Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another with love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Ephesians 4:1,2

In my time with the Lord this morning, this verse hit me hard.  I think it affected me because it’s such a stark contrast to what is happening in our country right now.  Yet, God calls us to be different.  

Think how counterculture this is.  For starters, Paul calls himself a prisoner of the Lord.  He’s saying another master is over him.  That doesn’t play out well in society today.  The world would tell us that we need to be strong and independent.  Jesus calls us to be slaves, obedient to the Master.

Walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another with love.

Imagine how it looks to the world when we are not easily offended by each other.  When we give grace and seek to understand differences while not compromising on biblical truths. This ability to not be offended comes from one place.  Humility.

I am giving you a new commandment, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all people will know that you are My disciples: if you have love for one another.”
John 13:34,35

It is not easy to love as Jesus loved but he commands us to do that very thing.  They will know us by our love for one another.

The last portion of the verse in Ephesians was especially impactful. Being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  We have a responsibility as followers of Christ to preserve the unity amongst believers.  Not that we don’t call out false teachings, but we preserve unity and don’t let little, non-essential things separate us.  

I am praying that we, at wvBc, glorify God as we preserve unity and are known by our love for one another.

-Greg Huber