Run the Play
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· 71 viewsWe are equipped with everything we need for victory over sin. Jesus is calling the plays, our Christian family stands with us as teammates. We just need to run the play.
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Verse 1 - “THEREFORE”
Paul starts out Ephesians 4 with “therefore”. There’s a sound teaching when it comes to Bible study, anytime you see the word “therefore”, it’s best you stop and figure out what it is there for. Hopefully, by the time we finish tonight, we will be able to answer this question in regards to the fourth chapter of Ephesians.
Read Ephesians 4
1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 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 grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says,
“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men.”
9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 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.
17 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20 But that is not the way you learned Christ!— 21 assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, 22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil. 28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. 29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Personal struggle with this message.....
Football season. Clemson: 8-0, ranked #4. Gamecocks: rough season, beat Georgia, played Florida tough until the fourth quarter
What if a football team NEVER ran a single play in a game? First down, the team takes the field, huddle up, the coach tells the quarterback what play he wants to run, the quarter back tells the team the play, they clap hands and then all run to the sideline, sit on the bench and wait for the play clock to run out. Second down, they all run out to the field, huddle up, the quarter back calls the play with enthusiasm; everyone is getting excited, they tell the quarterback what a good play it is; everyone claps hands and then all run to the sideline and watch the play clock run out.......this is how the entire game goes on offense and defense. The coach is calling the right plays, the quarterback delivers the plays with zeal, the team gets pumped up, happy, excited..........but never takes the field to actually execute a play......how successful do you think that team would be?
I imagine the team would be pretty bad, regardless of how much talent the team had, it would be impossible for them to win a game against any opponent.........
We would make jokes about how terrible that team is, laugh and jeer at them.
It dawns on me how often we, as Christians, are this team:
Get off the Sidelines and Take the Field
Get off the Sidelines and Take the Field
Paul tells us in
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,
Who are the saints?
2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:
Anyone who has been sanctified in Christ Jesus, all who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, is a saint.
That’s us!
Apostles, prophets = The Bible
Evangelists = Preachers, Shepherds = Pastors/Church Leaders, and teachers
Equip the saints = Connect you to the body, teach you God’s will, present you opportunities
The saints do the ministry
God’s field is out there in the world
This building, “church” is just the team huddle.
How often do we hear a rousing message from our Bible Teachers or Brother Ron, get excited about God’s Word, even so much to tell them what a great job they did; then walk out those doors and go about our lives on the sidelines until the next huddle?
How often do our fellow Christians struggle in their attempts to accomplish God’s work while we prioritize other things and sit on the bench? “Because”........you can put any reason behind that because, it doesn’t change that God’s work is priority #1, God’s call is to get off the sidelines and take the field.
The Whole Team is Needed for Success
The Whole Team is Needed for Success
However, you deciding to take the field is not enough
Wait. What? You just told me to get on the field........
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.
There is a reason why coaches rely on team meetings when things get particularly rough during a season
The greatest motivation for a team, comes from the team itself
You deciding to get on the field is step one
step two is getting the rest of the team on the field.
The difference between a good player and a great player is that a great player makes their teammates better
If you know of a Christian who is not plugged in, a teammate standing on the sidelines, urge them to the field
It’s not just the church leaders responsibility to organize and make things happen.........we are the saints, we ARE the ministry........
No amount of play calling will score without the whole team on the field.
Play Angry
Play Angry
So what happens when we all take the field? Guaranteed victory?
I don’t think so, I think how you play matters - Step 3
26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.
These two verses can be condensed to one statement: Be angry and give no opportunity to the devil.
Be angry? isn’t that un-Christian?
I appeal to Jesus in:
5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
Anger is an emotion, a strong one. It motivates us to an action. What makes it right or wrong is what we do with it.
Do we allow it motivate us to actions that are destructive, or do use it to motivate us to positive results.
The latter is what Paul wants us to do
When I read this verse, I couldn’t help but think of the movie Blindside. The movie is about Michael Ohr. Michael is a beast of a teenager. He’s twice the size and strength of most boys his age. But he is a gentle giant. He grew up amongst so much anger and violence that he learned to deal with it by internalizing everything so that he wouldn’t hurt anyone around him. Because of this, he got pushed around on the football field despite his size and strength. But there is a turning point in the movie where Michael reaches his potential. His team is playing against an opponent that everyone believes his team has no business on the field with. The fans, the refs, even his teammates chalk up the loss before the game even begins. The game begins and it seems they are right. The other teams best players are pushing him and his team around. The refs are even beating him down by calling anything he does positive a penalty. Then his coach stands up for him and the refs disrespect his coach too; and that’s when everything changes. You see, Michael has a special gift. He is extremely protective of those he loves, of his family. In this moment, he could have been justified in saying his team was not playing their best, he could have made a case for being angry with the coach for getting a penalty and making the situation even worse. Instead, his eyes were opened and he saw his coach and his team as his family and when he realized the other team and the refs were disrespecting his family, while he just showed up and did the little everybody expected of him, he became angry. But the anger didn’t lead him to start a fight or complain or quit. Instead, he decided to lead the way. The next play he took hold of that same player who had been pushing him around all game and ran him right off the field, legally. He made such a big hole in the defense that the running back could have made a pit stop at the concession stands and still scored. In fact, Michael took it to the other team the entire rest of the game in such a way that at the end of the game, the other teams best players were asking to be taken off the field because they were so thoroughly beaten. After the game, Michael’s team had won, and he was asked what he was thinking. He calmly responded: “It was time for them to go home.”
Claim Victory
Claim Victory
All of us spend time in the huddle
Sunday School
Sunday Service
Wednesday Service
Bible Study Groups
Online
All too often we break the huddle, run to the sidelines, watch the play clock run out, and complain when the team loses
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Don’t confuse me for saying that we should never be dissatisfied, I’m saying quite the opposite, we should be dissatisfied
It’s what we do with that dis-satisfaction that matters though
Dissatisfaction that sits in itself and remains as such is evil
Dissatisfaction that motivates action, change, positive results, a spiritual touchdown. That’s God’s play.
Paul is calling a team meeting in the book of Ephesians. Paul spends the first three chapters telling us that Christ is in control, Christ is calling the plays in our life, Jesus is our coach. Paul tells us that we all belong to Christ as redeemed saints, that every other Christian is a family member, they are our teammates. Paul points out that sin is against us and nobody gives us a chance. In Chapter 4, he tells us what comes next.......
Therefore..........
Don’t break the huddle and run to the sidelines.
God’s greatest gift to us is the opportunity to be on his team.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Therefore, break the huddle and be angry that Satan has the audacity to come against your team.
Therefore, break the huddle and be angry that sin is pushing around your teammates.
Therefore, break the huddle and be angry that Jesus stood up for you and the world disrespects Him.
Therefore, break the huddle,
re-take the field speaking truth in love,
rally your teammates, stand beside them, and build up those who are struggling
run God’s play, the ministry of the saints
and let Satan, sin, and the world know that it is time for them to go home.