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Ephesians 4:16 – Growth At Work

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Will

from whom the whole body, having been closely joined together and united by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working in the measure of every single part, produces the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

Truth to Learn

Growth of the body depends on all parts doing their part.

Behind the Words

The word “from” is translated from ek, meaning “out of.” This word indicates the source from which something is derived.

“Closely joined together” is from sunarmologeō, which is made up of sun, meaning “together,” harmos, meaning “an articulation (a joint), and logos, meaning “a word spoken.” Actually, the original meaning of logos was “to lay forth,” which is the sense in which it is used in this word. Sunarmelogeō means “to be laid-out closely together.” It is a picture of blocks of stone which are laid down together, fitting perfectly because they have been shaped into a perfect fit.

“United” is translated from the Greek word sumbibadzō, which is made up of sun, meaning “together” and bibadzō, meaning “to uplift.” Thus, sumbibadzō means “to knit together” or “to unite together.” This is a picture of two bushes planted close together which grow into each other so that they form the appearance of a single bush.

The word “joint” is haphē, which refers to “that which connects or joins two things, like a ligament.”

“Growth” is translated from auxēis, which is based on auxanō (which we saw in yesterday’s verse) meaning “growth as a result of an outside power.”

“Building up” is from the Greek word oikodomē, which is made up of oikos, meaning “a house” or “a dwelling place” and the base of demō, meaning “to build.” Oikodomē refers to the edifying, or building up of a structure, an organization, or a person.

Meaning Explained

This verse starts out with “from whom.” This is a reference to Jesus Christ who is the head of the body. The words from “joined” to “every single part” are parenthetical. So to understand the base meaning behind this verse, we could temporarily exclude the parenthetical expression. Thus, we have “from whom the whole body … produces the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.” In other words, it is Jesus Christ working through the church which causes all the body to grow. Keep in mind that the word “growth” refers to that growth which is caused by an outside power. So, the source of growth in the body of Christ is God, but the process of growth is through all the various parts of the body, with each one doing his or her part.

In the parenthetical expression we are told a little about how the body is put together and how it functions. The words translated “closely joined together and united” tell us that every part of the body is specially formed and gifted by God to be perfectly joined to the other parts of the body. But it doesn’t stop there. As we are joined together in service to and with our brothers and sisters, we actually grow together. We become so united that we become an inseparable unit (that’s the unity that Paul has been talking about for most of this chapter).

The final point to learn is that the growth of the body depends on every part doing its share. If part of the body is not working, it becomes like a cancer sucking the life out of the church.

Application

From these last few verses we see how important it is for members of the church to be growing. In order for that to happen, though, we all have to be working, performing the function for which God has gifted us. Let’s all get to work and build up the body together!

In God's service, for His glory,

Ephesians 2:21 – Temple Building

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Will

in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,

Truth to Learn

Every Christian is part of the temple of God.

Behind the Words

The words “the whole” are translated from a form of pas, which can mean “all” or “every.” So this could be translated as “all the building” or “the whole building.”

“Building” is from the Greek word oikodomē, which is very similar to the word translated “having been built on” in the previous verse. This word can refer either to “the act of building” or to “the building” itself.

The verb sunarmologeō is translated here as “being fitted together.” This word is made up of sun, meaning “together,” harmos “to join things together,” and legō, which means “to lay forth” or “to say a word.” Putting these all together, we find that sunarmologeō means “to lay things closely joined together,” as one would do with stones or bricks in building a structure. The word is expressed here as a present participle, indicating that it is action that is continually taking place.

The word “grows” is from auxanō, which means “to grow” or “to increase.” This word is expressed in the present tense, indicative mood, which implies current continuous action.

“Temple” is translated from naos. This is derived from the verb naiō, meaning “to dwell.” Naos refers to “a shrine” or “a temple” where a deity dwells. There is another word in Greek, often translated “temple.” It is hieron, which refers to the entire temple area or temple grounds. Naos, however, refers specifically to the central building in the temple area.

Meaning Explained

In the Greek text there is no definite article associated with the word oikodomē, which introduces some ambiguity as to whether Paul is talking about every believer being a holy temple, or the whole church being a single, holy temple. However, since both “building” and “temple” are singular Greek words and the following verse says that “you [plural] are being built together for a dwelling place [singular] for God,” there is strong evidence that Paul is referring to the entire church as the building.

Assuming that this is, in fact, what Paul was expressing, we are told here that the church, which is composed of every believer from the beginning of time, is continually being built by God. Each member of the church has a place in the building and is put in place joined closely together with those around him or her. Later in this letter (Ephesians 4:12) Paul will refer to the church as “the body of Christ.” Also. in his first letter to the Corinthians, he refers to the church as “the body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 12:27). Since Paul uses both of these metaphors to refer to the church universal, we can see that the church, whether a living body or a building, is continually being built. And, we see from this verse, that the church is the central temple (dwelling place) of God, Himself. We are all part of the body, and we are all part of the holy temple where God lives.

Application

Whether we consider the church to be the temple of God or the body of Christ, we each have a part in it. Each and every Christian has an important function to perform. Are you performing your function? Are you being used by God as part of the church? If not, you’re not fulfilling God’s purpose for your life.

In God's service, for His glory,

Ephesians 4:16 – Growth At Work

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Will

from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

Truth to Learn

Growth of the body depends on all parts doing their part.

Behind the Words

The word “from” is translated from ek, meaning “out of.” This word indicates the source from which something is derived.

“Joined … together” is from sunarmologeō, which is made up of sun, meaning “together,” harmos, meaning “an articulation (a joint), and logos, meaning “a word spoken.” Actually, the original meaning of logos was “to lay forth,” which is the sense in which it is used in this word. Sunarmelogeō means “to be laid-out closely together.” It is a picture of blocks of stone which are laid down together, fitting perfectly because they have been shaped into a perfect fit.

“Knit together” is translated from the Greek word sumbibadzō, which is made up of sun, meaning “together” and bibadzō, meaning “to uplift.” Thus, sumbibadzō means “to knit together” or “to unite together.” This is a picture of two bushes planted close together which grow into each other so that they form the appearance of a single bush.

The word “joint” is haphē, which refers to “that which connects or joins two things, like a ligament.”

“Growth” is translated from auxēis, which is based on auxanō (which we saw in yesterday’s verse) meaning “growth as a result of an outside power.”

Meaning Explained

This verse starts out with “from whom.” This is a reference to Jesus Christ who is the head of the body. The words between “joined” and “its share” are parenthetical, so to understand the base meaning behind this verse, we could temporarily exclude the parenthetical expression. Thus, we have “from whom the whole body … causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love." In other words, it is Jesus Christ working through the church which causes all the body to grow. Keep in mind that the word “growth” refers to that growth which is caused by an outside power. So, the source of growth in the body of Christ is God, but the process of growth is through all the various parts of the body, with each one doing its share.

In the parenthetical expression we are told a little about how the body is put together and how it functions. The words translated “joined and knit together” tell us that every part of the body is specially formed and gifted by God to be perfectly joined to the other parts of the body. But it doesn’t stop there. As we are joined together in service to and with our brothers and sisters, we actually grow together. We become so knit together that we become an inseparable unit (that’s the unity that Paul has been talking about for most of this chapter).

The final point to learn is that the growth of the body depends on every part doing its share. If part of the body is not working, it becomes like a cancer sucking the life out of the church.

Application

In God's service, for His glory,

Ephesians 2:21 – Temple Building

Posted on October 4, 2011 by Will

Ephesians 2:21 – Temple Building

in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,

Truth to Learn

Every Christian is part of the temple of God.

Behind the Words

The words “the whole” are translated from a form of pas, which can mean “all” or “every.” Since there is no definite article included with the word for “building” a literal translation would be either “all building” or “every building.”

The word “grows” is from auxanō, which means “to grow” or “to increase.” This word is expressed in the present tense, indicative mood, which implies current continuous action.

“Temple” is translated from naos. This is derived from the verb naiō, meaning “to dwell.” Naos refers to “a shrine” or “a temple” where a deity dwells.

Meaning Explained

As we pointed out in Behind the Words, there is no definite article associated with the word oikodomē, which introduces some ambiguity as to whether Paul is talking about every believer being a holy temple, or the whole church being a single, holy temple. However, since both “building” and “temple” are singular Greek words and the following verse says that “you [plural] are being built together for a dwelling place [singular] for God,” there is strong evidence that Paul is referring to the entire church as the building.

Assuming that this is, in fact, what Paul was expressing, we are told here that the church, which is composed of every believer from the beginning of time, is continually being built by God. Each member of the church has a place in the building and is put in place joined closely together with those around him or her. Later in this letter (Ephesians 4:12) Paul will refer to the church as “the body of Christ.” Also. in his first letter to the Corinthians, he also refers to the church as “the body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 12:27). Since Paul uses both of these metaphors to refer to the church universal, we can see that the church, whether a living body or a building, is continually being built. And, we see from this verse, that the church is the temple (dwelling place) of God, Himself. We are all part of the body, and we are all part of the holy temple where God lives.

Application

In God’s service, for His glory,

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