I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. – Ephesians 4:1-3
It saddens me when I see dissension within the body of Christ. My heart breaks when I scroll through facebook and see multiple posts where believers are bashing one another and saying horrible things to one another as they dispute scripture and or lifestyles and opinions. When I hear discussions that have turned into a screaming match it breaks my heart and makes me feel sick. It crushes my spirit when I hear gossip spreading in the body. Now don’t get me wrong I love to discuss scripture, it’s my favorite subject. I think a good healthy discussion or debate over the meaning of it is good. It helps us to grow and understand more about the one we love, our Savior. It is certainly okay to have a difference of opinions and it is good to discuss them and to say why you believe that way. Unfortunately, it seems that it is common to vilify those with different opinions and to openly show hate to our fellow believers in Christ. This is not how we are told to handle disputes or differences of opinions and I don’t see how it helps in leading those around us to Christ. Especially because Jesus said, “everyone will know you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
As Christians we should be striving to be more like Christ and to do as He has instructed us. Ephesians 4:1 tells we are to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called. So what have you been called to do? What is your gift? We get a peek into a few of them in 1 Corinthians 12:4-11, “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.”
We see a few more along with their purpose in Ephesians 4:11-16, “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”
What I notice is that all of these are for the common good, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, and for growing the body so it is built up in love. We need to be building each other up in love, not tearing each other down. I can admit some people who have different gifts and personalities can be hard to work with. But we need to remember that they are a part of the body and they have a purpose and are needed. Because we have different gifts and roles, we will often come to situations with different thought processes. It is okay, different but okay. When we all come together we work properly. A body does not operate well if one of its parts is missing or has been cut off. We need apostles, prophets, teachers, pastors and evangelists to be equipped for the work of the ministry. We need all the members working in their gift to be encouraged and for the common good.
We need to maintain unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. And in doing this we need to walk in a worthy manner. How is this done? I would say follow what Jesus has said and done. He forgave, and He told us to forgive. We see this in Matthew 6:12-15 “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Jesus takes forgiveness seriously. It helps me to forgive others when I remember all I have been forgiven from. I pray for the other person what I would want in my life such as drawing closer to God, living in His will and to be a doer of the word. I pray that God will bless them. At first it is hard, and honestly I don’t usually feel what I am praying for. But as time goes on, God softens my heart and I begin to truly feel and want what I am praying for them.
Forgiveness is not something that is said, it is something that is done. One way to walk out forgiveness is to take our thoughts captive (2 Cor 10:5). When thoughts of anger, bitterness and things that are not lovely, praiseworthy, pure, and commendable (Phill 4:8-9) I cast them out of my mind. I have to choose to think about something different and not dwell on the thoughts of unforgiveness.
In the first couple of verses in Philippians 4, Paul encourages two women who were disputing in the church. They were to continue laboring side by side. Paul did not send one to another church or tell them to stay away from each other, he said to agree in the Lord. They might not agree in every matter but they could agree in the Lord.
We are reminded in Colossians 3:13 “Bear with each other and forgive one another. If any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” If you have been hurt or offended, forgive them. If they have said or done outrageous things, forgive them. Pray for them and work with them and agree with them in the Lord. We are to speak to others, we are to speak the truth in love. That means not being arrogant or rude and not insisting on our own way. We can walk in a worthy manner when our words and actions demonstrate a love for God and a love for others.
Written by Rebecca Murzin
