“All Together”
Ephesians 2
Sermon Series: “Core”
Introduction: Ephesians 2 teaches us that Jesus died to bring us to God by His grace. However, it takes this truth an important step farther and teaches us that He died to bring us (Jews and Gentiles) together in Him to form a new people, the church. Therefore, we are brothers and sisters in Christ with God as our Father and Jesus as our Savior. This means that part of the purpose of the cross is to unite us in Christ. Jesus prayed that we would be one (John 17:20- 26). Disunity is a sign of serious spiritual immaturity (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). All of this together means that it is the equivalent of slapping Jesus in the face and spitting on His cross when we do not love each other and live in unity. He desires for us to be “all together” in Him. However, we also know this can be a major challenge for us as fallen human beings. So, let’s examine how He wants us to be “all together” and see how we can practically live as one in Christ.
1. Jesus calls us to be “all together” in our doctrine. This involves recognizing that there are biblical absolutes that are completely non-negotiable (Ephesians 4:5, 1 Timothy 1:3-4, Jude 3-4) and gray areas that we can agree to disagree about (Romans 14). In other words, there are some things that we hold with a closed hand other things that we hold with an open hand. Or, to quote Augustine, “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”
2. Jesus calls us to be “all together” in our vision. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Without a vision, the people perish.” In other words, we need the Word of God to guide us in what to do and how to do it. We then follow the vision together in prayer and ministry.
Division=2 Visions
3. Jesus calls us to be “all together” relationally. This can obviously be very challenging. How do we stay together, maintain our unity, and love each other in a godly way as brothers and sisters? Here are some biblical principles for us to follow:
A. Talk to people with love instead of talking about them (Proverbs 6:19, Ephesians 4:15).
B. Obediently follow the steps that Jesus outlined when someone wrongs us (Matthew 18:15-20).
C. Rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep (1 Corinthians 12:25-26).
D. Serve one another through love with a humble attitude (Galatians 5:13-14, Philippians 2:3-4).
E. Attempt to restore those who are living in sin (Galatians 6:1).
F. Bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2).
G. Forgive those who wrong us (Ephesians 4:32, see also Matthew 18).
Conclusion: Jesus said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). Can those around us tell that we are followers of Jesus by the way we treat our fellow Christians?
