The Summation of All Things in Christ

Studies in Ephesians with a Local Church Emphasis

Lesson 94 : How Does the Whole Body Make the Body Grow?  (4:16)

Three descriptions illustrating how the whole body makes the body grow  –  ‘constantly being joined together and constantly being held together’ have essentially the same meaning  –  ‘being joined together’ = harmoniously and skillfully put together  –  ‘being held together’ = compactness or solidarity  –  this is a continuous on-going action  –  we must act on these principles but ultimately this is the work of the Lord  –  we are to remain united if we are to grow  –  ‘joint’ a complex word having the sense of (1) ligament, that which holds the body together; (2) arteries, that which enables nourishment to pass from one to another; (3) that which conveys information to the other parts; (4) joint, that which touches and contacts the other parts; and (5) the whole is controlled by the head  –  we as individuals do not disappear into the whole  –  divine enablement acting through each believer  –  each given a certain measure as decided by the sovereign Christ  –  balance: while the gifts are given by the sovereign giver of gifts, we are responsible to use and improve upon these gifts  –  love is a social virtue  –  love is the criterion for an assessment of the bodily growth  –  practical comments from Albert Barnes and John MacArthur  –  What have we learned?, a synopsis of Ephesians 1:1-16