Endure With One Another

“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” – Ephesians 4:2

The Christian who is eager to maintain the bonds of peace in the unity of the Spirit by being humble, gentle, patient, bearing with others in love is living “a life worthy of the calling to which you have received” (Ephesians 4:1). A mark of church unity is carrying one another’s burdens in love.

The word here means to endure with one another. Only perfect people have no need to be forgiven and instructed with patience. Churches are not perfect people, and our discipleship into maturity in Christ does not take place overnight. A humble, gentle patience is required to endure with one another. Why? Because Allison Avenue has imperfect people in it. Sometimes, imperfect people get grumpy. Sometimes, the wounded sharpen tongues to wound another. We each carry a weight into our gathering. The answer is not found in each other, but in our humble, gentle, patience enduring with one another in love, we direct one another to Christ and “the immeasurable riches of His grace” (Ephesians 2:7). This encourages each other in the church to display God’s perfect patience with us as the worst of sinners by our enduring patiently with one another (I Timothy1:16).

My beloved flock, none of you is perfect. This means the church around you must have an enduring patience with you. This means you must have a gentle spirit to endure with them. If we are to be a church enjoying peace in unity, it must not come from us; rather, it must come from Christ who bought us and brought to together (John 14:27).

Pray. Pray for each other and pray that you may have a humble, gentle servant’s heart. Be an instrument of God’s grace to others at church. They may get heated, or grumpy, or bitter. That isn’t a time for avoidance, but rather actively patient, humble, gentle forbearance in your “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). Also, be a good listener with humility, gentleness, and patient endurance of one another. Much of church unity is sacrificed when we lack care in our gentle listening.  Our flesh believes “I am always right and there is no amount of truth I need to hear.”

Let us be a humble, gentle, patient church who, in our love for one another, endures much with one another.

Heavenly Father, grant me grace to remember Your patient longsuffering with us in Your love for me. May You grant me mercy to display Your love in my humility, gentleness, patience in longsuffering with others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Fruit of the Spirit: Introduction

I have heard many responses to the simple reading of the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5. Sometimes, the reaction from folks is, "Yea, that's how others should treat me!" Or, "It is how I am to be an example." What if the Holy Spirit is digging deeper here?

Galatians was a letter from the Apostle Paul to local churches in a region of modern day Turkey in which Paul planted and invested the gospel of Jesus in people. Paul had to remind them he was sent by God as an apostle, not by men (Galatians 1:1). Since the time Paul was there, missionaries of opposition to Paul and his teaching came telling the church members to get circumcised and follow the Old Testament Law to be right with God.

Galatians is a reminder of the importance of sound doctrine in our theology. Bad doctrine regarding the gospel is "eternally accursed" by those who proclaim it (Galatians 1:8-9) and leads to local churches abusing one another without any asking for forgiveness, repentance, or attempts at reconciling (Galatians 5:15). So, it is important to get the true gospel to view the fruits of the Spirit.

Galatians 5 reminds us of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We were found under the command and control of sin and Jesus freed by promise to those who believe (3:22). Christ died to free us from the demands and punishment and burden of the Law. Under the command of sin, we could not say "no" to the desires of the flesh. We who believe in Jesus have crucified the flesh and all its passions and desires (5:24). We who have been freed by Christ now can say "no" to sin and "yes" to righteousness.

Let us treat Galatians 5 in light of the gospel of Jesus Christ together. Let us learn to walk by the Spirit together as those no longer under the law (5:16, 18). This is not about how to expect others to treat you, or simply how to be a moral person. This is about having been freed by Christ to be led by Christ to be Christ-like to the glory of God. We are no longer under the Law but have been freed by Jesus so we don't indulge ourselves in the pleasures of our old nature, but given a new nature by the Spirit of God. The grace of God transforms the believer to display the fruits of the Spirit. The new life Jesus has delivered us by His death and God's power is a life of love.

I will blog each fruit as a devotion and prayer. I invite you to join me in studying God's Word.