Sermon – Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who? (Eph 1:1-14)

This sermon, “Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who?” (Ephesians 1:1-14) , was originally preached on Sunday, June 28, 2009 at English Worship Service of the North Toronto Chinese Baptist Church-Melville Mission in Richmond Hill, ON.

Audio:

20090517-Eph1v1to14_AlexSLeung.mp3

Video:

Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who? (Eph 1:1-14) 1/2 from Alex Leung on Vimeo.

Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who? (Eph 1:1-14) 2/2 from Alex Leung on Vimeo.

Background

As opposed to most of Paul’s other letters, Ephesians is not written to address any particular problem in Ephesus. The apostle is sitting in prison in Rome, jailed for preaching the gospel, and writing a letter to the Christians in Ephesus—but he is not responding to a big sin that the church has committed, or some big issue that the Christians there are facing. Rather, it seems that Paul is writing simply to encourage the churches in area of Ephesus to be united in love. We know from Revelation 2 that the Ephesian Christians—somehow, overtime—have forsaken their first love—Jesus Christ. And thus, this is such an important thing to learn even for our church today.

This is a theme that we will come across continually over the next few months as we study Ephesians: unity and love: how true unity in the church only happens when people love one another. And as one commentator has noted, “unity without love is possible, but love without unity is not.” [[Harold Hoehner, Ephesians, 105.]]   When there is love in action within the community, unity is naturally fostered.

Thesis

So this is one of the main thrusts of Paul’s letter, and it is the underlying theme of today’s text. Because what we will see this morning is that out of His love for us, God first blesses us that we should bless him. The Father gives us grace and blessings, so that we his children might—in response, in praise, and out of thanksgiving—bless him!

We can see this kind of love and unity at work even within the Trinity himself, when we understand how each person in the Godhead blesses us that we would bless him. So my goal this morning is to encourage you by showing how much God loves you, and to fuel a passion in your heart to praise him evermore. I want you to see 3 observations that I trust are taken straight from the text:

1. If you are a Christian, it’s because the Father has Chosen you (verses 3-6)
2. If you are a Christian, it’s because the Son has Redeemed you. (verses 7-12)
3. If you are a Christian, it’s because the Spirit has sealed you (verses 13-14)

What is a Church Covenant?

What is a ???Church Covenant????

A church covenant can be described in five different ways.* A church covenant is a promise – a promise made to God, to a local church, and to one???s self.* A church covenant is a summary of how we agree to live. While our statement of faith is a good summary of what we believe, our church covenant is a summary of how we agree to live ??? more importantly, it is a summary of how God would have us live. It does not include every explicit command regarding obedience, but it does give a general summary of what it means to live as a disciple of Christ.* A church covenant is a sign of commitment ??? a commitment to God, to His church, and to personal holiness.* A church covenant is an ethical statement. Historian Charles W. DeWeese writes, ???A church covenant is a series of written pledges based on the Bible which church members voluntarily make to God and to one another regarding their basic moral and spiritual commitments and the practice of their faith??? (Baptist Church Covenants, p. viii). One theologian calls church covenants the ???ethical counterpart to confessions of faith.??? A church covenant can be an important part of applying a Christian worldview to every aspect of our lives. Inherent in the purpose of a church covenant is the understanding that church membership involves being held accountable to live in a manner consistent with a common understanding of Scripture.* A church covenant is a biblical standard. A church covenant is helpful in a church that is practicing Biblical church discipline. As members of a church, we exhort one another to live holy lives, and we challenge brothers and sisters persisting in sin.

Membership Matters – What is Our Church Covenant? – 9MarksSee also Mark Dever and Paul Alexander, The Deliberate Church, pg.62-63.

Sermon – Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who? (Eph 1:1-14)

This sermon, “Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who?” (Ephesians 1:1-14) , was originally preached on Sunday, June 28, 2009 at English Worship Service of the North Toronto Chinese Baptist Church-Melville Mission in Richmond Hill, ON.

Audio:

(I apologize for the large file size; my recorder does not record the audio well.)
[display_podcast]

Video:

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=5979001&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1

Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who? (Eph 1:1-14) 1/2 from Alex Leung on Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=5762637&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1

Called to the Gospel: Who’s Blessing Who? (Eph 1:1-14) 2/2 from Alex Leung on Vimeo.

Background

As opposed to most of Paul’s other letters, Ephesians is not written to address any particular problem in Ephesus. The apostle is sitting in prison in Rome, jailed for preaching the gospel, and writing a letter to the Christians in Ephesus—but he is not responding to a big sin that the church has committed, or some big issue that the Christians there are facing. Rather, it seems that Paul is writing simply to encourage the churches in area of Ephesus to be united in love. We know from Revelation 2 that the Ephesian Christians—somehow, overtime—have forsaken their first love—Jesus Christ. And thus, this is such an important thing to learn even for our church today.

This is a theme that we will come across continually over the next few months as we study Ephesians: unity and love: how true unity in the church only happens when people love one another. And as one commentator has noted, “unity without love is possible, but love without unity is not.” [[Harold Hoehner, Ephesians, 105.]]   When there is love in action within the community, unity is naturally fostered.

Thesis

So this is one of the main thrusts of Paul’s letter, and it is the underlying theme of today’s text. Because what we will see this morning is that out of His love for us, God first blesses us that we should bless him. The Father gives us grace and blessings, so that we his children might—in response, in praise, and out of thanksgiving—bless him!

We can see this kind of love and unity at work even within the Trinity himself, when we understand how each person in the Godhead blesses us that we would bless him. So my goal this morning is to encourage you by showing how much God loves you, and to fuel a passion in your heart to praise him evermore. I want you to see 3 observations that I trust are taken straight from the text:

1. If you are a Christian, it’s because the Father has Chosen you (verses 3-6)
2. If you are a Christian, it’s because the Son has Redeemed you. (verses 7-12)
3. If you are a Christian, it’s because the Spirit has sealed you (verses 13-14)

What is a Church Covenant?

What is a ‘Church Covenant’?

A church covenant can be described in five different ways.

* A church covenant is a promise – a promise made to God, to a local church, and to one’s self.
* A church covenant is a summary of how we agree to live. While our statement of faith is a good summary of what we believe, our church covenant is a summary of how we agree to live – more importantly, it is a summary of how God would have us live. It does not include every explicit command regarding obedience, but it does give a general summary of what it means to live as a disciple of Christ.
* A church covenant is a sign of commitment – a commitment to God, to His church, and to personal holiness.
* A church covenant is an ethical statement. Historian Charles W. DeWeese writes, “A church covenant is a series of written pledges based on the Bible which church members voluntarily make to God and to one another regarding their basic moral and spiritual commitments and the practice of their faith” (Baptist Church Covenants, p. viii). One theologian calls church covenants the “ethical counterpart to confessions of faith.” A church covenant can be an important part of applying a Christian worldview to every aspect of our lives. Inherent in the purpose of a church covenant is the understanding that church membership involves being held accountable to live in a manner consistent with a common understanding of Scripture.
* A church covenant is a biblical standard. A church covenant is helpful in a church that is practicing Biblical church discipline. As members of a church, we exhort one another to live holy lives, and we challenge brothers and sisters persisting in sin.

Membership Matters – What is Our Church Covenant? – 9Marks

See also Mark Dever and Paul Alexander, The Deliberate Church, pg.62-63.

Church Covenants and Membership in a Local Church

For almost 10 years, since I was baptized Easter 1998 after confessing faith in Christ, I have been a member of an evangelical church that did not practice covenant church membership. Little did I know before about what it actually means to be a church member, let alone what it means to be “in covenant” with God and His bride.?? In my church experience growing up in this church, all that church membership entailed were “annual general meetings” where I would check my name off on an attendance sheet; and when I turned 16 years I old I had the ability to “vote”–otherwise known as affirming what the Board of Elders had already decided.There was no unwritten accountability between church members for personal and spiritual growth, let a lone a written and regularly read statement of what we are to do as covenanted members in the Body of Christ.?? When there was care and prayer and accountability, it was in the spur of the moment–usually because somebody was going through a trying situation.?? As those who were betrothed to Christ as members in this one local body, we were clueless that such a marriage relationship entailed covenantal promises and stipulations for being part of this ekklesia.This was until January 2008 when I became a member of a small Baptist church.?? This church practiced covenant church membership; and consequently but sadly, also church discipline.?? Regenerate church membership is something that the Elders, Deacons and members strive for, often meaning that our hearts break when a member continues in grievous, public sin even after being counseled by numerous other church members and Elders.?? When a member of the body is suffering illness, the whole body feels the pain, even as we pray for each other’s specific needs.?? We lift each other up in prayer, with words of encouragement, with Scripture that sanctifies, every time we meet together in our Care Groups.?? In genuiness, covenant church membership can mean much stress as well as happiness.?? It takes a lot of time and effort to run after those who seem to be falling or running away.

How Important is Musical Style?

The style of music you use on Sunday mornings is incredibly unimportant.That may seem like an odd way to begin a chapter on “blended worship,” but it may be the most important thing we say on the topic of worship. You may be, or your church may employ, a “worship leader,” someone who plans, facilitates, and leads the corporate gatherings of your church. You may be accustomed to calling that time each week a “worship service.” You may even think of particular parts of your weekly service (such as the singing) as being “worship,” as opposed to other things that happen during that time (such as preaching or taking up an offering). Yet while none of those uses of the word are, strictly speaking, incorrect, neither do they even come close to the heart of what the Bible means by worship. According to the Bible, worship is not fundamentally what we do on Sunday mornings when we gather with other Christians. It certainly includes that, but it is much more. Worship is our service to God. It is acting and thinking and speaking as if He really is who He says He is and we are really who He says we are. Worship is the creature (you and me) serving the Creator (God).This book is specifically concerned with one of the ways we most frequently talk about worship–our times together in church, and specifically the style that characterizes that gathering. This is a great thing to talk about, and obviously important, given the amount of conflict this topic generates in many local churches. However, we want to be clear at the outset that this is not the heart of what the Bible means by worship. Furthermore, if worship does not refer merely to our corporate times together, it MOST certainly does not mean merely our music.

–Michael Lawrence and Mark Dever.?? From “Blended Worship,” chapter 7 in Perspectives on Christian Worship: Five Views. Edited by J. Matthew Pinson; other contributors are Timothy C. J. Quill, Dan Wilt, Ligon Duncan, and Dan Kimball. Nashville: B&W Academic, 2009, p. 218-19.

Church Covenants and Membership in a Local Church

For almost 10 years, since I was baptized Easter 1998 after confessing faith in Christ, I have been a member of an evangelical church that did not practice covenant church membership. Little did I know before about what it actually means to be a church member, let alone what it means to be “in covenant” with God and His bride.  In my church experience growing up in this church, all that church membership entailed were “annual general meetings” where I would check my name off on an attendance sheet; and when I turned 16 years I old I had the ability to “vote”–otherwise known as affirming what the Board of Elders had already decided.

There was no unwritten accountability between church members for personal and spiritual growth, let a lone a written and regularly read statement of what we are to do as covenanted members in the Body of Christ.  When there was care and prayer and accountability, it was in the spur of the moment–usually because somebody was going through a trying situation.  As those who were betrothed to Christ as members in this one local body, we were clueless that such a marriage relationship entailed covenantal promises and stipulations for being part of this ekklesia.

This was until January 2008 when I became a member of a small Baptist church.  This church practiced covenant church membership; and consequently but sadly, also church discipline.  Regenerate church membership is something that the Elders, Deacons and members strive for, often meaning that our hearts break when a member continues in grievous, public sin even after being counseled by numerous other church members and Elders.  When a member of the body is suffering illness, the whole body feels the pain, even as we pray for each other’s specific needs.  We lift each other up in prayer, with words of encouragement, with Scripture that sanctifies, every time we meet together in our Care Groups.  In genuiness, covenant church membership can mean much stress as well as happiness.  It takes a lot of time and effort to run after those who seem to be falling or running away.

How Important is Musical Style?

The style of music you use on Sunday mornings is incredibly unimportant.

That may seem like an odd way to begin a chapter on “blended worship,” but it may be the most important thing we say on the topic of worship. You may be, or your church may employ, a “worship leader,” someone who plans, facilitates, and leads the corporate gatherings of your church. You may be accustomed to calling that time each week a “worship service.” You may even think of particular parts of your weekly service (such as the singing) as being “worship,” as opposed to other things that happen during that time (such as preaching or taking up an offering). Yet while none of those uses of the word are, strictly speaking, incorrect, neither do they even come close to the heart of what the Bible means by worship. According to the Bible, worship is not fundamentally what we do on Sunday mornings when we gather with other Christians. It certainly includes that, but it is much more. Worship is our service to God. It is acting and thinking and speaking as if He really is who He says He is and we are really who He says we are. Worship is the creature (you and me) serving the Creator (God).

This book is specifically concerned with one of the ways we most frequently talk about worship–our times together in church, and specifically the style that characterizes that gathering. This is a great thing to talk about, and obviously important, given the amount of conflict this topic generates in many local churches. However, we want to be clear at the outset that this is not the heart of what the Bible means by worship. Furthermore, if worship does not refer merely to our corporate times together, it MOST certainly does not mean merely our music.

–Michael Lawrence and Mark Dever.  From “Blended Worship,” chapter 7 in Perspectives on Christian Worship: Five Views. Edited by J. Matthew Pinson; other contributors are Timothy C. J. Quill, Dan Wilt, Ligon Duncan, and Dan Kimball. Nashville: B&W Academic, 2009, p. 218-19.

Spiritual Blessings in a Modernized Vernacular

1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus.I am writing to God???s holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus.2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure. 10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ???everything in heaven and on earth. 11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.12 God???s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. 13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own[d] by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God???s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.(Ephesians 1:1-14, NLT)

Spiritual Blessings in a Modernized Vernacular

1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus.
I am writing to God’s holy people in Ephesus, who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus.
2 May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure. 10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. 11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.

12 God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. 13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own[d] by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.

(Ephesians 1:1-14, NLT)