Tuesday, September 25, 2018 - Ephesians 6:24
Grace Orientation as noted in the Book of Ephesians, Pt. 5
Our Grace Spiritual Gifts from God.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgJeCgu2jzs

Grace Fellowship Church

Pastor/Teacher, Jim Rickard

www.GraceDoctrine.org

www.facebook.com/GraceDoctrine

5. The Encouragement, vs. 21-24.  

Eph 6:24, “Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love.”

10. Eph 4:7, “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.”

In the context of this verse being unity within the church, the body of Christ, we see several principles of grace.

The first thing we see about grace in this passage, is that it is “given” to us, just as in Eph 3:2, 7-8, with the utilization of the Passive use of the verb DIDOMI, “give, give out, hand over, entrust to, etc.” It means, “to give of one’s own accord and with good will and to give as an expression of generosity.” That means that God is the source of grace, God is the cause of grace, God is the provider of grace, God is the supplier of grace, God is the benefactor of grace, God is the “gifter” of grace, and God is the worker of grace in our lives.

In the application of the word “grace” in the book of Ephesians we see:

In Eph 1:2, Grace is, “from.”

In Eph 1:6, Grace is, “freely bestowed.”

In Eph 1:7, Grace is, “lavished upon.”

In Eph 2:5, Grace is, “by God.”

In Eph 2:7, Grace is, “shown toward us.”

In Eph 2:8, Grace is, “gifted by God.”

In Eph 3:2, Grace is, “given,” to me for you.

In Eph 3:7, Grace is, “given,” according to the working of His power.

In Eph 3:8, Grace is, “given,” to preach the unfathomable riches of Christ.

In Eph 4:7, Grace is, “given,” according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

In Eph 4:29, Grace is, “to give grace.”

In Eph 6:24, Grace is, “to be with you.”

The other context we have in this verse is the application of your spiritual gift that God, in and by His grace, gave to each one of us at the moment or our conversion. Within the body of Christ, each member enjoys a share of God’s grace. As in Eph 3:2, this grace is for equipping rather than saving. Therefore, as the Holy Spirit works to develop unity among God’s people, He also takes into account our individuality based on the spiritual gift, ministry, and effect the grace of God has given to us. In fact, He uses our differences to attain that unity, cf. 1 Cor 12:4-7.

1 Cor 12:4-7, “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. ⁵And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. ⁶There are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons. ⁷But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”

As we noted in Eph 3:8, in 1 Cor 12:4, “gifts” is the Greek word CHARISMA, a cognate of CHARIS or grace, that means, “A gift, grace, or favor.” In 1 Cor 12:4, it emphasizes the spiritual gift itself as a grace gift from God. Therefore, the giving of spiritual gifts is truly one of the great graces we have received from God personally, as well as the entire Church, Rom 11:29; 12:6.

Spiritual gifts are a supernatural endowment of the Holy Spirit whereby every Christian is empowered to perform a certain function which edifies the Church and glorifies God, Rom 12:3-8; 1 Cor 12:4ff. The function of Spiritual Gifts is noted in Rom 12:1‑8. The team concept of Spiritual Gifts is noted in 1 Cor 12:1‑31. Notice, that the “grace” of all three members of the Trinity is involved in the giving and application of our spiritual gifts.

Rom 12:6, “Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly…”

All three members of the Trinity are the source of our spiritual gifts:

  a. God the Father is the source as noted in Heb 2:4.

  b. God the Son is the source of Spiritual Gifts as noted in Eph 4:7-8.

  c. God the Holy Spirit gives a Spiritual Gift to each of us at salvation as He wills, 1 Cor 12:11; Heb 2:4.

In 1 Cor 12:4-6, each “variation” has a different empowerment from the Godhead:

  a. Gifts - the Holy Spirit is the giver and enabler. He gave us our gift; the skills needed to play on the team. (Using American football as an example: a person having good hands to catch the ball.)

  b. Ministries - the Lord Jesus Christ is the ultimate example of the humble servant in the prototype spiritual life. He determines the position we will play on the team. (For example a wide receiver.)

  c. Effects - God the Father is the planner and designer. He determines what the responsibilities of our position will be. (For example will this receiver be a deep threat or run short patterns over the middle.)

As such, it is inconsistent to say, “I am a Christian, but I do not have a ministry,” because the Holy Spirit gives us a spiritual gift, Jesus Christ gives to every Christian a ministry in order to use their spiritual gift, and God the Father has designed from eternity past the effect our gift and ministry will have during our time here on planet earth. All of this comes from the grace of God. Therefore, your spiritual gift is a God-given ability to serve God and other Christians in such a way that believers are edified and Christ is glorified. Nevertheless, the indwelling Holy Spirit empowers each of us to perform to the fullest the task at hand in the position we have been given inside the body of Christ, 1 Cor 12:7.

There are two categories of Spiritual Gifts:

  a. Temporary Spiritual Gifts were operational during the pre-canon period of the Church Age, i.e., from A. D. 30, the day of Pentecost when the Church Age began, to approximately A.D. 96. On the day the Church Age began there was no New Testament. Therefore, temporary Spiritual Gifts were designed to take up the slack in the Church Age until the New Testament canon was completed and circulated, and the mystery doctrine of the Church Age was reduced to writing. 1 Cor 13:8-10, explains the temporary function of certain Spiritual Gifts

  b. Permanent Spiritual Gifts also functioned from the day of Pentecost and will continue until the Rapture of the Church, whenever that occurs.

The following is a list of the Spiritual Gifts for the Church Age:

  a. The Temporary Gifts included the following: 1) The gift of Apostleship, 2) Prophecy, 3) Miracles, 4) Healing, 5) Tongues (languages), 6) Interpreting Tongues, and 7) Discerning Spirits.

  b. The Permanent Gifts include: 1) The gift of Pastor and Teacher, 2) Evangelism, 3) Administration, government, or ruling, 4) Ministering or Service, 5) Helps, 6) Exhortation, 7) Giving, 8) Showing Mercy, and 9) Faith.

  c. There are two other gifts that are applied to the Church, 1) Word of Knowledge, and 2) Word of Wisdom, cf. Acts 6:3, 8-10; 1 Cor 12:8; 13:2, 8, where the first most likely has ceased, i.e., was temporary, 1 Cor 13:8.

We are all commanded to use our spiritual gift, 1 Peter 4:10. Therefore, learning what your grace gift is will equip you to serve God and man.

1 Peter 4:10, “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

Next, we see in our verse, Eph 4:7, as in Eph 3:7, “gifts,” is the Greek Noun DOREA, δωρεά that means, “gift, free gift, or present.” The emphasis here is upon the “freeness” or unearned nature of Jesus’ gift bestowed upon us. DOREA is used here to emphasize the grace giving aspect of the gift, rather than the gift itself, as in Rom 12:6; 1 Cor 12:4; 1 Tim 4:14; 1 Peter 4:10, etc., with the word CHARISMA.

In the context of Eph 4:8-13, Christ specifically freely gave the communication spiritual gifts to the Church, “¹²For the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; ¹³until 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.”

Compared to the other texts on gifts, in our passage we see the exalted, Christ-centered focus. Paul highlights Christ’s generosity and authority. Jesus Christ died, rose, and ascended into heaven as the victorious King with all authority and gave gifts to His people, displaying extravagant grace and generosity.

Therefore, “grace given according to the measure of Christ’s gift,” is speaking about God’s grace in the granting of communication spiritual gifts by Jesus Christ so that His Word, Bible doctrine, would be made available to and for the Church so that each member could grow and excel with our own spiritual gift to build the body of Jesus Christ.

And finally, this is another example of how Jesus is a grace giver! Being the victor at the Cross and winning the spoils of the war of the Angelic Conflict, at His resurrection, Jesus then distributed the spoils He won. The spoils of His victory are spiritual gifts to the Church, especially the communication spiritual gifts, as noted in vs. 11. Have you ever thought of your spiritual gift as a “spoil of warfare?”

Likewise, in our Christ-like nature, we too are to be grace givers. We are to be generous with the use of the spiritual gifts we have received. These gifts are ways in which we extend the ministry of Jesus on this earth for the building up and growth of the Church. This means that if you do not exercise your gift in the body, you stunt the growth of us all. Therefore, when you see spiritual gifts at work, you should adore God who gave them. When someone’s gift blesses you, you should see that as God blessing you with the result that you praise Him!