From the MLJ Archive on Oneplace.com

What makes people unified? Is it the way they act? The same interest? In this sermon on unity from Ephesians 2:19 titled “Christian Unity,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones states “Nothing else can bring men together truly but this—this gospel.” In Ephesians, Paul is addressing the reality that both Jew and Gentile were side by side in standing before God through Jesus. This reality would have stunned the readers of Ephesians. No “righteousness” that Jews had would earn right standing before God and no lack of religious heritage for the Gentile would hinder salvation through Christ. Their righteousness was as filthy rags before God and all are on the same plane (Isaiah 64:6). All sinners are absolutely helpless before God. However, as Dr. Lloyd-Jones notes, Christians are those who are agreed upon the cross, know Jesus Christ, and share Christ’s righteousness. Also, Christians are one because they are brought to one Father by one Spirit (Eph. 2:18). Dr. Lloyd-Jones also notes that all who are in Christ are fighting the same battle, have the same struggles, and are able to carry each other’s burdens as they journey through this life. They are also comforted by one savior. Though living this life may be challenging, Christians are marching towards one eternal hope.

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What does the Holy Spirit have to do with prayer? In his sermon on Ephesians 2:18 titled “Praying in the Spirit,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones seeks to impress on the believer the absolute necessity of prayer and of the role of the Holy Spirit in prayer. According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, praying in the Holy Spirit “is the very essence of prayer.” Also, in light of God’s stunning love that brings His children to Him, “prayer is the supreme activity of the human soul.” Many people think that prayer is as simple as saying “their prayers,” but Dr. Lloyd-Jones critiques the phrase “saying our prayers” as being antithetical to prayer itself. Prayer is much deeper than this simplistic understanding because it is a Holy Spirit-lead endeavor. Dr. Lloyd-Jones goes as far as to say, “The Holy Spirit is as essential to prayer as the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.” According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, Jesus died that all might have access to the Father and the Holy Spirit makes real to the believer all that Jesus died for. Both must be held together if prayer is going to be true prayer.

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In this sermon on Ephesians 2:18 titled “Lord, Teach Us to Pray,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones addresses some of the reasons prayers can be so ineffective. Ephesians 2:18 states that “through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.” This verse shows the complexity of prayer. According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, a detrimental fallacy in the church is that prayer is simple. Some people focus on the reality that Christians have access to God through Christ and yet neglect the Spirit. They can pray with flawless doctrine but their prayers are “useless.” “You can be absolutely orthodox but at the same time be spiritually dead,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones shares. The other side neglects doctrine and says that all one needs is the Spirit. They elevate experience and throw out doctrine. However, Dr. Lloyd-Jones notes that both right doctrine and life in the Spirit are absolutely essential. There is no other way to have access to God apart from these two and nothing should be added to these doctrines.

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In this sermon on Ephesians 2:18 titled “Access to the Father,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones speaks of the solution to the struggle to understand the love of God. It could be because people don’t understand that the three persons of the Trinity have acted in time, each to pursue the Christian’s salvation who must feel the weight of that truth. The Father planned salvation, the Son was sent by the Father to give of Himself to accomplish salvation, and the Holy Spirit has been sent by the Father and the Son to apply redemption. Also, this shows the wretchedness of sin. “Sin is as great a problem as this: that it necessitated the three person of the Trinity to deal with it,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones states. However, removing enmity with God was not the ultimate reason, but God’s “objective” was to bring His people to Himself. As Dr. Lloyd-Jones notes, this is the “whole object and purpose of salvation.” He made His people to enjoy Him and that is His end goal. Therefore, the questions must be asked: “Do you enjoy God? Do you enter into His presence? Do you go before Him with confidence because of what Jesus has done on your behalf? Do you come before Him by His Spirit?”

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What some describe as loneliness is actually a lack of peace with God. It is a worldwide problem that often goes undiagnosed and is the most pervasive disease on the planet. In this sermon on Ephesians 2:17 titled “Peace With God,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones explains Paul’s words to the Ephesian church, primarily focusing on the necessity of peace with God. An important emphasis Dr. Lloyd-Jones makes is that Christ now preaches through the apostles what he was preaching in His own ministry: Jews and Gentiles alike are sinners and need peace with God. Jews in the New Testament made the fatal moralistic mistake of equating knowledge with obedience. Likewise, Gentiles fell short in that they chose to disobey the Lord with their sinful lifestyles. Dr. Lloyd-Jones uses vivid imagery to help listeners understand the reality of humanity's natural state of turmoil with God. He illustrates that the ocean is being pulled upon both by magnetic forces from the moon and the gravitational pull from the earth. This in turn causes massive turmoil and unrest in the ocean. This is similar to humanity’s natural state. Humanity is not at rest; it is at war with God. Dr. Lloyd-Jones ends his sermon on an encouraging note: humans bear many burdens they need not bear simply because they have not brought them before the Lord. Listen in as Dr. Lloyd-Jones helps understand peace with God.

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