded as carefully as possible with the rest of the class.

As the class time came to a close she began to relax.

She asked the class to join her in their usual closing ceremony.

Let's make our churches, she said.

Here's the church.

Here's the steeple.

And then it dawned on her.

She messed up.

The very thing that she feared that the children would do, she had done.

As she stood there speechless, the little girl sitting next to the boy reached over with her left hand

and placed it up to his right hand and said,

Davy, let's make the church together.

Let's make the church together.

If we want to be, all that God wants us to be in this place.

We have to do it together.

We cannot have the mindset of what can the church, the church isn't meeting my needs.

I'm not getting fed there.

They don't do the music I like.

The reflection off that guy's head bothers me.

Instead of wondering how can the church contribute to my spiritual health,

we need to ask how can I contribute to the building of the church?