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Skip Heitzig: Turn in your Bibles to Ephesians chapter 4. I am going to read a few of the same verses to bring us up to speed because we left off at verse 16. We want to continue with verse 17 eventually and then, by God's grace, finish chapter 4.

Did you know that the average American walks between 3,000 and 4,000 steps per day? Doctors will tell you that anything under 5,000 steps is considered a sedentary lifestyle. So according to the medical professionals, Americans need to walk a bit more to avoid being sedentary because you and I collectively average under the required amount of steps. We need to step it up a bit as Americans.

Well, we also have a spiritual walk. We make spiritual steps on a daily basis. Our soul has a walk and it is spiritual vitality. The idea of a walk in the scripture is a lifestyle. When the Bible uses the word walk in the New Testament, it uses a very interesting Greek word, peripateo, which means to walk about, to walk around.

The first time we read about a walk in the Bible is in the book of Genesis when it says that Adam and Eve heard the sound of God, the Lord their God, walking in the cool of the day in the garden. It's a beautiful thought, actually, that God walked with His creation. The idea of walk, holek in Hebrew, "Ani holek, I walk." The idea of holek or to walk originally was to be at ease with, to be conversant with, and to walk among in a very easygoing manner.

The way it is worded in the book of Genesis, it seems to indicate that this was a repetitive, daily, ongoing practice that God would regularly meet with Adam and Eve to enjoy fellowship with them, to walk with them. So we find this motif, this metaphor throughout the scripture. We touched on that beginning even last week's study that we have a spiritual walk. The Bible says we are to walk in love, walk in the spirit, walk in the light.

But on the flip side of that, we can also walk in darkness. First John chapter 1, I think verse 6, those who claim one thing but do another are walking in darkness, not telling the truth. We can walk according to the flesh, the book of Romans tells us. And so we looked at chapter 4 verse 1 where Paul said, "I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk." That's where he introduces the thought, to walk worthy of the calling with which you are called.

We can walk after the spirit, we can walk after the flesh, and when we walk after the spirit, we are walking worthy. When we walk after the flesh, we are not walking worthy. Some of you know what a skink is. A skink is a reptile, a very smooth, shiny reptile lizard that looks very similar to a snake's coating, very glossy, almost iridescent.

Sometime ago, an unusual skink was found by a couple in Jacksonville, Florida. This little reptile had two heads, one on either side of its body, facing two different directions. As the couple noticed it, found it, and studied it, when that little creature moved its legs, it was in trouble because it wanted to go in exact opposite directions.

A very frustrating way to live. One head wants to go one way, one head wants to go the other way. That'd be a very frustrating existence. Poor skink, poor Christian who wants to go one way but also go the other way, walk and gratify the flesh but also try to please God and walk in the spirit.

So the answer to that is summed up in verse 1 by walking worthy. Now, we've told you before that Ephesians can be divided into three: the wealth, the walk, and the warfare. We're going to get to the warfare at the end of the book, but in these intermediate chapters beginning in verse 4, it's all about the walk.

I told you last week that when Paul says walk worthy, that the word worthy, axios, is the word that means to weigh as much. I told you that the idea in the original language, the Greek language, is that one thing on a scale weighs as much as the other thing placed on a scale. So it's not out of balance, but perfectly in balance. What you put on this side equals what is on that side.

So you and I are to walk worthy of what? He says our calling, of the calling with which you are called. What is the name by which we call ourselves as believers typically? Christians. And you know that Christians was a term first used in Antioch of Syria. In chapter 11 of Acts, believers were first called Christians in Antioch.

The idea of the word probably wasn't a flattering term. It probably was a derogatory term like little Christs. Like, who do you think you are? You're always Jesus this and always Jesus that. It's Christ, Christ, Christ. You're Christians. It was a derogatory kind of a slam. But that name has stuck and through the centuries, what people regard us as is Christians, followers of Christ.

We bear the name Christian, Christ follower. So you and I, we need to live lives that are worthy of the name Christian, follower of Christ. Not perfect lives, no one can live that, no one's called you to live that, but consistent lives, one that is worthy of the calling.

And then after that, he describes what that is. A worthy walk is a humble walk. He says verse 2, "With all lowliness and gentleness." I know you're thinking Skip, you just said you're not going to go through it all. I'm not going to go through it all, but I want to bring you up to speed.

So a worthy walk is demonstrated by humility and he describes it in verse 2, even putting up with people or bearing up with one another in love. Sometimes people can just be obnoxious and cantankerous and they don't see it your way, so you've got to put up with them. That's part of it. A worthy walk is a walk in humility.

Also, a worthy walk is a walk in unity. Verse 3, "Endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, one spirit, as you were called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism." So there's one church, capital C, many churches, small c, but we serve one Master. We are called by one Master: Christian.

A person in a different church down the street, as long as they believe the essentials of the Christian faith, are brothers and sisters in Christ. So we ought to regard them as such. "Well, they don't believe in what I believe about the rapture." Endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. "Well, they speak in tongues every church." Endeavoring to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.

Some things are essential, some things are non-essential, as we discussed last week. So we have to endeavor what God by Jesus through the Holy Spirit put there, and that is the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. A word about unity, however. Unity does not mean uniformity. You can have differences of ideas and still have unity.

In my family, I had three brothers and, of course, two parents. So there were six of us. We were all quite different. Now, the boys all favored one or the other parents, but we were a mixture. Within our family, we didn't always get along, we didn't always agree on every subject, and there were differences in the way we lived. One was a night person, one was a morning person.

One would be loud, I would regard him as loud, and one would be soft, I would regard her, my mother, as being kind of quiet and soft-spoken while my dad was very loud and some of the brothers took after that. So there's differences in the family, but guess what? Same family. So we have to keep that in mind, endeavor to keep the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace.

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These resources will help you discover your identity in Christ and experience the lasting hope found in God's design for life and relationships. Your gift helps extend the reach of Connect with Skip Heitzig, connecting more people to God's word. Request your resources when you give $50 or more at connectwithskip.com/offer or by calling 800-922-1888. Now, here's more from Pastor Skip.

Skip Heitzig: So a worthy walk is a walk in humility, a walk in unity, but also it is a walk in diversity. Maybe I'm going to change the word because that's been ruined these days. So I'm going to say it includes individuality is perhaps a better way to see. You can have unity in diversity or unity and individuality at the same time.

Because look at verse 7, "But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift." So Paul now changes, I want you to see it textually, from speaking about us all to now speaking about each of you or each of us. So he goes from all to each.

Verse 6, he says, "One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in y'all." Now the change, "But to each one." There's the individuality. "But to each one grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift." So you can have unity through variety. And he talks about different gifts and we kind of talked a little bit about that last week.

How the body of Christ is diverse and individual and has variety, and it's a beautiful thing. And I think we need to stop trying to make people think like we think on every subject. I think it's a futile exercise. Unless these are the essentials of the Christian faith, it's not worth the fight. It's not worth the fight to impose your idiosyncrasies into every church or every group or every individual. Just enjoy, as we said last week, enjoy the variety.

Therefore, verse 8, he says, "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, gave gifts to men." Now this He ascended, what does it mean that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is also the one who ascended far above the heavens that He might fill all things.

And He gave, He Himself gave some to be apostles, prophets, evangelists, some pastors and teachers for the equipping of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. I said last week, and I don't expect you to remember everything I say from week to week, but I did mention that in verse 8, Paul is quoting Psalm 68, which was a victory hymn, probably of David ascending into Jerusalem and he pictured God laying claim over the city as victor over that part of the country, over His geographic inheritance.

But Paul applies this to Christ. So the idea is that just as an ancient general or king would capture a city and bring spoils of war with him that he captured, with prisoners of war with him, he would also take his own men that had been captured in the battle and recapture his men and give them the spoils of war, giving them the gifts. That's the picture.

So the idea is that when Jesus ascended into heaven, He set the captives free and at the same time gave us gifts, the spoils. The gifts, though, here are the gifts of the Holy Spirit. And he mentions not all, but some of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. So that is the idea that Paul is using here, that He sets us free and He gives us gifts.

This is important that we get. You'll recall that Jesus said to His disciples something they didn't understand when He said this to them. He told them that He was going away. He told them that they're going to be very sorrowful when He goes away. And that's not what they expected. They wanted Him to set up the kingdom. They anticipated He was the Messiah. They were waiting for a kingdom age, the kingdom rule.

But He said this to them: "It is expedient for you that I go away. It is beneficial for you that I go away. It's good that I am leaving you." Which I'm certain when He said that, they're going inside, "Uh-uh, uh-uh. Don't receive it. Not true. Nothing could be better than having you, Jesus, in the flesh with us 24/7."

But here's what Jesus said: "It is expedient for you that I go away because if I don't go, I can't send the Holy Spirit. But when I go, I'm going to send the Holy Spirit. He's going to help you. He's going to guide you into all truth." So He ascended into heaven, He poured out the Holy Spirit and gave to every person in the body of Christ the spoils of war, the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

To be used for what? He says verse 12, "For the equipping of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." One of Paul's favorite terms for the church: a body. It's a good picture. Think of your body. Your body and all of its ligaments and organs and 600 muscles all are receiving messages from the head, the upper neurons, motor neurons that fire and tell the muscles what to do, where to move.

And so your body is a smooth, coordinated, beautiful working. That's how the body of Christ is supposed to operate. Jesus is in charge. He's the head of the church. It's His desire, His design for you to fulfill some part of it. And so He gives certain gifts of the spirit for you to accomplish that.

But He gives the orders, He's the head. The Holy Spirit is like the nervous system that conveys the wishes of the head to the different parts of the body to move at just the right time. It's a beautiful, beautiful picture of what the church ought to be, a beautifully coordinated body, the body of Christ.

"Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God to a perfect man, or complete, mature, man or woman, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That we should no longer be children tossed to and fro, carried about with every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting."

So when we are walking worthy in humility and in unity and in individuality, exercising the gifts for the mutual edification of the body of Christ, it enhances unity, it produces maturity, and it adds stability. And that's sort of where we brought everything to a close last week.

But I draw your attention to that last little part of verse 14, that we no longer be children tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine by the trickery of men. We have an enemy. We have a great God, but we have a horrible enemy. And the enemy, one of Satan's chief characteristic and ploy is a little thing called deception.

And I think that that is probably his most effective tool. And if you are not grounded in the truth by the teaching of the word of God and the exercise of the gifts and the body working together, then you are going to be, you're like a spiritual gypsy. You're easy to blow this direction and that direction.

Remember what Paul said we were carried about in chapter 2. In times past, you walked according to the course of this world, the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience. Like a weather vane that turns with every wind, so too, even though you may be a believer in Christ, you can be swayed by the latest fad, the latest trend that may or may not be biblically based.

And if it blows and you blow with it, you might blow in the right direction, you might blow in the wrong direction. And so this is crucial. That's how Paul sees it and a worthy walk will mitigate against that. Verse 15 is important and I wish we could have gotten into it, but we couldn't and again, I'm ramping up to where we're starting tonight, which is verse 17.

"But speaking the truth in love." Please notice the beautiful balance of that. Paul doesn't just say, "But speaking the truth you may grow up in all things to Him." Nor does Paul say, "But loving everyone you must grow up in all things," but the combination: speaking the truth in love.

We need truth, we need love, and when you speak the truth in love, it is a powerful, unbeatable combination. Love without truth will lead to sentimentality. Truth without love will lead to insensitivity. You can just, "Oh, man, I love you whatever. You know, we're into different things and this. Don't, don't worry about doctrine and stuff, man, I love you." That's sloppy agape.

That's not responsible love. But if you are always honest and always truthful, but never loving, you're now using the truth as a bludgeon. And so love without truth leads to sentimentality, truth without love will tend toward insensitivity. Speaking the truth in love, you may grow up in all things into Him who is the head, Christ, the picture of the body.

From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies. You know, sometimes, and I've read through these verses so many times, but even now, right now, as I read through this verse, what jumps out at me is this: every joint supplies. And I'm looking out at every joint and how God has supplied our maturity by working through you and you and you, and yes, even you.

All of us. These are my pastors I'm poking fun at. But every joint supplies.

Guest (Female): We're so glad you joined us today on Connect with Skip Heitzig. Before you go, here's a reminder. When you give $50 or more this month, we'll send you the Expound Ephesians series along with Pastor Skip's book, Beyond the Summer of Love, as our thanks. These resources offer biblical insight and encouragement to help you grow in your faith and experience God's design for your life and relationships. Your support helps keep this Bible teaching ministry on the air, connecting more people to God's word. Give today at connectwithskip.com/offer or call 800-922-1888. See you next time.

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