Ephesians
Pastor Gordon Crook
Chapter 4
“Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:” Ephesians 4:8-15
Paul quotes from the Old Testament here. “Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD God might dwell among them.” Psalm 68:18. Clearly he understands this as a prophecy fulfilled by Jesus. While we do not have very specific details about what exactly happened here, it does seem to speak of something that Jesus did while His body was in the grave.
The souls of those that had died in faith before, were held in “captivity” in “the lower parts of the earth.” Jesus told the thief that he would be with Him in “paradise” that day. We do not need to know or understand all of the details of this place to understand that Jesus won the final victory and therefore He was able to take “captivity captive.” Another translation says “He led a host of captives.” He was there to tell them that victory was complete and they were now free.
What matters most to us to realize that Jesus has gained the victory for us and has ascended on high where He intercedes for us. And, because He won the victory over death and sin, we now have victory. “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 15:55-57
And so He gives gifts to men that are for edification. Never were any of these gifts intended to lift up a person or give someone license to pretend to be more than someone else. They have very clear use. “Perfecting” (maturing) of the “saints” (believers) which is God’s ultimate purpose in this world. While many in Christendom today are busy working on some religious requirements, God is busy maturing a bride for His Son.
Paul’s message is all about this bride and it is very clear that she will be mature. He speaks of “babes in Christ” in 1 Corinthians 3:1 and even there he is desiring to help them grow up and mature. Peter encourages “babes” to grow by taking in the Word of God in truth in 2 Peter 2:2.
The measure of this maturity is “the stature of the fulness of Christ.” We already have learned this concept several times in this letter: “him that filleth all in all,” “Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone,” “that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.” Jesus is all in all, and everything comes together in Him. He is indeed the measure of the stature of maturity for all believers.
There is a tendency in the flesh to want to compare ourselves to others, but that will never lead to true spiritual maturity. Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 10:12 that we do not compare ourselves to others or measure based on others, because our only measure is Jesus.
One indication of maturity is no longer being tossed around by every thing we hear. The mature believer is getting into the Word and knows what it says. This is not to say that we know everything and have no more to learn. However, we recognize when someone is presenting something that is contrary to God’s Word.
There are certainly many that want to present some “gospel” that is contrary to the actual true Gospel of God’s grace. It might be from ignorance, or from some personal benefit to themselves. It might be sincere; but sincere can be very wrong. We need to be grounded enough to realize that if someone is adding some requirement to the Gospel of salvation by grace alone, we can ignore that.
Some are truly being deceitful. We can ignore them and stay away from them. Paul gives multiple warnings to Timothy to “avoid,” “flee,” “not give heed,” “to refuse,” to “withdraw from such.” It is not always good or necessary to try to refute or stand up to these.
Notice that our response is to speak “the truth in love.” This is important if someone wants to listen. It is not about being smarter or better than another, but truly desiring the best for each believer. Speaking in love does not berate the other person, but truly attempts to help them see the truth as it is written.
And, finally, we are growing up into Him (Jesus). We are not attempting to make ourselves something that can be compared to someone else. Our relationship with Jesus is personal, and our growth is personal. I am growing up into Jesus, and you are growing up into Jesus.
Jesus is the head of the church (His body). He is not head because we say so or because we decided to let Him be. He is head because God made Him head, and nothing anyone does will replace Him in that capacity, even though some try to do just that. Whether or not He is your head is up to you to allow. Mature believers recognize Him as head and welcome His headship in their lives. Grow up into HIM.
