Identity of the Church That You May Know

Identity of the Church

That You May Know

In the previous 5 lessons from Paul’s letter to the saints at Ephesus Paul is telling them, and us, who we are in Christ. Describing the many spiritual blessings that are found in Christ Paul says we are the saints, chosen, predestined, adopted, redeemed, and sealed. Let me describe two ways we can practice our faith.

Vertical Christianity:

  • Godly Love – Service, Sacrifice, and Obedience.
  • Faithfulness – To God’s Word till Death.

Horizontal Christianity:

  • Genine Fellowship within the Family of God that extends love toward all the saints.
  • Genuine Love for the Lost that Develops a need for sharing the good news.
  • Vertical Christianity practicing the faith once delivered in hope of the return of Jesus, by pressing “toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14), by serving the Lord and Master Jesus.
  • While Horizontal Christianity is reaching out to others, being, …rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for ourselves a good foundation for the time to come, that we may lay hold on eternal life” (1 Tim. 6:18-19).
  • Truth is, we cannot be faithful and love the things of this world (1 John 2:15). We cannot be faithful and not practice love toward our brothers and sisters (1 Pet. 2:17), nor can we be faithful and not desire to help seek and save lost souls as our Lord did for us (Luke 19:10).
  • Our Christianity hangs on these two principles from Jesus: “37…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt. 22:37-39).
  • Truth demands that we live beyond ourselves. As God’s children, we cannot live for self, we must live for Jesus.
  • We are called to live according to will of God (Matt. 7:21) thus we live to “serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear” (Heb. 12:28), we live to “serve one another” (Gal. 5:13), and we “walk as children of light” (Eph. 5:8) exposing the works of darkness (Eph. 5:11).

In our lesson we will learn from Paul two things: What God Wants You To Have (1:15-17) and What God Wants You To Know (1:18-23)…