Faith and Knowledge
A Sermon on Ephesians 4:13
Originally preached Nov. 17, 1957
Scripture
13Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Sermon Description
What is the end goal of the church? How are believers and members of this church supposed to reach this goal? In this sermon on Ephesians 4:13 titled “Faith and Knowledge,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones provides helpful commentary. The overall plan is that the church becomes perfect as this is the final state of the church. The church, Dr. Lloyd-Jones says, will only reach this point after each individual member has reached the potential of spiritual growth that God has mapped out for them. Yet, he also teaches that there will be inequalities in this individual growth: “There is not the same amount in each, but each is full.” Dr. Lloyd-Jones helps understand that it is like completely filling two water bottles of different sizes— though they differ in the quantity of water that is held in them, they are both full. This, he says, is the end goal— but how is the church supposed to get there? First, it must achieve unity of faith through building up the body of Christ, the work of the ministry, and by growing in Christlikeness through sanctification. Second, it must attain the knowledge of God. This knowledge, explains Paul, goes far beyond mere intellectual assent of biblical doctrine because it involves really knowing God. When coupled together in a believer’s life, these two pathways serve to greatly grow believers in their relationships with the Lord.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul is dealing with the question of unity in the church.
- He has given the Ephesians doctrine in the first 3 chapters and now tells them to put it into practice.
- The first thing is to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
- Paul gives reasons why unity is essential - the nature of the church, its organization, the gifts Christ has given.
- The ultimate objective is that we become a perfect man, attaining the fullness of Christ.
- The perfect man is Christ as the head and the church as the body.
- The body will be perfect when every part is perfect, though parts differ in size and function.
- The church is not meant to produce sameness but unity in diversity.
- The perfect man has not arrived until every saint is safely in and full of grace.
- Christ's fullness is in us and we make up His fullness.
- We must think more of the perfect man coming and attaining Christ's fullness.
- The ministry aims to build up the body to this end.
- We must attain unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God.
- Unity of faith means agreeing on Christ's person, work, teaching - who He is and what He did.
- While there is one faith in justification by faith alone, our faith is not yet perfect.
- Knowledge of the Son of God is personal, experimental, receiving His life and fullness.
- We must know Him, not just know about Him, living by Him and on Him.
- Faith alone may puff up but knowledge of Christ builds up.
- We go on attaining unity of faith and knowledge of Christ until we reach the perfect man in Him.
Sermon Q&A
Questions and Answers from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on Ephesians a 4:13
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the ultimate objective of the church according to Ephesians 4:13?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the ultimate objective is "that we become this perfect man" or "the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." He explains that this refers to the church with Christ as the head and believers as members of the body, making up one perfect, mature, fully developed, and complete entity. The church in its final state will be "a perfect condition, the body corresponding to the perfection of the head." This is the goal toward which all ministry efforts are directed.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones explain the concept of "the perfect man" in this passage?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that "the perfect man" does not primarily refer to individuals becoming perfect on their own, but rather to "the church with Christ the head, and we as members of the body." He justifies this interpretation by referencing 1 Corinthians 12:12 where "so also is Christ" refers to Christ and His church together. The perfect man is the complete body with Christ as head and all believers as fully developed members, with no part missing or underdeveloped. It represents the church in its final, perfected state.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the way to attain this perfection according to the text?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies two primary ways to attain this perfection: (1) coming to "the unity of the faith" concerning the Son of God, and (2) attaining "the knowledge of the Son of God." The first involves understanding correct doctrine about Christ's person (both God and man), the incarnation, and His offices as prophet, priest, and king. The second refers to an experimental, personal knowledge of Christ that goes beyond intellectual understanding—"this appropriation of his love to me personally, this true knowledge of him himself."
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones distinguish between "the unity of the faith" and "the knowledge of the Son of God"?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that "the unity of the faith" refers to correct doctrine and belief about Christ—His person as both God and man, the incarnation, His offices as prophet, priest and king, and all related teachings. The "knowledge of the Son of God," however, is "something experimental," going beyond intellectual knowledge (cognition) to recognition and personal experience. It's "the appropriation of his love to me personally" and "having communion and fellowship with him personally." While faith contains an element of knowledge, this specific knowledge is deeper and more experiential.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the greatest source of trouble in the church today?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones states: "I am indeed more and more convinced that this is the greatest source of trouble today. It's our failure as Christian people to understand what our church membership means, the dignity and the privilege, the responsibility of it all." He believes the greatest need is "a recapturing of the New Testament picture concerning the church and the New Testament teaching concerning the church." This failure to understand our place in Christ's body leads to a lack of commitment and appreciation for the privilege of being part of the church.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones contrast true Christian unity with false uniformity?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones teaches that true Christian unity maintains diversity while achieving perfection in each part. He states: "Any presentation of the Christian truth that tends to produce a kind of sameness in its people is therefore always wrong and is false. That's the characteristic of the cults, always." He explains that in the body of Christ, there will be "extraordinary variety and variation" with "inequalities" in size, appearance, ability and function, yet "every single one of them will have attained fully unto that which it was meant to be." Unlike cults that make people "identical in every respect," true Christianity produces unity with diversity.
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones mean by the phrase "the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ"?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains this phrase as referring to the completeness of Christ's body, the church. He describes two aspects: first, "we will be parts of that which makes up his fullness" meaning "he is not complete without us" as he has joined himself to the body. Second, "his fullness is in every one of us, and every one of us is filled with him," like blood flowing through every part of the body. This fullness will be achieved when every part is perfected, with Christ filling each member and all members together making up his fullness in the church.
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones describe the relationship between knowledge and faith in Christian growth?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones teaches that while there is "an element of knowledge in faith," the knowledge mentioned in Ephesians 4:13 is "something deeper, something profounder" than intellectual understanding. He warns that "faith alone may puff us up, but this knowledge builds us up." He emphasizes their complementary relationship: we must "spend our time with the doctrines" and "attain unto this unity of the faith," but must not stop there. All doctrine is "meant to bring us to this knowledge of the Son of God"—the "intimate, personal, subjective, experimental knowing of him." Both elements are essential for spiritual maturity.
The Book of Ephesians
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.