Devotion 5: Unity
“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.” Ephesians 4:11-14
Unity: the state of being united or joined as a whole.
We have all been part of a group or team at one time or another. It could be sports teams, work teams, musical groups, dance groups, or even teams in a game. No matter what kind of group or team we are a part of, it is crucial that we work together to achieve the goal.
A dancer turning to the right when everyone else goes left would throw off all the other dancers. Imagine if a baseball player hit the ball and then ran to third base instead of first; that would certainly create confusion among the players. If all the individuals in a symphony played at the tempo they decided sounded best, it would be painful to listen to. However, sports teams have coaches, dancers have instructors, and in a symphony, there is a conductor who unifies the musicians and guides the orchestra to create beautiful music and bring his vision to life.
Unity is a common topic in the Bible. The Bible calls the entirety of the body of believers the Church. Throughout Scripture we see the Lord teaching us to work together, to worship Him, and to lead others to find faith in the One True God.
The body of believers here at The River Church has teams that serve in many capacities. There are opportunities to serve and grow in the Lord in all areas of the ministry. God calls pastors and teachers to encourage and train us. Here in Ephesians, Paul reminds us that every believer is meant to grow in spiritual maturity and to share our love for God and for others. Together, we, the church, gather to grow in knowledge by studying God’s Word, which will help us become rooted and mature in our faith in Christ Jesus.
God, our conductor, has a plan for every believer. He wants to use each one of us to spread the incredible news of salvation through Christ Jesus. As we love God and others, we find joy in gathering and worshiping Him together in this beautiful symphony called life.
Philippians 2:1-2 says, “So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.”