Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20030713.htm

EPHESIANS: GOD'S SURE PLAN FOR INSECURE TIMES
Part VI: Overcoming Defensiveness Based On God's Acceptance Of Us
(Ephesians 3:1-4:3)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

Getting along with one another is the trademark of our faith, for Jesus told His disciples: "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (John 13:35)

However, if a party has experienced mistreatment or abusive relationships in his past, he may not gain the victory over that past when he becomes a believer in Christ, and tend to be defensive, harsh or difficult in the way he relates to others.

This challenge is a big one in today's Christian world: here is a list of 8 pamphlets I received in the late 1970s from a believer by a nationally known Christian leader regarding challenging relationships:



"Twelve Keys For Getting Along With People"

"Five Things About Men That Women Should Know"

"Seven Things Men Should Know About Women"

"The Submissive Wife"

"How To Prevent Divorce"

"After The Divorce"

"Violence And Abuse In The Home"

"Things That Work At Our House"



If a nationally known Christian leader (and psychologist) has issued pamphlets like this on non-defensive relationships primarily to the Christian community, and that since the late seventies over thirty years ago, we Christians along with the rest of society struggle with attaining proper relationships with others!



If I as a BELIEVER in Christ find it DIFFICULT even to know where to BEGIN to be humble, kind, patient and forbearing with even other CHRISTIANS, and THAT because I feel defeated by events I have experienced in my PAST, what would GOD have me DO about it? How am I going to be ABLE to RELATE well to others?



(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )



Need: "Due to a painful past, I tend to be defensive, cold or harsh in relating to to others. What would GOD suggest I do about this?"
  1. In writing to the Ephesians, Paul addressed those who were USED to living in LOVELESS relationships of EXTENSIVE occultism and demonism, Acts 19:12-13, 18-19. [They had given up $5 million worth of occult items (Ryrie Study Bible, KJV ftn. to Acts 19:19!)]
  2. This would have produced great hurdles to GOOD relationships.
  3. Yet, Paul noted how God had CHANGED the POSITION of these FORMER PAGANS when they trusted in Christ, going to GREAT lengths IN LOVE to make them EQUAL and ACCEPTED with HIM along with HEBREW believers in the CHURCH, Eph. 3:2-6:
    1. Paul stated Christ made him a steward to reveal the dispensation of the Church where Gentile believers were fellow heirs and partakers of God's promise in the Messiah with Hebrew believers, Eph. 3:2-6.
    2. This order contrasted with relationships under the Law, Eph. 2:11-15:
      1. Under the Mosaic Law, Gentiles were totally excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, being strangers from the covenants of promise made to the Hebrew patriarchs so that they as a group were without hope and without God, cf. Ephesians 2:11-12.
      2. However, by their faith in Christ, God had broken down the barrier between these Gentile pagans and Hebrews, making of these two a totally new category -- that of Christian, Ephesians 2:14-15.
    3. Thus, where Gentile pagans once had been alienated from God's blessing, they were now fully ACCEPTED with Hebrew believers !
  4. Thus, Paul ENCOURAGED his readers to LIVE by FAITH in Christ so they might EXPERIENCE their POSITIONAL ACCEPTANCE in God's GREAT LOVE, Ephesians 3:7-21:
    1. Paul reported though he was the least of all saints, and that most probably due to his former mistreatment of Christians prior to his conversion (cf. 1 Timothy 1:12-16), God had given him the role of revealing the formerly hidden truth that Gentile and Hebrew believers in Christ would belong to the same body, Ephesians 3:7-11.
    2. Paul thus spoke of this new order in the Church to God's glory:
      1. First, Paul claimed believing Gentiles along with believing Hebrews can have bold confidence in their access to God, 3:12.
      2. Second, Paul urged his readers not to grieve over his persecutions on their behalf, for his suffering was for their glory, Eph. 3:13!
    3. Paul then revealed his prayer that his Gentile readers come to TRUST in God in living that they might experience how GREAT was God's love for them now that they belonged to Christ, 3:14-16, 17a, 17b-19:
      1. Moved by God's infinite, gracious acceptance of these Gentile believers, Paul expressed his prayer that they might live by faith in Christ so as to be able to experience as a reward evidences of God's infinite love toward them, Ephesians 3:17a, 14-16, 17b-19a.
      2. In this way, they would come to be filled with all the fulness of God's blessing in their lives and ministries, Ephesians 3:19b.
    4. Moved by this dispensational arrangement by God, Paul delivered a doxology to the praise of God's glory in the Church, Eph. 3:20-21.
  5. Then, BASED on GOD'S GREAT LOVE FOR THEM, Paul urged his readers to RELATE TO ONE ANOTHER in EDIFYING ways:
    1. Upon experiencing God's deep love for them, Paul's Gentile converts were expected to relax in that love so as to be able to be humble, meek, patient and forbearing with each other, Ephesians 4:1-2:
      1. Based on their experiencing God's expressions of love, Paul urged his Gentile converts to walk worthy of their calling, Eph. 3:19; 4:1.
      2. That calling involved the non-threatening production of humility, meekness, patience and a forbearing attitude that those with a great sense of security in God's love can afford to give to others, 4:2.
    2. In this way, they would be equipped to endeavor to keep the unity the Holy Spirit had created in the body in the bond of peace, Eph. 4:3.
Application: If we are defensive, cold or harsh due to living in defeat from a troubled past, (1) we must trust in Christ for salvation and placement into His spiritual Body, the Church, John 3:16; Eph. 3:2-6. (2) Then, God calls us to (a) trust Him for needs as a WAY of LIFE; that way we can EXPERIENCE EVIDENCES of His LOVE by His SUPPLIES, Eph. 3:14-19a. (b) Then, armed with such EVIDENCE of HIS GREAT love for US, we can THUS be moved to (c) to AFFORD to have a SELFLESS and hence humble, meek, patient and forbearing love in relating to one another in the Church, Eph. 3:19b; 4:1-3.

Lesson: If the Ephesian believers would LIVE by FAITH in Christ in their Christian lives, they would SEE His GREAT LOVE evidenced in His rewards FOR their faith, and so RELAX in this EVIDENCE of God's love FOR THEM. In so doing, they would be equipped and motivated to express a SELFLESS kind of love toward one another in the Church!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 The late Dr. Hudson T. Armerding, a Christian leader and past President of Wheaton College in Illinois wrote of events that illustrate the victory Christ can give over defensiveness caused by difficult experiences we have faced in our pasts.

In his work, Leadership, p. 72, Dr. Armerding alluded to the book by Ernest Gordon entitled, Through the Valley of the Kwai. It describes hardships that British soldiers faced while held captive by the Japanese in World War II. As these prisoners of war faced daily abuse, they offset their trials by seeking to obey the Scripture passages one of their own carried and would privately read to them every day.

On one occasion, when a shovel became inexplicably missing, the commanding Japanese officer demanded to know which prisoner had stolen it. When nobody confessed, a Christian prisoner offered to take the punishment for whoever had taken the shovel. The enraged officer then proceeded to beat this prisoner to death on the spot.

Later, the shovel was found as it had been merely misplaced. Dr. Armerding writes about the victim, saying, "The man really was innocent but because he believed the Bible taught that one should lay down his life for his friend, he took the penalty." (John 15:13)

As these British prisoners were eventually released, they found themselves one day at a train station as " . . . a trainload of Japanese wounded came in to the station alongside their train . . ." Most men in their place having experienced what they had would have avoided supplying any help to the enemy in this scene, but not this group. Dr. Armerding reports: " . . . Some British soldiers who had been so horribly mistreated by the enemy went over and ministered to the Japanese wounded, because they believed that this was what God wanted them to do."



When we REALIZE our POSITION in CHRIST, and submit to HIS will, power and leading in our lives, we can swallow our human defensiveness at past mistreatments done to us so as to be HUMBLE, GENTLE and FORBEARING toward others!



May we come to faith in Christ as Savior, and then rest in HIS INFINITE love, acceptance and power TOWARD US to live ABOVE our troubled pasts in relating GRACIOUSLY to others!