Part 4, The Marvelous Plan of God for the Church Sermon Series, A Study of the Book of Ephesians, Ephesians 4:1-31
Genesis 3:8 tells us that God walks in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day. The Hebrew word the Bible used for “walking” (mithallek) suggests a habitual walk. It is used in a figurative sense which means, God made His presence known on the Garden of Eden.
In a metaphorical sense, when walking is used to refer to humans it simply means to follow a certain course of life or to conduct oneself in a certain way (Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary). Christians walk according to who God says they are. And thus, they are recognizable by how they live.
1. Walk as called.
“Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.” Ephesians 4:1-6, NASB.
· Believers were called to fellowship with God.
· Sin can break our fellowship with God but not our relationship.
· We are encouraged to do a character walk.
· The word worthy gives us the idea of living to match our heavenly position in Christ.
2. Walk in Christ’s victory.
8 Therefore it says, “When He ascended on high,He led captive the captives, And He gave gifts to people.” 9 (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)”
· See Psalm 68. David pictured God as marching to Mt. Zion in victory over His enemies. Paul likened this to Jesus’ victory on Mt. Calvary and His ascension to heaven.
· Satan was defeated through Christ’s death and resurrection and thus, God’s chosen ones have been freed from the power of Satan.
· Between His death and resurrection, Jesus descended to Satan’s territory to prove that He has won the battle and Satan was defeated.
· It is easier to live in victory if we know that Christ won the battle over Satan on Mount Calvary; if we know that towards the end of human history, Christ will fill the whole creation with His sovereign power and rule; and if we change our way of thinking, we would be able to have even little victories over sin each day.
3. Walk towards maturity.
“11 And He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some aspastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of thesaints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of theknowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the staturewhich belongs to the fullness of Christ.”
· One can never come to maturity apart from studying the Bible.
· People pray for guidance and wisdom but never really have the time to read the written Word.
· Many Christians are still lost in darkness because they neglected the power of the Word to bring light to their lives.
· The written Word places a believer on the path where God regularly walks.
· The lack of interest in the written Word made the church filled with babes in the faith.
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