Copyright © 2006-2008 Robert D. Hosken, M.Min., D.Min.
Meditate Word By Word On These Verses:
Mat. 18:7-9.
The Apostle Paul begins his discourse on diakonia-ministry in Ephesians chapter 4 with an impassioned plea for unity, to walk worthy of our calling, “being eager to keep the unity (henotes) of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one (heis) body, and one (heis) Spirit, even as you also were called in one (heis) hope of your calling; one (heis) Lord, one (heis) faith, one (heis) baptism, one (heis) God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in us all” (Eph. 4:3-6). After introducing his theme of unity (henotes), Paul makes a seven-fold appeal to oneness in the Body of Christ, three of them being the persons of the Trinity, the tri-unity:
1. one (heis) body,
2. one (heis) Spirit,
3. one (heis) hope,
4. one (heis) Lord,
5. one (heis) faith,
6. one (heis) baptism,
7. one (heis) God.
Question:
1. What is the foundation for diakonia-ministry, according to Eph. 4:3-6?
(Only one of the following answers is correct.)
hope
unity (henotes)
baptism
faith
Paul’s appeal to unity at the beginning of his discourse is matched by a similar appeal at the end of this discourse, explaining that Christ gives spiritual gifts “to equip the saints for the work of ministry (diakonia) for the purpose of building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity (henotes) of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood (teleios), to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”1 (Eph. 4:12-13, ESV). These two verses in Eph. 4 are the only places where henotes is used in the New Testament, and here we discover that henotes-unity links back to ministry (diakonia) and links forward to mature (teleios) manhood, restoration of wholeness. Thus “unity” is the unifying concept between ministry and wholeness.
Question:
2. And with what else is diakonia linked (Eph. 4:12-13)? How is this realized? Explain.
Our fallen human nature would like to minister to the rich, the healthy, the well-educated and good-looking people in churches today. The minister strokes them with nice, soothing words saying what fine, upstanding citizens they are, and they stroke him in return with a nice fat salary. These people, the minister and the congregation alike, don’t need restoration to wholeness because they already have it all, or so they think. The problem is that, like the church in Laodicea, they don’t see their real condition in God’s sight – “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see”2 (Rev. 3:17-18, ESV). Ignoring the condition of the materially poor, lame, maimed and blind cuts us off from them, destroying the unity of the Body of Christ, and it also makes us spiritually “wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.”
Question:
3. How is Rev. 3:17-18 related to unity?
(Only one of the following answers is correct.)
This text doesn't relate to unity at all.
Negatively. Self-reliance and ambivalence toward the poor and disabled destroys unity.
Positively. We rich, healthy, highly-educated and good-looking people must preserve unity among ourselves.
John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible makes some very important points regarding unity –
"Now to endeavour or study to keep and preserve this, supposes that this union does already exist; that it is very valuable, as making much for the glory of God, the mutual comfort and delight of saints, and is worth taking some pains about; and that it is very difficult to secure, there being so many things which frequently arise, and break in upon it, through the devices of Satan, and the corruptions of men's hearts: but though it is difficult, and may sometimes seem to be impossible, yet it becomes the saints to be diligent in the use of means to keep it up…."3
Because God’s Word instructs us to “keep the unity of the Spirit,” it must already exist, at least in God’s sight. It grieves our heavenly Father when brothers and sisters in Christ separate from each other because of ethnic, cultural or socio-economic differences, and so destroy the Body’s unity. In the first century, Jews had a hard time accepting Gentiles as members of God’s family. But Paul writes that Christ unites them – “For he is our peace, who made both one (heis), and broke down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in the flesh the hostility, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, that he might create in himself one (heis) new man of the two, making peace; and might reconcile them both in one (heis) body to God through the cross, having killed the hostility thereby” (Eph. 2:14-16). Here again we find peace and oneness linked together. We must strive to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Question:
4. What did John Gill write (in your own words) about how to preserve unity; and also, what or who preserves unity in the Body of Christ, according to the Apostle Paul (Eph. 2:14-16)? Does the unity of the Body of Christ have real and visible existence, or is it only virtual and invisible?
In contrast, a power-seeking or self-centered spirit causes division that disrupts unity – “Now I beg you, brothers, look out for those who are causing the divisions and occasions of stumbling, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and turn away from them. For those who are such don't serve our Lord, Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the hearts of the innocent” (Rom. 16:17-18). Such people come across as smooth, and may even be highly-educated in theology, but usually their objective is to gather a loyal following who will fawn over them, hanging on their every word, and/or support them in a lavish lifestyle.
Question:
5. What kind of people destroy unity by creating divisions and offenses, according to the Apostle Paul in Rom. 16:17-18?
(One or more of the following answers are correct.)
Those who by their smooth and flattering speech, deceive the hearts of the innocent.
Those who submit to the the teaching they learned from the Apostles.
Those who serve their own belly.
Those who have a good theological education.
Paul warns against this divisive spirit in 1 Cor. 1:10-13 –
"Now I beg you, brothers, through the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfected together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it has been reported to me concerning you, my brothers, by those who are from Chloe's household, that there are contentions among you. Now I mean this, that each one of you says, 'I follow Paul,' 'I follow Apollos,' 'I follow Cephas,' and, 'I follow Christ.' Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized into the name of Paul?"
This type of party spirit fractures the unity of the Body of Christ, when we say – "I follow St. John Chrysostom," or "I follow St. Augustine," or "I follow Francis of Assisi," or "I follow Martin Luther," or "I follow John Wesley," or "I follow Francis Schaeffer." Were any of these men crucified for our sins? Did any of them rise from the dead for our justification? Were any of us baptized in the name of St. Chrysostom, or St. Augustine, or St. Francis, or Luther, or Wesley, or Schaeffer? True Christianity is not a cult of personality. How foolish, even idolatrous, it is to put these mere men in the place of Christ!
Question:
6. Where does a party spirit arise from, as the Apostle Paul describes it in 1 Cor. 1:10-13?
Why is there disunity in the Body of Christ? It is because Christians are not walking in the Spirit, but in the flesh. Their behavior is the direct opposite of sanctification (hagiasmos), love (agape), wholeness (teleiosis), peace (eirene), moderation (epieikes) and self-control (egkrateia):
"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God"4 (Jam. 4:1-4, ESV).
Disunity is therefore caused by the lack of many of the qualities of ministry that we have examined here. The way to maintain the unity of the Spirit, then, is to humble ourselves before God and let His Spirit build these qualities in us! Some might say that unity is unrealistic, that people will always find fault with others, break away from them and start a new church or denomination. That line of reasoning is rather like a man saying, “Someone is going to sell alcohol and tobacco to the fools who will buy it, so I might as well be the one who makes the money from it!” Or – “If I study about ministering to the disabled and then don’t minister to them, I would be sinning greatly, so it’s better to just ignore them and not learn how I can help them!” Well-educated, healthy, able-bodied people have actually said such foolish things to me. They actively offend or passively turn a blind eye to the suffering of others. They do not remove the architectural barriers that exclude disabled people from society or cause them to stumble. What did Jesus say about this “who cares?” attitude of self-centered willful ignorance?
"Woe to the world because of occasions of stumbling! For it must be that the occasions come, but woe to that person through whom the occasion comes! If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off, and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life maimed or crippled, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into the eternal fire. If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out, and cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the Gehenna of fire" (Mat. 18:7-9).
Jesus most certainly is using hyperbole here, He doesn’t want us to physically mutilate or abuse our bodies. The Lord Jesus Christ cut right to the heart of the issue: discord and offenses arise because people seek their own well-being – power or self-gratification – rather than deny self and identify with the maimed, crippled or blind, not closing our eyes to them and ignoring them. (See Mat. 18:6 and 10.)
Question:
7. Does the same kind of party spirit of division exist in our day, as in the first century?
Yes, unfortunately the same kind of spirit still exists.
No, in the first century everything was ideal, and now it is even better!
I have had to make difficult choices in my life: should I accept a nomination to an honor society, university scholarships and honors programs, a career in the diplomatic corps, or promotion in my profession, even advancement up the ladder of leadership in missions, if they will mean turning my back on the qualities of diakonia-ministry we have examined here? I have chosen to deny myself the worldly prestige, power and wealth these things might bring, things that destroy unity. How can I be faithful to God if I seek glory from men (John 5:44)? Most church splits are not really over doctrinal matters, but rather over people trying to defend their turf or build their own little fiefdom. Sadly, some of the most shameless power-seeking and self-centered behavior I have ever seen has been among people who claimed to be serving the Lord! Such behavior contradicts true servanthood ministry that builds up the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We ought to seek ways of serving the poor, lame, maimed and blind together with Christians of other persuasions, and then, when the spirit of servanthood is established, perhaps we can find ways to reconcile those age-old disagreements, such as whether venerating pictures of the saints (proskuneo) is equivalent to worship (latria) that belongs to God alone. Idolatry (eidololatreia) is a matter of the heart (Ezek.14:3-7): have we taken anything into our hearts, be it pictures or possessions or power or prestige, which displaces the true worship that belongs to God alone?
Eberhard Arnold in his excellent book God’s Revolution writes –
"When people believe in unity, it creates a very strong bond. It is a deplorable fact that some who call themselves Christians are so very disunited, not only in the various world Churches but also among those who try to be real Christians. And it is no help at all to decide to be silent about those subjects people don’t see eye to eye on. Many a one feels: Today is the day for worship, the day to go to Church, to serve God, tomorrow I will be at my job and lead my personal and family life. How will such a person ever find unity and harmony within, let alone with others?
"There is nothing that surpasses perfect unity. That is God’s mystery – joy and unity in His creative Spirit. So the question now is: Do we really believe in God? Do we really believe that He will triumph in His intent to bring about unity? Do we believe that it will happen here and now, provided we want nothing but God and His way?5
Question:
8. From the quotation of Eberhard Arnold - "Do we really believe in God?" How does this relate to unity? Explain.
It can and will happen, otherwise the words of our Lord about unity would simply be nonsense syllables. In John chapter 17, the Lord Jesus prayed to His Father that His followers would be one. The whole chapter ought to be studied, memorized and meditated upon, but I will let you do that on your own. Allow me to quote just two verses – “Not for these only [His disciples] do I pray, but for those also who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us; that the world may believe that you sent me” (John 17:20-21). How will the world believe that Jesus is sent from God? The world will believe when it sees our unity.
But there are unfortunately many divisions within Christianity. Which church is the right one? All of them have problems, because they all consist of human beings who, although they may be trying to follow Christ, are still saints-in-process. The church is not yet without spot or wrinkle, ready to be presented to her husband as a bride dressed in glistening white. So which one of the many types of churches should we serve with? I must answer, the one that seeks unity, not the lowest-common-denominator kind, or the hierarchical structure kind of unity, but the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, and the unity that preaches the Good News of the Kingdom and in actual fact performs diakonia-ministry to and is at one with the poor, the lame, the maimed and the blind, in order to build up the Body of Christ, so that we will finally come to the unity of the faith and be made whole.
Question:
9. How will the world believe that Jesus was sent from God (Jn. 17:20-21)?
(Only one of the following answers is correct.)
That is simply senseless babble: the whole world will never believe that Jesus Christ came from God.
When I can convince you that my point of view is correct.
When there is unity among believers in Christ.
In this brief study on the Biblical basis of ministry, we have examined a whole constellation of “semantic fields” dealing with over twenty Greek words or concepts that all relate to ministry. Many of these Greek words are found in the New Testament passage that is central to this study, so let us review it here –
"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists (euaggelistes), the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints (hagios) for the work of ministry (diakonia), for building up (oikodome) the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity (henotes) of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature (teleios) manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth (aletheia) in love (agape), we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ"6 (Eph. 4:11-15, ESV).
All of the concepts we’ve studied here cluster around one word, ministry (diakonia). This word has the very practical, down-to-earth meaning of serving others, doing the menial tasks that a servant (pais or doulos) would do. This runs counter to the notion of a minister as a clergyman in a long black robe, or an important government official.
Question:
10. Name all of the Greek words we have studied that are found in the semantic field of diakonia-ministry in Eph. 4:11-15.
A very significant concept found right beside “ministry” is the word oikodome – “building up” or “edification.” We saw how it is used in both the material sense of a “building” or an “edifice,” as well as in the spiritual sense of “encouragement and confirmation in the faith.” Far too often people create a false dichotomy, saying that the Body of Christ is spiritual, it should be built up simply by preaching and teaching, and that Social Ministry of the Church or physical buildings detract from this central purpose. But we must always remember that “we have this treasure in earthen vessels”7 (2 Cor. 4:7, KJV): our spiritual nature happens to reside in earthen vessels, very physical bodies that eventually wear out, and often get sick or are injured.
But we have become quite adept at ignoring the obvious. Our obsession with health care, living long and having a huge retirement account and all the materialistic creature comforts we want has deluded us into thinking that we will somehow live forever on this earth. Some say that our modern preoccupation on longevity has caused the “death of ideology” – people no longer are focused on eternal questions because they have convinced themselves they will keep on living, on and on and on, fading away into the sunset. Like Esau, however, modern Western civilization has traded its eternal birthright for a bowl of bean soup. We have exchanged our heavenly reward for our pension fund. When people ask me when I’m going to retire, I reply, “You know what Rev. 2:10b says about that: ‘Be faithful unto retirement, and I will give you a nice fat pension with 100% health benefits.’” No, the Bible says nothing at all about retirement! I plan to continue working as long as the Lord gives me health and lets me stay on this earth. But I also realize that people may become unable to work and yet remain on this earth, and I may join them in the wheelchair parade.
The Christian understands that real life, eternal life, begins in this body but is not limited to this body, as George Eldon Ladd writes in The Gospel of the Kingdom –
"Eternal life has to do with the total man. It concerns not only my soul but also my body. When we finally inherit the Kingdom of God (1 Cor 15:50), that which is mortal – our physical, frail body – will be swallowed up in life. Eternal life includes the redemption of our bodies. The inheritance of the Kingdom of God means the transformation of these bodies of flesh and blood (1 Cor 15:52-53). All of us, even though we have received the gift of life, are dying. With some, the descent to the grave will be a long, gradual, painful one. With others, it occurs with shocking suddenness. Some will enjoy a large measure of vigour until the very end. But we are all on our way to the grave, for we are dying, mortal creatures."8
Yet while we are on this earth, all of us need a material place to live, and Christians whose bodies are sick, injured or worn out need a special place to live. By combining diakonia-ministry with oikodome-building-up we can create a very special place for equipping the saints for the work of ministry so that the Body of Christ will be built up, a building that enhances rather than detracts from the true ministry of the church and doesn’t bust the budget, instead it pays for itself. Such a building will include rooms for worship, exercise, and other activities as well as facilities for training people to reach out in spiritual and Social Ministry of the Church.
Question:
11. Do you believe that by uniting diakonia-ministry and oikodome-edification, we can create a very special place for the perfecting of the saints for the work of ministry in order to build up the Body of Christ?
Yes, although it may be difficult, it is entirely possible!
No, it is simply an empty dream.
Several years ago the lapel button “WWJD?” was popular among Christians in the U.S.A. I’m very happy with the fact that many people asked what it meant, thus providing the wearer an opportunity to explain that he tried to ask himself in daily situations or especially in difficult circumstances – “What Would Jesus Do?” But the question is rather too open-ended, because we can’t know with certainty exactly what Jesus would do in a given situation. Two different people could come up with opposite answers. So I’d like to propose a new lapel button: “WDJD?” It stands for “What Did Jesus Do?” This question is much easier to answer, because we know from the four Gospels precisely what Jesus did: He announced that the kingdom of God was at hand, He preached the Good News and He healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, cast out demons and raised the dead. He showed His disciples how to do it, and then sent them out to preach the Good News of the kingdom, heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons and raise the dead. Lastly, after His resurrection from the dead He commanded them to make more disciples and teach those new disciples to do the very same things. On the back of this new lapel button would be “DWJD!” – “Do What Jesus Did!”
Out of all the passages in the New Testament that teach us who will be included in the Kingdom of Heaven and who will be excluded, only a few deal with doctrinal issues, what we believe, and those issues are the most basic ones: we must believe and be baptized (Mark 16:16), confess that Jesus Christ came in the flesh (1 John 4:1-3), and confess Jesus Christ as our Lord (Rom. 10:9-10; 1 Cor. 14:3). The Nicene Creed provides an excellent baseline definition of what Christians must believe. The passages we have examined, however, about who will be included and who will be excluded all deal with our actions, what we do (Luke 6:46-49; Rom. 2:5-10; 1 Cor. 3:9-15; 1 Cor. 6:9-10; Gal. 5:19-23; 1 John 3:14-18; Rev. 21:8). But keep in mind the parables in Luke 15 about the lost sheep, the lost coin and the lost son – all these teach us that our task is not the exclusion of those who wander off the straight and narrow path, but their restoration!
Perhaps the most pointed passage on what we must do is an entire chapter containing the words of Jesus Christ in Mat. 25. In the first 30 verses He tells the parable of the five wise virgins and the five foolish virgins waiting for the Bridegroom to come to His wedding feast, saying that the ones who were unprepared were foolish and were excluded from the wedding feast. They may have been singing, clapping their hands and having a great celebration earlier, but they didn’t do what they needed to do. Then He tells the parable of the talents: the servants who received five or two talents and made good use of them are praised with the words, “Enter into the joy of your Lord.” But the servant who received just one talent and did nothing useful with it, who may have thought, “I’m just a simple worker, I’m not bright or rich, and so I’ll just have to get by until I die!” – he is condemned to outer darkness where there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Then our Lord gives this shockingly blunt and straightforward teaching –
"But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will tell those on his right hand, 'Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry, and you gave me food to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me drink. I was a stranger, and you took me in. I was naked, and you clothed me. I was sick, and you visited me. I was in prison, and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry, and feed you; or thirsty, and give you a drink? When did we see you as a stranger, and take you in; or naked, and clothe you? When did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to you?' The King will answer them, 'Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'
"Then he will say also to those on the left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you didn't give me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me no drink; I was a stranger, and you didn't take me in; naked, and you didn't clothe me; sick, and in prison, and you didn't visit me.' Then they will also answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn't help you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Most certainly I tell you, inasmuch as you didn't do it to one of the least of these, you didn't do it to me.' These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." (Mat. 25:31-46).
Here the Lord lays the emphasis not merely on what we say we believe, but on what we do about what we believe for the hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick and imprisoned. If He is our Lord, then we are His servants and we must serve Him. Real ministry means service. In summary of all we’ve learned from these studies, let’s review what Jesus did and what He wants us to do –
"Jesus went about all the cities and the villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people. But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and scattered, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest indeed is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore that the Lord of the harvest will send out laborers into his harvest'” (Mat. 9:35-38).
Do you see what Jesus did? Do you feel the compassion that Jesus felt? People were hurting, so He healed them; people were lost and scattered, so He laid down His life to save them. And today He needs more workers who will heal the hurting and save the lost, who will minister the whole Gospel to the whole person. So pray that the Lord of the harvest will motivate Christians to train and send out workers into His harvest, then… “Do What Jesus Did!” Don’t just think about it, or talk about it, or preach about it. Just do it.
Question:
12. How will the Lord judge us, according to this list of Scripture passages (Mat. 9:35-38; 25:31-46; Lk. 6:46-49; Rom. 2:5-10; 1 Cor. 3:9-15; 6:9-10; Gal. 5:19-23; 1 Jn. 3:14-18; Rev. 21:8)?
Endnotes:
1. English Standard Version, op. cit.
3. John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible, (www.e-sword.net, 2004).
4. English Standard Version, op. cit.
5. Arnold, Eberhard, God's Revolution, (Farmington, Pennsylvania, Plough Publishing House, 1997), 39-40.
6. English Standard Version, op. cit.