Going Deeper - EphesiansÖrnek

The Church is aptly called the body of Christ since the head is Jesus Himself. A body is made up of cells that are in close contact with each other and are continuously growing. Paul emphasizes to his readers that the church, which consisted of both Jews and Gentiles, is united by the death and resurrection of Jesus and now grows together in unity and love thanks to the Holy Spirit in each of them. We are urged to be part of this community and to live a life worthy of our calling which means choosing love and unity over and over again. Love is the growth factor for the body of Christ. Without it the church of Jesus would lose its vitality and relevance. Unity is the glue that holds diverse and different people together. The Holy Spirit is the one who fills his people with love and promotes unity against all odds. On our own even the best of us would find it hard to thrive in community. The body of Christ is not just your home church but the "capital C" church. This huge, ever increasing community of passionate followers and lovers of Jesus is graced with men and women with tremendous gifts that help to edify and equip the church at large. Apostles, pastors, prophets, teachers and evangelists are some of those who are given these gifts by Christ himself with the express purpose of training up his people and growing them into His likeness. What a huge task and what an incredible responsibility! How can you use what God has graced you with to bless the body of Christ? Will you foster unity and spread Christ’s love to fellow believers?