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The online groups guide is designed as a teaching series companion to foster discussion, study, and prayer, especially in a group setting.
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Love
Teaching Text: Ephesians 4:1-16
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says:
“When he ascended on high,
he took many captives
and gave gifts to his people.”
(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 Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his 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.
Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
Themes
Consider these themes and ask your group what else they see in the passage:
Prayer to Know the Love of God
Presence
Watch or listen to the sermon. Then take a moment of silence and think about these questions:
Ask God to open your heart and mind to understand Ephesians anew as we start this season.
Thank Him for the blessings He has given you already, even those you might be unaware of.
Consider for a minute Paul’s heart for us:
Ephesians 4:1 - “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.”
Time two minutes of silence on your watch or phone.
Use these two minutes to meditate on this encouragement from Paul for the year ahead.
Formation
Thoughts and notes you can use for discussion:
“In a 2021 survey of more than 2,000 adults in the United States, less than half of the men said they were truly satisfied with how many friends they had, while 15 percent said they had no close friends at all — a fivefold increase since 1990. That same survey found that men were less likely than women to rely on their friends for emotional support or to share their personal feelings with them.” – Catherine Pearson of the NY Times
Friendship Recession
“seems to be true for every age group, for every gender, for every income level, for people in metro and non-metro areas, for white and nonwhite, living with a spouse or partner, not living with a spouse or partner. Everyone seems to be spending more time alone.”
Derek Thompson - Host of Plain English
We are
Busy
Bored
Alone
Disconnected lives result.
Busy-ness as a badge of honor: Rate yourself out of 10 on business
Bored: how often do you fill space in your day with mindless entertainment?
Alone: Are you part of a deeply woven interconnected network of meaningful relationships?
God wants us to know:
Tremendous enriching shalom-infused belonging
But also unique particular gifting specific to our lives and benefitting those around us
That led to flourishing and fullness
The beginning of the second half of Ephesians says just that.
You are made to Belong. You are gifted with something that you must offer in a way that no one else can, And the resulting life is one of fullness, vitality, and love.
Belonging
Gifting
Fullness
So first, Belonging
“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” – Ephesians 4 v 1-6
Our unity is an incredible gift but it also greatly contested
Different backgrounds
Different preferences/personalities/temperaments
Different gifts and struggles
Also the flesh - world - devil
One Body - physical expression of the head
One Spirit - one unifying Spirit of God
One Hope - one future of life with God forever
One Lord - would Adonai who has secured our redemption
One Faith - one confession of allegiance and connection
One Baptism - one symbol of immersion into this new life
One God and Father - and all coming back to this one God
This is what you belong to!!!
Make every effort to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace
How would we do that?
Be humble - acknowledge and surrender your own pride
Be gentle - move in kindness and deep awareness of the other
Be patient - be willing to go slow knowing we cannot force reconciliation
Carry each others burdens - know this will mean carrying the burdens of others
Tough in a hyper individualistic culture
We pay lip service to this
But anything that hinders our personal story or family - we cut it out
Apply the Shalom of God in mercy - forgive as you have been forgiven
Bend the mercy you have received
Unity in diversity
We are one family in God
We are uniquely called and gifted
Gifts
Apostolic - where do we need to take new ground - faith, culture, leadership
Prophetic - what is God saying to us now - prayer, listening, faith to obey
Evangelist - who is not hear who should be - are people hearing the Gospel - love, communication, courage
Pastoral - are we carrying for the people in our midst - are people’s souls being shepherded, their bodies and lives? - compassion, attentiveness, wisdom, love
Teacher - do people know how to take hold of the treasures of God - make simple the complicated, give wisdom in confusion
Imagine the genius and beauty of these in tension (unity in diversity)
What are they for?
Equipping for service
1. Restore something damaged to its original condition
2. Set a broken bone
3. Teach a soldier to fight
4. Stock a vessel with provisions for a long journey
The Fullness of Christ
Attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” – Ephesians 4 v 13-16
In the World:
Great value in sustaining moral and spiritual infancy
More winds of teaching blowing across our consciousness
More schemes aimed at your attention and decision making than ever
Unity of the Spirit (Belonging) - you have a place in the family of God by the victory of Jesus
Diversity of the Body(Gifting) - you have a unique gifting of grace to serve the body
Fullness of Christ (Fullness) - as this spiritual ecosystem of love works we grow towards a stable but vibrant maturity
Lets get Practical:
Make a plan for following Jesus
Find a Group to Grow With
Try Seconds Course
Love
Read these notes and discuss the questions below:
Paul encourages us in verse 2 to be “bearing with one another in love,”
Who in your life can you help by
Carrying burdens with them or for them?
Overlooking offense and reaching out in love towards reconciliation?
