8 Therefore He says: a“When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.”
9a(Now this, “He ascended”—what does it mean but that He also1 first descended into the lower parts of the earth?
10 He who descended is also the One awho ascended far above all the heavens, bthat He might fill all things.)
11 And He Himself gave some tobe apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, afor the edifying of bthe body of Christ,
13 till we all come to the unity of the faith aand of the knowledge of the Son of God, to ba perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
14 that we should no longer be achildren, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of bdeceitful plotting,
15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the ahead—Christ—
16afrom 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.
The New Man
17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should ano longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind,
18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the ablindness of their heart;
19awho, being past feeling, bhave given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather alet him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something bto give him who has need.
29aLet no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but bwhat is good for necessary edification, cthat it may impart grace to the hearers.
30 And ado not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31aLet all bitterness, wrath, anger,1 clamor, and bevil speaking be put away from you, cwith all malice.
32 And abe kind to one another, tenderhearted, bforgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
When Christ ascended, He was resurrected as very God, an immortal spirit Being once again. His descent means His burial, followed by His ascension above the heavens. Because of this victorious ascension, gifts were given to each one, and Christ Himself gave some to be apostles, prophets, and other roles within the Body—a deliberate act by the Head of the church. Even as Jesus Christ was the Father's gift to the church, Christ's gift to the church is the ministry, given for the edification of the whole Body. Fulfilling Psalm 68:18, these offices make the spiritual Body a fitting dwelling place for the LORD God. Through these gifts and His Spirit, believers come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
Ephesians 4:10-13
When He ascended, He was resurrected as very God. He was an immortal spirit Being once again!
These verses show the goal, the focus, the very reason the church exists—why we have been given the Spirit of God: "till we come to the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God." Paul is describing something that will not occur while we are still physical beings, pointing to the great goal that lies beyond the resurrection of the dead!
We find our hope and goal in verse 13. We must begin to expand on what Jesus Christ is now—that is what the apostle Paul points to. Our standard is not Jesus merely as a man before He was crucified and resurrected, but the great goal is becoming like Jesus Christ is now—ascended and at God's right hand!
We are still mortal and physical, but we are in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), not just in form and shape. The image of God that He is concerned about is the fact that we have the power of mind. Because of this, and with the help of the gifts of God, particularly His Spirit, we can come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
When Christ ascended, He was resurrected as very God, an immortal spirit Being once again. His descent means His burial, followed by His ascension above the heavens. Because of this victorious ascension, gifts were given to each one, and Christ Himself gave some to be apostles, prophets, and other roles within the Body—a deliberate act by the Head of the church. Even as Jesus Christ was the Father's gift to the church, Christ's gift to the church is the ministry, given for the edification of the whole Body. Fulfilling Psalm 68:18, these offices make the spiritual Body a fitting dwelling place for the LORD God. Through these gifts and His Spirit, believers come to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.