Havasu Christian Church
May 17, 2026
Study in Ephesians
Ephesians 4:1-16
“The body of Christ is AMAZING!!!”
INTRO: God is an amazing Creator! In weeks previous, I’ve mentioned how incredible a single cell from your body is. Here’s a couple of paragraphs from an article titled “The complexity of the cell.”
The cell is the most complex and most elegantly designed system man has ever witnessed. Professor of biology Michael Denton, in his book entitled Evolution: A Theory in Crisis, explains this complexity with an example: "To grasp the reality of life as it has been revealed by molecular biology, we must magnify a cell a thousand million times until it is twenty kilometers in diameter and resembles a giant airship large enough to cover a great city like London or New York. What we would then see would be an object of unparalleled complexity and adaptive design. On the surface of the cell we would see millions of openings, like port holes of a vast space ship, opening and closing to allow a continual stream of materials to flow in and out. If we were to enter one of these openings we would find ourselves in a world of supreme technology and bewildering complexity... (a complexity) beyond our own creative capacities, a reality which is the very antithesis of chance, which excels in every sense anything produced by the intelligence of man..."
The theory of evolution faces no greater crisis than on the point of explaining the emergence of life. The reason is that organic molecules are so complex that their formation cannot possibly be explained as being coincidental and it is manifestly impossible for an organic cell to have been formed by chance.”
The biggest problem: HOW DID LIFE ORIGINATE ON EARTH?
Evolutionists confronted the question of the origin of life in the second quarter of the 20th century. One of the leading authorities of the theory of molecular evolution, the Russian evolutionist Alexander I. Oparin, said this in his book The Origin of Life, which was published in 1936: THE ORIGIN OF THE CELLS REMAINS A QUESTION
“Unfortunately, the origin of the cell remains a question which is actually the darkest point of the
complete evolution theory.”
Since Oparin, evolutionists have performed countless experiments, conducted research, and made observations to prove that a cell could have been formed by chance. However, every such attempt only made clearer the complex design of the cell and thus refuted the evolutionists' hypotheses even more.
Professor Klaus Dose, the president of the Institute of Biochemistrat the University of Johannes Gutenberg, states:
“More than 30 years of experimentation on the origin of life in the fields of chemical and molecular evolution have led to a better perception of the immensity of the problem of the origin of life on Earth rather than to its solution. At present all discussions on principal theories and experiments in the field either end in stalemate or in a confession of ignorance.”
The following statement by the geochemist Jeffrey Bada from San Diego Scripps Institute makes clear the helplessness of evolutionists concerning this impasse:
“Today as we leave the twentieth century, we still face the biggest unsolved problem that we had when we entered the twentieth century: How did life originate on Earth?”
Scientists estimate the human body contains around 37 trillion cells, each functioning like a microscopic system sustaining life. (37 trillion has 12 zeros.) This is also the amount of debt the United States reached in 2025. If all the cells in your body were put edge to edge in a chain, they would go around the earth 4-9 times!
In previous weeks, we’ve talked about the Church being a body…. But a body that doesn’t stay together isn’t much good. If parts just randomly fell off, we’d be in trouble.
That’s why we have skin, and ligaments, and joints… to keep us together.
Our body does this automatically, but the body of Christ, not so much. There is maintenance involved, that we have to think about doing!
Ephesians 4:1-3 Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
(I) Walk in a manner worthy of the Lord and the calling He has given you!
a. Have humility
i. Humility is not ignoring your God given talents and abilities.
1. Don’t be prideful about your abilities.
2. Humility is realizing where they came from!
b. Be gentle
i. Controlled strength.
1. Not weakness.
2. Self control that only uses that strength when it is necessary.
a. Jesus in the temple, turning tables.
c. Be patient
i. Not being easily provoked.
ii. Being able to put up with the things people do that you don’t appreciate.
d. Be tolerant
i. Don’t just give up on people when they fail.
1. Keep trying.
e. Do all these things in Love!
i. This is “Love in spite of.”
1. This is the kind of Love God has for us.
a. We are expected to show each other this same kind of Love.
i. It isn’t a feeling, it is an action!
ii. You CHOOSE to Love like this!
f. Work hard to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
i. Don’t be a slacker! Be diligent!
1. All of the traits we just looked at contribute to this.
a. When we are humble, when we are not prideful, when we are gentle, when we are patient, when we are tolerant, and we do what we do in love, it leads to Unity of the Spirit.
i. It leads to a bond between us of Peace!
2. Present tense… This takes constant action.
a. Like someone on guard duty.
3. It is our job to preserve unity.
a. Harmony, agreement.
4. It is our job to do this in the unity of the Spirit.
a. We are united by sharing the same Spirit.
i. The old “us and them” Gentile vs Jew is a thing of the past.
1. This should be true of anything that tries to divide us!
a. Race,
b. Politics,
c. Personal preferences,
d. Where we are from.
ii. We have the BOND of Peace.
1. We are bound together By the Holy Spirit of God!
g. All that being said, we are still to stand for the truth.
i. We are not called to promote unity above all else!
1. We are called to bring people together in unity on what God wants!
a. If we follow Him, we will be united in the things that matter.
b. If we do not follow Him, we are fractured at best, and most likely fighting!
Ephesians 4:4-6 There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
(II) What are some of the things that bind us together?
a. We are one body.
i. As we have seen previously, we are Christ’s body, directed by Him!
b. We have one Spirit
i. The Holy Spirit lives in each Christian!
1. We need to LISTEN to what He says!
c. We are Called by God!
i. We have been CHOSEN! God called us to be HIS people!
d. We have one Lord! Jesus!
i. Jesus is the One that is in charge!
1. When you or I try to be in charge and “decide what is right or wrong,” things start falling apart.
From aolnews.com In 2021, State Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott, D-Iowa, offered up a Muslim prayer on the floor of the Iowa Senate despite also being an ordained minister with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. (ELCA).
Garriott explained she believed Muslims had suffered discrimination in the state, prompting her to characterize her prayer as one way for lawmakers to combat religious discrimination.
2. He’s the King!!! I am NOT!!!
e. We have One Faith!
i. What we have been taught from Scripture, not from some guy’s “good ideas.”
1. Again, when I or someone else tries to decide what is right and wrong, we cannot help but move away from Christian Principles.
a. We may drift.
b. We may go fast!
f. We share One Baptism.
i. There is ONE!
1. Is it the sprinkling of babies? NO!
2. Is it pouring water on babies or adults?
3. Is it submerging the body of a person who is old enough and knows enough to make the decision to follow Christ?? YES!
a. What will God do with well-meaning people who were misled?
i. I don’t know, but I (and you) have a responsibility to teach what is right!
g. We have the Same Father, God.
i. He does not have multiple personality disorder.
1. He is not “one God for them.”
2. He is not “a different God for us!”
a. He IS who HE says He is!
i. It is not up to me or any other created being to define God! He has done that Himself!
ii. The only God is the only Creator and sustainer of the Universe!
iii. God is over all!
1. Creation, and everyone and everything in it is His to do with as He pleases.
a. He is above everything else!
iv. God is Through all!
1. He interacts with His creation, particularly those who accept His Lordship.
v. Who is in all!
1. God, through the Holy Spirit, lives in those of us who are Christians.
2. God sustains the universe by His presence!
7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
8 Therefore it says,
“WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH,
HE LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES,
AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.”
9 (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth?
10 He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;
13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
(III) Even though we have so much in common, we also have our own jobs to do!
a. We are all given gifts!
i. God decides what I need, not me!
1. It’s my job to use whatever gifts God gives me, for the building up of His Kingdom.
ii. These gifts are to “Equip saints for the work of service.
1. We teach, we lead, we pray, we do whatever we do, in order to help others find their gifts and use them.
iii. These gifts are to be used, not for selfish reasons, but to “Build up the body of Christ!”
1. We do our part to make God’s family stronger!
b. If we do our jobs right, people will not be tossed around by the waves.
i. Winds of False doctrine… The only way to combat bad speech is to counter it with good speech.
1. It is our job to teach the truth in such a way that we people don’t get fooled!
ii. Trickery of men, craftiness in deceitful scheming.
1. There are those who would intentionally mislead.
a. Perhaps for gain.
b. Perhaps for power.
c. Perhaps for meanness!
i. But we are called to guard against this!
1. We are here to protect each other.
a. This may sometimes involve “calling each other out” when someone isn’t paying attention to the truth!
(IV) How are we to do this? Speak the truth in Love!
a. Speak the truth.
i. There is no room for falsehood.
ii. There is no room for half-truth.
iii. There is no room for “mostly right.”
1. This may be in a worship service, like we are doing right now.
2. This may be in a private setting, like at a dinner table with brothers or sisters.
3. This may be in a teaching setting, like Sunday School.
4. It may be a discussion in a long car ride.
a. We are called to help each other follow the truth, not fall prey to lies.
b. In LOVE!
In his book The Meaning of Marriage: Facing the Complexities of Commitment with the Wisdom of God Timothy Keller says the following…
“Love without truth is sentimentality; it supports and affirms us but keeps us in denial about our flaws. Truth without love is harshness; it gives us information but in such a way that we cannot really hear it. God's saving love in Christ, however, is marked by both radical truthfulness about who we are and yet also radical, unconditional commitment to us. The merciful commitment strengthens us to see the truth about ourselves and repent. The conviction and repentance moves us to cling to and rest in God's mercy and grace.”
i. Truth without love typically turns mean.
ii. Love without truth typically lacks a backbone… anything goes.
1. This is true in the Church.
2. It is also true in government.
3. It is also true in Child rearing.
4. It’s just plain true!
c. When we speak the truth in love,
i. We grow up to be like Jesus!
1. Often, teaching is the best teacher.
ii. The whole body grows up.
1. It is fitted together.
2. Each part is nurtured.
3. Each part does it’s job.
4. “the Body” takes care of itself!
a. It’s then capable of helping others!
Conclusion: Where do I fit in the Body?
· Do I “walk in a manner that is fitting of the Lord?”
o Do I live my faith, or do I just talk my faith?
§ Not looking for perfection, but consistency.
· Do I make it my business to Preserve the peace in the Body?
o Do I actively use my gifts to serve others?
· Have I really evaluated the gifts has God given me to use?
o Am I using them?
· Do I do my part to “Bring the body together?
o Or do I tear the body apart?
· Do I speak the truth in love?
o Or do I stand idlily by while the truth is ignored or contradicted?
o When I defend the truth, is it in a loving way?
