March 11, 2021
15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
- Ephesians 4:15-16
Some assembly requires. We have probably at some point dreaded those words on an item we bought, wondering if this was going to be a little assembly, or take a day off kind of assembly. How much we enjoy this assembly may have to do with our personality as well. Some among us absolutely love putting things together, getting lost in all the pieces to create something beautiful in the end. Others, just want to appreciate the finished product, and admire the construction without having to be a part of the process.
In the church at Ephesus, and honestly the church in general, Paul saw that there were those people who believed in the work, could do what needed to be done, to evangelize, to preach, to teach, to admonish, to do whatever it was that needed to be done to expand the kingdom of God. Paul also experienced plenty who just wanted God’s kingdom to come, they didn’t want to put in the work, they just wanted to enjoy the benefits of God’s blessings.
Paul’s reminder to this church, and to the church as a whole, is that we all must work together to see the kingdom of God come to fruition. It is Paul’s calling of us to remember that there is no individual who is of a higher status in the church, but that the church is built on the community of faithful believers who seek to make Jesus Christ the center of everything that is said and done.
Church, this is our message today, and should be our message for the generations to come. There is nothing that happens in the church or for the kingdom that I have done, or you have done. We, individually, and collectively, are only doing what we do for the glory of Christ Jesus our Lord, we are just a part of what God has done, and is doing to build the divine kingdom.
The great urging of this passage is to remind us that all that we have, and all that we are, is because of the love of God seen in Christ Jesus, and because of the urging of God’s Holy Spirit. It reminds us that as we move forward, we must also move ever upward to do all that we can for the good of God’s kingdom, for we all belong to God, in the One kingdom that is now and forever.
Grace & Peace,
Sam