Ephesians 4:13-16
Measuring Our Maturity (Part 2)
Recently we ran into someone who had not seen our kids in some time. What do people usually say? “Wow, look how big they’re getting! They’re growing up so fast! They are so tall. They are talking. They are walking. They don’t look like babies anymore they look like toddlers. Oh, and look at all that personality.” Some of you have kids graduating and it’s a time where you reflect on how far they’ve come. Others of you have kids getting married. Some of you parents are watching your kids become parents, and in some cases, you grandparents are watching your kids become grandparents.
What we are seeing is our kids growing up.
Can that be said of us spiritually? Are we getting taller, and bigger, and talking more, and walking more, and shedding the features of babyhood and developing into adults? Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.” Have we put childish things behind us, or, could Paul have been speaking to us when he said in 1 Cor. 3:1, “Brothers I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly – mere infants in Christ.” Or could the author of Hebrews have been speaking to us when he said, “We have much to say to you but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s Word again.”
Have we been maturing in our faith? How do we know if we are? How do we measure our growth?
Review
Our sermon title is “Measuring Our Maturity (Part 2)”, and last week we looked at 3 questions we can ask ourselves when we measure our maturity.
Question #1: Am I full of Christ? In verse 13 Paul said, “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” In other words, Is our character continuing to become more like His character? Is He filling us out?
Question#2: Am I gullible? Verse 14 says, “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.” One of the marks of spiritual immaturity is spiritual gullibility - the quickness to believe everything and anything we hear. But spiritual maturity is measured by a quickness to test everything we hear by God’s Word.
Question#3: Do I love the truth? Verse 15 says, “Instead speaking the truth in love…” Do we care about the truth enough to live according to it? To demand it in the teaching and preaching ministry I am under? Do I love the truth enough that I talk about it in my conversations? Do I love the truth enough that I will tell others the truth, even if it is difficult? And, finally Do I love the truth enough to let others speak truth into my life at those times that I may need it? When measuring our maturity we need to ask, Do I love the truth?
Have you thought more about them since the sermon last week? I hope that you have meditated on this passage and that the preaching has challenged you in a productive way. This week I want to ask 2 more questions
Question #4: Am I doing my part?
The 4th question we want to ask when measuring our spiritual maturity is, “Am I doing my part?” Notice verse 16 with me, “From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
We are all a part of the Body of Christ, and therefore we all play an important part in it. Each of us has a function and should be functioning. There is no spiritual loitering, and, there are no spiritually unemployed in the Church. Each of us has a job. Now this means two things:
#1) We have a responsibility to be functioning. There is a sense of obligation here, and there should be. Duty should make up part of our motivation to serve. A lot of pastors don’t want to talk about obligation to God’s people, and I can certainly understand why, but, Paul didn’t hesitate. He compelled the people to serve. Duty, obligation are all part of the responsibility we have as Christians to Christ, and to each other.
#2) But that is related to the reality that we are all relevant to the Body. In other words, we are responsible to serve each other because we are relevant to each other. The Church is not designed by Christ so that we are all autonomous and independent of each other. We are designed instead for dependence on each other. We are all designed in such a way so that we are relevant to the whole Body. No one is redundant, useless, or someone the rest of us can just “go without”. We are all useful, needed, important, and vital to the well-being of the whole body. In 1 Corinthians 14:12 Paul says, “Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in the gifts that build up the church.” In 1 Peter 4:10 it says, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others…”
The point is that we contribute to the fullness of Christ in others when we serve them with the gift we have been given by Christ. By neglecting each other we deprive each other of fullness in Christ. So we should be motivated to serve by the sense of responsibility. But, that responsibility comes from our conviction that we very relevant to one another’s spiritual growth.
Illustration: Automobile Engine. Think of a car. There are almost 5,000 parts on a car. If one goes bad, the whole thing is parked. Everything else may be fine, but, if one part goes isn’t functioning the whole car isn’t going anywhere. You may have a fresh oil change and a full tank of gas but if the alternator goes, you’re not going anywhere. The alternator may be working but if the starter isn’t then you’re not starting. The whole engine may be fine but if your tire is flat, get comfortable.
All the parts have to function and all the parts have to function together. When that happens – when a fine piece of luxury machinery is operating - it’s a beautiful sight. But have you ever seen a luxury car stuck on the side of the road. There is a certain dignity that is lost for that car. The super-Kia is at home on the side of the road. But a luxury car, should be gliding down the highway with a superiority and dignity about it.
The Church is a fine piece of machinery. It is a luxury vehicle. And when all cylinders are running, and she is in high gear, she is a sight to behold gliding down the roads of this world. But, if one part goes, she sits with her hood up like any ole junker on the shoulder, waiting for the wrecker to come drag her away. She needs all the parts to be functioning and functioning together. If you’re an alternator, function. If you’re a spark plug, function. If you’re tire, function. If you’re a battery, function. No matter what part Christ has made you to be and what gift and grace for functioning you’ve received for the sake of Christ and His Body function. Otherwise we sit on the shoulder of the road with the hood up.
How does that look? Pray, give, encourage each other and missionaries we support, disciple others and get discipled, be willing to host and show hospitality with each other and visiting Christian workers, help each other in need, evangelize, visit shut-ins, attend fellowship services faithfully and sacrificially. There is nothing more demoralizing then when people have half-hearted commitment to the family of God. You get mad if only 8 players on the team out of 9 show up to play baseball at every game. You don’t miss sports, why do you miss fellowship, which you would say is more important?
Another way to help build the Body is to be intentional about your own spiritual growth. It is very motivating to others when they can see that you take your faith seriously. It raises the bar and inspires them to raise the bar in their own lives. First Timothy 4:15 says, “Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone can see your progress.” Why? Set the pace for the people around you.
One more point: A maturing believer who is doing their part is someone who has an attitude of concern for the whole Body. Maturity is marked by a fading obsession with “self”, and a flowering concern for other believers. A maturing believer becomes more community minded and less individual minded. Philippians 2:4 says, “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others”. First Corinthians 10:24 says, “No one should seek his own good, but the good of others.” A maturing believer makes decisions based on “What is good for the whole Body”, not simply, “What’s best for me?” The days of worshipping the unholy trinity of “Me, Myself, and I” are passing. Furthermore, a mature believer has a growing desire to be with God’s people more and to build relationships with believers.
The reason for this community mind is that we begin to realize our interdependence the more mature we become. Christ has designed His Body with two important needs. The first need is that we all need to be exercising our gift for all of us to benefit. The second need Christ designed is that I need to be exercising my gift in order for me to grow. There is a dependent relationship between my self-less service to others and my own spiritual growth.
So where do I start? Let’s look at our next point to answer that question.
Question#5: Do I love?
The 5th question we want to ask when measuring our maturity is, “Do I love?”
Romans 13:8 says, “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another…” That is why love is mentioned throughout the entire book of Ephesians. Paul takes the needle of his pen and threads Christian love through the whole fabric of this letter (3:17, 18, 19; 4:3, 15, 16; 5:1, 2, 25, 28, 33; 6:23). I want to point out 5 quick features of our love.
Do I love my Christian brothers and sisters? Love is for each other. This means the love that Christians show each other. When measuring your maturity in Christ measure your love for those who belong to Him. Yes we are to love others, but, without a distinct, unique, and fervent love for each other we will be sorely immature. Jesus said in John 13:35 that when we love each other that is how we prove that we are His disciples. And you will not walk away from any of Paul’s 13 letters in the NT without being impressed with his concern that Christians love each other.
Do I realize my maturity depends on my love? Love is the fountainhead of all mature virtues. All the traits of maturity flow from a free-flowing love. There is not a mature believer who is not marked by Christ-like love. You won’t find one.
Do I love in my speaking? Ephesians 4:15 says, “Speak the truth in love”. Later in the chapter, in verse 29 Paul says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” What this means is that we need to be intentional about the way we talk. We need to restrain ourselves from unloving speech, and ensure that what we say is born from love. And it means our love must be real. Romans 12:9-10 says, “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Does that characterize our speech as believers? It should. Remember Jesus said in Matthew 12:36, “Men will have to give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.” God takes our speech seriously. When measuring our maturity we need to ask, “Do I love in the way that I speak?”
Do I love in my actions? Paul says in verse 16 that the whole body “grows and builds itself up in love”. The impression you get is that love should be the rule of our relationships and the stimulant for our service. First Peter 4:8 says, “Above all, love each other deeply…” And then Peter goes on to describe different ways of serving. Where did Peter get this idea of love? He got it in the upper room during the Last Supper. In John 13:35 Jesus said “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The Apostle John also was there that night, which is why he said 60 years later, probably while in Ephesus, in 1 John 3:18, “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth.” Truth in love and love in truth.
Do I love to find my role? Finding your role starts with loving. You may not know what your spiritual gift is exactly. And while there are lots of spiritual gift tests to help you find out what yours is, I would recommend a different way to find out your role. If you want to know how to function in the Body of Christ, and you want to figure out your spiritual gift and what kind of “grace” Christ has given you, I highly recommend, start by looking for ways to love. Start by getting intentional about loving your brothers and sisters. Start in your heart – meaning deepen your affection for your brethren here. Start by praying that God would show you ways to love – open your eyes and open opportunities – there are plenty!
The Corinthians were a church that had every spiritual gift imaginable. But what they did not have was love for each other. They had a lot of pride, and it caused a lot of problems. In chapters 12-14 of 1 Corinthians Paul describes the spiritual gifts and their benefit for the whole Body. But in chapter 13 he describes love. And he describes it in such a way that you begin to realize something very important. A church that doesn’t have any spiritual gifts, but has a lot of love, will surpass a church with a lot of gifts but no love. Every time. A church doesn’t need all the gifts in order to be an excellent church. All it needs is love. The more of it the better because what matters is love. And whatever gifts a church has then love should drive the use of those gifts.
Conclusion
Now we’ve talked a lot about our love for each other. But, we need to finish with what starts all this love. It is God’s love for us. First John 4:11 says, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, let us love one another.”
Let me ask you a question: Do you know God’s love? John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him would not perish but have eternal life.” Love leads to life. The reason that anyone can have eternal life is because of God’s love.
I was talking with someone the other day who is dying, and we came to a point in the conversation where we talked about all of us are sinners and that God won’t live with sin or sinners. And at that moment this person blurted out, “Well, how can anyone go to heaven then?!”
The question I believe was put into their heart by God, because before you can really see God’s love you have to see the problem of sin that God’s love had to overcome. None of us deserves God’s love. But thankfully God’s love for you doesn’t depend on you. He is love, and, therefore He loves you. But what does depend on you is whether you will receive His love. The contingency in this is not that God will love you if you believe in Him. He already does love you and has proven that by His Son’s cross. The contingency is you. Will you believe in His Son because of His love for you? Will you understand that you can have life free to you, but at the cost of God’s own Son’s dear life? At the cross of Jesus Christ God demonstrated His love for you by paying the price for your sins so that you could have the chance to be with Him forever in eternity. That is love.
Measuring Our Maturity (Part 2)
Recently we ran into someone who had not seen our kids in some time. What do people usually say? “Wow, look how big they’re getting! They’re growing up so fast! They are so tall. They are talking. They are walking. They don’t look like babies anymore they look like toddlers. Oh, and look at all that personality.” Some of you have kids graduating and it’s a time where you reflect on how far they’ve come. Others of you have kids getting married. Some of you parents are watching your kids become parents, and in some cases, you grandparents are watching your kids become grandparents.
What we are seeing is our kids growing up.
Can that be said of us spiritually? Are we getting taller, and bigger, and talking more, and walking more, and shedding the features of babyhood and developing into adults? Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.” Have we put childish things behind us, or, could Paul have been speaking to us when he said in 1 Cor. 3:1, “Brothers I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly – mere infants in Christ.” Or could the author of Hebrews have been speaking to us when he said, “We have much to say to you but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s Word again.”
Have we been maturing in our faith? How do we know if we are? How do we measure our growth?
Review
Our sermon title is “Measuring Our Maturity (Part 2)”, and last week we looked at 3 questions we can ask ourselves when we measure our maturity.
Question #1: Am I full of Christ? In verse 13 Paul said, “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” In other words, Is our character continuing to become more like His character? Is He filling us out?
Question#2: Am I gullible? Verse 14 says, “Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.” One of the marks of spiritual immaturity is spiritual gullibility - the quickness to believe everything and anything we hear. But spiritual maturity is measured by a quickness to test everything we hear by God’s Word.
Question#3: Do I love the truth? Verse 15 says, “Instead speaking the truth in love…” Do we care about the truth enough to live according to it? To demand it in the teaching and preaching ministry I am under? Do I love the truth enough that I talk about it in my conversations? Do I love the truth enough that I will tell others the truth, even if it is difficult? And, finally Do I love the truth enough to let others speak truth into my life at those times that I may need it? When measuring our maturity we need to ask, Do I love the truth?
Have you thought more about them since the sermon last week? I hope that you have meditated on this passage and that the preaching has challenged you in a productive way. This week I want to ask 2 more questions
Question #4: Am I doing my part?
The 4th question we want to ask when measuring our spiritual maturity is, “Am I doing my part?” Notice verse 16 with me, “From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”
We are all a part of the Body of Christ, and therefore we all play an important part in it. Each of us has a function and should be functioning. There is no spiritual loitering, and, there are no spiritually unemployed in the Church. Each of us has a job. Now this means two things:
#1) We have a responsibility to be functioning. There is a sense of obligation here, and there should be. Duty should make up part of our motivation to serve. A lot of pastors don’t want to talk about obligation to God’s people, and I can certainly understand why, but, Paul didn’t hesitate. He compelled the people to serve. Duty, obligation are all part of the responsibility we have as Christians to Christ, and to each other.
#2) But that is related to the reality that we are all relevant to the Body. In other words, we are responsible to serve each other because we are relevant to each other. The Church is not designed by Christ so that we are all autonomous and independent of each other. We are designed instead for dependence on each other. We are all designed in such a way so that we are relevant to the whole Body. No one is redundant, useless, or someone the rest of us can just “go without”. We are all useful, needed, important, and vital to the well-being of the whole body. In 1 Corinthians 14:12 Paul says, “Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in the gifts that build up the church.” In 1 Peter 4:10 it says, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others…”
The point is that we contribute to the fullness of Christ in others when we serve them with the gift we have been given by Christ. By neglecting each other we deprive each other of fullness in Christ. So we should be motivated to serve by the sense of responsibility. But, that responsibility comes from our conviction that we very relevant to one another’s spiritual growth.
Illustration: Automobile Engine. Think of a car. There are almost 5,000 parts on a car. If one goes bad, the whole thing is parked. Everything else may be fine, but, if one part goes isn’t functioning the whole car isn’t going anywhere. You may have a fresh oil change and a full tank of gas but if the alternator goes, you’re not going anywhere. The alternator may be working but if the starter isn’t then you’re not starting. The whole engine may be fine but if your tire is flat, get comfortable.
All the parts have to function and all the parts have to function together. When that happens – when a fine piece of luxury machinery is operating - it’s a beautiful sight. But have you ever seen a luxury car stuck on the side of the road. There is a certain dignity that is lost for that car. The super-Kia is at home on the side of the road. But a luxury car, should be gliding down the highway with a superiority and dignity about it.
The Church is a fine piece of machinery. It is a luxury vehicle. And when all cylinders are running, and she is in high gear, she is a sight to behold gliding down the roads of this world. But, if one part goes, she sits with her hood up like any ole junker on the shoulder, waiting for the wrecker to come drag her away. She needs all the parts to be functioning and functioning together. If you’re an alternator, function. If you’re a spark plug, function. If you’re tire, function. If you’re a battery, function. No matter what part Christ has made you to be and what gift and grace for functioning you’ve received for the sake of Christ and His Body function. Otherwise we sit on the shoulder of the road with the hood up.
How does that look? Pray, give, encourage each other and missionaries we support, disciple others and get discipled, be willing to host and show hospitality with each other and visiting Christian workers, help each other in need, evangelize, visit shut-ins, attend fellowship services faithfully and sacrificially. There is nothing more demoralizing then when people have half-hearted commitment to the family of God. You get mad if only 8 players on the team out of 9 show up to play baseball at every game. You don’t miss sports, why do you miss fellowship, which you would say is more important?
Another way to help build the Body is to be intentional about your own spiritual growth. It is very motivating to others when they can see that you take your faith seriously. It raises the bar and inspires them to raise the bar in their own lives. First Timothy 4:15 says, “Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone can see your progress.” Why? Set the pace for the people around you.
One more point: A maturing believer who is doing their part is someone who has an attitude of concern for the whole Body. Maturity is marked by a fading obsession with “self”, and a flowering concern for other believers. A maturing believer becomes more community minded and less individual minded. Philippians 2:4 says, “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others”. First Corinthians 10:24 says, “No one should seek his own good, but the good of others.” A maturing believer makes decisions based on “What is good for the whole Body”, not simply, “What’s best for me?” The days of worshipping the unholy trinity of “Me, Myself, and I” are passing. Furthermore, a mature believer has a growing desire to be with God’s people more and to build relationships with believers.
The reason for this community mind is that we begin to realize our interdependence the more mature we become. Christ has designed His Body with two important needs. The first need is that we all need to be exercising our gift for all of us to benefit. The second need Christ designed is that I need to be exercising my gift in order for me to grow. There is a dependent relationship between my self-less service to others and my own spiritual growth.
So where do I start? Let’s look at our next point to answer that question.
Question#5: Do I love?
The 5th question we want to ask when measuring our maturity is, “Do I love?”
Romans 13:8 says, “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another…” That is why love is mentioned throughout the entire book of Ephesians. Paul takes the needle of his pen and threads Christian love through the whole fabric of this letter (3:17, 18, 19; 4:3, 15, 16; 5:1, 2, 25, 28, 33; 6:23). I want to point out 5 quick features of our love.
Do I love my Christian brothers and sisters? Love is for each other. This means the love that Christians show each other. When measuring your maturity in Christ measure your love for those who belong to Him. Yes we are to love others, but, without a distinct, unique, and fervent love for each other we will be sorely immature. Jesus said in John 13:35 that when we love each other that is how we prove that we are His disciples. And you will not walk away from any of Paul’s 13 letters in the NT without being impressed with his concern that Christians love each other.
Do I realize my maturity depends on my love? Love is the fountainhead of all mature virtues. All the traits of maturity flow from a free-flowing love. There is not a mature believer who is not marked by Christ-like love. You won’t find one.
Do I love in my speaking? Ephesians 4:15 says, “Speak the truth in love”. Later in the chapter, in verse 29 Paul says, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.” What this means is that we need to be intentional about the way we talk. We need to restrain ourselves from unloving speech, and ensure that what we say is born from love. And it means our love must be real. Romans 12:9-10 says, “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Does that characterize our speech as believers? It should. Remember Jesus said in Matthew 12:36, “Men will have to give an account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken.” God takes our speech seriously. When measuring our maturity we need to ask, “Do I love in the way that I speak?”
Do I love in my actions? Paul says in verse 16 that the whole body “grows and builds itself up in love”. The impression you get is that love should be the rule of our relationships and the stimulant for our service. First Peter 4:8 says, “Above all, love each other deeply…” And then Peter goes on to describe different ways of serving. Where did Peter get this idea of love? He got it in the upper room during the Last Supper. In John 13:35 Jesus said “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The Apostle John also was there that night, which is why he said 60 years later, probably while in Ephesus, in 1 John 3:18, “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth.” Truth in love and love in truth.
Do I love to find my role? Finding your role starts with loving. You may not know what your spiritual gift is exactly. And while there are lots of spiritual gift tests to help you find out what yours is, I would recommend a different way to find out your role. If you want to know how to function in the Body of Christ, and you want to figure out your spiritual gift and what kind of “grace” Christ has given you, I highly recommend, start by looking for ways to love. Start by getting intentional about loving your brothers and sisters. Start in your heart – meaning deepen your affection for your brethren here. Start by praying that God would show you ways to love – open your eyes and open opportunities – there are plenty!
The Corinthians were a church that had every spiritual gift imaginable. But what they did not have was love for each other. They had a lot of pride, and it caused a lot of problems. In chapters 12-14 of 1 Corinthians Paul describes the spiritual gifts and their benefit for the whole Body. But in chapter 13 he describes love. And he describes it in such a way that you begin to realize something very important. A church that doesn’t have any spiritual gifts, but has a lot of love, will surpass a church with a lot of gifts but no love. Every time. A church doesn’t need all the gifts in order to be an excellent church. All it needs is love. The more of it the better because what matters is love. And whatever gifts a church has then love should drive the use of those gifts.
Conclusion
Now we’ve talked a lot about our love for each other. But, we need to finish with what starts all this love. It is God’s love for us. First John 4:11 says, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, let us love one another.”
Let me ask you a question: Do you know God’s love? John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him would not perish but have eternal life.” Love leads to life. The reason that anyone can have eternal life is because of God’s love.
I was talking with someone the other day who is dying, and we came to a point in the conversation where we talked about all of us are sinners and that God won’t live with sin or sinners. And at that moment this person blurted out, “Well, how can anyone go to heaven then?!”
The question I believe was put into their heart by God, because before you can really see God’s love you have to see the problem of sin that God’s love had to overcome. None of us deserves God’s love. But thankfully God’s love for you doesn’t depend on you. He is love, and, therefore He loves you. But what does depend on you is whether you will receive His love. The contingency in this is not that God will love you if you believe in Him. He already does love you and has proven that by His Son’s cross. The contingency is you. Will you believe in His Son because of His love for you? Will you understand that you can have life free to you, but at the cost of God’s own Son’s dear life? At the cross of Jesus Christ God demonstrated His love for you by paying the price for your sins so that you could have the chance to be with Him forever in eternity. That is love.
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