The Holy Trinity and the New Birth

In our reading from the Book of Ephesians there is quite a remarkable passage which describes the church:

‘There is one body and one Spirit – just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call – one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through and in all.’

Ephesians 4:4-6

Let me translate that for you: God is inside of every believer in the Christian Church.

But Paul’s language is more specific. He says that the Holy Trinity is inside every believer: ‘one Spirit’, ‘one Lord’ – that is kyrios, the word Paul uses for Jesus – ‘one God and Father of all’. In the Holy Trinity, we share together ‘one body’, ‘one hope’, ‘one faith’, ‘one baptism’.

That is quite an amazing thought: God the Holy Trinity is in each believer in the Christian Church and we share all of these things together.

The very next verse, however, introduces something new. ‘But’, Paul says, ‘grace was given to each one of us…’ (v.7) What follows is a typically complex series of interlocking thoughts that takes a while to arrive at its conclusion. But skipping a few bits out, Paul eventually gets to the point: The grace that was given to each - what is it for? ‘…until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood…so that we may no longer be children’ (vv.13-14).

In other words, Paul is saying that, although we have the Holy Trinity inside us, when we become believers and join the Christian Church, we do so as babies. We starting a new life, and starting a new life always involves infancy.

Let’s be clear about this: this new life that we are called to is a great miracle, a work of new creation, which we celebrate and in which we rejoice but, just as we rejoice when a new baby is born in the world, we would not be right to want infancy and childhood to last forever. Physical human life as well as spiritual human life involves a process of growth from infancy to childhood to mature adulthood.

From Childishness to Maturity

Let’s think about what this involves. Paul puts it negatively to begin with: ‘…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 in deceitful schemes’ (v.14). We can observe several things about spiritual childishness here.

Firstly, the type of spiritual immaturity of which Paul speaks involves emotional and psychological instability. Somebody who is like this is very driven by their emotions. They lack self-control. They find it difficult to follow through with anything because they are constantly being led by their feelings. They are always being ‘tossed to and fro by every wind’, every little thing, event, or comment. They are oversensitive and take offence very easily.

Secondly, children have a very short attention span. They can only concentrate on something for a few seconds at a time. In the spiritual realm this means being credulous due to a lack of knowledge and discernment: every new idea that presents itself to the spiritually immature believer gets a hearing and has the potential for great influence which may harm the believer. In our day, I would suggest that that involves allows the prevailing ideology of the culture, as purveyed by mainstream media outlets such as the BBC, to take precedence over the Christian worldview that is held out in Scripture and the teaching of the Church.

Sometimes I have a joke with my children and tell them something that is obviously not true. The other day I told them that the goats in a TV programme I had been watching about a real-life farm had their own sheds in which they were developing nuclear weapons. Now, I had to tell my kids that this was a joke and they got it because children have a great sense of humour, but there was a sense in which they really believed me for a time. Why? Because they have little knowledge of the world and not very much discernment. That’s like us when we don’t know very much about God, we don’t read the Scriptures and learn about his ways, we don’t spend time in prayer getting to know him. Our heads are empty as far as the knowledge of God is concerned and therefore we can be hijacked by ‘every wind of doctrine’ that blows past our way (v.14).

The other thing about children which Paul doesn’t say here but which he, like everyone else in the world, surely knew is that children are extremely selfish. Again, this is totally normal and, at first, necessary…vital even. But it is something that children are supposed to grow out of. Being around young children is extremely tiring for this reason perhaps above any other: they think about nobody else except for themselves. It takes years for them even to be able to contemplate the feelings of their own parents and siblings. And that is exhausting.

Spiritually immature people are like that: they think that everything in the universe, including the Church and God himself, are ultimately orientated around themselves. They think nothing of other people but only care about their own feelings and their own needs. They are, in that sense, like very small children who have not learned to consider others.

But let’s flip this around and make it more positive. What is the opposite of this list of childish attributes?

Firstly, stability. Not taking offence at the slightest thing, not being tossed to and fro by one’s emotions or by the events that befall one, but having conviction that a certain way is right and sticking to is day-by-day, even if one doesn’t feel like it. The author Eugene Peterson called this ‘a long obedience in the same direction’.

Secondly, knowledge and discernment that grows over time and is applied effectively: understanding Scripture, deepening one’s life of prayer and spiritual communion with God, growing in knowledge of the faith through regular reading and engaging with helpful teaching resources, and so on.

Thirdly, being centred not on oneself but on God and others. Thinking about other people, praying for them regularly, seeking to assist them. Instead of being a drain on the energy and emotions of others, seeking to give grace to them and to encourage them through positive words and wise counsel.

Where Unity Comes In

And this is where the other great theme of the passage comes in: unity. Paul speaks about the church as a body that grows up together in proportion to the growth of each of its parts, as does a human body.

Now, the things that I’ve been described in terms of spiritual maturity, do you see how almost all of this is impossible to do alone? How do you practice not taking offence and being oversensitive alone? How can you centre your spiritual life not upon yourself but upon other people? It is not easy to grow in one’s knowledge and understanding without wise teachers and mature believers around to help and encourage one. Similarly, a life of prayer without the mutual warmth and support of communal worship is very difficult.

God has given us the church so that we might grow in unity and maturity together. The Church, in other words, is the place where we practice maturity, if I can put it that way: where we bear with one another’s differences in love, where we forgive one another for our sins, where we encourage one another and serve each other, where we pray together and share mutual fellowship and encouragement. The Church is the place where we come out from our ourselves and our individual, isolated, egotistical, little frames of existence and where we grow into the type of people God desires us to be.

To return to the theological theme and the broader picture: the Church therefore becomes a sign of God himself. Do you remember the Trinitarian language I spoke about earlier? Well, the Trinity is the ultimate image of unity and difference: one God but three persons. Similarly, the Church, though composed of different people (who are sometimes very different), nevertheless becomes one in the Lord. And this is why churches that are working well are such happy and joyful places: there are a reflection of the joyful life of God himself in the Holy Trinity.

Application

But, all of this requires growth and increasing maturity. Immaturity and sin brings discord, disharmony, brokenness, and disunity. So, a couple of brief words of application.

Firstly, be involved. The kind of picture Paul is drawing here involves more than simply dropping in to church every now and then. It involves a commitment that recognises the church as one new humanity which is gradually growing together into the image of God himself. How can we grow together into this humanity if we do not talk to each other, if we do not spend time together, if we do not serve together?

One of the points from this passage that I haven’t even mentioned comes from v.12 which says that the point of the gifts of leadership in the church is ‘to equip the saints for the work of ministry’. So, it’s not just about me doing all the work but each one of you. Each of you has a gift given to you by God. Each one has a ministry, at least potentially. Ask yourself: What is my ministry? What is God calling me to do to serve the church? Ask God too. If you really ask and sit there and think about it for a while, you might be surprised at what comes to you.

Secondly, be growing. Are you growing in maturity or are you acting like a spoilt, untutored child? Are you reading Scripture? Are you praying regularly? Are you learning through devotional and theological books? Are you worshipping at least every Sunday with the saints and taking taking every opportunity to join together in prayer and mutual learning and encouragement? Are you allowing the ministry of the church to make you grow in holiness or are you simply using the church like a consumer uses a local supermarket? Are you looking to the church to meet your social or emotional needs without seeking either to grow spiritually or to edify others?

Resolve now to grow in maturity and mutual service. Again, if you are not sure what to do: ask. ‘How do I go about these things? I’d love to grow spiritually but I don’t know where to start.’ Find wise and godly counsellors. Pray for guidance and help. Again, you will be surprised at what the Lord does.

Friends, let us grow as individuals into the image of Christ and together as a people into the joyful image of God the Holy Trinity.

Amen.