PastorRodney’s Weblog

03/02 Church; True Unity (Eph.4; Mt.16, 18); Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250302_church-true-unity.mp3

We are looking together at what the Bible says about the church. So far, we have seen that the church is made up of those who call on the name of King Jesus, the sovereign rescuing Lord. The church is a Holy Spirit created New Covenant community of born again baptized believers.

We have looked at some of the main metaphors used to describe the church; a family, a flock, a building and a kingdom of priests, a body made up of diverse parts, a bride waiting for her husband.

What The Church Does

So far, we’ve been looking primarily at who or what the church is. I want to turn now to look at what the church does. What are we as the church to be about? How do we function as the church?

Let’s look back through these descriptions of the church; they are given to communicate something about the church. Each picture illustrates a truth, and and each one has implications for what we do, how we live, how we conduct ourselves, how we interact with one another as the church.

The church is pictured as a family; Like it or not, we are related to one another, by blood – the blood of Jesus that washes us clean. We may not have much else in common, but we have been adopted into the same family, made brothers and sisters through the new birth, so we’d better learn to get along, to look out for one another. The family has a family name to live up to, family rules, family values, a family code of conduct. If you are a Christian, you bear the name of Christ. You’d better be living up to that name.

Ephesians 4:1 …walk in a manner worthy of [consistent with] the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

The church is a family; uphold the family name.

The church is a flock.

Isaiah 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

We were straying like sheep (1Pet.2:25), but the good Shepherd stood in our place, took our punishment, and we have now been returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. Under our good Shepherd (Ps.23), we now get to walk together by still waters, lay down and enjoy green pastures together as a flock. He leads us in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake, and we must follow him. We also will walk with one another through the valley of the shadow of death. The church is a flock. As sheep prone to wander, we must stay close to our good Shepherd.

The church is a building, made up of living stones, stones that are joined together to be a holy temple of the Lord (1Pet.2:5), Don’t be a block sitting out in a field all alone. There is structure, there is design, there is order, there is symmetry and beauty. We together are a dwelling place for God by his Spirit (Eph.2:19-22). His glory inhabits us. We are to be a kingdom of priests, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to him through Jesus Christ. Together we proclaim the excellencies of him who called us out of darkness and into his marvelous light (1Pet.2:9). We were made to worship. We were made to behold the glory of God, to enjoy his presence together.

The church is a body, made up of individual body parts (1Cor.12:7, 12), each one with Holy Spirit enabled grace-gifts and abilities given so that wee can contribute in a specific way to allow the body to function and thrive as a complete interconnected organism. We need each other, every part functioning as parts of the whole; a body connected with and in submission to its one head, the Lord Jesus Christ. As parts of a body, we can’t be proud thinking I’m more important than you, or withdraw thinking I have no useful contribution to make. We can’t be isolated from each other. We need each other. And like a body, we are meant to be interconnected; when one is hurting all grieve together, when one rejoices, we all share in that joy (1Cor.12:26-27). The church is a body and we are each individually members of one another.

The church is a bride, betrothed to her husband, to Christ (2Cor.11:2). Jesus loves the church (Eph.5), he laid down his life to make her his own, he is washing her with the water of the word, making her pure and holy, to present her blameless, in splendor on that glorious day. Our affections must be exclusively his, our eyes on him, our hearts longing for his return, in faithfulness seeking to live in a way that pleases him when he returns. The church is a pure virgin betrothed to Christ.

Unity

All these pictures point us to our corporate identity. The church is bigger than me. It is made up of many parts, many people. Many sheep, brothers and sisters, priests, living stones, body parts. We who are many are one (Rom.12:4-5). The church together composes one bride, the bride of Christ.

This is why Jesus prayed so fervently for our unity:

John 17:11 … Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. …21 ​that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 ​The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,

Unity Grounded in Truth

And why the New Testament exhorts us so often to unity.

Ephesians 4:11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. (cf. Jn.10:16; Rom.12:5; Gal.3:28; Eph.1:10; 4:4)

Notice this is not some superficial ‘lets sing a song together and hold hands and pretend we’re all on the same team’ kind of unity. This is a robust intrinsic unity that comes from the equipping ministry of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastor-teachers, a unity of faith (that we believe the same things); a unity of the knowledge of the Son of God (that we know and are walking with the same Jesus). This is a unity that is on guard against the infection of false teaching and the disease of different doctrine. This is a unity not founded in feeling but in fact, in truth, in reality. This is why the early church fought so passionately and at such great cost for the truth about who Jesus is against the false teachings and heresies that tried to take root in the church.

Unity and Accountability

This is why being connected, being a part, a member of the body is so essential. It allows the body to recognize and affirm the other members. This is why baptism is so important; baptism is the way believers are meant to respond to the gospel and publicly confess what they are believing, so that the rest of the body can hear and welcome them in as members. This is why accountability to one another is so important, so if I am believing something that is false and dangerous, you can in love point out my error for my good and for the health of the body. We must not let false doctrine in to the church. We must be able to evaluate truth claims by the word of God, and accept or reject them.

A few years ago, I was out in the backyard and decided to throw a stick for our dog. It was a big stick that she had been chewing on already, and when I wound up and released that stick, there was a splinter that the force of that throw plunged deep into my thumb. It was instantly throbbing, and felt like it had gone straight to the bone. I grabbed the chunk of wood that was lodged firmly in my flesh, and with some effort and much pain, pulled it out. It was a sizeable chunk and left quite a hole, which I went inside and cleaned up. It continued to be painful, but eventually healed over. But I could tell something was not quite right. I suspected there was still a fragment of that saliva saturated stick somewhere deep in my thumb. It was red, swollen and inflamed. It affected just about everything I did. At different times, I would dig at it in an attempt to find whatever was in there that didn’t belong, but without success. Finally, I think it was months later, as I was probing, a fairly substantial chunk of wood squirted out of my thumb. My body had been fighting it the whole time, and finally it was out. It was painful, but there was instant relief; the foreign substance that had invaded my body was finally out, and I could begin to really heal.

That’s what it’s like when false teachers make their way into the church. Paul and Jesus used the analogy of the flock and called them ravenous wolves (Mt.7:15 Ac.20:29). The church of the living God is to be a pillar and buttress of the truth (1Tim.3:15).

We are to:

Jude 1:3 …contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.

Paul instructed Titus to appoint elders in every town, men who:

Titus 1:9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it. 10 For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. 11 They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. …13 …Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14 not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth.

Splinters and Timbers

Jesus also taught about helping a brother get a splinter or a speck out of his eye.

Matthew 7:3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

Jesus does not say ‘mind your own business, don’t concern yourself with your brother.’ But our tendency is to be hypocrites who ‘strain out a gnat and swallow a camel’ (Mt.23:24). We ought to help our brother with his splinter. But we ought not attempt it with a whole timber lodged in our own eye.

Go After the Sheep Who Strays

Jesus says in Matthew 18(:12-14) that the good shepherd goes after the one sheep who goes astray and rejoices greatly when he finds it. He says:

Matthew 18:15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18 Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19 Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. 20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”

Jesus outlines a process of pursuing a sheep who goes astray. The goal is always the joy of finding them and bringing them home.

This is only the second place Jesus mentions the church, and this concept of binding and loosing. The first was just two chapters earlier in Matthew 16; Jesus asked his disciples if they understood his identity.

Matthew 16:15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

Jesus builds his church on the solid foundation of the divine identity of Jesus as Messiah, Son of God. And Peter is given authority to unlock the kingdom of heaven to sinners otherwise destined for hell who turn to Jesus. In Matthew 18, the authority of the keys in binding and loosing is given to the church, followers of Jesus officially gathered in the name of Jesus, and Jesus says that when the church pursues a straying sheep and that one refuses to return, they must assume that that one is not a sheep, because his sheep hear the voice of their Shepherd and follow (Jn10:27). That one must not be founded on the true identity of Jesus.

God gives the gift of repentance to his people. A brother who refuses to repent, refuses to walk in unity is not acting like a brother, not upholding the family name, and so puts himself outside. The church is to recognize that one as outside the family and treat them as outside. The way Jesus teaches us to treat those outside is to love them, plead with them, invite them in. That is the Father’s heart (Lk.15); he goes out to that one, pleads with him to come home.

As the church, the family, the flock, the body, the building, the bride, we are called to unity, and our unity must be substantial, real, rooted in gospel truth, giving evidence of real gospel transformation. May we grow together in ‘the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God’.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

02/23 Church; Bride of Christ (Ephesians 5) ; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250223_church-bride-christ.mp3

We are taking a few weeks to look at the church; what the church is, what it means to belong to the church. We have seen that the church consists of those who call on the name of the Lord Jesus as sovereign rescuing King. The church is a Holy Spirit created New Covenant community of born again baptized believers.

The Bible uses metaphors to describe the church; a family, a flock, a building, made up of living stones joined together as a holy temple of the Lord, a kingdom of priests. The church is a body, made up of individual body parts, each one with Holy Spirit enabled grace-gifts and abilities given to contribute in a specific way to allow the body to function and thrive as a complete interconnected organism.

Betrothed to Jesus

Paul says something really intriguing in 2 Corinthians 11

2 Corinthians 11:2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. 3 But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 4 For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough.

Paul is shocked at the Corinthians’ willingness to put up with some other Jesus than the one he proclaimed, a different Spirit, a different gospel. He is concerned that the serpent is deceiving and leading people away from the real Christ. He feels jealousy, because he is afraid they are cheating on the real Jesus, even if their other lover also uses the name Jesus.

It is interesting that he uses the language of betrothal of a pure virgin to a husband to describe the relationship of the church to Jesus. John the baptist used similar language when people expressed concern that John’s disciples were leaving him and following Jesus.

John 3:27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete.

Paul and John both saw their duty as introducing people to Jesus, getting them connected to Jesus. But this is not a loose low commitment come-and-go no-strings-attached kind of relationship. They use the language of betrothal, which we learn from Joseph and Mary in Matthew 1 required the legal act of divorce to dissolve. Betrothal, leading to marriage, is a legally binding covenant commitment. And both John and Paul are comparing this with our relationship with Jesus.

Ephesians; The Church as Body and Bride

In Ephesians 5 Paul gives instructions to the church:

Ephesians 5:21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Wives to their husbands, children to parents, slaves to masters. In this section on the relationship of a husband and wife, it becomes clear that he is talking about something much bigger than the human marriage relationship.

Ephesians 5:22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

We looked last week at the church as the body of Christ and us as his members or body parts. This passage connects with that metaphor; the church is the body, and Christ is its head. Christ is the Savior and the Sovereign over his body. It is dysfunctioning body that doesn’t come under the authority of its head. This metaphor of head and body is woven together into the marriage relationship.

Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

This is a stunning picture of Christ’s love for his bride, the church. Self-sacrificial lay down your life love for the good of the other. Jesus died for his bride, to set her apart for himself, to cleanse, to purify, to present the bride all in white to himself on their wedding day. No price is too much to pay. Jesus loves his church.

Ephesians 5:28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”

Here again we see the metaphors of bride and body woven together, based on the truth that in marriage God joins two together into one (Mt.19:6); ‘the two shall become one flesh’. We are members of Christ’s body. Jesus loves his body, his bride, the church, he nourishes and cherishes it.

A Shadow of The Greater Reality

Ephesians 5:32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. 33 However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

This divine joining of two together into one inseparable whole is a profound mystery. Paul is giving instructions on human marriage, but he gets caught up in the greater reality of the relationship of Christ and the church. In fact, Paul says this one flesh marriage mystery primarily refers to Christ and his bride, the church. The human marriage relationship is given by God to be a shadow, a parable, a pointer to a greater, more beautiful, more perfect, more profound reality. The marriage covenant is temporary, broken by death (Rom.7:2); the greater reality lasts forever. Our marriages are all flawed; we fail to love selflessly, sacrificially, for the good of the other. Beauty fades, is tarnished. We fail to love well, to lead well, to show respect and honor, to submit well. We fail to nourish. We fail to cherish. Christ never fails.

Divine Romance in Ephesians 1

If we back up and look at the whole of Ephesians, I think we might see at least hints of this bigger picture woven throughtout the book. There is at least an undercurrent of this greatest love story right through Ephesians. Remember, in Jesus’ own letter to the church in Ephesus (Rev.2:1) he rebukes them because “you have abandoned the love you had at first”.

Right at the beginning of Ephesians (1:2-6), we read of God blessing us and choosing us, that we should be holy and blameless before him (that’s the same language as Ephesians 5:27), in love predestining us for adoption to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. We (1:7-8) have been redeemed (redemption reminds us of the love story of Boaz and Ruth 3:9), bought with his blood, forgiven, according to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us (that lavish gift language sounds like the gifts presented to Rebekah in pursuit of her as a bride for Isaac; Gen.24:53. To Isaac the only-begotten, his father gave him all that he has). He makes known to us the mystery (we saw that word in chapter 5) of his will, to unite all thing in him, things in heaven and things on earth (1:9).

He mentions the Jewish inheritance, and in verse 13, he turns to the Gentile believers in Ephesus and says ‘you also’;

Ephesians 1:13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory

Jew and Gentile both heard the word of truth, the good news of salvation through Jesus, both believed in him; both were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, both made co-heirs together of the inheritance.

In verse 15 he overflows with thanksgiving to God, and he prays:

Ephesians 1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, 18 having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might 20 that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

We need Holy Spirit empowered wisdom to comprehend the hope we have in heaven, the inheritance we have coming, and chapter 1 closes with these words:

Ephesians 1:22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.

The Father gave Jesus the crucified, resurrected, exalted and soon returning Son to the church, which is his body.

The Backstory

Chapter 2 (v.1-3) gives us the backstory; we were not innocent and pure; we were dead in trespasses and sins, disobedient, giving our affections to the devil, given over to sensuality and indulging our passions.

Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

God’s great love made us alive, raised us up, in Christ seats us in the heavenlies, and he intends to lavish us with the immeasurable riches of his grace in Christ for eternity. This is all undeserved grace.

Through the self-giving sacrifice of Jesus, he has made Jew and Gentile one, he has reconciled us both to God in one body; through Jesus we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. God is uniting his people, his church, into one people, one household, one temple. (2:11-22)

In Ephesians 3, Paul talks more about the mystery;

Ephesians 3:6 This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

He does this

Ephesians 3:10 so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.

God is showing off to all the angels and demons through the church.

In 3:16-19, he again prays for the church, for Holy Spirit given power to comprehend with all the saints the immeasurably great love of Christ. He ends chapter 3, and the first half of the letter with doxology:

Ephesians 3:21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

God is putting on display his glory in the church and in Christ Jesus.

Live Consistent with your New Identity

Having laid this gospel foundation in chapters 1-3, we are then exhorted in 4-6 to live lives consistent with our new identity.

Ephesians 4:1 …walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

We are one body with diverse gifts

Ephesians 4:11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, …

Ephesians 4:15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Armed with Gospel Glory

This picture of Christ as head of the body is combined in chapter 5 with the image of Christ as husband and the church as bride.

Maybe in light of this, we should see chapter 6 not as an individual equipped for battle, but as the beloved bride, the church, loved by her husband, now outfitted and equipped with glorious gospel armor to stand her ground against the one who tempted the first wife in the garden.

Ephesians 6:24 Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with love incorruptible.

We, church, are betrothed as a pure virgin to Jesus. We are not worthy, but he chose us, loved us, pursued us, paid the ultimate price to make us his, set us apart by his blood, cleansed us, is nourishing and cherishing us, and is clothing us in glorious gospel garments to present us, the church, to himself in splendor.

Consummation in Revelation

This love story culminates in Revelation

Revelation 19:7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 8 ​it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. 9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

…11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

02/16 Church; Members of a Body (1 Corinthians 12); Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250216_church-body-members.mp3

We are taking a few weeks to look at the church; what, or who is the church? We have seen that the church consists of those who call on the name of the Lord Jesus as sovereign rescuing King; the church is what Jesus promised to build, and it belongs to him. The church is a Holy Spirit created New Covenant community of born again baptized believers; the church universal includes all genuine believers everywhere, throughout history and around the world; local churches are visible local expressions of this broader reality.

The Bible uses metaphors to describe the church; as a family, those adopted by the Father, born into the family by the Holy Spirit, made co-heirs with Christ as brothers and sisters. The church is a flock, wayward wandering sheep now gathered under the Good Shepherd, entrusted to the care of under-shepherds, elders in the church, appointed to watch over the flock. The church is a building, made up of living stones joined together as a holy temple of the Lord, a dwelling place of God by the Spirit.

Membership Misunderstood

1 Corinthians 12:27 tells us

1 Corinthians 12:27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

When we talk about members of the church, don’t think membership in a society or club; just pay your dues and you have exclusive access to all these services, perks and amenities; it’s not an optional voluntary association, like the American Automobile Association;

“AAA members get 24/7 Roadside Assistance, discounts at thousands of locations, identity theft protection, travel services, and much more. There’s more to AAA than you think—all for as little as $64.99 a year.

From legendary roadside assistance and the convenience of in-branch services to savings on travel, entertainment, and auto repairs, AAA Membership can benefit you for life. Choose from 3 Levels of AAA Membership; classic, plus or premier” [https://mwg.aaa.com/]

How does membership benefit me? And if you pay more for a premium membership, you get access to more perks and privileges.

That’s not the biblical metaphor. Romans and 1 Corinthians and Ephesians and Colossians talk about the church as the body of Christ; that’s the metaphor – we are members, not membership in a social club, but members of a body; a foot, a hand, an eye, an ear. We are likened to body parts of the human anatomy, members of a human body.

Grace-Gifts (1 Corinthians 12)

Paul in 1 Corinthians 12 is addressing the issue of spiritual gifts or ‘grace-gifts’. In chapter 1 he said:

1 Corinthians 1:4 I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge— 6 even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you— 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Paul is writing to correct a laundry list of issues in this church. In chapters 12-14 he addresses is their misuse of grace-gifts. The Corinthians were all about the gifts, who had the better, more impressive, more important gift. They wrongly assumed that whoever had the most sensational gift was most important, and they used it as grounds for pride.

First of all, Paul reminds them (12:3), the greatest grace-gift of all is the gift of salvation, the Spirit enabled faith to call on Jesus as Lord.

Then he reminds them (12:4-6) that gifts are gifts; they are not deserved. There is variety in the grace-gifts, but they are all given by the Holy Spirit, in service of the Lord Christ, empowered by God the Father .

And (12:7) every grace-gift is a manifestation of the Holy Spirit given for the common good. They are not for selfish use; they are for others. He lists (12:8-10) ‘the utterance of wisdom, …the utterance of knowledge …faith …gifts of healing …the working of miracles, …prophecy, …the ability to distinguish between spirits, …various kinds of tongues, …the interpretation of tongues.’ He emphasizes throughout that these are given by one and the same Spirit. And then he reminds them again:

1 Corinthians 12:11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

These are grace gifts, not merit based rewards, given by the will of the Spirit, not because of any human skill or expertise.

One Body; Many Members

To teach the proper use of the gifts, Paul uses the analogy of human anatomy.

1 Corinthians 12:12 For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

The human body is highly complex, made up of many diverse body parts. Any student of anatomy has some idea of the vast diversity and interconnectedness of the human body. The human hand alone consists of 27 bones, 27 joints, 34 muscles, and hundreds of ligaments, not to mention the tendons, nerves and blood vessels. There are 11 major systems of organs in the human body. But they all make up one body. And all the various parts and systems must work together for the body to function properly.

Paul compares the human body to Christ. He says that being immersed in the Spirit immerses us into one body. There is not a Jewish body and a Greek body; there is one body, the body of Christ. There is not a higher class body and a lower class body; there is one body, the body of Christ. Regeneration by the Holy Spirit makes us parts in this one body.

Essential Members

People ask why its important to be a member of a church rather than just attending. Here’s the reality; being a member is not optional, it is essential; it is in essence what you are if you belong to Jesus. To be a believer in Jesus is to be baptized by the Spirit into the one body of Christ. It’s somewhat like baptism, if you have been born anew, baptized by the Spirit, why would you not be baptized in water, the outward visible sign of the inward invisible reality? If you belong to Christ’s one body, how can you not belong to a local visible expression of that one invisible universal body?

Not Dismembered

I don’t know if any of you remember the old TV show ‘The Addams Family’? It was a sit-com about a family of misfits and monsters. There was this Thing – that was its name ‘Thing’; it was a hand that came out of a box. Just a hand walking around on its fingers. The whole point was that that’s absurd – a hand severed from the rest of the body is dead, useless, it can’t function. That’s Paul’s point:

1 Corinthians 12:14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.

Members, body parts are parts of the body. The body is made up of the whole. Members belong to the body. A member attempting to detach itself from the body is unnatural and impossible. And there is a God-intended diversity in the members.

Diverse Members

1 Corinthians 12:17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single member, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body.

The diverse members are meant to complement one another. They have different God-given functions. And they all go together to allow the body to function. Have you ever stopped to marvel at your ability to run up stairs? We have an old house with fairly steep steps. My daily exercise is running back upstairs to get something I forgot. I couldn’t tell you how many stairs there are, I can’t tell you how tall they are. All I can say is that when I need to run up the stairs, somehow all my different systems work in harmony to get me to the top of the stairs. I don’t consciously pause to think about placing a foot deliberately on each step and then forget what I was going up there to get; somehow my eyes are sending messages to my brain which is processing the information and communicating instantaneously to the different muscles in my legs and feet and I end up safely back at the bottom of the stairs, hopefully with whatever I set out to retrieve. Somehow my body can even naturally adjust to a different pitch of stairs. If I try to watch my feet and pay attention to what each part is doing, that’s when I stumble.

Necessary Members

But imagine how difficult it would be if my left foot decided to go on strike. Have you ever been sitting wrong, and your foot goes to sleep? How difficult is it then to try to make it up the stairs?

1 Corinthians 12:21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.

Unity and Mutual Care

Have you ever got something in your eye? Your eyelids instinctively clamp shut in pain and self-protection. Nothing else matters; everything is on hold, you stumble half-blind to the bathroom mirror and try to get whatever doesn’t belong out of your eye.

1 Corinthians 12:26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

What Kind of Member Are You?

You are the body of Christ. Every believer individually is a member of the body of Christ. The question is, how are you functioning? Do you know your role in the body, what you were made to do? Do you know your place in the interconnected systems that make up the body?

In what ways are you connected with and dependent on the other members of the body? What other members are depending on you? Are you a healthy member, or have you allowed infection or disease to fester and grow? Are you atrophied from inactivity?

Don’t be an appendix; often irritable and inflamed, causes great pain to the rest of the body, better off to just take it out, you don’t really need it anyway; it’s not doing anything beneficial for the body.

What is your attitude toward other members of the body? Is it frustration and irritation because they are not doing their part? Is it arrogance and pride that you are so much more useful a member? Do you tend to isolate, thinking you are better off just doing your own thing?

Maybe you wonder if you really have anything of value to offer. Remember, 1 Corinthians 12:7 says ‘To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good’; It doesn’t say ‘to some’, it says ‘to each’. It is supernatural, a manifestation of the Spirit. And it is for the common good. It is meant to be a gift to others, to build them up.

Here’s a simple test. Look around. What do you notice that isn’t being done that ought to? There’s cobwebs in the corner, that light bulb needs to be changed. Does no one else notice that person is hurting and struggling? Why doesn’t someone reach out and encourage her, pray for him, come alongside and care? What about this opportunity that is not being seized? What about that ministry that is not being done, or not being done well?

How do I respond? Who do I complain to? Who is in charge of getting that done so I can let them know they need to do it? Or maybe I should ask ‘Is that something I can do? Am I able to meet that need?

When I notice something, I need to realize I might be the only one who is noticing that particular need. And that may be God calling me to step up and help to meet that need.

I should always ask; What is my heart and attitude? Am frustrated, irritated, stepping up because no one else will? Because I think I’m the only one who can get the job done right? Am I looking for recognition? Am I willing to humbly serve in love, genuinely seeking to build others up?

Is it my place to do this? I was in a church for a time where I was frustrated because I saw something being done poorly in my opinion, and felt I could do it better. But it was not my place. God was revealing to me my own pride. I had to learn to put to death my flesh, to humble myself and come under, come alongside, to graciously encourage, to pray for, to submit to godly leadership. To wait, to learn, to grow in character, in humility.

The Still More Excellent Way

1 Corinthians 12:28 And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administrating, and various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret? 31 But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.

This still more excellent way, as chapter 13 unpacks, is the way of love in the body, love that is slow-to-anger, kind, not jealous or puffed-up, not arrogant or rude, not self-seeking, not irritable, not keeping record of wrongs.

Every follower of Jesus is a member of his body. What kind of a member are you?

***

2025.02.16 Sermon Notes

The Church; Members of a Body (1 Corinthians 12)

The church is members in a body;

not membership in a club

1 Corinthians 12-14; Romans 12; Ephesians 4; Colossians 1

The greatest grace-gift is salvation; calling on Jesus as Lord

1 Corinthians 12:3

Every believer is a member of the body of Christ

1 Corinthians 12:11-27

-What kind of member are you?

-What were you made to do?

-In what ways are you connected to other members?

-Are you a healthy member?

-What is your attitude toward other members?

-What do you notice isn’t being done that ought to?

The still more excellent way of love in the body

1 Corinthians 13

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

02/09 Who Is The Church; Family, Flock, and Building (John 1, 10; Ephesians 2); Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250209_church-family-flock-building.mp3

We are looking together at what the Bible says about the church, what (or who) the church is. We have recognized elders in our local church, and the elders need to know who they are responsible to lead, feed, guide and guard. Who is the church?

We all need to know who we are as the church, what it means to belong to the church, what God expects of us as part of the local church. In this and the coming weeks, I want to look at some of the metaphors used to describe the church; a family, a flock, a building, a body, a bride.

So far we have seen that the church is made up of those who gladly bow the knee to Jesus, who own him as their sovereign King. The church consists of all who call on the name of the Lord Jesus for rescue from the guilt and power of sin, for forgiveness and transformation, all whom the Lord our God calls to himself. Those who surrender to Jesus as Lord and King become citizens of his heavenly community, an outpost of heaven, inviting others to cry out to the sovereign Lord Jesus for rescue from sin, inviting others to turn their allegiance to King Jesus.

We saw that the church is a Holy Spirit created New Covenant community of born again baptized believers. It is the Spirit of the living God who gives new life, a new heart, who causes us to be born again, born into the family of God. This is fulfillment of God’s New Covenant promise that he will give us a new heart and put his Spirit inside of us, to transform us from the inside. John the baptizer pointed to Jesus who would baptize with the Holy Spirit. After Jesus died and rose, securing our salvation, he ascended to the right hand of his Father and poured out the Spirit on believers. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 12:13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

To baptize means to immerse. John immersed people in water. Jesus immerses us in the Holy Spirit. Because we are born of the Spirit, we are immersed into the body of Christ. We enjoy a supernatural unity with every other blood-bought born again believer in the real Jesus.

Church Universal / Local; Invisible / Visible

This includes every genuine believer in the real Jesus throughout history and around the globe. That’s the church invisible, or the church universal. The ancient creed says ‘We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church’; the word ‘catholic’ in that context simply means universal (not the Roman Catholic church; that developed centuries later). This is the church Jesus promised he would build, against whom the gates of hell would not prevail (Mt.16:18). We become part of this catholic or universal church by being born of the Spirit. This universal church will not all be assembled together until we are gathered around the throne of God, so we can also call the universal church the invisible church. It is not currently visible. There are lots of visible local expressions or subsets of this universal invisible church. The church in Ephesus, in Corinth, the churches of Galatia, Ephraim Church of the Bible are each local and visible expression of Christ’s invisible and universal church.

This is where it can get messy. Remember last time we talked about the real inward invisible baptism of the Spirit, and the outward visible public symbol of water baptism? Those are meant to go together. The outward sign is for all those and only those who have experienced the real inward spiritual regeneration by the Spirit. The elders need to do their best to discern that those who are water baptized are those who have been truly born again. But we can’t see the heart, so it is possible to have a truly regenerate person who is not water baptized, or to have someone who is water baptized who was never really born of the Spirit. Water baptism is how a person identifies with the visible local church, but there are some people who belong to local churches who have not been born of the Spirit. How many Sundays does it take gathering with believers in a local church for someone to be born again? How long would you have to stand in a garage before you become a car? You can pretend to be a car and make engine sounds, but it would take a supernatural act of transformation to actually make you into an automobile. You can attend a local church gathering for years, but it is a sovereign act of the Spirit of God who gives new birth. All who call on the name of the Lord Jesus will be saved. So get to know Jesus, understand the weight of your sin and your need for him, and cry out to him as your only hope for rescue.

Born Into a Family

If the entrance into the church is being born of the Spirit, being born implies we are born into a new family. John 1 puts it this way:

John 1:11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Those who receive Jesus, who trust in him become children of God, born of God, born of the Spirit. Paul says in Romans 8

Romans 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

The Spirit of God makes us sons of God, adopted into his family. The adoption language draws a distinction between the eternal, only begotten Son of God, and those who become children of God through faith and the new birth. The stunning thing is that we as adopted children are included in the inheritance, fellow heirs with Christ. Jesus welcomes us as his brothers, according to Hebrews 2.

Hebrews 12 also reminds us that when we experience discipline, God is treating us as sons, because ‘the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives’.

Because we are born of the Spirit, adopted into the family, we have siblings, brothers and sisters. We are members of a household, as Galatians says

Galatians 6:10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Throughout the New Testament we read the language of brothers. This is not just a name, it is a reality. The church is a household, a family of faith; those born of the Spirit, adopted children of God. As siblings of this greater family, we have obligations to one another.

Shepherd the Flock of God

The church is also described as a flock. We’ve looked at Acts 20 and 1 Peter 5, where both Peter and Paul exhort the elders to shepherd the flock of God. They learned this metaphor from Jesus. The whole of John 10 is an extended teaching where Jesus portrays himself as the door of the sheep, the good shepherd who knows his sheep and lays down his life for them, whose sheep hear his voice and follow him. Jesus said:

John 10:11 ​I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. … 14 ​I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 ​just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

Jesus intends to gather both believing Jews and non-Jews together into one flock. He goes on:

John 10:26 but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. 27 ​My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 ​I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 ​I and the Father are one.”

The metaphor of sheep points to our wayward tendency; sheep that are lost, that have gone astray, who need to be rescued and brought home.

1 Peter 2:25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

It points to our vulnerability. Sheep are defenseless; we need constant supervision, protection and care. Sheep are dependent; we need to be led to green pastures and quiet waters.

Jesus is the good Shepherd, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and he has called under-shepherds to care for his flock. Jesus told Peter in John 21 to ‘feed my lambs …tend my sheep …feed my sheep’, and he calls elders to ‘shepherd the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood’ (Acts.20:28)

Build My Church

The church is a family; the church is a flock; the church is a building. Jesus said

Matthew 16:18 …on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

This is construction language. The firm foundation is laid, and Jesus is constructing a building on it.

Paul blends these metaphors of a household and a building in Ephesians 2:

Ephesians 2:19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

The household of God is built on the one unrepeatable foundation of apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus anchors the building, defines the shape and direction of the building; without him we are building on sand. This is a structure, but it is growing. This word almost always refers to organic growth; something living like a flower or a plant or a baby grows. The church is a building, but it is not a building of wood and stone. It is an organism, a living growing thing. It grows into a holy temple in the Lord, a dwelling place for God.

When we say the church is a building, we don’t mean a location or a place that we meet. We don’t go to church, we are the church, we gather as the church, we meet with the church. Peter makes this clear:

1 Peter 2:4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the living stone, and we are living stones being built up as a spiritual house. This building is made up of people. We, together, are a dwelling place for God most high. The stones in the building are people. And those people are priests, offering spiritual sacrifices. There are no passive recipients. All are active participants. The church is a building, but it is a living breathing organism,

A building is a unity, it is one thing, but it is made up of many parts. The parts are interconnected and interdependent.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

We are a building, and we are to build one another up.

Paul says to Timothy;

1 Timothy 3:15 if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.

The church is a household, and it is to stand tall and stand firm for the truth and against false teaching

Have you every played Jenga? You build a tower with wood blocks, and then see how many individual blocks you can remove before the whole thing topples over. We can make due with a few building blocks missing, but we are not as sturdy and can’t withstand the elements as well as if every stone were doing its part.

Conclusion/Application

We are a family, given new life, adopted in, made fellow heirs with Christ. We ought to have each other’s backs.

We are a flock, prone to wander, lost, dependent and needy. We need to learn to hear our Shepherd’s voice, and we ought to be thankful for the under-shepherds that he has charged with the responsibility of caring for his flock.

We are a building, a living growing organism, a spiritual dwelling place for the Lord, a kingdom of priests offering spiritual sacrifices to the Lord.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

02/02 Who Is The Church? Spirit Created Community of Born Again Baptized Believers; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250202_church-spirit-birthed.mp3

Our church family has moved to recognize elders, those the Spirit has equipped and called to shepherd the believers here in this church. The elders are to ‘shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, … over those in your charge’ (1Pet.5:2-3).

Hebrews tells us:

Hebrews 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

The elders are to keep watch, as shepherds who will give account. This means that there needs to be some level of understanding who it is they are to be watching over, for whom they will answer, who are those in their charge. Who is the church?

Last time we looked at the church as those who gladly bow the knee to Jesus, who own him as their sovereign King. The church is made up of all who call on the name of the Lord Jesus for rescue from the guilt and power of sin, for forgiveness and transformation, all whom the Lord calls to himself. Those who surrender to Jesus as Lord and King become citizens of his heavenly community. The church is an outpost of heaven, a military base of operations in hostile territory whose sworn allegiance is to the King of kings, who invite others in, to turn their allegiance to King Jesus.

Spirit Created New Covenant Community

Today I want to look at the church from another angle; the church as a Holy Spirit created New Covenant community of born again baptized believers. There’s a lot there, but we are going to walk through the Bible together and unpack what that means.

You Must Be Born Again

Jesus had a conversation with a religious leader in John 3. Here’s how it went:

John 3:1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.”

Nicodemus is coming under cover of darkness. He is seeking, but not ready to commit publicly. He has questions, mostly on the identity of Jesus. Jesus had done some radical things that got people’s attention. He cleaned house from the corruption in the temple. People were believing in him, but just what was it they were believing? Nicodemus calls him ‘Rabbi’; he is convinced that he is a teacher come from God. He has reasoned that if God were not with him, he would not be able to do the signs that he was doing. Jesus goes right to the root.

John 3:3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

You must be born again. The word translated ‘again’ can also mean ‘from above’ depending on how it is used. Jesus clarifies; you must be born of water and the Spirit. This points back to Ezekiel’s prophecy of God’s new covenant:

Ezekiel 36:25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

Without this cleansing, the new birth, the Spirit of God himself living in us, we have no part in God’s kingdom. We must be born anew, born from above, born of the Spirit in order to truly belong to God’s people. Jesus tells him this can only happen when the Son of Man is lifted up, so that those who believe in him may be given eternal life.

In John 7,

John 7:37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’ 39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Jesus tells his disciples in John 14:

John 14:16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

There is going to be a revolutionary change in relationship. The Spirit dwells with you, but he will be in you.

In John 16, the disciples are grieved because Jesus told them he is leaving them.

John 16:7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.

At the beginning of John’s gospel, John the baptist said:

John 1:33 …he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’

After his crucifixion and resurrection, just before he ascends to the right hand of his Father:

Acts 1:4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” … 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

In Acts 2 it happened:

Acts 2:1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

They received power and bore witness of Jesus to the nations who had gathered in Jerusalem for the feast. They proclaimed Jesus crucified, resurrected,

Acts 2:33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.

They proclaimed Jesus as Lord and Christ.

Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Jesus divides people. When the good news about Jesus is proclaimed, some gnash their teeth in rage and persecute the messengers. But here ‘they were cut to the heart’. That is the work of the Spirit of God removing the heart of stone and giving them a heart of flesh. They received his word, this word about Jesus. That is the Spirit of God coming in, giving new life.

Acts 2:41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. 42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Jesus said

Matthew 16:18 …I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

This is Jesus building his new covenant community through the work of the promised Holy Spirit.

The Apostles’ Teaching

This new covenant community devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching. The apostles, empowered by the Spirit, reflected on these truths and wrote letters to the churches.

Peter wrote:

1 Peter 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

1 Peter 1:23 …you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;

The new birth is undeserved. It is according to God’s great mercy. It is something that God does. It comes through the seed of the word of God planted in a heart prepared by the Spirit to receive it.

Paul says in Ephesians 2:

Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ— by grace you have been saved—

Birth from above; new life out of death, rich mercy, great love, undeserved grace.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12

1 Corinthians 12:13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body— Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

To baptize means to immerse. John immersed people in water. Jesus immerses us in the Holy Spirit. Because we are born of the Spirit, we are immersed into the body of Christ; we were all made to drink of one Spirit who unites us together as one.

Spirit Baptism and Water Baptism

It’s important to think through the relationship between being immersed in the Holy Spirit and being immersed in water. One is outward, visible, public, external. The other is inward, invisible, spiritual, personal. As Jesus described the Spirit’s work with the analogy of the wind, it cannot be seen, but it can be sensed; you can see its effects.

One is essential for salvation; the other is essential for belonging to the visible church.

Water baptism in the outward sign of an inner reality. They belong together, but you can have one without the other. You can be transformed by the Spirit and not have the opportunity for water baptism. In Acts 10, when the first Gentiles believed the gospel, the Jewish church had to fight to keep these together. Peter was given a triple vision to prepare him for what was about to happen. He proclaimed to the Gentiles the good news about Jesus crucified and resurrected.

Acts 10:43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” 44 While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. 45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles.

Peter insisted that the sign must follow the reality that it symbolizes.

Acts 10:47 “Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. …

Peter had to defend his actions before the Jerusalem church in Acts 11. He recounted that Cornelius was instructed by an angel to send for Peter;

Acts 11:14 he [Peter] will declare to you a message by which you will be saved, you and all your household.’ 15 As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God’s way?” 18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”

For the sake of the unity of the church, the sign was to be performed where the reality that it symbolized was present.

You can be immersed in water and not be born of the Spirit, in which case it is merely a symbol that lacks substance or reality. Church leaders ought to do their best to evaluate the reality of a profession of faith, but ultimately only God can see the heart. Even the apostles got it wrong sometimes. It’s unlikely they were able to personally interview each of the 3,000 who believed and were baptized in one day. And we read in Acts 8 of Simon the magician, who believed and was baptized, but then gave evidence that his faith was likely not genuine.

But the ideal is to have all those and only those who have been born again by the Spirit to be immersed in water as an external visible public sign of the inward invisible spiritual reality. Baptism is the public profession of faith, confessing with the mouth that Jesus is Lord, which flows out of believing in ones heart that Jesus is who he claimed to be and God raised him from the dead (Rom.10:9-10). It is this public confessing Jesus as Lord which grants access to be identified as part of the visible local church. As Jesus commanded:

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 ​Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Acts 2:41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

01/26 Who Is The Church? 1 Cor.1; Acts 2; Those Who Call on The Name of The Lord; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20250126_who-is-church.mp3

Elder/Overseer/Shepherd

We have been looking for the past few weeks at what the Bible teaches about leadership in the church; elders who are above reproach, men of integrity, able to teach; they are to devote themselves to prayer and the word. Elders are to oversee, to watch over, and to shepherd; to guide, guard, lead, and feed. But who are they watching over? Paul says to the elders of Ephesus in Acts 20;

Acts 20:28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

Peter says in 1 Peter 5:

1 Peter 5:1 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

Who are the elders to be watching over, shepherding, guiding, guarding, leading, and feeding? ‘Pay careful attention …to all the flock in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers; Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight …over those in your charge.’ Who? Who is the flock of God in which the Spirit has made you overseers? Who are those in your charge? Who is the church?

What I want to do today is get a biblical vision of who the church is. In the coming weeks I want to look more at what that means for each one of us, what it means to be the church. But I want to start with the basics, the big picture.

Who Is The Church? 1 Corinthians 1

Who is the church? Paul addresses his letter, 1 Corinthians:

1 Corinthians 1:2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

This helps us, because he clarifies a few things. He identifies who the church belongs to. It belongs to God; it belongs to no man. He identifies the church in the context of a geographic location; it exists in the city of Corinth. And he further clarifies who the church consists of; those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints. We will come back to what that means, but before we do we should notice that he connects this local geographical gathering of saints with ‘all those who in every place call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours’. There is a local church, but they are connected to all those who acknowledge Jesus Christ as YHWH God. There is a church of God that exists in Corinth, but they are united to a larger people, united under one Lord, one King, one Sovereign.

Call On the Name of the Lord (Acts 2)

This idea of ‘calling on the name of the Lord’ is an Old Testament one; in Acts 2, when the promised Holy Spirit is poured out on the Apostles, Peter explains what is happening as the fulfillment of the prophecy in Joel 2:28-32. God will pour out his Spirit on all flesh,

Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ [Quoting Joel 2:32]

Then he connects this with Jesus of Nazareth (Acts 2:23-24, 32-33), crucified, resurrected, exalted at the right hand of God the Father, now pouring out his Holy Spirit. Jesus is God, the Lord YHWH whose name we are to call upon.

Acts 2:36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” 37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”

Repent; turn away from what you were trusting in. Call on the name of the Lord Jesus and you will be saved. Notice, we are told to call on the name of the Lord to be saved, and the Lord is calling to himself those who will be saved. The word ‘church’ in Greek is ἐκκλησία; it means an assembly, a gathering; literally those who are called out. God calls us to himself, and we call out to him in faith for rescue. Those who are called out by the Lord call out to the Lord.

How did the people respond to this message of rescue in Jesus?

Acts 2:41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. 42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

There’s a lot here. But I want to focus on one thing; ‘those who received his word’. Peter proclaimed Jesus crucified, resurrected, exalted as Lord of all. Some received this word. Some turned from what they had been trusting in and called on the name of Jesus for rescue from their sins. Not the entire crowd, a subset of the crowd. Some walked away unconvinced, unchanged. But those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. Those who believed responded, and their lives began to show that they had been changed. And the chapter closes

Acts 2:47 …And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Added to what number? The number of those who received the word, who called out to Jesus as Lord, who surrendered to Jesus as King and Sovereign. The Lord was adding to his people, his called out assembly, the church, those who bow the knee to King Jesus.

Call On the Name of the Lord (Romans 10)

Paul references this same Joel prophecy in Romans 10 also in connection with salvation:

Romans 10:9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. 11 For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” 14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”

Confess and believe that Jesus is Lord, resurrected from the dead, Lord over every ethnicity, every people group. Call on his name. This is the gospel, the good news; there is a universal King, his name is Jesus of Nazareth, who died for our sins, was resurrected, and is now exalted and eager to answer our prayers. Calling on him comes from a heart of faith; it requires believing in him, understanding who he claims to be and willing to rely on him completely. You have only one call; who will you call for help? This kind of trust in Jesus means you must hear the news about him; hearing requires someone to proclaim the news, the one who preaches must be sent out with the message. Good news to the nations!

Jesus the Sovereign Lord (Matthew 28; Philippians 2)

Jesus is the one Sovereign Lord. As Jesus claimed in Matthew 28;

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 ​Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

All authority. All authority in the heavenly realms. All authority on the planet. Jesus is Lord. Jesus possesses supreme authority. And he commissions his disciples to make disciples who follow him and bow the knee to him, obeying everything he says.

Philippians 2 tells us that:

Philippians 2:9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Every knee will bow. Every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. All those in heaven, everyone on earth, everyone already dead. Every knee without exception will bow to his sovereign authority. (That’s what sovereign authority means!) But those who call on his name, who believe in him and cry out to him in dependence before that awesome and terrible day will be saved. These are those who belong to the church, that called out assembly of saints.

When Peter confessed Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the living God” Jesus said

Matthew 16:18 …on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Jesus is building his church; believers are being added to the Lord.

Believers Added To The Lord (Acts)

We see in Acts 5

Acts 5:14 And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women,

Believers. Those who cry out to Jesus, those who believe the good news message of Jesus crucified, resurrected, exalted as Lord over all. Believers in the Lord are added to the Lord, to his people, people who are gathered under his name, under his sovereignty. In Acts 6

Acts 6:1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number,.. 7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

Disciples, those who became followers of King Jesus increased in number. Even priests believed in their Messiah; they bowed the knee to King Jesus. Acts 11

Acts 11:24 …And a great many people were added to the Lord.

People added to the Lord. People who now belong to King Jesus. The church is a people who believe the good news about Jesus, who call out to him in dependence, who surrender to him as Sovereign. They are a new people group under their King.

The Church; Set Apart for the Lord (1 Corinthians 1)

Let’s return to 1 Corinthians 1 and look again at what it tells us about the church.

1 Corinthians 1:2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

The church consists of those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus. The word sanctified, like the word saint, has as its root the word ‘holy’. Holy means in a class by itself, separated or set apart. Sanctified is a passive verb. It means ‘to be made holy’. In the Old Testament tabernacle and temple there were holy things and holy people. Both things and people could be sanctified, made holy, set apart for sacred temple use through washing and with blood. The only way for a sinner to be set apart, made holy, is in Jesus, cleansed by the blood of Jesus. It is a passive verb; we don’t make ourselves holy, it something that is done to us; we are cleansed, set apart and made holy in Jesus. We are called to be saints, holy ones, holy people. The tabernacle and everything associated with the tabernacle was to be holy, set apart. The people who served the tabernacle were to be holy, cleansed and set apart. We, the church, are sanctified saints, called, cleansed by the blood and set apart for holy service to the Lord.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul is addressing disunity in the church. Division flys in the face of what the church is; a blood bought people united under one sovereign Lord. Paul reminds them of the gospel he preached, the life transforming word of the cross (1:17-18, 23-24). This gospel word of Christ crucified divides humanity. It draws a clear line between those who are being saved and those who are perishing. That is the only division of any real consequence. The church is made up of those who believe the good news message of Christ crucified for sinners, those who are called and who call on the name of the Lord Jesus, who are set apart and united as one people under one sovereign Lord.

Citizens of A Heavenly Colony (Philippians 1, 3)

In Philippians 3, Paul warns of those who are enemies of the cross, whose end is destruction, whose minds are set on earthly things. The line is clear.

Philippians 3:20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,

Paul is writing to the Roman colony of Philippi. They are proud of their Roman citizenship, a little outpost of Rome in the middle of Macedonia. Politically, their allegiance is to Rome, but as followers of Jesus, their citizenship is in heaven. They are to honor and submit to Caesar as their earthly king, but they have a greater King, their Savior, the Sovereign Lord Jesus Christ, to whom they owe ultimate allegiance. Paul tells them in chapter 1

Philippians 1:27 Only let your manner of life be [live as citizens] worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel,

Paul uses the verb form of the noun citizenship; ‘let your manner of life be’ is literally ‘live as citizens’. Live as citizens consistent with the gospel of Christ. In Philippi, you are an outpost of Rome. But your ultimate allegiance is to the Lord Jesus Christ, and your citizenship is in heaven. So live as an outpost of heaven here on earth, practicing heavenly culture, promoting allegiance to your sovereign Lord.

The church is a colony of heaven on earth, advancing our King’s agenda, inviting his kingdom to come and his will to penetrate the darkness and reign supreme.

***

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org