That's where we're studying.
Ephesians chapter 4. I had two more messages on this
that I wanted to look at, but this will probably be the last
one on these verses. You and I have been studying
the growth of the church. And the church is lacking unto
a body. Christ is the head, and the church
is His body. This mystical body. We know it's
not literally. I made that statement before. But it's His mystical body. And
that's what we've been studying, the growth, the maturing of the
body of Jesus Christ in this world. Now, I want us to read
these, and I want to look at this in sort of a general way
today, and maybe we'll go on then in verses 17 in our next
study. But let's begin again concerning
the gifts that the Lord Jesus gave to his church in verse 11. When he ascended on high, there
in verse 11, he gave some apostles, he gave some prophets, some evangelists,
pastors, and teachers for the perfecting of the saints, for
the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. till we all come in the unity
of the faith, till we all come to believe in Christ, believe
in Him for our salvation, our justification, and come to the
saving knowledge of the Son of God, to know Him, unto a perfect
man, unto the measure of the statue of the fullness of Christ,
that we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro and
carried about with every wind of doctrine by the sly of men,
and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie awake to deceive us.
But speaking the truth in love may grow up unto him in all things
which is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body fitly
joined together, and compacted by that which every joint supplies,
according to the effectual working and the measure of every part,
maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love."
Now he says there in verse 15, growing up into Him. We don't grow into Christ. We
have to be put into Christ. But when we're in Him, we grow
up unto Him. And I take that to simply mean
we grow up like Him. As we increase and as we develop,
we become more like the Lord Jesus Christ. The body becomes
more like the head. Christ is the head, the church
is the body, and the head is complete. That's a wonderful
thought. The head is complete. The body's
not. The head's not capable of developing. It's not capable of maturing.
It's complete. The body is still maturing. It's maturing, it's increasing
in number, and it's increasing in graces, in strength. The body
is growing up, and what's it growing up to be? Just like the
head. It's growing up to be conformed
unto the image of the Lord Jesus Christ. And when you think about
the head and the body, the body can't do anything of itself.
It's impossible for the body to act apart from the head. Where
does the body get its direction? from the head. You may have eyes,
but I tell you this, you take the head off your body and you
can't see. You've got ears, and they may be beautiful ears, and
look just like everybody else's, but take the head off, you can't
hear. Got lips. I saw a documentary one time
where they were operating on this guy's brain. They were having
him to read, and he was reading so plain, that guy just touched
a section of his brain, he just started jabbering. The head gives
directions. It gives instructions to the
body. The Lord Jesus did say this,
without me, you can do nothing. You can do nothing. Paul tells
us here the body is compacted together. It's joined together.
It has skin on it. It has bones. It has nerves,
ligaments, muscles. organs, but you know something? Without the head, the body cannot
act. The body cannot function. And
that's what the Apostle Paul is emphasizing to us here. We
are indeed the body of Christ, but it's so essential to remember
we're growing up unto Him who is the Head. That's what He said
in verse 16, look at this, "...from whom the whole body fitly joined
together." From whom? The body. The body receives all
of its blessings from the Head. All its instructions from the
Head. Where does the church get its instructions? From the head,
doesn't it? We have all the blessings, all
righteousness, all holiness, all grace, all mercy, all love,
everything that's given to us as the body of Christ, it comes
from Jesus Christ, the head. Remember how John said it? We
beheld His glory. He is full of grace and truth. He's full. The head is full. And of that fullness of all we
receive, we receive our nourishment from Christ. We receive our stability
from Christ. Grace and mercy and love and
righteousness, everything we need, our nourishment. Where
do we get our nourishment from Christ? From Christ. From Christ. Now here's what's so encouraging
about this when we think of this analogy of Christ and His church
being the head and the body. Our head is complete. It's not
like the body at all. Our head is full. He's well able
and equipped to give the church all the nourishment that she
needs. Does the church need direction?
He's the church's light. Does the church need nourishment?
My body is meat indeed. My blood is drink indeed. Do we need grace? Do we need
strength? Be strong in the Lord. Everything
the church needs comes from its head, doesn't it? So grow up. Grow up unto Him. It's unto Him. Look over here in chapter 5.
Paul uses this analogy of the man and his wife being one. He
does it again here in chapter 5. The body of Christ. He's the
head and the church is His body. And look here what he says about
the body and the head here in chapter 5, verse 25. Husbands, love your wives. even as Christ
also loved the church and gave himself for it, that he might
sanctify and cleanse it with a washing of water by the word,
that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having
spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and
without blemish. So ought men to love their wives
as their own body. He that loves his wife loves
himself. For no man ever yet hated his
own flesh, but he nourishes it and cherishes it, even as the
Lord the Church. For we are members of his body,
of his flesh, and of his bones." We love ourselves, don't we?
We nourish ourselves. None of us. It would be unnatural
for us to sever a member. Wouldn't it? That would be unnatural
for you to lay your hand down on the chopping block and take
your hatchet and cut your finger off. We love our members, don't
we? And we'd never sever a member
of our body. We love our body. We nourish
our body. What's he saying about this?
He's saying here's the way Jesus Christ feels about his body.
His church. Just as a man and his wife are
one, Christ and His church are one. And just as you would never
sever a member of your body, Christ would never sever a member
of His body. He's one. The head is one with
the body. But you know something? Every
member of that body is in perfect union with the head. It's not
that you just look at Christ and His church and say they're
one. That's so, and that's wonderful. But each member of that church
is one with Jesus Christ. And it doesn't matter if you're
a member of the body. You have union with the head.
I don't care how far you are from the head. You may be a little
toe, but you still have perfect union with the head. You may
say, boy, I'm just not important. Well, in and of yourself you're
not. But if you're in the body of Christ, you're one with Him.
You're one with Him. And He'll never sever one member
of His body. That'd be unnatural. That'd be
unnatural. What does the Scripture say?
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Who shall separate
one member of His body from Him? You cannot, because this is His
body. Boy, if you think about this
analogy of the church being the body of Christ, it's so comforting
when we realize that all the nourishment, all the directions,
all the comfort, all the information comes from the head. And this
takes away are trying to secure our own safety. The church don't
have to secure its safety. Safety is of the Lord. We don't
have to go begging for food from man. We have a supply of food. We eat of Him. We need directions. He's our light. Everything the
body needs. Protection. Everything. We look to our head, don't we?
Just as the body is under the head, just as the body is subject
to the head, just as the body depends upon the head, so the
church is dependent upon Jesus Christ, our Lord. And He's complete. Our head is in heaven, and He's
safe and restful. And now the church can be utterly
dependent upon its head. Needs nothing else. Needs nothing
else. He says here now in chapter 4,
verse 15, I love the way the Holy Spirit says this, speaking
the truth in love that we may grow up unto Him. That we may grow up unto Him. You've heard somebody say, grow
up? Would you just please grow up? That's what Paul said. Grow
up in Him. Grow up in Him. What's the measure
of our growth? Well, he tells us there in the
last portion of verse 13, I read it to you, unto a perfect man. Grow up until you're absolutely
mature. He calls it perfect. We call
it mature. You know, it's a strange thing
when we see a 20-year-old infant. Wouldn't that be strange? And
when we see a Christian, that's been in Christ for 20 years and
he's still just a baby, that he's not growing. That's strange,
ain't it? And you know what Paul would say to that Christian?
Would you grow up? Would you please grow up? Paul, how far do you want me
to grow? How big do you want me to get? I want you to grow up
and be a man in Christ. A mature man in Christ. Perfect man. Now let me dwell on this just
for a second, and first I want to say this about it. The Bible
never teaches that you and I are to seek perfection in the flesh. As a matter of fact, it teaches
us the contrary. A lot of people have got themselves
in trouble seeking perfection in the flesh. I've never known
any of them, but I've heard that there are those who say, I haven't
sinned in 20 years. I don't sin anymore. I'm now
perfect. I've heard of people. Would you
like to be around somebody like that? How would somebody like
that live around anybody else? I tell you, if you were that
way and you got around folks like us, you wouldn't be perfect
long. We'd rub off on you. The Scripture
just does not teach that we're to seek perfection in the flesh. Now listen to these Scriptures.
If we say we have no sin, We deceive ourselves, and the truth
is not in us. Now, I think if a man was perfect,
he'd be sinless, don't you? But as soon as a man says, I'm
sinless, John says this, you're deceived. You've deceived yourself,
and the truth is not in you. And Paul said this, I know that
in me, in my flesh, dwells no good thing. I find the law that
when I would do good, evil is present in me. In me, that is,
in my flesh dwells what? Not one single good thing. The
flesh lusteth after the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.
Well, what are we going to do with this thing then that we
call flesh? Here's what we're told to do
with it. They that are Christ have crucified the flesh with
the affections and lust." You know who he was talking to? He
was talking to those men who had deceived themselves, and
this is what this hit. Paul, we found perfection in
the flesh. And he said, are you so foolish?
Having begun in the Spirit, are you now made perfect by the flesh? No, he said, the best thing you
can do with flesh is to crucify. The best thing you can do through
the Spirit's aid and strength is to put it down. Beat it down. And I tell you, brothers and
sisters, the flesh is not converted. It's not converted. This old
man is not regenerated. He's not new and improved. He's
the same old man. And the best you can do with
him is just crucify him. And while he's hanging there,
that don't stop him from lusting. That don't stop him from complaining
and groaning. All it does is stop him from
just going and doing what he wants to do. You won't stop him
from desiring it. You just have to keep him be
down to where he can't do it openly. and in profaneness. Look here
in chapter 4 and verse 22. Here's what Paul says about this
old man. I want us to be very clear about this. Look what he says in verse 22.
Begin reading verse 22. And that you put off concerning
the farmer conversation, the way he used to be and the way
he used to live. Put him off. The old man. which is corrupt
according to the deceitful lust." Put him off. Put off the old
man. Have you ever had anybody put
you off? I want you to do me a favor.
I've been asking that person to do this for me for a long
time. They just keep putting me off.
I've been wanting Clarence to do this for me. He just keeps
putting me off. What does that mean? He's not
doing what I want him to do. That's what we're to do with
this old man. Just keep putting him off. Oh, I want this. Put him off. Let's do this. Put
him off. Oh, this is what I think. Just
put him off. Oh, I've got to have this. Put
him off. Just put him off. That's what
we're to do with this old man. Put him off. Don't do his bidding. Don't live after Him. Don't let
Him off that cross. I'm telling you if you do, He's
going to get you in more trouble than you can handle. We do the
bidding of the flesh, and what did Paul say? We die. We die. Those who live in the flesh and
after the flesh, they die. Therefore, we through the Spirit
mortify the deeds of this old man that we call flesh. So when we talk about maturing
and growing up in perfection, we're not talking about the flesh.
We're not talking about the outward man. He'll never be perfect. He'll cause you more trouble
than a little bit. And you'll never get rid of him
until Jesus Christ comes down from heaven and changes this
vile body. So when Paul is saying here,
maturing, growing up, He is not talking about the old flesh,
the old man. Then who is He talking about?
Well, turn over to 2 Corinthians. You hold Ephesians chapter 4. Look in 2 Corinthians chapter
4. 2 Corinthians chapter 4. He tells
us here what He is talking about. Look at this. 2 Corinthians chapter 4. Look here
in verse 8. He's talking about his trouble.
We are troubled. Oh, we're troubled. Troubled on every side, but we're
not distressed. We're perplexed, but we're not
in despair. We're persecuted, but we're not
forsaken. Cast down, but we're not destroyed. always bearing about in the body
the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might
be made manifest in our body. For we which live are always
deliberate unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus
might be made manifest in our mortal body. Now look what he
says in verse 14. Knowing, here's why he's not
distressed, here's why he doesn't despair even though all these
sufferings. knowing that He which raised up the Lord Jesus shall
raise up us also by Jesus, by His power, and shall present
us with you, for all things are for your sakes, that the abundant
grace might through the thanksgiving of many rebound to the glory
of God. For which cause we think not,
but though our outward man perish, Look at this. Yet the inward
man, the inner man, is renewed day by day. It's not the outward
man. It's not the old man that grows
up. It's not the old man that matures.
He's put off. We seek to keep him weak. Then
who is it that matures? It's this inward man. This new
man, this new creature that you and I talked about this morning.
And back over here in Ephesians 4. Here's the way Paul said it. Look in Ephesians 4 again. I
should have read this to you a minute ago. But look here in
verse 23. He's speaking of this old man
that I read to you there in verse 22. Put him off. And look in
verse 23. And be renewed in the spirit
of your mind and that you put on the new man, which after God
is created in righteousness and true holiness." So it's this
inward man he's talking about, isn't it? Grow up. This inward
man, he's a new creature, but he's capable of growth. He's
just a baby, so he's the material. He's to grow. Grow up. Grow up. Grow up in what? Grow
in grace. Grow in grace. Grow by grace
and grow in grace. And grow in the spiritual knowledge
of our Lord Jesus Christ. Not merely a bunch of facts about
Him, but as Brother Lawrence said this morning, heart knowledge,
spiritual knowledge, of the Lord Jesus Christ. The knowledge Paul
called the excellent knowledge of Christ. Oh, that I may know
Him. Grow in grace and in knowledge. Grow in faith and in the exercise
of faith. Grow in the grace of hope. Grow
in the grace of love and humility and patience. Grow in self-denial
Grow in resignation to the will of God. Let this mind be in you
that was in Christ. Let it be in you more and more
and more. What kind of mind did Christ
have? Resignation to the will of God. Humility. Father, not my will. Your will
be done. Oh, wouldn't it be wonderful
to grow to the place Mature to the place that whatever your
circumstances were in this life, Father, your will be done. That's maturing, ain't it? That's
growing up. Maturing. Wouldn't you love to
be so mature in your knowledge of Christ that you knew Him perfectly? As much as a human being could
know Him in this lifetime. Wouldn't you love to know Christ
better? Wouldn't you love to have a greater heart knowledge
of His love? John Bunyan said that one of
the abominations of his heart, he said, I'm often forgetting
the love of Christ for my soul. Wouldn't you love to know His
love better? Wouldn't you love to know who He is better? I mean,
His person? What a mysterious person the
Son of God is. He's both God and man in one
person. Wouldn't you love to know Him
in His offices? He's a prophet? What does it mean to know Christ
as a prophet? Boy, that means He's our teacher.
The prophets went about teaching God's people. Christ is a prophet,
and He can teach you. He's a high priest between us
and God. He makes us accepted. He makes
all that we do accepted with the Father. When we sin, He pleads
our cause with the Father. Wouldn't you love to know Him
better as a high priest? You know why we get down so often
and discouraged? Especially when we see this sin
that dwells in us. We forget. We don't know Him
enough as our High Priest. He's pleading our cause and maintaining
our cause with the Father. King? In His office there's a
king? What does that mean to you? Well,
I tell you, if you're a king, that means you're reigning. That
means you're reigning in me, you're reigning over me. He has
the power to subdue our sins. Ain't that wonderful? Wouldn't
you love to know Him better? Grow in knowledge of our Lord
and Savior, Jesus Christ. Listen to this. Wouldn't you
love to be so perfect, so mature in faith, that you'd never doubt
God again. Wouldn't that be wonderful? To
be so perfect in faith. No cloud would ever obscure the
Master's smile. Boy, you had a key that would
open every door to every promise, and you stuck it right in there
and opened the door and stepped right into that house of promise.
Wouldn't that be wonderful? Wouldn't that be wonderful in
everything you did to glorify God because you believed Him
perfectly? Abraham was strong in faith,
giving glory to God. In all your circumstances, you
believed to the point that it secured the comfort of your soul.
Wouldn't you love to believe like that? I haven't reached
that point of view. Here's what Paul said though,
I press. I press. I want to reach that
point where I believe God perfectly. Can we get there? I think we
should aim at it, don't you? I think we should aim at it.
Well, listen to what the Scripture says about the increase of faith,
growing in faith. We are bound to thank God for
you, brethren, always, because your faith groweth exceedingly. Grow up! Ain't that what He said?
Grow up! Grow up health all your faith.
Grow up in faith. The degree of it and the exercise
of it. Grow in faith. How about the
grace of hope? Wouldn't you love to be some
material hope that you could live in the full assurance of
it? Wouldn't that be wonderful? What would get you down? What
could possibly discourage you? If you lived in the full assurance
of hope, I tell you, you could smile at Satan's rage, wouldn't
you? This world would never be appealing to you again with its
little toys. Why? Because you saw your hope. Your hope was so bright. Your
hope of another world. Your hope of being with Christ
and being like Him. Hope maketh not ashamed. We rejoice in hope of the glory
of God. We are saved by hope. Hope. And here's what Paul says
about hope. Now the God of hope fill you
with all joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope through
the power of the Holy Ghost. Grow in it the grace of hope. What about love? Wouldn't you
love to love perfectly? I was reading the Amplified Commentary. Some people call it the Amplified
Bible, but I call it the Amplified Commentary. It's not really a
translation, but I tell you it's one of the best commentaries
I've ever found. And I wrote down what it said about 1 Corinthians
13, the love chapter, and listen to what it says. Listen to how
it interprets this. Love endures long and is patient
and kind. Love is never envious, never
boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious,
does not display itself haughtily. Love is not conceited. Love is
not arrogant and inflated with pride. Love is not rude. It does not act unbecoming. Love, that is the love of God
in us, does not insist on having its rights or getting its own
way. For it is not self-seeking. It
is not touchy or fretful or resentful. It takes no account of the evil
done to it, pays no attention to a suffered wrong. Love does
not rejoice in injustice or unrighteousness, but love rejoices when right
and truth prevail. Love bears up under everything
and anything that comes. Love is ever ready to believe
the best about other persons. Its hopes are fadeless under
all circumstances. And it endures everything without
weakening. Love never fails. It never fades
or becomes obsolete or comes to an end. Oh, wouldn't you love
to love like that? Wouldn't you love that kind of
love? Wouldn't you love to be filled with a love like that? That's
what Paul's telling the church. Grow up. Grow up. Grow in the grace. Grow in the
graces. Grow in the knowledge of Christ.
Grow up. Two scriptures and I'll close.
Look at 1 Thessalonians chapter 3 and verse 12. It's concerning
love. 1 Thessalonians chapter 3 and
verse 12. Look what it says here. The Lord
make you increase and abound in love, one to another and toward
all men, even as we do toward you. Increase, abound, grow up. Look what he says in chapter
4, in verse 9 and verse 10. As touching brotherly love, you
need not that I write unto you. For yourselves are taught of
God to love one another. And indeed, you do it towards
all the brethren that are in all Macedonia. But we beseech
you, brethren, that you increase more and more." You know growing
up is one of the most natural things in the world, ain't it?
You don't try to grow. How do you grow? You just eat. And you exercise. And you grow. Eat of Christ. Exercise your thoughts upon Him.
Set your affections on things above. Meditate in the Word of
Truth, and I'll show you this. You'll just grow. You'll grow. Grow up. Grow up. May God bless
His Word. Let's pray.