Ephesians 4 (Part 6)

(Audio: English)

SUMMARY: The passage being studied is Ephesians 4, and the focus is on the progressive nature of the Christian walk. The first level of maturity is confronting the baser instincts of the flesh, such as sexual immorality and greed. The second level is taking away negative attitudes, such as anger, lying, and lack of transparency. The third level is putting on virtues of the Christian character, such as compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. The culminating virtue is love, which binds all the other virtues together. The goal is to become mature and attain the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. This enables believers to do works of service in the Kingdom of God.

In 2 Timothy, Paul emphasizes the importance of good doctrine and belief, as they ground and hold believers together. A mature Christian is solidly planted on the word of God and is not an infant who is tossed around by every wind of teaching. In today's world, there is an abundance of counterfeit Christianity and various variants of Christianity that can cause anxiety and restlessness in believers. Christians need to be grounded in what they believe and not be too critical of traditional Christianity, which is doing the best it can. Christians need to stand their ground and not be too restless, changing styles every week. Christians need to be grounded in sound doctrine, rebuke and correct when necessary, and keep their heads in all situations. Christians should not be blown here and there by every wind of teaching, but they should discharge all the duties of their ministry. There is a lot of heresy being passed around today, and Christians need to be careful about what they consume.

We must be careful about the books and doctrine we consume as there is a lot of deceitful and irresponsible material being produced. We need to embrace the truth and live it out with love and compassion, balancing our convictions with consideration for others. The ultimate standard for good doctrine is Christ, and anything that diminishes his stature or substitutes him should be rejected. We should seek to be grounded in sound doctrine and filled with the attributes of Christ.

I ask you to go to Ephesians, chapter 4 and we’re advancing. It may seem that we’re not but I think we are making progress, and we are touching on things. It is such a dense passage though, that it leads us into new areas and there’s a progression here that is very beautiful and there is so much substance.

I feel bad just leaving it like that and leaving it hanging, just in the interest of continuing. So, there in Ephesians, chapter 4, for those who are visiting, we are going through the book of Ephesians and stopping at those really thick places where there’s so much teaching and just trying to comb through it and get the word of the Lord for us.