Eph 4:14-16 - Grow Up Into Him

14 As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.

Tossed by Trickery, Craftiness, and Deceit

V. 14 - “As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;”

The result of the growing and maturing process (vs. 13) should be evident in the life of the believers. As a human baby grows and matures and eventually becomes an adult, likewise a spiritual baby (a new Christian). The growth stages of a Christian are analogous to those of a human. (1 Cor 3:1-2, 14:20; Heb. 5:12-14) We are not to be children all of our lives. The singular trait of children is a lack of wisdom (skill for living).

The phrases used here: tossed on the waves; blown by the wind; tricked and deceived, can all be linked to a lack of spiritual wisdom. As we mature in Christ we can begin to grow and discern trickery and deceit. For example, we can compare any teaching about Christ and the church with/to the teaching in chapters of Ephesians 1 & 2. If there is error in the teaching we receive, it should become obvious.
The subject of maturing as a believer is a recurring theme in the epistles. For example: "And though by this time it would be right for you to be teachers, you still have need of someone to give you teaching about the first simple rules of God's revelation; you have become like babies who have need of milk, and not of solid food. For everyone who takes milk is without experience of the word of righteousness: he is a child. But solid food is for men of full growth, even for those whose senses are trained by use to see what is good and what is evil." (Heb 5:12-14)

V. 15 - “but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,” -

“But speaking the truth in love” - ‘Speaking’ in this instance can also be either “holding on” or “practicing”. All three make sense in this verse.

1. We need to speak the truth about Christ and His love and salvation. When we cling to Him we do not suffer the problems seen in verse 13. 
2. We need to hold on to the truth, not false doctrines, the whole truth of Christ. 
3. We need to practice the truth in our daily lives. Our way of life needs be founded in God’s Word and supplied by the truth and reality of Christ. 

Again, all three must be rooted and grounded in Love, and show through us to others, in our speech, in our lives.

“We are to grow up in all aspects into Him” - Ah, the maturing process. Drawing upon the physical process of ‘growing up’ - the body and mind usually mature in every area. In the same way, we are to mature in every area of our spiritual lives, not just prayer-life, not just Bible study, not just fellowship, not just witnessing, but in all areas. A well-rounded Christians. If indeed we are to become as Christ, then the goal is well-roundedness. Christ is the head of the church (Col 1:18).

V. 16 - “from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.”

See: Col 2:19. The “body” is the church. The church receives its life and growth from Christ. I’m still not sure about the references to joints and ligaments. Each person, each gift given by the Holy Spirit, is necessary for the church to grow and share Christ to the world. See 1 Cor 12:1-31 for a more detailed discussion of the parts of the church.

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Eph. 4:11-13 - Building Up the Body

11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;
13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.

Workers for the Faith

V. 11 - And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,

“And He gave some...” - Refer back to verse 4:8. God gave gifts to man. This verse (11) tells of the gifts He gave:

(1) “Apostles “ - A distinct group of men called by the Lord to build the foundation of the church. This church "office" or position is mentioned only in the NT. It was a church office only held by a few people - the original called disciples (Matt 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Lk 6:14-17; Acts 1:13ff); also Paul, Barnabas, maybe Apollos and Timothy. One of the primary requirements to be an apostle was to have had a personal interaction with Jesus Christ. The position of apostle was an honor in the early church during the first 60-90 years after Christ's ascension into heaven.

(2) “Prophets “- Authoritative teachers of God’s will. Do not emphasize unduly the predictive side of ‘prophet’. The prophet had to deal with present and past, and to instruct believers in God’s ways. He is one who speaks forth that which he has received from the Holy Spirit. A prophet was a person qualified by God to be His spokesman to the church. The prophet spoke the Words of God, that is: messages received by divine inspiration. Indeed, sometimes the prophet told the church things God revealed to him about the future. God also provided warnings and encouragements through the prophets.

(3) "Evangelists “- Men (See Note 2, below) whose special function was to announce the glad tidings of the gospel to those ignorant of them. These men were not pastors of any given church, and therefore free to travel, preaching the Gospel. Paul was called to be an evangelist to the Gentiles. Barnabas and Apollos also evangelized the Gentiles. Other men were called to the areas around Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria.

(4) “Pastors & teachers” - These imply ‘shepherd’ and instructor, or teacher, or master, respectively. These people would be aimed at the local church bodies. The teacher’s job is to instruct. There is a difference between the roles of a teacher and that of a prophet. Both teach the word of God; the prophet tends to speak from God; the teacher explains what the Bible is saying. This is an especially critical job in the church at that time. They did not have the NT. The teacher provided the application of the evangelists' and the apostles' messages.
The message, "This is how you live out your faith", which is helping believers understand how to apply the truths of Christianity. It is a vital function when helping people with no religious background. In some ways we are in this same position in the United States - we have gone from a 'Christian' nation to one that is basically unchurched and ignorant of what is expected. Many people have no idea what Chrisitanity is about - they may have assumptions and prejudices, but no correct information. They must be led to the truth.

V. 12 - “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;”

The gifts given to the apostles, pastors, etc., were not just for conversation purposes. When Christ distributes anything, be it salvation or gifts - it’s never just for the sake of itself. We are not saved, just to be saved, but to be servants. Likewise, gifts are given, not for the gifts’ sake, but to serve the body of Christ. This verse, and the next, explain the reasons for the gifts, and it is twofold:
    (1) To prepare the believers for work;
    (2) To bring about the growth in the inner man.

The work of the believers (having been given gifts) is also two-fold: (1) Service; (2) Building up the body. For service, see: Matt 20:26-28; Luk 22:24-27; John 13:12-17. We are saved to serve. Note that in particular the service is to other Christians, but not exclusively.

In regards to building up, this means to strengthen in knowledge and understanding (see also v. 13). The KJV uses “edifying” in place of “building up”.

V. 13 - “until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”

The building up of the body is to result in a process whereby each of us (individually) comes to:
    (1) An equal trust and belief in Christ;
    (2) An intimate and personal understanding and relationship with Christ;
    (3) A spiritual maturity that approaches the nature of Christ.

“A unity of the faith” - I mentioned an equal trust and belief. Perhaps ‘equal’ is an incorrect expression. ‘Unity’ is a oneness, an ‘alikeness’. The idea is that each of us will eventually come to the same, identical faith. (See: Note 1, below) Does this verse mean that we will all have the same amount of faith, or the same kind or quality for faith? The Greek for ‘unity’ is a oneness or unanimity. We are to come to, or arrive at in due course a oneness of faith. Yours like mine, mine like his, his like theirs, etc. This means that by the power of the HolySpirit we are to rise above our earthly fetters and have the same mind about Christ and His salvation.

“Knowledge of the Son of God” - Note: a true knowledge, a heart knowledge, not head knowledge; therefore a personally gained intimate relationship.

“A mature man” - See: Col 1:28; Phil 3:15. We can grow in Christ and to some degree be exactly like Christ. Because of our two natures warring within us (natural vs. spiritual) we, in our earthly bodies cannot be exactly as Christ is in every detail. But we can be very much like Him. <

(1) In due course we’ll all have the same faith.
(2) In due course we’ll all have the same knowledge.
(3) In due course we’ll all grow to be like Christ.

And when we see Him, we will be just like Him (See: 1 John 3:1-2)

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Note 1: It is now popular to believe that since each of us is an individual, coming from different backgrounds, schooling, environment, etc., that each of us has a different view of Christ, or we can have a different faith.

Note 2: I am not saying that evangelists, pastors or teachers should be men only. I do not think that is Biblical teaching. The apostles listed in the NT were all men. Most of the pastors, teachers, and evangelists were men. I don't believe that locks for all time these positions are for men only. Several of the churches, especially the Gentile churches, had women in prominant positions of leadership.