💥(NOTES B)💥 Revivaltime Restoration Worship Center Tuesday Evening BIBLE STUDY WEEK 19 PART 6 SERIES: ✅Book Of Ephesians Ch 4 📍LIVING OUT THE NEW LIFESTYLE📍 ● FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS● * The giver & the gift - * the origin and cost of your gift * The variety of gifts - * The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow ●THE FIVE MINISTRIES(Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet)● ● We Must Use Our Gifts to Church & For Others ● With Bishop Worrell Hylton
●THE POWER OF EACH OF THE GIFTS- stay plugged in!● ▪Eph 4:11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, Paul now speaks of some of these gifts that have been given. ▪Apostles - The word Apostle means 'one sent as an authoritative delegate'. They were specially equipped ambassadors of God who were part of the foundation of the Church3 (Eph 2:20). While people are still divinely commissioned and 'sent' today, and may fulfil the role of an Apostle in that way, it is not in the same authoritative sense that the first century Apostles had. An apostles are often seen as pioneers or visionaries because they are often sent into new areas to start churches. Apostles and prophets usually work closely together. Apostles are also responsible to equip people to do the work of the ministry. The term apostle came from the Roman Empire. When the Roman Empire would conquer a city, instead of destroying it, they would send out apostles with the Roman kingdom mindset to change the government and how the city functions. The apostolic function has nothing to do with [positional] authority and everything to do with the pursuit of the apostolic goals of preaching the gospel where it has not yet been heard, to plant the church in places where the witness of Christ does not exist, and to care for the weak and hurting. It has nothing to do with position, rank, and titles, and everything to do with being sent as an Ambassador for Christ. ▪Prophets - Prophets are those "who speak forth words from God in total consistency with the foundation of the Old and New Testaments. Sometimes they speak in a predictive sense, but not necessarily so, and they are always subject to the discernment and judgment of the church leadership (1Cor 14:29). In 1 Corinthians 14, the gift of prophecy is for upbuilding, encouragement and consolation. The prophetic ministry involves giving direction and correction. Besides being able to sense God’s word for particular seasons or situations, such as the prophets in the Old Testament, prophets may also be able to recognize His gifts and callings on individuals, giving them guidance too. ▪Evangelists - those who are divinely gifted to preach the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. William MacDonald states: "They have special ability to diagnose a sinner's condition, probe the conscience, answer objections, encourage decisions for Christ, and help the convert find assurance through the word." Everyone is tasked with evangelising to those not yet in the family of God, but evangelists are particularly strong in the area of preaching and witnessing - with a passion for winning others over to become followers of Jesus Christ. ▪Pastors - T The word “pastor” literally means “shepherd”, and like people who rear and watch sheep, pastoral ministry involves protecting, leading, nurturing and feeding the flock (John 21:17). They are under shepherds of God's flock, whom He has placed within their care. They are specifically gifted and enabled to guide, protect, feed, and lead the sheep through the challenges of this life. Those with a pastoral inclination are faithful caregivers and parental figures, consistently guiding those under their ministry to places of sustenance, growth, safety and rest. ▪Teachers - those gifted to expound on God's word, explaining and interpreting what it means, for instruction, correction, exhortation and encouragement. They (hopefully!) do so in a way that makes the confusing passages clear, and not the clear passages confusing! (But don't always count on it!) Now these are five specific gifts but it is far from an exhaustive list. ◾Other gifts are listed on Romans 12:4-13, 1 Corinthians 12:27-31 and 1 Peter 4:9-11. They include what we would see as the prominent 'in the limelight' leadership type gifts (like these mentioned in Ephesians) but also less conspicuous gifts. ▪But it matters not what gift you have. What matters is that you are walking in them, exercising them for the benefit of Christ's body.▪ ◾ There are gifts of prophecy, faith, healing and discerning of spirits - we tend to think of these as the 'supernatural' ones. Yet other spiritual gifts are just as important and include 'serving', 'hospitality', 'helps', 'administration', 'giving generously', 'encouraging'..even 'showing mercy' is listed as a gift.◾ ● They all come from one source. They come from the ascended Lord Jesus through the Holy Spirit given to each believer. ● "These gifts are like so many electrical appliances. What a variety of appliances are available today! There are electric toasters, toothbrushes, mixers, irons, razors. I even saw an advertisement the other day for an electric shoestring tier! But if you look carefully at these electrical appliances you will see that though they are vastly different in what they do, there is one thing in which they are always exactly alike: They all have a cord with a plug on one end, designed to plug into a receptacle by which they utilize the same power. No matter how different the appliance is, the power is the same... Ray Stedman So stay plugged in!
💥(NOTES A)💥 Revivaltime Restoration Worship Center Tuesday Evening BIBLE STUDY WEEK 19 PART 6 SERIES: ✅Book Of Ephesians Ch 4 📍LIVING OUT THE NEW LIFESTYLE📍 ● FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS● * The giver & the gift - * the origin and cost of your gift * The variety of gifts - * The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow ●THE FIVE MINISTRIES(Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet)● ● We Must Use Our Gifts to Church & For Others ● With Bishop Worrell Hylton FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS Ephesians 4:7-16 The passage before us today is about the purpose of the Church and that is to build up the body of Christ till we all come into maturity. The Church is meant to be a body made up on many parts, but all working together for a common goal and each with something to share. God has given some gifts of leadership, shepherding, teaching etc to lead the body, but all have a gift and role to play in this grand design of God. Now Let’s looking at Ephesians 4:7-16 • The giver & the gift - the origin and cost of your gift • The variety of gifts - but with the common need of being plugged in! • The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow The scope of the gifts - Everyone has one! ●Each of us was given grace (a gift) according to the measure given by Christ. ◾The Greek word charis is translated into “grace” The root idea is "that which delights" and is often used in the sense of "favor." Here it means "making glad by gifts," of showing free, unmerited favor, with an emphasis on freedom in giving by generosity, favor." ◾The word grace, charis, means “favor, bless, freely give”; ◾charis is derived from the Greek word charisma which is where our English word for “charismatic” it carries the meaning of favors or gifts “since a list of ministry gifts to the church follow” in verse 4:11. At the end of verse 4:7, “according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” ◾the Greek word metron is translated into English as “measure Paul uses the word measure to highlight that “God has created variety in the church and each individual is to function according to the task and ability God has given.” Therefore, the presumed meaning of Ephesians 4:7 is that God bestowed each individual abilities, corresponding to their capacity, to use for His Glory. So straight off the bat we see that every believer has at least one gift. Every member is uniquely gifted in one ministry or another for the building up of his church (v. 12). ●The Purpose of Christ’s gifts is so the church may mature into the fullness of adulthood and not be swayed by false teachings (vv. 13-16).● The church universal and at the local level needs to mature in love so as not to lose focus and blur its vision with the carnality and egocentrism of this fallen world. This gift is not just what you are good at naturally though the Lord can make use of that. But it is a gift from Him. It is supernatural, not natural. ●The origin of the gifts - The Victor who gives● Eph 4:8-10 This is why it says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." (What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) ●So let's look at the origin of these gifts.● The imagery given in this passage is drawn from Psalm 68:18 specifically, but it really encapsulates the theme of the entire Psalm. John MacArthur writes: ▪(Psalm 68) is a victory hymn composed by David to celebrate God’s conquest of the Jebusite city and the triumphant ascent of God (represented by the Ark of the Covenant) up Mount Zion (cf. 2 Sa. 6-7; 1Chr 13). After a king won such a victory he would bring home the spoils and enemy prisoners to parade before his people. An Israelite king would take his retinue through the holy city of Jerusalem and up Mount Zion. ◾Another feature of the victory parade, however, would be the display of the king’s own soldiers who had been freed after being held prisoner by the enemy. These were often referred to as recaptured captives-prisoners who had been taken prisoner again, so to speak, by their own king and given freedom◾. Now you can probably imagine what it was like when a conquering King came back into Israel, triumphant after a great victory over his enemies. He comes back with the spoils of war. He comes back with his own freed countrymen. He comes back to great celebration and glory from the rest of the country. That is what Paul pictures here. Not, however, for an earthly king coming back into Israel but for the Lord Jesus Himself, ascending back into Heaven. He came back having won the victory over Satan, death and everything the world could throw at Him. Can you imagine the wonder and praise on the mouths of the believers who had previously died and gone to Abraham's bosom as they were freed and led back into Heaven?1 Can you imagine the glory and worship from the angels and heavenly beings seeing their King having conquered sin, death and Satan's worst.2 Or for that matter, can you imagine the coming wonder when the Lord comes and takes the complete church at the rapture back the place He has prepared for us! Imagine how we, with all of Heaven, will rejoice in our Victor-King on that day! Bring it on! Now I want you to notice a difference from Psalm 68:18 which says: 'When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men, even from the rebellious....' ▪Psalm 68:18 pictures the conquering king receiving gifts from men, even the rebellious ones he defeated. But Paul sees what is implied in this Psalm where the spoils of the victory over those defeated are then given to His servants. ◾Thus, when speaking of Jesus' ascension, Paul could write 'he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men.'◾ He is a Victor who should receive gifts of praise, worship and honor from each of us. But our King is gracious. He gives. ◾And as well as the many blessings of salvation that we have focused on previously, He has given each one a gift for service in the edifying and building up of His body.◾ Think also of what it cost our Victor, the Lord Jesus, to be able to give that gift. That is why we want to use what He has given us... because it cost Him His life.
💥(NOTES C)💥 Revivaltime Restoration Worship Center Tuesday Evening BIBLE STUDY WEEK 19 PART 6 SERIES: ✅Book Of Ephesians Ch 4 📍LIVING OUT THE NEW LIFESTYLE📍 ● FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS● * The giver & the gift - * the origin and cost of your gift * The variety of gifts - * The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow ●THE FIVE MINISTRIES(Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet)● ● We Must Use Our Gifts to Church & For Others ● With Bishop Worrell Hylton The bottom line is that for ●whatever gifts we have (and we may have more than one), we need to be plugged in.● I use an electric hedge cutter at my house and to get to the bottom of the yard I have to use a long extension power cord. Now the hedge cutter is really powerful... but it can't cut a single leaf by itself. Sometimes, as I walk around at the very bottom of my yard where the cord is fully extended, I'll pull the cord out of the power socket. What happens then? Well, it still looks the part but detached from the power it's just a heavy useless weight! So we all need to stay plugged in through fellowship, Bible study and prayer! ●Do you remember what Paul said in the previous chapter concerning the power of God? ●He said that our gift is in connection with God's power. He said that we should pray for that power and also realize that God is able to do more than we even ask... according to that power. ▪Eph 3:7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of his power. ▪Eph 3:16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, ▪Eph 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us... ●Summing it up in a well known verse from Zechariah, when it comes to exercising all spiritual gifts, it is... 'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty.' (Zec 4:6●) ●THE PURPOSE OF THE GIFTS - to build the body of Christ up...● ▪Eph 4:12-13 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.◾ ◾ Next we see the purpose for these gifts. This wide variety of gifts are given to build up the entire body of Christ and equip the saints for service. So don't look at what you can't do, but what you can do. You may look at these five ministry gifts mentioned here in Ephesians 4 and think 'yeah but I'm not any of those.' Yet you will have a gift that can be used. As an example, I have never really been a successful evangelist. I try but it's not my gifting. And it isn't the primary focus of my ministry or website even though it is critical that the body of Christ has evangelists. My heart has also been to do what this verse says - Through teaching the word I try, in my little way, to build up the body of Christ and bring believers to maturity in Christ. That is my focus. In the words of Paul in 1 Cor 3:6, some plant and some water. My calling has been towards the latter - trying to help people grow in Jesus. Yet I am amazed and grateful to those with the gift of evangelism. Some people are so creative in what they use to spread the gospel with the lost. One example comes from a very frequent visitor to the Jesus plus nothing website. Philip from Jamaica has a wonderful heart for evangelism and told me of a unique approach he sometimes uses. He wrote: "What I have also done, from time to time, while I am listening to one of your audio sermons while I am on my walks, is as follows - I walk & catch up with someone else who is walking, & then after a little while, I ask them if by chance they were overhearing what I was listening to. I then ask them to try to guess your (or Fraser's) accent & then use your audio to begin Witnessing to them :-)" So there you go. That made me laugh but also impressed me at the creative way used to open the door (using some crazy Kiwi accents) and start a conversation about the Lord Jesus! Even a 'pick the wacky accent' game with a stranger can be used to start a conversation about Jesus! ◾The bottom line is this - we all have different gifts. Whatever your gift or gifts are, use them for the Kingdom as the Lord leads.◾ I like how 'Our Daily Bread' illustrates this point. A well-known coach was once asked, “How much does college football contribute to the national physical-fitness picture?” “Nothing,” the coach replied abruptly. “Why not?” the startled interviewer asked. “Well,” said the coach, “the way I see it, you have 22 men down on the field desperately needing a rest and 40,000 people in the stands, desperately needing some exercise.” ◾A similar situation exists in many churches today◾ ◾When you compare the members who actively participate, you often find a rather pathetic situation. It’s not unusual to have a small group of diligent Christian workers struggling “down on the field” while others in the congregation are acting like spectators, “sitting on the sidelines, eating hot dogs and popcorn.” ◾God’s strategy for the accomplishment of His program is not like a sports event. It does not call for the job to be done only by the “professionals.” ◾In the game of life, all believers have their own positions and spiritual gifts that they must exercise “for the profit of all” (1 Cor. 12:7)◾. My friend, if you’ve been sitting in the stands, you’re badly needed down on the field! OUR DAILY BREAD So again... ●Whatever your gift is, whatever opportunities the Lord gives you, use them for His glory. We want to be people that hear 'well done good and faithful servant' when He returns. ● Who wants a 20 year old infant? ◾Ephesians 4:14-15 Then we will no longer be infants (children), tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.◾ This next little passage gives a very important example of why we are to mature and no longer be children in the faith. Now there is something wonderful about children. They are so innocent and quick to believe and trust what people tell them. Yet, there is something worrying about children. They are so innocent and quick to believe and trust what people tell them! It can be a blessing and a curse depending on who they are listening to! ◾Spiritually speaking we are told to grow and mature as we feed on the word of God. The word of God always encourages us grow and studying it leads to maturity.◾ And yet there are 20-30 year old Christian infants! Big Christian babies spiritually speaking! While they believe, they have never really invested themselves in the word of God and thus are easily blown off track by the latest fad teaching blowing through the Church. And this can have a sinister side to it. ●The Bible is very clear that there are always 'cunning and crafty men' using 'deceitful scheming' even within the church.● ●In the natural a child is often taught to be careful of strangers... "stranger - danger" they call it. In the spiritual it is no different. The enemy always introduces tares amongst the wheat and can himself minister as an 'angel of light'.● That is, (the enemy)💥he has people doing his bidding, even from the pulpit of a church💥. There is a great example of this in Pilgrims Progress which speaks of how deceivers who look like the real thing can lead Christians astray if they are not following the word of God (the map).
💥(NOTES B)💥
Revivaltime Restoration Worship Center
Tuesday Evening BIBLE STUDY WEEK 19 PART 6
SERIES: ✅Book Of Ephesians Ch 4
📍LIVING OUT THE NEW LIFESTYLE📍
● FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS●
* The giver & the gift -
* the origin and cost of your gift
* The variety of gifts -
* The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow
●THE FIVE MINISTRIES(Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet)●
● We Must Use Our Gifts to Church & For Others ●
With Bishop Worrell Hylton
●THE POWER OF EACH OF THE GIFTS- stay plugged in!●
▪Eph 4:11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,
Paul now speaks of some of these gifts that have been given.
▪Apostles - The word Apostle means 'one sent as an authoritative delegate'. They were specially equipped ambassadors of God who were part of the foundation of the Church3 (Eph 2:20). While people are still divinely commissioned and 'sent' today, and may fulfil the role of an Apostle in that way, it is not in the same authoritative sense that the first century Apostles had. An apostles are often seen as pioneers or visionaries because they are often sent into new areas to start churches. Apostles and prophets usually work closely together.
Apostles are also responsible to equip people to do the work of the ministry. The term apostle came from the Roman Empire. When the Roman Empire would conquer a city, instead of destroying it, they would send out apostles with the Roman kingdom mindset to change the government and how the city functions.
The apostolic function has nothing to do with [positional] authority and everything to do with the pursuit of the apostolic goals of preaching the gospel where it has not yet been heard, to plant the church in places where the witness of Christ does not exist, and to care for the weak and hurting. It has nothing to do with position, rank, and titles, and everything to do with being sent as an Ambassador for Christ.
▪Prophets - Prophets are those "who speak forth words from God in total consistency with the foundation of the Old and New Testaments. Sometimes they speak in a predictive sense, but not necessarily so, and they are always subject to the discernment and judgment of the church leadership (1Cor 14:29). In 1 Corinthians 14, the gift of prophecy is for upbuilding, encouragement and consolation. The prophetic ministry involves giving direction and correction. Besides being able to sense God’s word for particular seasons or situations, such as the prophets in the Old Testament, prophets may also be able to recognize His gifts and callings on individuals, giving them guidance too.
▪Evangelists - those who are divinely gifted to preach the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. William MacDonald states: "They have special ability to diagnose a sinner's condition, probe the conscience, answer objections, encourage decisions for Christ, and help the convert find assurance through the word." Everyone is tasked with evangelising to those not yet in the family of God, but evangelists are particularly strong in the area of preaching and witnessing - with a passion for winning others over to become followers of Jesus Christ.
▪Pastors - T The word “pastor” literally means “shepherd”, and like people who rear and watch sheep, pastoral ministry involves protecting, leading, nurturing and feeding the flock (John 21:17). They are under shepherds of God's flock, whom He has placed within their care. They are specifically gifted and enabled to guide, protect, feed, and lead the sheep through the challenges of this life. Those with a pastoral inclination are faithful caregivers and parental figures, consistently guiding those under their ministry to places of sustenance, growth, safety and rest.
▪Teachers - those gifted to expound on God's word, explaining and interpreting what it means, for instruction, correction, exhortation and encouragement. They (hopefully!) do so in a way that makes the confusing passages clear, and not the clear passages confusing! (But don't always count on it!)
Now these are five specific gifts but it is far from an exhaustive list.
◾Other gifts are listed on Romans 12:4-13, 1 Corinthians 12:27-31 and 1 Peter 4:9-11. They include what we would see as the prominent 'in the limelight' leadership type gifts (like these mentioned in Ephesians) but also less conspicuous gifts.
▪But it matters not what gift you have. What matters is that you are walking in them, exercising them for the benefit of Christ's body.▪
◾ There are gifts of prophecy, faith, healing and discerning of spirits - we tend to think of these as the 'supernatural' ones. Yet other spiritual gifts are just as important and include 'serving', 'hospitality', 'helps', 'administration', 'giving generously', 'encouraging'..even 'showing mercy' is listed as a gift.◾
● They all come from one source. They come from the ascended Lord Jesus through the Holy Spirit given to each believer. ●
"These gifts are like so many electrical appliances. What a variety of appliances are available today! There are electric toasters, toothbrushes, mixers, irons, razors. I even saw an advertisement the other day for an electric shoestring tier! But if you look carefully at these electrical appliances you will see that though they are vastly different in what they do, there is one thing in which they are always exactly alike: They all have a cord with a plug on one end, designed to plug into a receptacle by which they utilize the same power. No matter how different the appliance is, the power is the same...
Ray Stedman
So stay plugged in!
💥(NOTES A)💥
Revivaltime Restoration Worship Center
Tuesday Evening BIBLE STUDY WEEK 19 PART 6
SERIES: ✅Book Of Ephesians Ch 4
📍LIVING OUT THE NEW LIFESTYLE📍
● FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS●
* The giver & the gift -
* the origin and cost of your gift
* The variety of gifts -
* The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow
●THE FIVE MINISTRIES(Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet)●
● We Must Use Our Gifts to Church & For Others ●
With Bishop Worrell Hylton
FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS
Ephesians 4:7-16
The passage before us today is about the purpose of the Church and that is to build up the body of Christ till we all come into maturity. The Church is meant to be a body made up on many parts, but all working together for a common goal and each with something to share. God has given some gifts of leadership, shepherding, teaching etc to lead the body, but all have a gift and role to play in this grand design of God.
Now Let’s looking at Ephesians 4:7-16
• The giver & the gift - the origin and cost of your gift
• The variety of gifts - but with the common need of being plugged in!
• The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow
The scope of the gifts - Everyone has one!
●Each of us was given grace (a gift) according to the measure given by Christ.
◾The Greek word charis is translated into “grace”
The root idea is "that which delights" and is often used in the sense of "favor."
Here it means "making glad by gifts," of showing free, unmerited favor, with an emphasis on freedom in giving by generosity, favor."
◾The word grace, charis, means “favor, bless, freely give”;
◾charis is derived from the Greek word charisma which is where our English word for “charismatic” it carries the meaning of favors or gifts “since a list of ministry gifts to the church follow” in verse 4:11. At the end of verse 4:7, “according to the measure of Christ’s gift.”
◾the Greek word metron is translated into English as “measure Paul uses the word measure to highlight that “God has created variety in the church and each individual is to function according to the task and ability God has given.”
Therefore, the presumed meaning of Ephesians 4:7 is that God bestowed each individual abilities, corresponding to their capacity, to use for His Glory.
So straight off the bat we see that every believer has at least one gift. Every member is uniquely gifted in one ministry or another for the building up of his church (v. 12).
●The Purpose of Christ’s gifts is so the church may mature into the fullness of adulthood and not be swayed by false teachings (vv. 13-16).● The church universal and at the local level needs to mature in love so as not to lose focus and blur its vision with the carnality and egocentrism of this fallen world.
This gift is not just what you are good at naturally though the Lord can make use of that. But it is a gift from Him. It is supernatural, not natural.
●The origin of the gifts - The Victor who gives●
Eph 4:8-10 This is why it says: "When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men." (What does "he ascended" mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.)
●So let's look at the origin of these gifts.● The imagery given in this passage is drawn from Psalm 68:18 specifically, but it really encapsulates the theme of the entire Psalm.
John MacArthur writes: ▪(Psalm 68) is a victory hymn composed by David to celebrate God’s conquest of the Jebusite city and the triumphant ascent of God (represented by the Ark of the Covenant) up Mount Zion (cf. 2 Sa. 6-7; 1Chr 13). After a king won such a victory he would bring home the spoils and enemy prisoners to parade before his people. An Israelite king would take his retinue through the holy city of Jerusalem and up Mount Zion. ◾Another feature of the victory parade, however, would be the display of the king’s own soldiers who had been freed after being held prisoner by the enemy. These were often referred to as recaptured captives-prisoners who had been taken prisoner again, so to speak, by their own king and given freedom◾.
Now you can probably imagine what it was like when a conquering King came back into Israel, triumphant after a great victory over his enemies. He comes back with the spoils of war. He comes back with his own freed countrymen. He comes back to great celebration and glory from the rest of the country. That is what Paul pictures here. Not, however, for an earthly king coming back into Israel but for the Lord Jesus Himself, ascending back into Heaven. He came back having won the victory over Satan, death and everything the world could throw at Him. Can you imagine the wonder and praise on the mouths of the believers who had previously died and gone to Abraham's bosom as they were freed and led back into Heaven?1 Can you imagine the glory and worship from the angels and heavenly beings seeing their King having conquered sin, death and Satan's worst.2 Or for that matter, can you imagine the coming wonder when the Lord comes and takes the complete church at the rapture back the place He has prepared for us! Imagine how we, with all of Heaven, will rejoice in our Victor-King on that day! Bring it on!
Now I want you to notice a difference from Psalm 68:18 which says: 'When you ascended on high, you led captives in your train; you received gifts from men, even from the rebellious....'
▪Psalm 68:18 pictures the conquering king receiving gifts from men, even the rebellious ones he defeated. But Paul sees what is implied in this Psalm where the spoils of the victory over those defeated are then given to His servants.
◾Thus, when speaking of Jesus' ascension, Paul could write 'he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men.'◾ He is a Victor who should receive gifts of praise, worship and honor from each of us. But our King is gracious. He gives.
◾And as well as the many blessings of salvation that we have focused on previously, He has given each one a gift for service in the edifying and building up of His body.◾ Think also of what it cost our Victor, the Lord Jesus, to be able to give that gift. That is why we want to use what He has given us... because it cost Him His life.
💥(NOTES C)💥
Revivaltime Restoration Worship Center
Tuesday Evening BIBLE STUDY WEEK 19 PART 6
SERIES: ✅Book Of Ephesians Ch 4
📍LIVING OUT THE NEW LIFESTYLE📍
● FUNCTIONING IN YOUR GIFTS●
* The giver & the gift -
* the origin and cost of your gift
* The variety of gifts -
* The purpose of the gifts - and how we all need each other to grow
●THE FIVE MINISTRIES(Pastor, Apostle, Teacher, Evangelist, Prophet)●
● We Must Use Our Gifts to Church & For Others ●
With Bishop Worrell Hylton
The bottom line is that for ●whatever gifts we have (and we may have more than one), we need to be plugged in.●
I use an electric hedge cutter at my house and to get to the bottom of the yard I have to use a long extension power cord. Now the hedge cutter is really powerful... but it can't cut a single leaf by itself. Sometimes, as I walk around at the very bottom of my yard where the cord is fully extended, I'll pull the cord out of the power socket. What happens then? Well, it still looks the part but detached from the power it's just a heavy useless weight! So we all need to stay plugged in through fellowship, Bible study and prayer!
●Do you remember what Paul said in the previous chapter concerning the power of God?
●He said that our gift is in connection with God's power. He said that we should pray for that power and also realize that God is able to do more than we even ask... according to that power.
▪Eph 3:7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of his power.
▪Eph 3:16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
▪Eph 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us...
●Summing it up in a well known verse from Zechariah, when it comes to exercising all spiritual gifts, it is...
'Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD Almighty.' (Zec 4:6●)
●THE PURPOSE OF THE GIFTS - to build the body of Christ up...●
▪Eph 4:12-13 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.◾
◾ Next we see the purpose for these gifts. This wide variety of gifts are given to build up the entire body of Christ and equip the saints for service. So don't look at what you can't do, but what you can do. You may look at these five ministry gifts mentioned here in Ephesians 4 and think 'yeah but I'm not any of those.' Yet you will have a gift that can be used. As an example, I have never really been a successful evangelist. I try but it's not my gifting. And it isn't the primary focus of my ministry or website even though it is critical that the body of Christ has evangelists. My heart has also been to do what this verse says - Through teaching the word I try, in my little way, to build up the body of Christ and bring believers to maturity in Christ. That is my focus. In the words of Paul in 1 Cor 3:6, some plant and some water. My calling has been towards the latter - trying to help people grow in Jesus. Yet I am amazed and grateful to those with the gift of evangelism.
Some people are so creative in what they use to spread the gospel with the lost. One example comes from a very frequent visitor to the Jesus plus nothing website. Philip from Jamaica has a wonderful heart for evangelism and told me of a unique approach he sometimes uses. He wrote: "What I have also done, from time to time, while I am listening to one of your audio sermons while I am on my walks, is as follows - I walk & catch up with someone else who is walking, & then after a little while, I ask them if by chance they were overhearing what I was listening to. I then ask them to try to guess your (or Fraser's) accent & then use your audio to begin Witnessing to them :-)" So there you go. That made me laugh but also impressed me at the creative way used to open the door (using some crazy Kiwi accents) and start a conversation about the Lord Jesus! Even a 'pick the wacky accent' game with a stranger can be used to start a conversation about Jesus!
◾The bottom line is this - we all have different gifts. Whatever your gift or gifts are, use them for the Kingdom as the Lord leads.◾ I like how 'Our Daily Bread' illustrates this point.
A well-known coach was once asked, “How much does college football contribute to the national physical-fitness picture?” “Nothing,” the coach replied abruptly. “Why not?” the startled interviewer asked. “Well,” said the coach, “the way I see it, you have 22 men down on the field desperately needing a rest and 40,000 people in the stands, desperately needing some exercise.” ◾A similar situation exists in many churches today◾
◾When you compare the members who actively participate, you often find a rather pathetic situation. It’s not unusual to have a small group of diligent Christian workers struggling “down on the field” while others in the congregation are acting like spectators, “sitting on the sidelines, eating hot dogs and popcorn.”
◾God’s strategy for the accomplishment of His program is not like a sports event. It does not call for the job to be done only by the “professionals.”
◾In the game of life, all believers have their own positions and spiritual gifts that they must exercise “for the profit of all” (1 Cor. 12:7)◾. My friend, if you’ve been sitting in the stands, you’re badly needed down on the field!
OUR DAILY BREAD
So again... ●Whatever your gift is, whatever opportunities the Lord gives you, use them for His glory. We want to be people that hear 'well done good and faithful servant' when He returns. ●
Who wants a 20 year old infant?
◾Ephesians 4:14-15 Then we will no longer be infants (children), tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming.◾
This next little passage gives a very important example of why we are to mature and no longer be children in the faith. Now there is something wonderful about children. They are so innocent and quick to believe and trust what people tell them. Yet, there is something worrying about children. They are so innocent and quick to believe and trust what people tell them! It can be a blessing and a curse depending on who they are listening to!
◾Spiritually speaking we are told to grow and mature as we feed on the word of God. The word of God always encourages us grow and studying it leads to maturity.◾
And yet there are 20-30 year old Christian infants! Big Christian babies spiritually speaking! While they believe, they have never really invested themselves in the word of God and thus are easily blown off track by the latest fad teaching blowing through the Church. And this can have a sinister side to it. ●The Bible is very clear that there are always 'cunning and crafty men' using 'deceitful scheming' even within the church.●
●In the natural a child is often taught to be careful of strangers... "stranger - danger" they call it. In the spiritual it is no different. The enemy always introduces tares amongst the wheat and can himself minister as an 'angel of light'.●
That is, (the enemy)💥he has people doing his bidding, even from the pulpit of a church💥. There is a great example of this in Pilgrims Progress which speaks of how deceivers who look like the real thing can lead Christians astray if they are not following the word of God (the map).