Walking? Or just Talking.

"walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called..." (Eph.4:1)

Already I have suggested that in this chapter where Paul writes to the church at Ephesus, and thus God to all of us, he is telling us here that our life should match the name we wear. If we are going to take the name of Christian, which is ultimately the name of Jesus Christ, then we are to walk worthy of that name. In other words, we should be living so closely connected to Him that day by day we are growing in Christ-likeness.

Day to day living is often described as a "walk" in the Bible. So the question I want to raise is, are we just talking a good talk without seeking to live what we say, or are we day by day surrendering ourselves to Him and being transformed to live like Jesus. It is not a matter of imitating Christ. It is a matter of being so vitally connected to Him that He reproduces His life in us.

In Ephesians 4 that walk is directed by living in unity within the Body of Christ. As I look around, I see so many Christians out of fellowship with the Body of Christ and I wonder if Jesus is not saddened that we have neglected His bride. Why are we claiming to be part of the Body, and yet acting in isolation as though the members of the body don't need each other? Pray for God to ignite a fresh passion in the hearts of believers to come together in unity.

One Faith

"One Faith" (Eph. 4:5)

The heart of Jesus' prayer in John 17 is for the Unity of His Church. Paul in Ephesians 4 tells us this unity is produced by the Holy Spirit, but we are to be careful not to grieve the Spirit and to not give the devil any opportunity by maintaining the unity. He instructs us to do that by paying particularly close attention to what we say.

In Eph. 4:4-6 there are 7 different "Ones" that form the basis of our unity. We have already seen that there is only One Body, the corporate universal church, and there is One Holy Spirit that breathes life into that body. And we are united around our common hope of the incredible inheritance we have in Christ and which God has guaranteed in our lives by the Presence of the Holy Spirit. Yesterday we noted the fourth "One" which is the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is also one faith. That is the body of common belief that comprises orthodox doctrine. Yes, there are many things that we can debate and be divided over in interpretation, but the essence of the Scripture, particularly the Gospel is not debateable. There is only one way to become a follower of Jesus Christ. There is only one basic body of truth that comprises the core of faith.