A Healthy Church Body In an Unhealthy World

Text:      Ephesians 4: 1-16; James 1:17

Theme:  Each Christian plays a unique God-given role in the Church Body.

I. “Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. vs. 1

A.    God calls us to be exemplary citizens in the church and in our communities.

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.

Ephesians 4:2-3

1.     The world (U.S.A.) is loosing its soul to pleasure and moral decay.

2.     The Church must be the “salt and light” like never before.

3.     Peace in the Church is bought with a high price of “considering the needs others before my own”

(see Philippians 2)

II.  “It was he (God) who gave some to be prophets, some to be evangelist, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service.

A.    God teaches here that one of the primary roles of the prophet, the evangelist, the pastor and the teacher is to prepare God’s people for works of service.

1.     A clergy driven Church is not scriptural and thus not God’s will for his Church.

2.     When everyone is active in using the gifts God has given them the Church will be “built up”
(vs. 12)

a.)   This means both in quantity and quality.

Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.  If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.  And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.  If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?  But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.  If they were all one part, where would the body be?  As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 
I Corinthians 12:14-20