EPHESIANS 4:1-10

BIG IDEA: WHAT DO YOU DO WITH THE EMPTY TOMB?

INTRODUCTION

For eight hours, he prepares his uniform and his mind for duty. Every day of his duty, he gets a fresh haircut. And when he is on duty, he will not vary from his command a single step or for a single second, no matter the weather, no matter the hour of the day, no matter the day of the week, no matter the number of people watching, and no matter if no one watches at all.

You’ve seen his picture, of course, for he is the unflinching guard, the sentinel, a member of the Third United States Infantry Regiment of the United States Army, the men, and women who guard the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery.

When a sentinel comes on duty, he walks exactly 21 steps across the tomb, representing the 21-gun salute, the highest honor given to any military or foreign dignitary. When he turns, he faces the tomb and remains in that position for 21 seconds. He turns again and walks 21 steps across the tomb. When he completes the short journey, he stops, turns toward the tomb, and pauses for 21 seconds. Over and over, the sentinel repeats the process until his shift is completed.

Strict training ensures that the guard will be unflinching and unwavering in duty, no matter the heat of summer, the driving rain of December, or the frozen snow of February.

And most importantly of all, the guard will remain posted, and the steps will remain perfect, even when there is not another soul in sight when no one is watching to see if the sentinel remains diligent at midnight. (Source: http://www.tombguard.org/)

Surrounding the Tomb of the Unknowns is more than a quarter of a million graves of others who served this country. And around that single cemetery are thousands upon thousands of cemeteries in the United States … and worldwide… where the bodies are reminders that our freedom isn’t free. Instead, it came with a fierce and terrible price tag, and such sacrifice is worth a 24-hour guard, seven days a week, 12 months out of the year.

A Soldier of the Old Guard cannot walk the same way as everyone else when it is their turn to guard the tomb. Listen, you cannot walk the same once you believe in the empty tomb. You have a new mission, calling, uniform, orders, and way of walking. Once you believe in the empty tomb, you cannot walk the same! Over the next few weeks, we will examine what living as a church family means. I call this series “Community Life: Living out the Gospel in Community.” There are many “one anothers” in this passage. But today, you will see a personal responsibility to watch how we live that impacts how we live in a community. What you do impacts those who surround you.

Chapters 1-3 of Ephesians are all about how God called his followers to salvation. In verse 1 of chapter 4, there is a transition.

I, THEREFORE, A PRISONER FOR THE LORD, URGE YOU TO WALK IN A MANNER WORTHY OF THE CALLING TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED… (EPHESIANS 4:1)

“Therefore, because of what I have been writing to you, walk worthy of your calling.” The word “worthy” means equal value or weight. So listen, on one side of the scale is our calling to salvation; on the other side, the worth of our walk. How do you walk worthy of the calling of Christ?

EXPLANATION

WALK HUMBLY AND GENTLY

I, THEREFORE, A PRISONER FOR THE LORD, URGE YOU TO WALK IN A MANNER WORTHY OF THE CALLING TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED, WITH ALL HUMILITY AND GENTLENESS… (EPHESIANS 4:1)

A. Because Christ called you to salvation, walk humbly. In Chapter two of this Book, Paul reminded the church at Ephesus that they were lost, dead, lustful, and doomed before Christ called them. That’s who you were before Christ called you. That was your spiritual resume. Remember who you were. Lost. Dead. Lustful. Doomed.

BUT GOD, BEING RICH IN MERCY, BECAUSE OF THE GREAT LOVE WITH WHICH HE LOVED US, EVEN WHEN WE WERE DEAD IN OUR TRESPASSES, MADE US ALIVE TOGETHER WITH CHRIST–BY GRACE YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED– (EPHESIANS 2:4)

B. You were a mess, BUT GOD… You were dead, BUT GOD… You were under wrath, BUT GOD… God called you by grace, not of your merit. Don’t forget where you came from. Don’t forget where you were; God rescued you. Walk humbly.

FOR BY GRACE, YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED, THROUGH FAITH, AND THIS NOT OF YOURSELVES, IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD, NOT OF WORKS LEST ANY MAN SHOULD BOAST… (EPHESIANS 2:8,9)

C. To walk worthy of your calling, you must walk humbly. Look how Paul describes himself. Walk like Paul. To walk worthy of your calling, you must walk humbly and gently, for a haughty spirit and a harsh attitude destroys a Gospel-centered community.

WALK PATIENTLY AND GRACIOUSLY

I, THEREFORE, A PRISONER FOR THE LORD, URGE YOU TO WALK IN A MANNER WORTHY OF THE CALLING TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED, WITH ALL HUMILITY AND GENTLENESS, WITH PATIENCE, BEARING WITH ONE ANOTHER IN LOVE… (EPHESIANS 4:1)

A. We must walk patiently and graciously to walk worthy of our calling. Again, this points back to Chapter 2…

BUT GOD, BEING RICH IN MERCY, BECAUSE OF THE GREAT LOVE WITH WHICH HE LOVED US, EVEN WHEN WE WERE DEAD IN OUR TRESPASSES, MADE US ALIVE TOGETHER WITH CHRIST–BY GRACE YOU HAVE BEEN SAVED– (EPHESIANS 2:4)

B. Jesus did not come angrily; He came patiently. Jesus did not come vengefully; He came graciously. God is slow to anger, abounding in mercy. Paul referred to this in Chapter 2.

FOR HE HIMSELF IS OUR PEACE, WHO HAS MADE US BOTH ONE AND HAS BROKEN DOWN IN HIS FLESH THE DIVIDING WALL OF HOSTILITY BY ABOLISHING THE LAW OF COMMANDMENTS AND ORDINANCES, THAT HE MIGHT CREATE IN HIMSELF ONE NEW MAN IN PLACE OF THE TWO, SO MAKING PEACE, AND MIGHT RECONCILE US BOTH TO GOD IN ONE BODY THROUGH THE CROSS, THEREBY KILLING HOSTILITY. AND HE CAME AND PREACHED PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE FAR OFF, AND PEACE TO THOSE WHO WERE NEAR. (EPHESIANS 2:14-18)

C. Christ made a way for peace between God and man. When God has made peace with man, He makes a way for man to live at peace as man. This is what community life is all about. Be patient. Be gracious. Because of the calling with which we have been called, a peaceful and gracious calling, walk in a manner worthy of that calling by living patiently and graciously.

D. Every one of you should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. That’s what community life is all about. There is enough hatred, strife, separation, quarreling, fighting, and canceling. The world must see the examples of our love towards each other if we will ever reach them. I have thought a lot about this recently: the biggest threat we face, as we continue to grow in numbers, is not from outside but inside the church.

E. Empires rot from within before they are overtaken from without. Nations weaken within before they are attacked from without.  Bickering, back-stabbing, and bad-mouthing have no place in the church. Gossiping, slandering, lying, and maligning have no place in the church. Friends and family, we are to walk patiently and graciously together because a patient and gracious Savior has called us.

WALK PEACEFULLY AND IN UNITY

A. The preceding commands have a tremendous effect on this last warning. As a community, we must walk peacefully and in unity because of our calling.

I THEREFORE, A PRISONER FOR THE LORD, URGE YOU TO WALK IN A MANNER WORTHY OF THE CALLING TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED, WITH ALL HUMILITY AND GENTLENESS, WITH PATIENCE, BEARING WITH ONE ANOTHER IN LOVE, EAGER TO MAINTAIN THE UNITY OF THE SPIRIT IN THE BOND OF PEACE. (EPHESIANS 4:1-3)

B. We will examine the following Christian Unity elements over the next few weeks. These are the elements that make community possible. But for today, suffice it to say God wants us to walk in peace with each other.

C. One of the last prayers that Jesus ever prayed during his earthly ministry was for his followers to be unified. In John 17:11, he prayed, “…that they may be one, as we are.” In verses 20-21, he prayed not only for those who followed him then but also for all those who would become his followers in future generations: Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

D. Our Lord places a tremendously high priority on unity among believers, and that truth is echoed throughout the Bible. Psalm 133:1 says, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”  If EBC is to have a common life, we must have a shared love. Yes, it is imperative that we love God, but it is equally important to love each other. When we walk in love with one another, unity flourishes.

APPLICATION

A. We are part of something big—much bigger than us.

If we grasp even a tiny part of what God wants to do through the church, we will be cured forever of small vision, parochial thinking, and selfish Churchianity. And we will walk worthy of our calling. 

B. We need each other.

Can you grow spiritually without the church? For a while perhaps—but not for a lifetime, and not in the way God intended. We need each other—for friendship, fellowship, discipleship, prayer, encouragement, support, worship, united outreach, and, when necessary, correction and redirection. You will never walk worthy of your calling without a Christian community.

C. We need united action today.

The world needs a unified church. The world needs a church where every member walks worthy of the calling with which they have been called.

D. We need a worldwide focus.

The world is big, the needs are enormous, and the church is called to go into the world and preach the gospel. The surest way to avoid petty and petulant Christianity is to love God and to love what God loves. God loves the whole world. 

E. You need the church, and the church needs You.

You are better and stronger when you find your place in the church, and the church is better and stronger when you are there. We sometimes speak of the church as a “fellowship of faith” and a “community of believers.” But there can be no fellowship unless the “fellows” show up and meet together. And there can be no community unless we intentionally decide to “commune” with each other. lar people” to shape us into the image of Christ.

As Emmanuel Baptist moves forward into the future, I believe we should more and more become two things:

A community of love and

A community that walks worthy of their calling.

If we can join those two things in our congregational life, we will see God’s hand of blessing and ever-growing streams of people joining with us. 

I THEREFORE, A PRISONER FOR THE LORD, URGE YOU TO WALK IN A MANNER WORTHY OF THE CALLING TO WHICH YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED, WITH ALL HUMILITY AND GENTLENESS, WITH PATIENCE, BEARING WITH ONE ANOTHER IN LOVE, EAGER TO MAINTAIN THE UNITY OF THE SPIRIT IN THE BOND OF PEACE. (EPHESIANS 4:1-3)