Series: Ephesians
Title: Walk Worthy
Text: Ephesians 4: 1-6
Date: March 16, 2014
Place: SGBC, New Jersey
Ephesians 4: 1: I therefore, the prisoner of
the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation [the calling] wherewith
ye are called, 2: With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering,
forbearing one another in love; 3: Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace.
Paul
begins, “I therefore.” It means, the exhortation he gives is
based upon the foundation of what was declared before. Our calling is by God’s free and sovereign
grace from eternity. (Eph 1: 1-6) Then when we came into this world, had God
not called us, this is where we would have remained! But look at what we were
and what God did for us. (Ephesians 2: 11-22) What a call wherewith we have
been called! God the Father willed it, purposed it and predestinated it from
eternity; God the Son came in human flesh and obtained it, making us his
purchased possession by his own blood; God the Holy Spirit applied it and made
us an habitation of God through the Spirit.
Ephesians 4: 1: I therefore, the prisoner of
the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation [the calling]
wherewith ye are called,
Title: Walk
Worthy
Proposition: Brethren, based solely upon the abundant blessings of
God given us by his free and sovereign grace, in Christ, through the
irresistible work of the Holy Spirit, let us live our lives in a manner
becoming this calling wherewith we have been called.
I. FIRST, OUR MOTIVE IS THE GRACE AND LOVE OF
GOD ALONE—
Notice
Paul says, in verse 1, I “beseech you.”
Beseech
He does
not command them, does not put them under the law, does not threaten or promise
rewards, uses no power or might of his own. He says, “I beseech you.” It means
“I entreat you. I exhort you.”
Application: This is important for each of us to remember: for you men who preach or comment on
scripture from the pulpit, for us all toward fellow believers, for fathers and mothers.
There is no better way to exhort a fellow believer to “all lowliness and
meekness” than to do so in a spirit of “lowliness and meekness.”
2 Timothy 2:24: And the servant of the Lord must not
strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, 25: In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves;
Application: There
is instruction in the spirit with which we instruct, as much as in the
instruction itself. What instruction is in a gentle, patient and meek
spirit? It says this: we are powerless
in ourselves. A lowly and meek spirit
says that our only hope is:
2 Timothy 2: 25:…if God peradventure will give them
repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;
I know how you long for that loved one to
believe Christ, for that son or daughter, how you long for that brother or
sister to turn from the error that will cause them harm. And there is such a thing as righteous anger
when an unbeliever speaks against the God you love. But try to remember, they oppose themselves,
not you.
Proverbs 25: 15: By long forbearing is a prince
persuaded, and a soft tongue breaketh the bone.
Paul told the Thessalonians..
1 Thessalonians 2:7: But we were gentle among you, even
as a nurse cherisheth her children:
Illustration: “Love
them to Christ”
God’s Dealing With Us
That is how God deals with us.
Jeremiah 31: 3…Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting
love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
Gomer—Hosea
2: 14: Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness,
and speak comfortably unto her.
Note: The word “beseech”
carries the meaning “comfort.” Paul is saying, “I therefore—in all the gospel I
have declared to you—comfort you, that ye walk worthy of the Lord.” God says to
his preacher.
Isaiah 40: 1: Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith
your God. 2: Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her
warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received
of the LORD’S hand double for all her sins.
There is a place and time, as Paul told, “Rebuke
them sharply.” (Ti 1: 13) But even then,
“speak the truth in love.” Why? If they
have been called of the Lord—Romans 8:15: For ye have not received the spirit
of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby
we cry, Abba, Father. Law demands; grace
beseeches! The only thing motive a
believer needs and the only constraint which makes us heed this exhortation is
the grace and love of God working effectually in the heart.
II. FIRST, THE GENERAL EXHORTATION—Ephesians
4: 1: I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of
the vocation [the calling] wherewith ye are called,”
A Worthy Call
“Worthy” means live in a manner “becoming”
the calling of the Lord.
Philippians 1:27: Only let your conversation be as it
becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be
absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one
mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
Now, understand the value of this effectual,
unchangeable call:
1 Peter 2:9: But ye are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the
praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
We have
been called out of bondage into liberty (Gal 5: 13)
1 Corinthians 1:9: God is faithful, by whom ye were
called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
Galatians 1:6:…called…into the grace of Christ…
Hebrews 3:1: Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the
heavenly calling,…
1 Peter 5:10:…the God of all grace, who hath called us
unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus,…
God has
made us us holy children of our holy God and Father, members of the whole
family in heaven and earth; we wear Christ’s name.
Illustration: What
if some great king called you into his kingdom, into his palace, to his table
amongst the most distinguished guests in the world? You would put forth your
best in every way. Believer, Christ has
called you into his kingdom, into his palace, to his table, before God his
Father, amongst the most distinguished, honored guests this world has ever
known: his holy apostles and all his holy saints?
Application: So then, brethren walk—live your life at all times--“in
a manner becoming unto” Christ who has called you into his kingdom, as holy
children of God. “Walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and
glory. (1 Thess 2: 12)
But how can we live in a manner becoming one so
altogether lovely, so glorious, who has so richly blessed us? If God left us to
our imagination we would probably think we ought to be proud. But it is just
the opposite.
III. A WALK WORTHY OF THIS CALLING IS
Ephesians 4: 2: With all lowliness and meekness,…
With all Lowliness: means humbleness of mind—having a low
opinion of self as opposed to being proud; with all Meekness: means gentleness of spirit, mildness
of disposition
Look to
Christ Jesus
Matthew 11:29: Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me;
for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
He who is LORD of all—God the Son himself—in
order to highly exalt God his Father to fulfill his will to magnify and make
honorable the law to fulfill the law for his people and justify us, did just
the opposite to what natural man thought the Messiah would do! He became a servant.
Philippians 2: 5: Let this mind be in you, which was also
in Christ Jesus: 6: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be
equal with God: 7: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the
form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8: And being found in
fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the
death of the cross.
This
was the mind of Christ when he walked this earth because God the Father was in
Christ and Christ in the Father. Being
one with the Father, Christ’s high esteem for God his Father made him humble
himself to do the Father’s will, to speak the word the Father gave him to
speak, to finish the works the Father gave him to finish, redeeming his people
from all iniquity by laying down his life on the cross.
John 6: 38: For I came down from heaven, not to do mine
own will, but the will of him that sent me.
That is the lowliness of mind and meekness
the Holy Spirit puts in the inward man when Christ is formed in our
hearts. He said,
John 14:10: Believest thou not that I am in the Father,
and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself:
but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.
That is the lowliness of mind and meekness he
puts in the inward man when the Holy Spirit creates us anew.
John 8: 28: Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have
lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do
nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. 29:
And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do
always those things that please him.
Our Calling
We are proud, self-willed, obstinate sinners
by our first birth. But when we are
effectually called by his grace, when Christ is formed in our heart in the new
birth, God the Father is in Christ and Christ is in us and we are in
Christ.
John 17:23: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be
made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and
hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
He gives us the mind of Christ, in like
manner as Christ had the mind of his Father.
Hebrews 13: 21: [So God makes his child] in every good
work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight,
through Jesus Christ;
Ephesians 2: 10: For we are his workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should
walk in them.
Good Works
What are these good works, well-pleasing in
God’s sight which he foreordained and works in those called of his grace? It begins with lowliness of mind and meekness
of heart. We are given a low opinion of self, as opposed to the pride of
life—because we are given a high opinion of God our Father and his Son our
Savior. In lowliness of mind and meekness, God makes
us willing for his will to be done rather than our own—we have the mind of
Christ. Lowliness of mind and meekness makes us cease speaking our own words
and speak God’s word—we have the mind of Christ.
Lowliness of mind and meekness makes us
willing to renounce all our works, confessing we are nothing but sinners. We
confess we do nothing of ourselves—even as Christ did for now we have the mind
of Christ, we are his willing servants. We cease making ourselves of reputation.
We start giving God all the glory for every aspect of our salvation: for
choosing, redeeming, regenerating, and preserving us all by his free grace. We
begin to marvel at the depths of God’s wisdom and count our wisdom as nothing.
Toward
our brethren: lowliness of mind and
meekness makes us to cease exalting ourselves over one another. This fruit of
the Holy Spirit makes us prefer our brethren above ourselves. It gives us a
heart to serve rather than to be served, to rejoice with brethren when they
rejoice to mourn when they mourn.
Lowliness of mind and meekness restrains a
man from ambition beyond his calling or gifts. Envy makes a sinner desire
the gifts or calling of another brother. Pride makes a man presumptuous to
think he can do the other brother’s business better than he. A proud spirit is sure to cause division.
Psalm 131:1: «A Song of degrees of David.» LORD, my heart
is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty: neither do I exercise myself in great
matters, or in things too high for me.
Illustration: It was
not until God made me content to serve—out of sight—that God called me to be a
pastor. One night, I filled in for my pastor. Then I began travelling filling
in for other pastors—it got to be 4 Sunday’s a month I would be somewhere preaching. In time, I began to desire just to stay home,
to teach a bible class and work my job.
Then I ended up out of sight in the back of the church building teaching
the young people. I was content. That is when the Lord opened the door here
and eventually called me to be your pastor.
Lowliness of mind and meekness of heart makes
you honor God in our gospel and in our lives, makes you willing to serve God by
serving your brethren, and makes you content to serve wherever God puts you. For we behold Christ who made himself of no
reputation and became obedient even unto the death of the cross. By which he
highly exalted and glorified God and also saved us from our sins.
IV. A WALK WORTHY OF THIS HOLY CALLING IS TO BE A
PEACEMAKER—Ephesians 4: 2: with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;
3: Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
With all Longsuffering: means to persevere, to patiently endure whatever comes our way, to
be slow to avenge wrongs.
Look to Christ
Christ Jesus patiently endured everything the
Father would have him to suffer—even unto the death of the cross.
John 18:11: Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy sword
into the sheath: the cup which my Father hath given me, shall I not drink it?
Application: Brethren, know this, whatever comes our way is from the
hand of our all-wise, sovereign Lord. Seek his grace to patiently endure
whatever we must suffer.
Example:
When God sent fire and consumed Nadab and Abihu, Aaron kept his mouth
shut. When God pronounced judgment on
Eli’s sons because Eli failed to teach them—he said, “it is the Lord let him do
what seemeth him good.” (1 Sam 3: 18)
Our Brethren
This longsuffering is also in our dealings
with brethren—Ephesians 4: 2:… with
longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;
We overlook one another’s faults because we
love our brethren in Christ for the sake of Christ. Sometimes we do so by
holding up one another in love when the other is weak. It takes forebearance to uphold a weak
brother rather than deal otherwise with him.
Example:
When Amalek attacked the children of Israel, Moses was commanded to hold up the
rod of God.
Exodus 17: 11: And it came to pass, when Moses held up
his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek
prevailed. 12: But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it
under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one
on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady
until the going down of the sun. 13: And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his
people with the edge of the sword.
All our enemies—within and without—are
conquered through Christ through the rod of the gospel. Sometimes, our hands
become heavy. When your brother’s hands
become heavy, you may see his weaknesses.
We should never burden our brethren more when they are weak. The spirit is
willing; it is our flesh that is weak. But
God uses our brethren to forebear one another’s weaknesses—we bear him up just
as Aaron and Hur helped Moses.
We do so by encouraging one another the one way we can:
by reminding each other of Christ Jesus: what he has done and is doing, by
praying for them and waiting on him that his able to do exceeding abundantly
above all we ask or think. Paul did that for these Ephesian believers by
writing them this epistle. Then through
the word, the Holy Spirit sets our weak brother upon Christ our Foundation,
just as they sat Moses on a stone. Our
gracious God uses the word of our brethren to strengthen the hands of our weak
brother as we speak to one another of Christ.
Sadly, we sometimes have to forebear a
brother speaking a critical word about us.
It is sad when brethren criticize brethren to other brethren. But if we are criticized we know the half has
not been told! There is plenty more they could say. When a brother or sister
falls into the snare of criticizing, forebear one another in love. Also, forbearance makes us not seek to avenge
ourselves but to wait on God.
Example:
When David’s enemies spake of him—and David was a type of Christ in this—he
said,
Psalm 38: 13: But I, as a deaf man, heard not; and I was
as a dumb man that openeth not his mouth. 14: Thus I was as a man that heareth
not, and in whose mouth are no reproofs. 15: For in thee, O LORD, do I hope:
thou wilt hear, O Lord my God.
1 Peter 2: 21 For
even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us
an example, that ye should follow his steps: 22
Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: 23 Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again;
when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth
righteously: 24 Who his own self bare
our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live
unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.
Keep Unity
With this spirit and by this longsuffering
and forebeaance with one another, we are Ephesians 4: 3: Endeavouring to keep the
unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Let me tell you what this does not mean. Some teach that this means we ought to be
united to those who believe and teach salvation by the will and works of
man. I have even heard men say we do not
want to make an issue of a “minor doctrine” such as particular redemption,
limited atonement.
The doctrine of particular redemption is not
minor; it is the gospel. It declares
Christ actually accomplished redemption for his people. We declare the sin of a particular people was
laid on Christ. That Christ bore the
justice of God for their sin and satisfied divine justice.
Therefore, judgment cannot be poured out on them
again—the sin of God’s elect have been put away by Christ Jesus. So hand-in-hand we preach the doctrine total
depravity, unconditional election, irresistible grace, perseverance of the
saints. The truth is all one truth. “Think not that I am come to send peace on
earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword?” There can be no unity until the
dividing lies of the natural heart are overruled by the Holy Spirit of Truth in
the new heart.
But
then there is the bond of peace! What is the “the bond of peace” by which the Holy
Spirit unites his people? It is the blood and love of the Godman Mediator by
which Christ has reconciled us to God and made us one with our brethren. When
we are washed in Christ blood, we are made to see that his love is everlasting,
redeeming, calling, keeping, saving love.
We are filled with his love by the Holy Spirit and bound in the peace of
our great Peacemaker, Christ Jesus. He makes us to be one blessed family. We will see this next time but read verse 4-6. We are one.
Go
home remembering: Oh, brethren, we have been called with holy,
heavenly, calling—walk to adorn this calling: in lowliness of mind, in
meekness, with longsuffering, forebearing one another in love, and endeavor—diligently,
strive—to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of Christ our Peace.
Amen!