Ephesians 4:11 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.
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Jesus is building His Church. His Church will one day gather as one in the presence of the Father and with the Son to worship and serve together and in unity in Heaven. To build His Church, Jesus is giving gifts to men (prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers). They aren't giving themselves these gifts. Jesus is growing us to maturity so that we can help others also grow. He is building His Church using those who have already come to faith. The sense is that each of us, as believers, has a role in bringing new ones to faith, instructing and grounding them, watching over with care and protection. There is an enemy that seeks to disrupt, prevent, distract, confuse and derail this ongoing Church construction project. Verse 15 provides a key: "speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head". To speak the truth we must start by knowing the truth...investing ourselves in the Word of God and then we must share it out of genuine love toward those not yet saved as well as those who are in the growth process within the church.
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The mystery of faith has been entrusted to flawed people like you and I, that others might also realize One has come for all the flawed people and that same One transforms, empowers and equips flawed people for a great purpose.
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blessings,
Rob Smith
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"Death is inevitable. Life is a choice!"
John 11:25
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live."
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