6 The Church, Forgiveness and Eternal Life: Ephesians 4:1-13
6
The Church, Forgiveness and Eternal Life
Ephesians 4:1-13
. . . the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
To believe in Jesus Christ is to believe in and belong to a dynamic community that spans the centuries. The Greek word ekklesia, used in the New Testament to refer to the church, denotes not a building but a group of people. It literally means “those who are called out.” The church is not a static building but a dynamic pilgrim people who are constantly moving on in faith and obedience. It includes those who have gone ahead of us and those who will follow. It is a great fellowship of faith, spanning the ages and the continents.
GROUP DISCUSSION. Identify as many things as possible that your church has in common with Christians of other denominations or fellowship groups. Consider both inward beliefs and outward practices. Do the results of your informal survey surprise you?
PERSONAL REFLECTION. What are your attitudes toward Christians who belong to denominations different from yours? Which aspects of your beliefs and their beliefs feel most divisive, and which feel most unifying?
When the Apostles’ Creed uses the term catholic, it means “according to the whole” or “universal.” In saying that the church is catholic we affirm that its message is valid and relevant to every age and every situation. In several of his letters, Paul wrote of Christians’ essential unity that underlies a diversity of gifts for service. Read Ephesians 4:1-13.
1. According to this Scripture, what do all Christian believers have in common? Find as many responses as possible.
2. What are some practical ways that Christians can “keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (v. 3)? Consider not only theoretical ways but ways you have seen this actually happen.
3. After building a strong case for unity in verses 1-6, Paul abruptly switches to ways Christians differ (vv. 7-11). According to this Scripture, how are Christians dissimilar even in unity?
4. What is the relationship between Jesus’ incarnation and his granting of gifts to his people (vv. 7-10)?
5. How does this Scripture passage express what the Apostles’ Creed calls “the communion of saints”?
6. The creed expresses belief in “the forgiveness of sins” with no attempt to explain the idea or elaborate on it. Where in this Scripture passage do you see the idea of reconciliation between God and human beings?
7. How do the various gifts of service named in verse 11 contribute to the unity of the church?
8. Christ ascended in triumph (vv. 7-10) and lives forever. What different perspective on life can believers have because of the certainty, as the creed expresses, of “the life everlasting”?
9. What will be the ultimate result of Christians’ gifts working together (vv. 12-13)?
10. How would you describe maturity in Christ (v. 13)?
11. As you look back on these six studies, what new insights have you gained about the Apostles’ Creed and the faith it expresses?
12. Where would you like to deepen your understanding of the beliefs expressed in the creed?
Pray that your God-given gifts of service will be used to build up Christ’s church.