Jesus gives every believer a role in building His church, and spiritual maturity happens as every part does its work.

Unity does not mean uniformity. Having emphasized what believers share in common, Paul immediately celebrates the different gifts Christ has given His people.

Christ gives leaders to His church not to perform all the ministry themselves, but “to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.”

And Paul tells us where all of this is headed: maturity.

A healthy church is not dependent upon a few gifted personalities. It is a body of believers increasingly grounded in truth, becoming like Jesus, serving one another, speaking truth in love, and contributing their part to the health of the whole body.

Because Christ has made us one, we are responsible for living in a way that protects and reflects that unity.

Paul begins the practical half of Ephesians not with programs, structures, leadership, or strategy, but with character. A life worthy of the gospel is marked by humility, gentleness, patience, and a willingness to bear with one another in love.

Paul does not tell the church to create unity. Christ has already created it. Our responsibility is to “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

That means Christian unity is nether accidental or passive. It requires something from us.

Because Christ has made us one, we are responsible for living in a way that protects and reflects that unity.

Paul begins the practical half of Ephesians not with programs, structures, leadership, or strategy, but with character. A life worthy of the gospel is marked by humility, gentleness, patience, and a willingness to bear with one another in love.

Paul does not tell the church to create unity. Christ has already created it. Our responsibility is to “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

That means Christian unity is nether accidental or passive. It requires something from us.

The table has always been a place of hospitality, generosity, and nourishment. In Mark 14 Jesus and His disciples sat at a table for the Passover meal. The table was not only a place of hospitality, generosity, and nourishment, but a place of the marriage supper of the lamb. We are invited to take part in the gift of the lamb through communion.

The table has always been a place of hospitality, generosity, and nourishment. In Mark 14 Jesus and His disciples sat at a table for the Passover meal. The table was not only a place of hospitality, generosity, and nourishment, but a place of the marriage supper of the lamb. We are invited to take part in the gift of the lamb through communion.

When we don’t know the way forward, we don’t have to manufacture an answer. We ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom, discernment, power, and direction.

We may not understand everything happening around us, but we can know who God is. We can encounter His presence, fix our eyes on the resurrected Jesus, and trust the Holy Spirit to lead us forward.

God does not require us to understand everything before we come into His presence. He invites us to bring our anger, confusion, fear, and anxiety to Him.

Hebrews 12:1-2 – “Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.”