The Purpose of God's Gifts
[Read Ephesians 4:11-16]
It may be hard for some of you to believe but one of the things that categorized me as a middle schooler was that I was a complete follower. I lived my life constantly worried about what other people thought about me and wondering whether I fit in or whether people liked me. I hardly ever spoke up because I was worried that people may think I was stupid or what I said was dumb. I also had caved into peer pressure very easily because I was being controlled by other people’s opinions (which lead me into a bunch of bad decisions). It was a time in my life where I was easily swayed in various directions. I was a like a noodle flowing down a river, ebbing and flowing whichever way the current took me.
Eventually all of that changed. I had this “aha” moment where God smacked me over the head and I realized I didn’t have to be so worried about what everyone around me was saying and thinking. It was more important that I be worried about and influenced by the things He was saying and thinking. You see, when you are controlled by other people’s opinions, they are a continuously moving target—they are constantly shifting and you will never truly hit the mark. Yet, we serve and unchangeable, unmovable God. His opinions and thoughts never change. When we find ourselves caring more about what He is saying than what other people are saying, we will find that we are firmed up and are building our lives upon the rock, rather than upon the sand of popular opinion.
In our passage today, Paul says that being a noodle in a river—always ebbing and flowing with public opinion—is a sign of immaturity in the Christian life. He 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.” (Ephesians 4:14, NIV). In the same way that your typical middle schooler (and high school…and young adult…and adult) are continually swayed by popular opinion, which is a sign of their immaturity, Christians who find themselves continually swayed by every opinion are showing their own immaturity.
John Stott gives us this description of the immature Christian, “Such are immature Christians. They never seem to know their own mind or come to settled convictions. Instead, their opinions tend to be those of the last preacher they heard or the last book they read, and they fall an easy prey to each new theological fad. They cannot resist ‘the cunning of men’ or ‘their craftiness in deceitful wiles” (171). In Paul’s words, they are “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.” (Ephesians 4:14, NIV). This is the picture of an immature Christian.
So, how do we grow up and mature? We start using our God-given gifts! We start worship AS a community. That’s what Paul says in this passage. Take a look: “It was [Christ] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 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 fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11–13, NIV). When we use our God-given gifts the body of Christ is equipped for works of ministry and the body of Christ is built up—which means the body of Christ matures and becomes more Christlike. Since we need to be maturing in our faith—becoming more like Jesus Christ—we need to be using the gifts that God has given us.
Take a look at one of the examples that Paul gives in this regard. He lists a number of leadership gifts at the beginning—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers (some say pastor-teachers). Now, the majority of these offices no longer exist, but look at what Paul has to say about the role of the pastor (my role) in the church. He says, “It was [Christ] who gave…some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service.” (Ephesians 4:11-12, NIV). This is the job description given to me by Jesus Christ. I am called to prepare God’s people for works of service. Other translations say, “equip the saints for works of ministry.” This is extremely important for all of us to understand. It’s important for me to understand so that I’m not trying to do everything in this church. It is dishonoring and disobedient to Christ if I am trying to do everything in this church. I’m simply one member of the body that Christ has given particular gifts to be used in a particular service—which is equipping this congregation to do works of ministry.
It’s also important for this congregation to realize as well. Not only is it impossible, but it is not good or honoring to Jesus Christ for the pastor to be expected to do everything—or more than Christ has called him to do. Christ has called me to equip you to be ministers in this congregation and in the community.
Not only it this dishonoring to Christ but it also prevents the body of Christ from maturing and becoming more Christlike. That’s what Paul says, “It was [Christ] who gave…some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, SO THAT the body of Christ may be built up 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 fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11–13, NIV). When pastors prepare people for works of service, then the body of Christ begins to use their gifts and accomplish their service, then the body of Christ is built up—it matures and becomes more Christlike.
When the rubber hits the road, this means that the health of this congregation lies in the hands of this congregation. It does not lie solely in the hands of the pastor. It’s not my job to make this church healthy and mature. It’s OUR job—as each one of us uses our God-given gifts—to make this church healthy and mature. Paul says, “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.” (Ephesians 4:16, NIV). As each part of the body—as each member of the congregation—does its work, the body grows, matures, and builds itself up in love. It’s extremely important for churches, when they recognize immaturity and unhealthiness in their congregation, not to cast blame but to own up to the problem. Rather than saying, “We’re like this because of [so and so],” it’s important to say, “We are like this because of US,” then begin looking for ways that we can more fully use our God-given gifts to build up the body and help our congregation become more like Jesus Christ.
It’s also important to notice one of the ways that Paul talks about maturity. When he spoke about immaturity he talked about being “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.” (Ephesians 4:14, NIV). He says that a sign of immaturity is being easily swayed and moved in our doctrine—our understanding of God’s Word. This means that a mature Christian is someone who knows God’s Word and stands firmly upon its teaching. It means that a Christian who is maturing ir regularly in God’s Word, reading it, studying it, meditating upon it, and applying it to their daily lives. It means that a Christian who is maturing isn’t simply believing everything that the people around them are saying, but is constantly asking the question, “What does God’s Word have to say about this?” And once they know what God’s Word has to say, they stand firmly upon it and don’t budge.
To be honest, this is going to be harder and harder and harder for Christians to do as our culture continues to head in the direction of “everything goes.” Culturally, the ultimate virtue is to be tossed back and forth by the waves and blown here and there by every wind of teaching. They don’t describe it in that way. They use words like “open-minded” and “tolerant.” Yet, the way they use those terms is that people just need to “go with the flow.” And when people stand up and say, “No, I’m not going there. I am standing upon the truth of God’s Word and I’m not going to move,” you are kicking against their god—the god of self—which is why they get so angry when we stand on God’s Word. Yet, even though this will become increasingly difficult, it will become increasingly important. Mature Christians KNOW God’s Word and then stand firmly upon it so that they are not easily deceived or tossed back and forth by the cultural winds.
Yet, Paul adds another caveat. He says, “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.” (Ephesians 4:15, NIV). If we want to mature in Christ—to become more like Jesus—we need to speak the truth, know the truth, and stand firmly upon the truth, but we need to do it all in love. That’s when the body of Christ will grow and be healthy and mature. We may be the most doctrinally sound church in the world, but if we have not love we are nothing. On the other hand, we may look like the most “loving” church in the world, but if we have not truth, we are not truly loving and have nothing to offer or stand upon. We need both. Without love, truth becomes a baseball bat that crushes people’s skulls. Without truth, love becomes like a nerf dart that cannot penetrate the soul. John Stott says, “[The Church] grows by truth and love.” (171). I would add to that, “…as each member does their work and uses their God-given gifts.”
So, since the church needs to be maturing—needs to be becoming more like Jesus Christ—each member needs to be using their God-given gifts and doing their work as they speak the truth in love. That’s the importance of us using our God-given gifts. If we are not using the gifts God has given us, the body of Christ will not mature and will not become more like Jesus Christ. If we are not using the gifts God has given us, the church will be immature, tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine and shipwrecked by the cultural waves. There are serious repercussions to us not using the gifts God has given us.
And we will need to continue using these gifts until we die or Christ comes again. Paul says, “…to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 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 fulness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:12–13, NIV). We will continue using our gifts and building up the body of Christ until the church is completely unified and perfectly reflects Christ. The reality is that this is not going to happen until Christ comes again. So, the call is for us to always continue using our gifts. We don’t retire from using our God-given gifts. We don’t get too old to use our God-given gifts. Sure, the way we use those gifts may change as we get older and our bodies begin to fail, but we continue to use those gifts in whatever ways we can until we die or until Christ comes again.
Yet, it’s helpful to remember that Christ is the one who initiated this whole process. In verse seven it talks about how Christ is the one who poured out these gifts upon his church. This passage also talks about how he has given different people different tasks and how He is the one bringing us together into unity, and how He is the one who is ultimately working. Markus Barth translates this last part by saying, “[Christ] is at work fitting and joining the whole body together. He provides sustenance to it through every contact according to the needs of each single part. He enables the body to make its own growth so that it builds itself up in love.” (Stott, 171). Christ is the one who got this whole thing started. He is the one who gave you your gifts. He is the one who is working in and through your gifts. He is the one who is empowering your gifts. He is also the one who will use your gifts to build up the body and bring us all to maturity in himself. So, as we use our gifts and do our work, let’s keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.