Title: Get in the Game!
If you’ve ever watched children play sports, you know it’s entertaining—and sort of exasperating.
It starts with good intentions.
Uniforms are on.
Parents are hopeful.
Everyone has practiced… sort of.
And then the whistle blows.
Suddenly, ten kids chase one ball.
No positions. No spacing.
One kid is giving 110 percent.
Another is going to their dad on the sideline to have him tie their cleat.
Someone else is waving to their grandparents while the game continues without them.
Two girls are making dandelion crowns in the outfield, while a boy is summersaulting to first base.
As a parent or grandparent, you’re cheering… but you’re thinking, “That’s not how the game works.”
You know there’s a way the game is supposed to be played.
You know what should be happening.
But knowing the game and playing the game are two very different things.
Watching kids play sports can remind us of something:
A team doesn’t play well just because the game was explained—it scores goals and defends well when each
player understands their role and actually plays it.
In Ephesians 4:7-13 we learn about God’s game plan for our spiritual growth.
We’ll back up to verse one as we read in Ephesians 4 so we can be reminded of the context.
* 1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to 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. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were
called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father
of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
* 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says,
“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.”
* 9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the
earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all
things.)
* 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.
Last week, we learned of the incredible unity that we have in Christ and that we should strive to maintain.
But this unity does NOT mean uniformity.
We’ve each been graced with spiritual gifts to further our unified mission of glorifying God on this earth.
First let’s learn the exalted role of Jesus as I encourage you to -
1. HAVE CONFIDENCE IN GOD’S GAME PLAN FOR GROWTH
* 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
We haven’t just shifted from unity to diversity of God’s people.
We’ve also moved from looking at the church as a whole to the individual Christian as Paul writes of each
one of us.
In fact, the Greek sentence begins with the word “One,” emphasizing the shift to the individual believer.
The grace that we’re told of here isn’t saving grace but the spiritual gifts that each believer is given.
And every believer is to minister by this grace in accordance with the measure of the gift Jesus has given.
Here’s a few important points that are being made here:
Our individual ministries should be according with our spiritual gifts.
Our efforts should be in keeping with the measure/enablement that God supplies
(not out of our fleshly strength).
Jesus Christ is in charge of the gifting and empowerment of His people.
The old church standard of 20% of the people doing 80% of the work just shouldn’t be a thing.
Every Christian has spiritual gifts to be used.
No Christian has the spiritual strength to bring about the bulk of the fruit for a congregation.
The same words pop up in describing the functioning of the church in Romans 12:3-8
* Romans 12:3–8 3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself
more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of
faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have
the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to
our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his
exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of
mercy, with cheerfulness.
Verse 8 draws the attention back on Jesus as the giver of all spiritual gifts.
* 8 Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.”
This is a summary quote from Psalm 68, a psalm written to celebrate a military victory.
It describes how a king would parade his army into his city with his captives following behind him.
And the king would then give gifts to His trusted soldiers and associates.
It’s debatable who these captives might be that Jesus’ led in His ascension after His resurrection.
I was taught that this verse described Jesus taking the OT saints with Him to heaven once He paid the debt
of their sins on the cross.
Honestly, having now studied this verse, I’m afraid it’s difficult to see it saying all that.
The point being made is that Jesus has the privilege of gifting and directing us as members of the church.
And He gained that privilege when He took His exalted position once again after ascending to heaven.
As the victorious king, Jesus is giving gifts to His redeemed followers in the form of spiritual gifts.
You might be thinking, “But isn’t it the Holy Spirit who distributes the gifts of the Spirit?”
The New Testament describes the Holy Spirit as being directed/enabled by the exalted Christ.
Jesus foretold sending the Holy Spirit in -
* John 15:26 26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who
proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.
John provides some commentary about Jesus’ teaching on the ministry of the Holy Spirit in -
* John 7:39 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.
On the day when Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit on God’s people, Peter proclaims in -
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.”
The Apostle Paul follows with side reference to how Jesus always had the authority as God.
* 9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the
earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all
things.)
He couldn’t ascend back to His exalted position unless He first descended. Right?
Jesus displayed His original authority by ascending to His throne once more.
The point here is that Jesus didn’t leave the earth high and dry when He ascended back to His throne.
Contrary to this idea, His ascension resulted in Jesus filling all things as the supreme ruler over all.
the New Testament Commentary says, He is supreme over all the powers of heaven and earth; there is
nothing that is not subject to him, no place or order of existence where his presence may not be known and
felt.”
Different teams have different strengths and slightly different game plans.
A football team that has a dominant running game might lean on passing the ball when they get behind.
A methodical basketball team might get rushed when the other team ups the tempo of the game.
It’s not unheard of for a quarterback to try to take the team on their shoulders and make mistakes.
A good coach is going to keep to the plan that plays to his team’s strengths.
A disciplined team is going to keep with their game plan until the right opportunities open up for them.
Jesus is the head of Harvest.
This should give us great confidence and anticipation for what He has in mind for us as a body.
And I’m certain that it come from His gifting each one of You for ministry to each other and the desperate
world we live in.
All this should lead us to have confidence in God’s game plan for our growth,
and God’s game plan involves Jesus Christ distributed spiritual gifts to each Harvester.
The best way to learn what your spiritual gift is comes from trying out ministry opportunities.
When your using a spiritual gift as your walking by the Spirit, it’ll bring your joy,
and it will be a blessing to others as the Holy Spirit ministers through you.
?- Which of the following gifts bring you joy and seem to bless others when you do them?
Serving Giving Confronting/Warning
Teaching Encouraging Proclaim God’s Truth
Leading Comforting Discerning
Sharing the gospel Hospitality Other:________________
Gaining confidence in God’s game plan for using your spiritual gifts, I want to challenge you to -
2. FOLLOW GOD’S GAME PLAN FOR GROWTH
* 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.
The previous verses pointed to the authority of Christ to give spiritual gifts to all believers.
And verse 11 follows that theme by stating emphatically, “He Himself gave…” these gifts to the church.
He centers in on a few “gifts” in the form of people or positions in God’s church.
What follows is God’s process in a goal-oriented and chronological order.
What I mean is the intention is to lead us to understand how God’s church grows into the image of Jesus
through Joe-Christian doing the work of the ministry.
And we’re shown this chronologically in the sense of from Jesus’ ascension to now.
First, we see what are some of the key players in God’s game plan.
2A. KEY PLAYERS FOR SUCCESS:
* 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
When I taught on this passage 9 years ago, we called these the Spiritual Trainers for God’s bodybuilding.
These might seem like their most important.
But really them key is the goal of well-equipped Harvesters doing ministry that strengthens the church.
F. F. Bruce puts it, “those that are named’ here ‘exercise their ministries in such a way as to help other
members of the church to exercise their own respective ministries.”
What these have in common is that they are dedicated to the improvement of God’s people and their key
relationship to God’s Word.
So, the first role that God use to grow His church was apostles.
It’s pretty clear who the apostles were.
They had seen and been sent personally by the Lord, Jesus Christ.
There were twelve of them including Paul who wrote this letter to the church.
They carried the authority of Jesus in their teaching attested to by their miraculous signs.
Their ministry was key for the church prior to the provision of the full scriptures.
It’s a mistake to think that there are apostles that are ministering to day who have the same authority.
As it’s also a mistake to think that the apostles passed down their authority to successors as is taught by the
Catholic and Orthodox religions.
Another position that was key to the early church prior to the completion of the scriptures was prophets.
These were those whose utterances were inspired by the Lord with the authority that we attribute to God’s
Word.
Evangelists are those who’ve had a special calling to spread the Word of God where it hasn’t been.
Missionaries would certainly fall into this category.
Those responsible to the Lord for the day-to-day health of the church to this day are the shepherds-
teachers.
This is an interesting double term that communicates a number of characteristics.
First, the term “shepherd” means both of what we call today “pastors” and “elders.”
The Latin term for “shepherd” is pastores, so it’s easy to see where today’s term comes from.
Jesus is both the example to us as our Good Shepherd.
He’s also the Chief Shepherd as were told in 1 Peter 5
And these are instructions that we take very seriously.
* 1 Peter 5:1–4 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.
So, why is the term shepherd combined with teacher.
Some say that this is narrowing down to the teaching shepherds or pastors.
But all shepherds are integral in the teaching of the church in at least an oversight or guarding way.
There’s a number of principles of how Harvest functions that flows from these ideas
We refer to our elders as shepherds because we want there to be an expectation that they are ministering
to our church family as sort of lay pastors.
Our pastors are a part of our Shepherd Team as staff-shepherds, serving side-by-side with lay-shepherds.
As pastors, we don’t carry any more authority than any one of the shepherds of Harvest and vice-versa.
All of Harvest’s Shepherds see themselves as being responsible for the teaching that goes on at Harvest, but
each are also integrally involved in Small Groups and Ministry Teams.
What I want to point out regarding these roles is their relationship to God’s truth.
Both Apostles and prophets spoke His truth with Authority.
And they were necessary because we didn’t have the cannon of God’s written truth.
Evangelists take God’s truth to those who need to hear it.
Shepherds/Teachers are called to guard that guide God’s people with His truth.
No wonder the intended result is that we would no longer be blown about by deception and lies.
The Apostle Paul follows with side reference to how Jesus always had the authority as God.
* 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,
As I said, these statements are building up to who has the most important role and what’s most important.
And that means that the average saints and your ministry is what is key.
The job of the Shepherds is not to be doing the ministry but to be equipping saints to the do the ministry.
And it follows that the body of Christ is built up / better established, healthy, and strengthened.
* to equip the saints for the work of ministry
The term for equipping someone refers to bringing a person to where they’re fit for service.
It literally refers to a doctor setting the bone of a person who has a fracture or dislocation.
If you think about it, all of us have been injured by the sin in the world and in our lives.
As we’re equipped by God’s Word, we’re healed and better able to be active in ministering to others.
Certainly, it’s Christ who is equipping His shepherds as the Chief Shepherd.
And God is equipping all His redeemed children to do His will, working in us what is pleasing in His sight.
This goal is for building up the body of Christ - the strengthening of the body of Harvest.
We’re built up in our ability to defend against error and sin.
We’re better prepared to minister to each other’s needs, to rescue one another from sin, and to point each
other to the hope of Christ as revealed in God’s Word.
Illus -[Harvest Servants]
One simple development that we as Shepherds are pleased about is the development of a Servant Team.
These are men either tasked with overseeing areas of need or be asked to meet needs as they appear.
We’re talking with a number of men about this now.
And we look forward to sharing more about it in the near future.
But for all of us, I’d like you to ask yourself,
Do you see yourself as being responsible for the ministry of Harvest?
With all of us being key players in God’s game plan, we come to what should be -
2B. THE ULTIMATE PURSUIT:
* 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,
We’ve moved from the process of how the church is built up to the endgame or goal or our strengthening.
Our intention is in all of us reaching a point of maturity that measures up the maturity of Jesus Himself.
As a the NLT puts it - “until we come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be
mature and full grown in the Lord, measuring up to the full stature of Christ.”
This is a lifelong goal, a point on the horizon that we will never reach in this life.
But we should also never stop moving toward it.
Notice that there’s aspects to this type of maturity that we pursue.
First, there’s to be a unity in our faith.
The gospel a person hears shouldn’t change with whichever one of us might share it.
There should be an agreement on and faith in the fundamental truths that we have trusted.
The simple gospel can be described in this way.
We are sinful in everything we do, think, and say, and we are deserving of the death that sin brings.
God is perfectly righteous, and we cannot have a relationship with Him in our sinful state.
God the Son, Jesus, took the penalty of our sins when He died on the cross.
God offers us the righteousness of Jesus Christ in exchange for trusting that paid the price for our sin.
Second, There should be a common experiential knowledge of the Son of God.
This is knowing Him as Savior and friend in fellowship and worship.
Together we should be pursuing the same sort of knowledge that Paul pursued as he described in -
* Philippians 3:10 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings,
becoming like him in his death,
Third, the standard that we’re to measure ourselves against isn’t our neighbor or family member or pastor.
It’s Christ Himself -the fullness of Christ in fact.
This is saying a lot since in Christ is found all the fullness of God, as we’re told in Colossians 1 and 2.
I see the ultimate pursuit for us as a church as Harvesters unified in their faith and knowledge of Jesus,
growing into the likeness of Jesus.
Far too often, Christians try to measure up to someone besides Christ.
Maybe it’s their pastor or a famous Christian leader or the head of their group of churches in another state.
All of these fall terribly short when compared to the lifelong goal of resembling the maturity of Christ.
And sadly, if these men are revealed to have feet of clay, it can demoralize those that idolized them.
I want to encourage you to ask yourself, “How might I grow into more of the likeness of Christ this year?”
Pivot -
We make the person of Christ our standard not only because it glorifies God but also because only faith in
Christ and emulating Christ can keep us from being shipwrecked.
And so, this brings us to what it is -
2C. THE INTENDED BENEFIT:
* 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.
So, the hopeful result is that we won’t be childish because we’ve matured in a unified faith with Christ as
our standard of maturity.
This means leaving behind being immature in our walks with God, especially rejecting with biblical doctrine
Those who are still immature in their faith are compared to a boat adrift in a storm .
They’re described as being “whirled about” in a way that would make a person dizzy.
What’s sad is there are plenty of cunning false teachers that are looking for immature followers.
The word cunning has a secondary meaning for playing with weighted dice, meaning the game is rigged to
deceive immature Christians and enslave them.
So, the intended benefit from what God has established is Harvesters outgrowing our vulnerability to
deceptive teaching
Robert Burns wrote, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.”
[No highlights]
A Prussian field officer famously said, “No plan survives first contact with the enemy.”
And of course Mike Tyson was philosiphised, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
So, these quotes remind us is that man’s plans often get thrown out the window.
But God’s game plan is rock solid and should resonate in each of His redeemed children.
God’s game plan for the spiritual growth of Harvest
Key Players for Success: Well-equipped Harvesters doing ministry that strengthens the church
Our Ultimate Pursuit: Harvesters unified in their faith and knowledge of Jesus, growing into His likeness.
The Intended Benefit: Harvesters outgrowing vulnerability to deceptive teaching
