The Growth of the Church
A Sermon on Ephesians 2:20-22
Scripture
20having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, 21in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, 22in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God …
20And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone; 21In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of …
Sermon Description
According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, every Christian is a part of “something more”—the church. This church is described as a “temple” in Ephesians 2:21. In this sermon on Ephesians 2:20–22 titled “The Growth of the Church,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones dives deeper into this illustration given by Paul and helps the Christian understand the privilege and responsibility that comes with being a part of the church. He notes that in temple construction the stones would be hewn before they were brought to the temple structure and from this he draws several principles. One, there is work done by the Holy Spirit prior to entrance to the church—the Holy Spirit saves the soul. Each Christian has been fashioned spiritually by God and in a way that won’t make sense to the watching world. According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, this is not because Christianity is irrational but because it is supra-rational. Also, the church is not simply a group of stones thrown together but a group of stones fashioned together by the builder. The church consists of believers and Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that God is not interested in a big church, but a holy church. He’s not interested in how many are on the church rolls, but how many “believe right doctrine and live accordingly.”
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.