The Church is the ambassador of the King

by Ps Meng Cham

Big idea:
The spirit empowers the church to extend the kingdom to all the nations through Christ the king's authority

1. the mystery of the church
- the king's assembly

Ephesians 3:1-6
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— 2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. 4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.


Mystery was used 7 times by Paul. Mystery means God's hidden plan and purpose that has now been revealed through the Holy Spirit

How do we see the church?

A. As the One New Humanity

Ephesians 2:11-12
Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.


Ephesians 2:13-16
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.


Ephesians 4:3-6
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.


B. As the citizens of God's kingdom

Ephesians 2:19
Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household,


C. As the Temple of God

Ephesians 2:18
For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.


Ephesians 2:21-22
In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.


Through the Holy Spirit God is gathering us to His holy temple

We are sacred space, therefore we don't need to travel to a sacred space

We are left here to do what we can do while on the earth

We are not only the king's assembly but we are also the king's ambassadors (embassy on earth)

2 Corinthians 5:17-18
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:


2 Corinthians 5:20a
We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.


What are we suppose to do?

# We are in The Ministry of Reconciliation

- Our Model is not of this world but Christ, we just need to represent Christ wherever we are
- We implore to those outside to come into the ministry of reconciliation

Ephesians 6:19b-20
Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.


We are facing Opposition that needs prayer to breakthrough

Ephesians 6:10-12
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.


Not every prayer we pray or every good deeds we do yields the result we expected because of the unseen evil powers

Not yet, we can expect resistance

All those unseen forces cannot defeat us Unless we give up ground

A good defence is the best offence

Ephesians 6:14-17
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.


Belt of truth - Our integrity

The breastplate of righteousness - Our confidence, Guards our hearts

The shoes of readiness - Our response, No need to be reactive

The shield of faith - Our trust, Blocks the doubt

Helmet of salvation - Our assurance, Our Security

The sword of the spirit - Our reliance, Is the word of God

All useless Without empowerment of the Holy Spirit

Pray all times with all kinds of prayers

Discipleship Is not optional but engine to the kingdom of God

We're the living example to the world, a foretaste to those outside what eternity is like
- Example of this is the case of PR vs Citizen

Discipleship or reaching out to someone: We Should not look for a way to opt out

Are you a PR enjoying the benefits of the kingdom or Are you a Citizen Taking up responsibility?

When things are ok there's no difference whether PR or citizen but when things goes wrong, there is a different

God help me to represent you to live well