Sunday School Lesson

1. Ephesians 4:11-16
Walking Together
October 20, 2019
First Baptist Church
Jackson, Mississippi
USA

2. What’s the number one thing?
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3. The Glory of God!
http://www.thecitychurch.org.uk/sites/default/files/glory-god.jpg

4. 1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV
31 Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you
do, do all to the glory of God.
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5. References
• Lenski, R. C. H., The Interpretation of St. Paul's Epistle to the
Galatians, Ephesians and Philippians, Augsburg Publishing House,
Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1937
• Mullins, E. Y., Studies in Ephesians and Colossians, (Sunday School
Board, Southern Baptist Convention, Nashville, TN, 1913)
• Lloyd-Jones, D. Martin, Christian Unity: An Exposition of Ephesians
4:1-16, Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, 1980
• New American Standard Bible, (A. J. Holman Company, Philadelphia,
1976)

6. Setting and Date
• Conservative scholarship would have Paul writing Ephesians,
Philemon, and Colossians at roughly the same time.
• Lenski suggests the same day.
• We believe they were written in the late summer of 62 AD during
Paul’s first imprisonment in Rome.
• Philippians was likely written about six months later during the
same imprisonment.

7. Outline of Ephesians
•From the Lesson on 10/13/19.
•Chapters 1-3:
▪ Emphasis on doctrine of Christianity.
- What we are in Christ.
- Our position in Christ.
•Chapters 4-6:
▪ Our duty and responsibilities of Christian behavior.
- Our response to Christ living in us.
- Believers are to walk in unity.

8. Outline of Ephesians
• Very simplified by Mark A. Copeland in “A Harmony of the Life of
Paul.”
• Chapters 1-3: Doctrine: Our riches in Christ.
• Chapters 4-6: Duty: Our responsibilities in Christ.

9. Outline of Ephesians
• Very simplified by R. E. Glaze.
• Chapters 1-3: Unity in Christ.
• Chapters 4-6: Unity in the Church.

10. Unity in Christ
• Ephesians 1:10 NASB
10 with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the
times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the
heavens and things on the earth. In Him
• Ephesians 1:22 NASB
22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as
head over all things to the church 23 which is His body, the fullness of
Him who fills all in all.

11. Unity in Christ
•Ephesians 2:4-6 NASB
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great
love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were
dead in our transgressions, made us alive together
with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and
raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the
heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

12. Unity in Christ - Unity in the Church
•Ephesians 2:11-3:20
•Gentiles are brought into unity with Jews.
•Ephesians 4:1-3 NASB
1 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to
walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you
have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness,
with patience, showing tolerance for one another in
love, 3 being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace.

13. Unity in Christ - Unity in the Church
•While Paul does not specifically mention them in
chapters 1-3, his discussion of them in 4-6 leads us to
understand that Christ also brings unity among:
•Husbands and Wives - Ephesians 5:22-33
•Parents and Children - Ephesians 6:1-4
•Masters and Slaves (employers & employees) -
Ephesians 6:5-9

14. Unity in Christ - Unity in the Church
• Last week’s lesson began chapter 4, which deals with unity within the
body.
• The formal and informal church.
• Paul may be addressing the challenge of unity within the church first
because, by comparison, unity within marriages, families, and the
workplace is easy.

15. Pride
Insecurity
Selfishness
Distrust
Shame

16. Unity in Christ - Unity in the Church
•Ephesians 4:4-7 NASB
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you
were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord,
one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all
who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace was given according to
the measure of Christ’s gift.

17. “according to the measure of Christ’s gift.”
• Why would Paul draw attention to “the measure of Christ’s gift,”
unless it was to remind us that, as with everything else about Jesus,
His gift would also be perfect, complete, lacking in nothing.
• There is nothing lacking in the grace you received.

18. Ephesians 4:11-13 NASB
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as
prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as
pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints
for the work of service, to the building up of 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 a mature
man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to
the fullness of Christ.

19. Ephesians 4:14 NASB
14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here
and there by waves and carried about by every wind of
doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful
scheming;15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow
up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held
together by what every joint supplies, according to the
proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of
the body for the building up of itself in love.

20. Conclusion
• The unity that is worth pursuing is the unity that comes from and
exists in Christ.
• Our ability to find peace, fulfilment, success, etc., depends on our
maintaining unity with Christ.
• Working with others in the church depends on our connection to the
head of the church, Christ.
• As a final exhortation, look at what Paul wrote a few months after his
letter to the Ephesians in Philippians 2:1-4.

21. Conclusion
• Philippians 2:1-4 NASB
1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there
is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the
Spirit, if any affection and compassion, 2 make my joy
complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same
love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing
from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of
mind regard one another as more important than
yourselves; 4 do not merely look out for your own personal
interests, but also for the interests of others.

22. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
John 3:16-17 NKJV
16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His
Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the
world through Him might be saved.”
John 14:6 NKJV
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No
one comes to the Father except through Me.”

23. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Romans 3:23 NKJV
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23a NKJV
23a For the wages of sin is death,
• Death in this life (the first death) is 100%.
• Even Jesus, the only one who doesn’t deserve death, died in this
life to pay the penalty for our sin.
• The death referred to in Romans 6:23a is the “second death”
explained in Revelation 21:8.

24. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Revelation 21:8 NKJV
8 “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral,
sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns
with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
• Anyone who’s lifestyle is one or more of the sins listed in Revelation 21:8,
will experience the “second death,” if they do not repent.
• To Repent means to turn around, to go in the opposite direction, to turn
away from sin and to come to Jesus.
Romans 5:8 NKJV
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still
sinners, Christ died for us.

25. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Romans 6:23b NKJV
23b but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
Revelation 21:7 NKJV
7 “He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will
be his God and he shall be My son.”
• In Romans 10:9-10 it is explained to us how to become
overcomers.

26. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Romans 10:9-10 NKJV
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and
believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead,
you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto
righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation.
Romans 10:13 NKJV
13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

27. The Plan of Hope & Salvation:
Do you have questions?
Would you like to know more?
Please, contact First Baptist Church Jackson at 601-949-1900
or http://firstbaptistjackson.org/contact/