“Indivisible”
Indivisible! A word we say every time we recite the pledge of allegiance…a word that isn’t for a select political party, people group or agenda…it means we can not be divided or separated! Something we have all been living in recently is separation. What if we really saw that the fracture in our nation starts with the fracture in the Church? What if we were made for unity not uniformity?
- The CALLING of UNITY (Ephesians 4:1-6)
- We are Christ’s Royal Ambassador’s to the world. We get to be His love to everyone we encounter. That is the bond of peace…LOVE! Not by the arguments we win but instead by the gentleness, humbleness and meekness. We are not called to lord ourselves one over the other…we are instead called to come to the table and work together. The calling of unity is simply to live the live worthy of your calling. If you struggle with your calling it’s who you are in Christ (your identity)! In Christ we are all ONE!
- The GIFT of UNITY (Ephesians 4:7-13)
- We are all different by God’s grace to carry out the mission to reach the world with the Hope of the Gospel! Many of us in the Christian world can get caught up in what Paul is writing about here as it pertains to purgatory and Christ going down to set the captives free…before the theological debate ensues take a deep breath and let’s add a twist here. Regardless of whether Paul is referencing Psalm 139 where the descent is the womb, Psalm 63 where the descent is the grave what’s most important is the Christ Descended First because He is of God and now we get to be lifted up because of Him! Jesus has set the captives free because He conquered sin, death, the grave & satan! Christ laid aside all ambition to be honored and respected so that each of us could have life. He gives us different gifts as to show that life to the world. Our gift is our ability to show to show Christ’s love to the world. We should share that gift by asking “How can I best utilize myself for the benefit of the rest of the members of the Church?” not “How can I use my gifts to glorify myself & my position?”. Inside the gift of unity to build each other up in faith, hope and love…there is no room for selfishness in that.
- The CAUSE of UNITY (Ephesians 4:14-16)
- Every part of the Body has it’s own purpose. Every part is made to do what the other part can not do…but together in unity they can do so much more! God has made no part of the Body in vain! When we have our identity in Christ and know that we have been given the ability to function in the Body our purpose is to give all we have to the function of that Body for the nourishment of the Body…that is the love of Jesus! Not “just do my part” but instead “live out my part and encourage you as you live out yours” so that we can strengthen, support and grow the love of Christ together as we reach the world with the Hope of The Gospel!
Our identity is in Christ, our abilities are our gifts given to do the works of ministry and our purpose is to spread the Gospel to the ends of the earth in how we love others through our gifts from our identity in Christ! We are not first Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, Catholic or a specific denomination…we are Christians! And united together we will leave the world turned upside down by the Gospel instead of being the Church turned upside down by the world!
Take Away:
What do you think are some of the greatest causes of disunity among Christians? No wrong answers.
What are some of the ways you personally can create more unity in Christianity
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Tyler West 