2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;

3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Q1--What 6 ways do these verses tell us we should walk? Which one of these 6 traits do you have the most difficulty with?

It seems to me verses 2-3 are telling us 6 ways that we should walk. 1. with lowliness, 2. with meekness, 3. with longsuffering (or patience), 4. forbearing one another in love, 5. endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit, 6. in the bond of peace.

Comment on verse 1

This is the third "walk" of Ephesians – that we walk worthy of the calling we have received. God has honored us by calling us to be part of his family. He has chosen us to spend eternity with him. It seems the least we can do is to try to follow after the guidelines he has given us in his word: his instructions, commandments, and teachings. If we strive to adopt the six character traits Paul gives us in verses 2-3, we will be well on our way to be walking worthy of God’s calling.

4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;

5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Q2--List the 7 "ones" in these verses. What do you think these verses are teaching us?

The seven "ones" are:
     1. one body,
     2. one Spirit,
     3. one hope,
     4. one Lord,
     5. one faith,
     6. one baptism,
     7. one God.

Comment on verses 4-6

All these "ones" should indicate to us the importance of unity – in communion with God who is our Savior and Redeemer, and in harmony with other believers who are our brothers and sisters in Christ.

7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

Q3--How do you sense God’s grace?

Chuck Smith comments,

"I know I don’t deserve the blessings of God, but God doesn’t bless me because I deserve it. God blesses me on the basis of His love toward me and of His grace toward me in Christ Jesus. That is the basis of the blessing–not my goodness, not my righteousness, and not my perfection."

8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

9 (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?

10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)

Q4--Who ascended up to heaven? According to verse 8 what two things did Christ do by ascending to heaven?

When Christ ascended up to heaven he freed those who were captive and gave gifts of blessing and mercy and grace and deliverance to men.

11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

Q5--How would you define each of the five offices listed in verse 11 with its modern equivalent? According to verse 12,what is the reason for these five offices?

Comment on verse 11

Apostles – Originally apostles were those who had actually been with Jesus. If this is our definition, then there are no apostles today. But Paul had an encounter with Christ and became an important leader of the early church. If this is our definition, then we would look at apostles as those who have the oversight of many churches such as a regional minister.

Prophets – A prophet is one who speaks forth what God has revealed to him. Any time we sense God urging us to minister to another or speak words of wisdom or encouragement, we are being a prophet. In the context of a church service, a prophet is anyone who proclaims the word of the Lord. This is not limited to the pastor, but may include anyone in the church.

Evangelists – An evangelist is someone who spreads the gospel message to others. Hopefully we are all evangelists as we share our faith with our family, friends, and neighbors.

Pastor – Even after 2000 years the office of pastor is very much like it was in Paul’s days. Many people have tried to re-invent the church, but every church needs a pastor who will care for them and uphold the congregation with prayer, encouragement, and sound teaching.

Teachers – We usually like to think of Sunday School teachers or Bible Study teachers, but anyone who instructs another in the ways of God or the words of the Bible is a teacher. All Christian parents should be teachers.

Comment on verse 12

Notice the emphasis in verse 12 – perfecting of the saints (or believers), for the work of the ministry, and for the edifying of the body of Christ. Nowhere does it say these leaders in the church are performing their duties to receive acclaim from man, or advance their standing in the community, or to enrich their pocketbooks. The focus of all those who minister for the Lord must be on helping others. If the focus is on ourselves, we will fail miserably.

13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

Q6--Write in your own words the attributes that Paul is encouraging that Christians have in these verses.

We are to be steadfast in our faith and gain knowledge from God’s word that we may be able to stand firm and not waver from the truth when men invent new doctrines or religious fads.

15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Q7--How are we to work together as a church?

Comment on verses 15-16

It seems to me there are a number of key words in these verses which reveal to us how we are to work together in the church:

Speaking the truth – We must proclaim the clear teaching of the Bible

In love –We must speak the truth in love. We have all failed and made mistakes. Those who are sinning or are still struggling, we must treat with love, not condemnation.

Grow up – As we walk the Christian path, we need to learn our lessons and grow up. We can’t remain a baby Christian all our life.

Into Christ – Our growth needs to be in Christ, not in ourselves. We may be very good people, but are we good Christians and do we know the difference?

The whole body fitly joined together – This is referring to the church. We all have a ministry in the body of Christ. What does God want you to be doing?

Every joint supplieth – Every part of the body must supply something to help in the ministry of the whole church.

Effectual working – We can spend a lot of time doing things, but is our work for the Lord effective; are we accomplishing something for God’s kingdom?

The measure of every part – We each have a part.

Increase of the body – Everything done in the church should be with the goal of increasing the body: increasing others’ faith, their understanding, helping others, and even increasing the size of the body as we grow in numbers.

Edifying of itself – We need to be building each other up.

In love – A church will grow if it’s built on God’s love. Let everything we do in church be motivated by compassion and caring for others.

Footnotes:

This study of Ephesians 4:1-16 © 1997 by David Humpal. All Rights Reserved.

All scriptures from the King James Version. Questions based on both the King James Version and the New International Version

Smith: Why Grace Changes Everything pg. 118-119 © 1994, Harvest House Publishers