BIBLE STUDY

The following is a transcript from Pastor Benny’s live Fresh Manna teaching. I’m so glad to be teaching from the book of Ephesians Chapter 4. How I love doing this! I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for being my partner. I pray the Lord this year will bless you, anoint you, use you, and increase you in every way in Jesus’ wonderful name, amen. Ephesians 4:1Open in Logos Bible Software (if available), “I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you”. I love the way Paul begins as he opens his heart and talks about unity in the church. And there, he begins by saying, “I therefore, the prisoner”. You know he was a prisoner of the Roman authorities. Yet, he would call himself here, “the prisoner of the Lord”. That is a man who was completely sold out. “Beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called”. The calling of God is so important to all of us. And he is asking us, beseeching us that we would walk worthy of the calling, of the life we’ve been called to live for Him. In Ephesians 1:4Open in Logos Bible Software (if available) Paul the apostle talks about the calling where he says, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world”. Then in verse 18 of the same chapter, he really prays here that we should know why we’ve been called. He said, “The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling”. But then in Ephesians 4:1-2Open in Logos Bible Software (if available), he says, now, walk worthy of this calling. God has called “before the foundation of the world”. I pray the eyes of your understanding will see why He has called you. But now, walk worthy of it. And he shows us how to walk worthy of it where he begins in verse 2, “With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; [3] Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” He shows us five things here that really make us worthy in this calling of God. Number one, he says, “With all lowliness”. We must humble, we must walk before the Lord in humility. Now, the word here means to depend on God, to get you there, to get you to where He has called you to go. Remember, God is looking for a broken heart because the Scripture says, a broken heart, O Lord, thou wilt not despise. Someone who is walking in humility is walking in brokenness before the Lord knowing that He’s the one who’s all worthy of praise. If you remember the Lord in Matthew 6:33Open in Logos Bible Software (if available) He said something so amazing to each one of us. He asks us in Matthew to seek first the Kingdom of God, put His interests ahead of ours, in other words, “seek ye first the kingdom” let God’s Kingdom be first in your life, let His cause, His agenda come ahead of yours. We go back now to Ephesians where Paul says we ought to walk in “lowliness”, we ought to walk knowing that God’s Kingdom comes first not our own agenda. So we walk in “lowliness” and then he said “meekness”. The word “meekness” means that God is in control not us, where we allow Him to lead. And then he goes on to say “with longsuffering” with patience because we’ll go through trials and tribulations. Here he’s saying, don’t give up! “Longsuffering”. See, the call of God, once you’re in it, you’ll be harassed by the devil, you’ll be attacked, all kinds of things will happen, you know that and I know that. Trials will come at you. That’s why we must never ever be discouraged and give up and say, no, I don’t want this. The Christian life demands persecution. Jesus said you’ll have it. He said the word will bring persecution. And it’s just a part of being a Christian. That’s why Paul says “Long suffering”.But then he goes on and begins to talk about unity in the church because he says, “forbearing one another in love”, bear with one another. But you really cannot do that without love. None of what I said frankly can happen without love. We cannot walk in “lowliness” or “meekness” or“longsuffering” without loving the Lord and His people. Now, he says, “forbearing one another”. The word “love” in the Greek has four meanings. The first Greek word for “love” is “eros”, E-R-O-S and that’s the kind of love between husband and wife. The second word for “love” in the Greek is “philia”. That’s the kind of love between friends. Third, “storge” that is the kind of love between family members. But then “agape” and that’s the word Paul used here in verse 2, “forbearing one another in love”, “agape”, seeking the highest good, love that is never conquered. That’s the kind of love that God imparts into our hearts that seeks the highest good of the other person. And that love can never be conquered. Therefore this love is birthed by the Spirit. It is impossible to produce this love with our own abilities and strength. So, when Paul says, “forbearing one another in love”, you and I know we got to ask the Holy Ghost for this. And then he says, “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” And there we see the Holy Spirit mentioned for He is the one who helps us walk in “lowliness” and “meekness” and “longsuffering, forbearing one another”. Now he says, “Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”