What The Church Is All About (Ephesians 1:22-23)

Introduction

So I want to talk to you this morning in regard to what the church is all about. Now you think you know where I’m going with this, and you may or may not. And I like it that way. If you were going to say what the church is all about, what would you say? Insert the book of Ephesians here. We could talk about so many verses in Ephesians, and we’re going to reference a few. The first thing that I would say right out of the chute is that the church is not about a physical meeting place or a physical facility. This is just a building so that the church can meet. So that the church can do what she is instructed to do. It is not a physical, but a spiritual building.

I would take you to Ephesians two for that. A habitation of God in the Spirit, the King James Version says, a dwelling of God in the Spirit, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets. And of course, I can’t go very long without talking about the church in relation to salvation. And I would take you to chapter one for that, and really we probably need to read the whole chapter, but I’m going to assume some awareness of the things of chapter one. If not, I’ll just say focus on verse 7. Who is the church? Those who have received redemption through his blood. Not really what is the church, but who is the church? Those who have received forgiveness for trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, and these he freely bestowed the previous verse on those in the blood, those who have a relationship with Christ.

And I have these phrases highlighted. I don’t use a highlighter much, but I do have these phrases highlighted in my Bible in Ephesians 1 and verse 6 to the praise of the glory of his grace. Verse 12. Those that hope in Christ should be to the praise of his glory. And then again in verse 14, to the praise of his glory. More on that in a minute. But we come to the end of chapter 1. The church is his body. The church sustains a unique relationship to Jesus Christ. He is the head of the body, the church. This is the realm of those who are the saved. Obviously, it is a sphere or a relationship that is about edifying one another. The equipping of the saints in Ephesians chapter 4, the fullness of all of God’s intentions being brought about in us, his people.

And that’s one of the reasons why we’ve come here today, and we’ll do so again tonight at 5 o’clock. To provide strength to do the things that the Lord has bid us do. And there’s also an aspect of the fact that we are the reflection of his truth. We are to be practicers of the truth. Truth is in him, according to Ephesians chapter 4. And thus we lay aside all that is false and evil from our lives because we practice truth. And then I have to go outside of Ephesians just briefly and mention 1 Timothy 3 15. The church of the Living God, which is a pillar and support of truth. And I just want to say something about the church and her mission as an aside here on this particular point, that we’re about the business of something that no other entity on earth is doing.

Or at least so commissioned by the Lord to be those who practice and dispense truth to the world. And that’s why we must not get sidetracked in what I might call humanitarian endeavors, which so many churches do. We have this wealth and affluence of our times, and so perhaps we can do some things to alleviate the human condition and make it better. And so churches then become focused on the humanitarian aspects of life. But let me redefine this for you. In the dispensing of truth, we are ultimately being more humanitarian. Because according to 1 Thessalonians 5 and verse 23, our aim is to preserve body, soul, and spirit. At the coming of the day of the Lord, of the coming of the day of Jesus. And so as we try to dispense soul-saving truth, as been said here and throughout the world, we are doing something unique in the world, and we must not compromise this all important mission that God has given us.

1. To Him Be the Glory in the Church

We need to dedicate our resources to this mission first and foremost. There are a lot of great humanitarian organizations of the world, but the benefits they provide are only temporary. We’re talking about eternal benefits. And so as we talk about what the church is all about, we could talk about all those things, and I could go on for hours. But there’s something else. And this also in Ephesians in chapter 3, verses 20 and 21 that I want you to see. And it’s that verse that talks about him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think. I read that verse all the time and go, that is just incredible. I mean, how do you wrap your mind around that? He is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or even think.

So God is capable. I wonder sometimes how strongly we buy into that, how strongly we believe that in the midst of our circumstances. But that’s what Paul is saying, and he doesn’t need to do a miracle to do that. But this, what follows that. And I have this highlighted in my Bible as well, as I just now noticed. To him be the glory in the church. Now, all of these other things are a part of what the church is about. But I want you to notice the emphasis of Paul in Ephesians. I read those three phrases in chapter one to the praise of the glory of his grace. And now he says in chapter three in verse 21, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus, same concept.

Those who share a relationship or have communion, come share the Lord, those who have communion with Christ to all generations forever and ever. So when I talk about what the church is all about, it is to the praise of his glory. Let us think about the church in relation to the concept of giving God the praise that he is due. As Ben was talking about our inability to repay the debt for what God has done, for what Christ made possible for us. That ought to naturally cause us to extol him with praises. A quote from Charles Spurgeon. It’s actually found in J.I. Packer’s book, Knowing God on page 13, the highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy which can ever engage the attention of a child of God is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls Father.

It is a subject so vast that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity, so deep that our pride is drowned in its infinity. Other subjects we can compass and grapple with, like math, I’ll throw that in. Maybe. In them, we feel a kind of self-content and go our way with the thought, behold, I am wise. Okay, I wouldn’t have had that. But on some subjects. But when we come to the master science, finding that our eagle eye cannot see its height, we turn away with the thought that man would be wise. In other words, our look at God reveals something so vast and so immense and so beyond our abilities to even completely fathom. So is our impression of him.

2. The Reasons for God's Praise in the Psalms

It is a rule, it’s a requirement. God wants me to do it, therefore I’ll do it. And yet our hearts aren’t in it. If we understand what the church is really all about, I really believe we would instead desire it, crave it, want to. To bring God the praise that belongs rightfully to him. And so as I talk about what the church is all about, I want to talk about the church and her praise. And if we’re going to talk about the praise that is due to God, where would you turn? I would go to the Psalms. And again, there’s 150 Psalms. We don’t have time, obviously, for all 150 Psalms. But what are some of the themes we see in the book of Psalms in regard to the reasons for God’s praise?

What he has done in creation alone. But beyond that, what he has done in history. His character, his mercy, his knowledge, his power, his wisdom, his holiness. And the fact that he is eternal by nature. Let me give you a flavor of each of these quickly. And we’re not going to read all of these Psalms, but I just want to give you a place, and you can write these down and look at it more deeply if you’re of a mind to do so. In Psalm 29, in regard to God’s work in creation, verse 3.

The God of glory thunders. He makes Lebanon skip like a calf. I’m not sure of all the implications of that in verse 6, but that’s quite a feat. The voice of the Lord makes the deer to calm in verse 9. And in his temple, everything says glory.

Yes, the Lord sits as king forever. And this is just one of a number of Psalms dedicated to God’s work in the creation of the world.

Some have suggested the fact that I now weekly record 60 minutes suggests how old I’m getting. Maybe that’s true. I don’t know why I started that last year. I guess because there were some news stories and things that were relevant that they were covering last week. There was a segment done on the Hubble telescope. Now I’ve heard about Hubble. Originally intended to be a 15-year mission, is now at year 27. This telescope that was launched by the Space Shuttle Discovery has been up orbiting the Earth for 27 years and getting a unique vantage point with which to look into the universe. It is about to be replaced in 2019. Or at least that’s the intention to have it replaced by the James Webb telescope. I don’t know.

I just like the name Hubble better. But apparently, James Webb is even going to be more awesome. But you know what’s happened with Hubble through the years? There have been five space shuttle missions that have sent astronauts out to work and replace and upgrade things on the Hubble. One astronaut did it three times. And you know what Hubble did? It peered into the dark space just above the Big Dipper. You ever notice around the Big Dipper? It’s pretty dark, and that’s why we see the outline of that constellation in the sky. And so it was just peering, and it’s able to do this to peer back into the darkness for a long period of time. It stays on that one spot. And you know what it discovered?

The pictures that it sent back. Not just more stars, but galaxies. Like hundreds of millions of galaxies. The Milky Way galaxy, which is, okay, mind blowing in terms of its size, that’s the one we’re in. If you didn’t know that, kids. Pretty sure you did. The Milky Way galaxy, that’s the one that Earth and our Sun is in, which has probably they estimate, what, a hundred billion stars like the Sun? Just in the Milky Way galaxy. Imagine then trillions of not just stars, but other galaxies. So many scientists are estimating that it is more than all the pebbles of sand on all of our seashores. Whoa! That’s a big number. In fact, here’s your number. You ready for this? Two followed by 23 zeros. That is 200 sextillion.

That’s a bunch. I just think of it as God playing around out there in the universe, in creation, throwing it all out there, spinning it all out there. That’s a wow for me. But what about what he’s done closer to home? What about the things he’s done throughout history? There are so many wow moments that God has shared with us. Make known his deeds among the peoples. Sing to him, sing praises to him, speak of all his wonders. Glory in his holy name. Seek the Lord in his street. Seek his face continually, verse 4. Remember his wonders which he has done. And we read about those throughout the Old Testament and New Testament, from miracle to miracle all the time. Then there is his mercy. Again, piggybacking.

Got the term right. On Ben’s comments. God’s mercy in relation to our sins. He has not, and I love verse 10 of Psalm 103. He has not dealt with us according to our sins. We would all be pretty much crispy critters by now. If he had.

And it says, for as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his loving kindness toward those who fear him. Oh, then there is his knowledge. A knowledge that is too wonderful for us, the psalmist says, Before there’s even a word on my tongue, before it’s even uttered and becomes audible, God knows it altogether. Great is our Lord. And abundant in strength, and back to the knowledge concept. He counts the stars and he knows them all by name. His understanding is infinite. Psalm 147, 4 and 5, two of my favorite verses in the Psalms. And then we can talk about how He gives wisdom to us. I get light and understanding when I consider His Word. God is the imparter of real knowledge.

And then there is His holiness. That’s the Psalm that talks about not boasting in the horses and chariots, but we will boast in the name of our God. God is a holy God. And he set securely on high in his sanctuary from which help comes. And again, so many other passages. I like Psalm 90. You might know this one, Psalm 90. Who wrote this one? The one and only. From Moses. As Moses talks about the eternal nature of God in relation to the dust that man is. Thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations, from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. And when you consider our temporary status in comparison to his eternal status, he says, So teach us to number our days, getting back to wisdom, so that we may present to thee a heart of wisdom in verse 12.

3. It Is for Our Benefit That We Praise

That’s the short of it. We can take all of these themes and run many more psalms to talk about God and why he is deserving of our praise. Whatever we are able to render to God today, tonight, or at any other time in our lives throughout the rest of our days, will pale in comparison to what he truly is and what he is truly owed by us. To him be the praise forever and ever. Amen. But what does the church rendering praise do for us? Why does God commission us in this task of bringing praise to him? Don’t misunderstand. It is not because God has some ego that needs to be stroked. It is for us that we praise. It is for our benefit. And there’s no better passage to demonstrate this than Psalm 50, one of my favorite Psalms, as he talks about the purpose of sacrifices.

He goes, look, the cattle upon a thousand hills is mine. If I needed sacrifices for some something that’s lacking on my part, I can just go get the cattle off the hills. I don’t need you, he says, to have sacrifices. The sacrifices are for you. They’re for your benefit. You’re not doing me a favor.

4. Praise Alters Our Perspective

And so it is for our good that we offer praise. Praise is becoming to the upright. According to Psalm 133 and verse 1. So don’t ever forget that when sometimes we’re not feeling our best, we’re not feeling 100%. Okay, if you’re ill, you need to stay home. But sometimes I feel better than others, and sometimes I’m ready to go. And sometimes I’m not as ready. I don’t feel 100%. But one thing you need to think about is that praise is going to make things better. And praise more than anything else makes this better. So let me offer some other thoughts as to the value of praise offered by the church. Praise alters our perspective. And I’ve got to tell you, the world is altering our perspective all the time.

The world is at work, changing the way that we view things, and our view of things gets askew, and our values get askew. And it’s telling us to love it rather than to love God. And one thing that praise does for us is it changes our perspective about things. That’s what the psalmist Asap is saying in Psalm 73, when he said, My feet almost slipped. When I saw the prosperity of the wicked, life isn’t fair. But he says, When I came to the sanctuary of God, I saw their end. I realized that my association with the Creator, my association with God is what makes sense in a senseless world. His whole perspective changes and hinges on that moment as he comes into the sanctuary of God, and he’s singing a different tune, literally, at the end of that song.

The nearness of God is my good. May I offer this to you. That when we praise and our perspective is altered, in light of his eternity, our problems are seen as temporary. In light of his power, our difficulties appear smaller. And in light of his knowledge, our troubles we understand can be turned to blessing. And so the benefit of praise is that it alters our perspective in primarily two ways. It brings us a clarity about God. Too much time not thinking about your creator is not going to be positive in your spiritual well being. To think about the absolute sovereignty and awesomeness, perfection and holiness of God should only compel us to marvel greatly at the one to whom we owe everything, including the breath that we breathe at this very moment.

And the sustaining of our lives to this very moment in time. And as we marvel at him, and well we should. Especially when you consider all that God is, all that God has done in the past, and all that God has done to make us his people. And the fact that we of all things, we could be his people. You see, this alters our perspective and brings us a clarity about ourselves. You see, we need to see these things about God. We need to contemplate these works of God, this character of God, the awesome nature of God, so that we can properly see ourselves.

Now, this isn’t God in his essence. This is a material vision that he sees. You might think of the book of Revelation, cause John to worship an angel, but I’m thinking in the Old Testament of Isaiah. And when he sees this scene that he reveals to us in Isaiah chapter 6, what is his response? Well, he wasn’t so big for his riches, was he? He said, I’m a dead man. He said, Woe is me, for I am ruined, because my eyes have seen the king. I’m a sinful man. Because I live among people of unclean lips.

5. His Goodness in the Past Calls Us to Trust

When he sees the awesomeness and holiness of God’s presence, he is reminded of his lowliness. Much like Peter’s response at the large hall of fish that was so extraordinary. Depart from me, O Lord, I’m a sinful man. You know what? We need that kind of humbling. In a world where we’re being admonished all the time to elevate self. Whatever self feels, whatever self wants. Satisfy it. Put yourself on a pedestal. Make it all about you. You are it. Read thoughts of self. We need the lowering of self that comes from the knowledge that God is so much greater than us. We need this altering of our perspective, this clarity that praise brings to ourselves. His goodness in the past calls us to trust in the present.

It’s amazing the number of psalms. And I’m thinking about Nehemiah chapter 9, as Nehemiah is praying a prayer of confession. Because of the sins of the people, they’ve come back from captivity. It’s been a low point throughout the history of Israel, but they’re coming out of captivity. They come home, and yet he speaks of the sins of the people. It’s a whole chapter about confession. But one of the things he keeps doing in Nehemiah chapter 9 is speaking of what God had done in the past. His reliance on the future hopes that he had for his people rested in the God who had acted on behalf of his people in the past. And you know, that’s really all we’re left with in the 21st century. Because I’m not expecting God to say, oh, by the way, here I am.

6. Our Praise Removes Fear

And to do some extraordinary miracle to demonstrate it. I’m not expecting that today, are you? Have you ever seen one? Guess funny, we talk about a lot of things that we trust 100% that we’ve never seen. The miracles that Jesus performed, a resurrection from the dead, I’ve pictured the resurrection of Lazarus in my mind so many times. But I’ve never seen one of those. Could you imagine? Hearing Jesus say, Lazarus come forth. And actually witnessing Lazarus with the wrappings on his body come out of the tomb. But see that God who acted in the past has demonstrated his trustworthiness to help us all that we need in the present. And our praise removes fear. We have a lot of fear about a lot of things. But understanding who God is eliminates fear.

Conclusion

The Lord is my life and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life. Whom shall I dread? Psalm 27 and verse 1. There’s a lot of good reasons why we, as the church of our God, need to be about the business of praise. And if you’re not about the business of praise, not just what we do collectively, but throughout our lives day by day, we’re missing the major reason for our very existence. This is why we are here. We were meant to declare the praises of our creator. You desperately need to be involved in that. You need to be excited about that.

You need to be persistent and fervent about it.

I could sit at home tonight and praise the inferior gladiators on the football field. But how inferior is that to the praise and glory of our God, who is eternal, who will reign forever. Only He and His church can provide what you desperately need more than anything else. Forgiveness, fellowship, keep the alliteration going, fitness, spiritual fitness that will contribute to our ultimate future in his presence. And we need that. We need inclusion in his church and these things more than we need lunch, more than we need an A on the next test, more than we need a new smartphone, believe it or not. iPhone 8, I gotta have it. I don’t think. That’s the way we think. So that we can be zombies in our world.

And walk around with our faces stuck in our phones. That’s that’s all temporary stuff. The praise of his glory is what we’re to be all about. Both now and into eternity. Both now and forever. Amen. And is that true of you? We encourage your response to become one of his if you do not belong to him now. Let’s stand and sing.