The Pastor
A sermon series
My neighbor, Bob Love, sure does love pie.
After we got moved into the parsonage, he made us feel welcome.
One of the first things he did was give us a bag of apples.
And, one of the first things my wife did was bake him an apple pie.
As we stood talking in his driveway one night, he said his dad liked pie a lot too.
"My dad always said he liked two kinds of pie, hot and cold."
At the time this message will be delivered to my congregations in Thornville and Pleasantville it will be plenty cold outside.
No apples in sight.
Guess we'll have to run to the grocery store and hope they have some good apples around.
According to the website, Six Wise (www.sixwise.com), there are 7,500 different varieties of apples grown world wide.
2,500 of those are grown in the U.S.
Although, only 100 varieties are grown commercially.
It is not a big jump to make an analogy here and say that people are a lot like apples.
There are many different kinds of people world wide.
So many different nations and languages and cultures can be found, even right here in Ohio.
According to the Columbus International Visitors Council there are 130 nationalities living in Ohio, right now.
Now lets just make the jump to Thornville, Pleasantville and this local church.
On any given Sunday, there are 40 - 50 people here.
And, each one of them has a background, a historical reference, a family center to which they call home.
Each person has a mindset of their own and a philosophical take on life.
In the 4th chapter of Ephesians, Paul is writing to the Christians there and seems to understand their diverse set up.
For the first three chapters of Ephesians, he is very doctrinal, explaining God and his purposes.
The final three chapters, Paul is very practical, putting into practice everything he believes.
In this 4th Chapter he seems to understand that there are many different kinds of apples.
But, what Paul wants he hearers to grasp is that there needs to be a unity in all things.
Lets see what he has to say.
Ephesians 4:1-16
New International Version (NIV)
Unity and Maturity in the Body of Christ
4 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called ; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it[a] says:
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions[c]? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.There are many different kinds of apples. Many different kinds of people.
But there is One Lord. One Faith. One baptism. One God and Father of us all.
Paul says to all his apples, "I want you to live a life worthy of your calling."
My calling? Isn't that kind of a 'pastor' word?
Yes, pastors tend to speak in terms of being 'called' into ministry.
But, listen to Paul's words from earlier in Ephesians...
Ephesians 2:10
New International Version (NIV)
10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
We might even want to make reference to John's words in Revelation.
We covered some words last year from Revelation Chapter 3 where Jesus was telling the Church in Laodicea that they needed to be useful.
They have a purpose they were called to, they just needed to make up their minds to actually be useful.
Revelation 3:15
New International Version (NIV)
15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!
That's our calling.
If you know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you have been called to do good works in His Name.
Now, how are we supposed to do that? What are we supposed to do?
Well, Paul says here in Chapter 4...
2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
There's what we are supposed to do. There's how we are supposed to do it.
But, that is very general and not very specific.
How do I figure out in my daily life where these parameters work themselves out?
In the midst of all these 'apples' - these cultures, languages, ideals and political views, how do I live this way?
Isn't there somebody to show me how this stuff works?
A-ha. There is.
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
Finally, we get around to saying something about the pastor here.
The original emphasis here is to say that there were 'shepherds' or 'overseers'.
It will be brought on in the weeks ahead that the word 'pastor' is a newer word, in the last 500 years or so.
The word pastor would not have been an original word from Jesus' time.
SO, as things were translated from Greek to English, especially in the 20th century, we see this word and need to understand better what it means.
In the context of this passage, the pastor is just a piece of the pie
It will be brought on in the weeks ahead that the word 'pastor' is a newer word, in the last 500 years or so.
The word pastor would not have been an original word from Jesus' time.
SO, as things were translated from Greek to English, especially in the 20th century, we see this word and need to understand better what it means.
In the context of this passage, the pastor is just a piece of the pie
Christ has called all of us to work for Himself.
Many of you have gifts and abilities and capabilities.
Sitting amongst us today, where are the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, more pastors and, yes, teachers?
As we will see in the next few weeks, the role of 'pastor' takes on many of the roles we have just mentioned. (Apostle, prophet, evangelist, teacher)
But, what is the role of the pastor?
What is it that he/she is supposed to do in the context of the Body of Christ?
Well, lets look closer at the context of this passage.
Well, lets look closer at the context of this passage.
4 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
The pastor is just one of the workers who is supposed to have the goods you need to become the Christian you are supposed to be.
Like the others in this list, the pastor's work is to 'build you up'.
To help you become a part of the unity we need to see in the body of Christ.
To become mature.
Some folks struggle with that word. What does that mean exactly?
Definition of MATURE
adjective
1: based on slow careful consideration mature
2 a (1) : having completed natural growth and development : ripe (2) : having undergone maturation b : having attained a final or desired state <mature wine>
transitive verb
: to bring to maturity or completion
intransitive verb
1: to become fully developed or ripe
2: to become due
As a pastor, I can help you become mature.
I can make sure your faith is developed. That you trust God and depend on Him.
But, I can't give you my maturity.
It is something has to be developed, through patience and time.
And, hopefully, this is something the can become a description of you.
When people see and hear you, they will know that you are developed, mature, stable.
Hmm. As a pastor, I truly have my work cut out for me, don't I?
If you were an apple tree, or any plant for that matter, it would be my work to help you grow.
To give you the proper amount of water.
To make sure you had good sunlight.
To help you become a bright, tall, good plant with good fruit.
What kind of fruit, you say?
Paul had some words for the Galatians that fit here.
Galatians 5:22-23
New International Version (NIV)
And, that fruit can be used to, lets say, make a great pie.
Make sure you keep it away from Bob Love, though.
He really likes pie. Hot or Cold.
