A Cultural Value Rooted in Scripture
Many of our cultural values find their basis in the Bible. One example is the Latin phrase E Pluribus Unum. This phrase has been on our nation’s seal since Congress approved it in 1782. It’s printed on most of our currency. It’s a phrase that’s been used for thousands of years. What does it mean? It means, “Out of many, one.” It refers to how the original thirteen colonies became one nation during the American Revolution. Our country is now made up of fifty states that band together to make one nation. More broadly, it points to the unity we have in America, despite our diversity. We’re e pluribus unum because there’s a unity amidst plurality.
This cultural value of ours is foreshadowed by Scripture’s teaching on the church. I’m in no way suggesting that America and the church are the same or even similar. Our country isn’t the “city on the hill” that Scripture speaks of – the church is. This idea, however, of unity despite plurality is rooted in how the Bible describes the church. The church is one, despite diversity.
Unity Despite Diversity in Ephesians
This is one of Paul’s overarching points in his letter to the Ephesians. This church was made up of Jews and Gentiles and needed to know that they’re now one in Christ (2:14-15, 3:6). Paul urges the Ephesian church to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling” they’d received from God (4:1). This meant that they should be “eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (v. 3). This Spirit-created unity is what Paul is telling them to protect. He says that there’s one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God. He tells them that walking in unity as a church is how they’ll walk in a manner worthy of the call of God.
Even though Paul is urging the church towards unity, he also reminds them of the diversity that God created in the church. He says that the church is e pluribus unum. In chapter two he talks about the ethnic diversity of the church. Here in chapter four he points out another kind of diversity: the diversity of gifts in the church. His point in 4:7-12 is simple: God has given the church a diversity of gifts in order to build up the church. We can organize this text like this: the Gift Giver (vv. 7-10) and the gifts given (vv. 11-12).
The Gift Giver
In verses 7-10, we learn that Christ is the gift giver. Verse 7 says that “grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” Gifts were given by Christ, for every Christian, because of grace. Jesus is the one who makes the church diverse in gifts (cf. 1 Cor. 12:11). He decides who gets what. His gifts of grace are for every member of the church. “Each one” has received a gift from Christ and the gift is a gift of “grace.”
This is not saving grace, but the grace of spiritual gifts, given to God’s people. How do I know this? Because verse 8 says that, after Jesus ascended to heaven, “he gave gifts to men.” In verse 7, it’s grace that’s given. In verse 8, it’s “gifts” that are given. The grace given is the gifts (cf. Rom. 12:6). Christ graciously gives a diversity of gifts to the church to strengthen the unity of the church. Paul, as a good Bible teacher, grounds his claim in Scripture. In verse 8, he quotes Psalm 68:18, and then in verses 9-10 he gives a brief explanation of it in order to argue that Christ has the power and authority to give such gifts.
Paul uses Psalm 68:18 to tell us that, at of the ascension of Christ (“when he ascended on high”), he rescued his people (“a host of captives”) and gave them gifts. Paul’s point is that Jesus can give gifts to the church because of who he is and where he is. Because he is Savior and Lord, he graciously gives gifts to his people. A broke person can’t give gifts. Christ is far from broke. As a result of his ascension, he now sits at the right hand of the Father, meaning that he owns what God owns. He’s in charge of God’s kingdom, God’s territory, all of God’s stuff. Christ can give gifts because he owns everything. Because he won the battle, he got to take home the spoils. From his new position of victory he, because he’s a gracious King, distributes the spoils of war to his people in order to cultivate their unity.
The end of verse 10 says that he now “fills all things.” What does this mean? It means that Jesus is filling every sphere of existence with his authority. At his ascension, Jesus was granted authority over all things. Right before he ascended, Jesus said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matt. 28:18). This authority is how he “fills all things.” Because of his ascension, Jesus has full control over all things. He’s in charge of the universe, the earth, our nation, our families, our church, and our lives. There’s nothing that isn’t subject to him. Jesus is the King of the universe.
We Don’t Make Jesus Lord
This is why becoming a Christian isn’t making Jesus the Lord of your life, but rather submitting to the Lordship of Jesus over your life. Jesus is Lord with or without us. A Christian is someone who lives in submission to Jesus’ Lordship. A non-Christian is someone who doesn’t. A Christian sees Jesus as the King of their life. A non-Christian sees themselves as the king of their life. This is why the gospel demands repentance. We must turn away from our attempts to rule our lives and turn to the gracious rule of Christ. Being a Christian means having a new allegiance. It means taking orders from someone else besides yourself. A Christ-follower is marked off by their obedience to Jesus and his commands.
The question you must ask yourself is: which way do I want to live? If your answer is, “I want to live life my way,” then you haven’t yet understood the gospel. You may believe in God and try to be a good person. You may even believe that Jesus died and rose again and go to church. You may even be a baptized member of this church. But if you haven’t submitted to Jesus’ rule over your life, then you haven’t yet understood the gospel. You might not yet truly believe that God is going to punish all rebels against his throne. You might not yet truly believe that you really are a rebel against God who needs to repent. If this is you, let me encourage you to read through the Gospels and think through the claims that Jesus makes there. Talk to a Christian friend or come talk to me after the service. If Jesus is the supreme ruler of the universe, then how you respond to him has life and death consequences.
Jesus is the King of the universe, so he is free to do whatever he wants, free to give to whoever he wants, whatever he wants, whenever he wants. He’s not bound by anything. He owes no one anything. He doesn’t owe us saving grace or gifts of grace. This morning, some of us may need to repent of any prideful assumptions that lead us to think that we deserve what we have (deacon ministry, to be an elder, etc), or that we have what we have because we earned it. No, we have what we have because Jesus gave it to us.
Jesus is a sovereign King, but he’s also a good and gracious king, not a selfish dictator. This is why he’s graciously given his people spiritual gifts. He loves to give gifts to his children, just as parents love to give good gifts to their children. He’s not a hoarder of grace. He’s not a miser or a cheapskate or a scrooge. He gives generously out of his wealth of grace.
The Gifts Given
From his position of triumph at God’s right hand, Jesus distributes diverse gifts to his people in order to promote their unity. In verses 11-12, Paul tells us about the gifts given by King Jesus. Here Paul mentions several of the spiritual gifts that Jesus gave to his church. There are more complete lists in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, 28 and Romans 12:3-8. But here Paul mentions four things: apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers. These are better understood as offices, rather than gifts. Let’s take them one at a time.
There are three options concerning who the “apostles” are that Paul is referring to. They could just be “messengers” (Phil. 2:25, “Epaphroditus…your messenger and minister to my need.”). They could be “the twelve” (1 Cor. 15:5). These were the eleven disciples plus Matthias (Acts 1:23-26). Or, most likely, the “apostles” were “the twelve” plus a few others, such as Paul, Barnabas, and James the half-brother of Jesus. The apostles in this sense must have seen the risen Jesus and been sent out by him (1 Cor. 9:1ff). This means that “apostle” was a temporary gift to the church. There are no more “apostles” because no one can now see the risen Jesus.
The “prophets” were men whose primary job was to preach the word of God. This is different from the gift of prophecy. Prophets likely worked in specific congregations, whereas apostles had a broader ministry. The prophets spoke for God, but didn’t necessarily have new revelation from God. Their message was to be judged by the apostles (1 Cor. 14:37). Like the apostles, the office of “prophet” ceased with the completion of the New Testament, just as the Old Testament prophets disappeared when that testament was completed. Paul says in 2:20 that the church was built on “the apostles and prophets.” Once this foundation was laid, the work of the apostles and prophets was finished.
The “evangelists” were most likely itinerant preachers, men who traveled from place to place preaching the gospel. Someone can tell the gospel without traveling, but the word used here usually involves the element of traveling, of going to another place to proclaim the gospel. They’re similar to apostles but without their authority because they hadn’t seen the risen Jesus. They proclaim the message of the apostles in ways similar to apostles.
Eusebius, the imminent church historian, tells us about a man who lived in the second century named Pantaenus, who followed the pattern of the apostles by doing the work of an evangelist. Eusebius writes, “(Pantaenus) is said to have shown such warm-hearted enthusiasm for the divine word that he was appointed to preach the gospel of Christ to the peoples of the East, and traveled as far as India…There were even then many evangelists of the word eager to contribute an inspired fervor of apostolic pattern for the increase and building up of the divine word. Of these Pantaenus was one.” May God raise up evangelists like Pantaenus in our church!
Notice next the “pastor-teachers.” The text doesn’t say “the pastors, and the teachers,” it just says, “the pastors and teachers.” These men were given to the church to shepherd the flock of God by feeding them with spiritual food and protecting them from spiritual danger. Jesus is the “chief Shepherd” of his church (Heb. 13:20; 1 Pet. 5:4), but he has graciously given his church pastor-teachers who are his under-shepherds (1 Pet. 5:2). This shepherding is done primarily through the Word of God. That’s why one of the qualifications for elders, or pastors, is that they be “able to teach” (1 Tim. 3:2), which Paul defines as being “able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Tit. 1:9). Men who’re called and gifted to teach the Bible are called to lead God’s people through proclaiming God’s word. Join me in continuing to pray for God to provide our church with more such men, and for the Lord to give me discernment in who they are and if they’re ready for this great work.
Why Did He Give?
The ascended Christ gave the church apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers. Why did he give the church these gifts? Verse 12 has our answer. These gifts are given to the church for the church. There are three phrases here that describe the purpose of these specific gifts. The first phrase is “to equip…” God gave the gifts of verse 11 in order to “equip the saints.” Since apostles and prophets aren’t offices in the church anymore, evangelists and pastor-teachers are given to equip, prepare, and train the body of Christ. They’re primarily equippers, not administrators, life-coaches, counselors, or managers.
What does “equipping” mean? “Equipping” means helping someone become adequate at something. Equipping is primarily done through teaching. Any trainer will tell you that their job is to essentially help people by teaching them. In a couple weeks, we’re going to hear from a local evangelist who’s going to train us to be more faithful in evangelism.
For the Work of Ministry
Who’s supposed to be equipped? “The saints.” All Christians need help becoming adequate in following and serving Jesus. What, specifically, do the saints need to become more adequate at? The answer is in the next phrase of this verse: “for the work of ministry.”
“For the work of ministry” is the immediate and specific purpose of the equipping. Equipping should lead to working. The saints are equipped “for the work of ministry.” All of God’s people are supposed to be ministering. The pastor or elders or deacons aren’t the only ones who do ministry. What’s your ministry in our church? In what ways are you giving yourself for the good of others in our church? Attendance is our most basic ministry to one another, but what other specific things are you doing to bless others in the church? Many Christians spend their entire lives being equipped but never get around to ministry. We’re equipped for a purpose. A soldier is trained for battle. A doctor is trained for surgery. A teacher is trained to teach. A Christian is trained for ministry. Has your training been in vain? Have you put it to use?
Building Up the Body of Christ
What’s the “work of ministry”? Paul tells us in the next phrase: “building up the body of Christ.” Christ gave these gifts for this ultimate purpose: to build up his body. Christ gave to himself in order to build up himself. Hopefully you’re seeing the radically Christ-centered nature of the church.
What does “building up the body of Christ” look like? You may be prone to immediately think about numbers, thinking that “building up” means growing in attendance, membership, and giving. But that’s not what Paul is referring to.
“Building up the church” has far more to do with the church’s spiritual condition than its physical condition. Paul uses the same language in verse 16 in reference to love. The church must be built up in love for God and for one another. In verse 29, Paul says that our words are what build up the church. What we say, teach, sing, and pray should build up the church (v. 15).
The role of the evangelists and the pastor-teachers is to help the church build up the church, not to grow it numerically, not to increase its social ministries, not to provide a litany of religious goods and services. My job, at its most basic level, is to help you build up this body of believers, to help you and encourage you and train you to do the work of ministry.
Every Believer Has Spiritual Gifts
I want to say a brief word about spiritual gifts in general. This passage is more narrowly focused on the gifts of apostle, prophet, etc. The New Testament tells us elsewhere that every Christian has spiritual gifts. Romans 12:6, “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them.” Many of us struggle to know what our gifts are. Spiritual gift tests and inventories can sometimes be helpful. But the best way to discern what your gifts are is to just start serving wherever you can. The Lord will affirm your gifts by his Spirit and through the church.
John Piper offers excellent counsel on this point. He says, “You shouldn’t bend your mind too much trying to label your spiritual gift before you use it. That is, don’t worry about whether you can point to prophecy, or teaching, or wisdom, or knowledge, or healing, or miracles, or mercy, or administration, etc., and say, ‘That’s mine.’ The way to think is this: the reason we have spiritual gifts is so that we can strengthen other people’s faith…We must not get hung up on naming our gifts. The thing to get hung up on is, ‘Are we doing what we can do to strengthen the faith of the people around us?’ I really believe that the problem of not knowing our spiritual gifts is not a basic problem. More basic is the problem of not desiring very much to strengthen other people’s faith…So let’s apply ourselves to becoming the kind of people more and more who long to strengthen each other’s faith.”
The grace of spiritual gifts are given to every believer. The New Testament vision of the church is that every member is a minister. This is why I try to ask everyone who wants to become a member at Preston Highlands where they plan on serving.
Every Christian has been given spiritual gifts from the ascended King Jesus. To the extent that we know what gift we’ve received, and to the extent that we’re using them to “build up the body of Christ,” our church will “walk in a manner worthy of the calling we’ve received,” and will experience “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
The Greatest Gift
The greatest thing Christ has given the church is himself, not his gifts. God’s generosity starts with the giving of his Son. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son” (Jn. 3:16). God has given us the best thing possible: himself. If he is the highest good in the universe, then giving us himself is the best thing he could’ve done. He sent Jesus to die for our sin and rise again for our salvation. And he did this to bring us to himself. 1 Peter 3:18, “Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God.” God himself is the greatest gift of the gospel, not forgiveness, not righteousness, not peace, not love, not heaven. All of those things are secondary compared to knowing God.
Do you struggle with loving the gifts of Christ more than Christ himself? Gifts he’s given you for ministry? Gifts of family? Gifts of money or employment or education?
None of the gifts we’ve received from Christ are better than Christ. The spiritual gifts or material gifts or familial gifts or vocational gifts we have from God are, by design, less satisfying and less important than the gift of Christ himself. All those gifts are meant to point beyond themselves to the glory of the Gift Giver.