For many, church is a spectator sport, a Sunday event which intrudes on every-day life. It’s easily cast aside when inconvenient, an aged tradition now irrelevant to real life. But the Bible teaches that a church is not a once-per-week media extravaganza meant to wow you, but a 24/7 living organism that is meant to nurture you, and be nurtured by you. Put another way, a relationship with Jesus is impossible apart from a relationship with other believers. 1 John 4:20, 21. If you are a Christian, growing with others is not an option or elective, but discipleship itself. Let’s explore how God thoughtfully unifies diverse people, for His glory and our good.
Unity: We are called to community. vv. 1-6
✔A church is not a random group of people, but an INTENTIONAL gathering of those whom Jesus has called and unified.
✔ A church’s unity is a seven-fold purposeful work of the Trinity: One Body, One Spirit, One Hope, One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism, One God.
✔ Unity is fostered when believers bear patiently with one another in love, setting aside superficial differences and private agendas for the good of the all.