KINGDOM LIFE. Relating to the King Glorifying the King. Part 2: SEARCH GLORIFYING GOD TOGETHER. Read Ephesians 4:1-16. Day 1

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1 KINGDOM LIFE Relating to the King Glorifying the King Part 2: SEARCH As we have seen, the LORD has established His church to display His glory to all of the rest of creation, a mission given to us because first Adam and Eve, then Israel failed to accomplish it. God s family has been given the mandate to set an example to unbelievers (1 Pet. 3:13-17), and even to angels (Eph. 3:10), and, by doing so, bring our Triune God honor and glory and blessing. Of course, this brings up several questions: What does this look like? How can we accomplish such an overpowering task? How well are we doing? Over the next two weeks we will begin to answer the first question as we spend time in the second half of Ephesians reflecting on what our lives together should be in order to glorify the King together. Before we launch into our times with the LORD, however, I want to counter a disturbing trend that is obvious among Christians in our time. A survey of books and articles, as well as blogs and web writings, indicates that church-bashing has become very popular. For various reasons, some with seeming validity and some not, Christians are opting out of the local church and just loving Jesus. This is not a biblical option. Those who refuse to participate in church set themselves at odds with how God has ordained to carry out His work. After Jesus disciple Peter declared that Jesus was indeed the Christ, the Son of the Living God, remember what Jesus said next? And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it (see Matthew 16:13-18). We see the start of this in the book of Acts, After Jesus ascension and when the Holy Spirit came upon His followers. We see numerous one another/each other verses, which illustrate how essential it is to meet together (see Hebrews 10:24-25). Indeed, as we see unfolding in the New Testament, the church is the bride of Christ, for whom He died and with whom He will spend eternity. How do you think He likes it when she is maligned by those who should be her supporters? From a different perspective, God has bestowed upon each of His people spiritual gifts with which to serve the body of Christ. When someone separates himself/herself from the church, he/she robs it of that service and rejects the calling that God has given to him/her. That person also denies God the glory of his/her participation in His ministry. Many people have been hurt by others in the church, but that highlights what God is doing with His people. The body of Christ was designed to be a place of forgiveness and reconciliation, a place where the power of God s grace overcomes personal hurts. That is the glory of God in the church. Let s never forget we re all in the same boat sinners in need of a Savior, Christ-followers desperately in need of His grace and mercy, and none of us is so holy as to be above the church. The New Testament knows nothing of a solitary Christian living apart from fellowship with other believers. So, God will glorify Himself through the church. As kingdom citizens who seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, it behooves to follow His plan for this age. But, what does this look like? In Ephesians 4:1-16, Paul highlights how the church grows together to maturity. GLORIFYING GOD TOGETHER Read Ephesians 4:1-16 Day 1 Copyright 2014 Make a Mark Ministries Principle 6, Part 2-1

2 Reread Ephesians 4: Given that we are to glorify God together, what is Paul s first priority to achieve this goal? 2. What does walking worthy of our calling look like in this context? Day 2 Reread Ephesians 4: What does maintain the unity of the Spirit imply? 2. What are the foundation stones of our unity in Christ? Day 3 Reread Ephesians 4: Who has God given to the church in order to accomplish His mission? 2. How is His mission achieved in the church? Day 4 Reread Ephesians 4: What is the LORD s reason for having spiritually gifted people in the church? 2. What does a spiritually mature church look like? Copyright 2014 Make a Mark Ministries Principle 6, Part 2-2

3 Paul has just described the means by which God desires to grow a spiritually mature church and bring Himself glory. We are one in Christ, and He has given gifted people to one another to insure that we all grow to maturity together. Paul continues this theme through the rest of the book of Ephesians, always emphasizing our oneness in the LORD. In Ephesians 4:17-6:9 the apostle pictures the contrast between our old way of life apart from Christ and our new way of life in the Spirit. Read Ephesians 4:17-6:9 Day 5 Reread Ephesians 4: How does Paul characterize the lives of people apart from Christ? 2. How does our life in Christ differ from that of the Gentiles? Day 6 Reread Ephesians 4: In what ways are followers of Christ not supposed to treat one another? 2. How are Christians called to treat one another? We live in bewildering times. There are many voices clamoring around us, trying to convince us that there is no universal way to live, that there is no absolute standard by which we must measure our lives. We are living in what Al Mohler, president of Southern Baptist Seminary, describes as a moral reversal. Moral virtues once considered normal in our culture are now not only ridiculed, but immorality is celebrated, and those who do not just tolerate, but who do not celebrate the perversions are the enemies of society. So, how should the church respond to this moral reversal? Day 7 Reread Ephesians 5: Who is our model, our standard for our behavior toward one another? 2. What standard of love for one another in the church does Jesus set for us? Copyright 2014 Make a Mark Ministries Principle 6, Part 2-3

4 When God s people set out to glorify Him together, the result often runs diametrically opposite to the culture. The same was true in Ephesus in the first century. Archeologists have found evidence of widespread sexual immorality as part of their religious rites. Pictures, statues and humor were often sexually motivated. Does that sound like today? But, Paul declares that to glorify God, His people must adopt different standards of sexuality from the world. Day 8 Reread Ephesians 5: How should our sexual attitudes and behavior toward one another differ from the culture? 2. What warning does Paul give to those who habitually practice sexual immorality? Day 9 Reread Ephesians 5: How do we walk as children of light? 2. How can we make the best use of our time? Day 10 Reread Ephesian 5:17-21; compare Colossians 3: In this context, what is the will of the Lord? 2. Looking at both Ephesians and Colossians, being filled with the Spirit and having the word of Christ richly dwell within us produce what results? Copyright 2014 Make a Mark Ministries Principle 6, Part 2-4

5 We will be discussing family and work relationships later in the course so we are going to move to chapter six of Ephesians for our last two devotions. As Paul closes this letter to the church of Ephesus, he realizes that when the body of Christ begins to live together to bring glory to God, Satan will actively seek to undermine the Spirit s work among us. He will tempt and accuse us in order to destroy all that God wants to do with us. But, we need not live in fear of the devil. Paul assures us of divine power to defeat our enemy. Read Ephesians 6:10-20 Day 11 Reread Ephesians 6: What weapons has God given to His people to fight the devil? 2. In what way does Paul tell us to meet the enemy? Day 12 Reread Ephesians 6: How do we fight the battle for our brothers and sisters in Christ? 2. How do we pray for our family in Christ? We need each other in the body of Christ, and not only for support and encouragement. Together we bring collective glory to God. Our relationships, our love for one another, our holy living in a godless culture and our purpose for living all combine to manifest the wisdom of God and bring Him glory. We truly are better together. As kingdom citizens who seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, we must be actively involved in glorifying Him through the church. Copyright 2014 Make a Mark Ministries Principle 6, Part 2-5