Everywhere the Bible is talking about the importance of love in our daily lives. One area that love is of premier importance is in the act of “building others up.” The reality is that each of us is growing toward something. We are not who we once where but the events, relationships, and loves make up who we currently are. Good or bad we are becoming what course we have set for our lives. God has determined for us those relationships are one of the main ways that we are changed and transformed. It is the nature of those relationships that determines what sort of person that we are and are becoming.
Building others up is an act of someone who is seeking out
the maturity and wellbeing of another. It is like an incomplete project that
someone comes along and helps to finish. Let’s face it when it comes to
emotional and spiritual maturity, we all are incomplete projects. We regularly
come up short in these areas in our day-to-day life.
God has determined that your sanctification is in community
with other believers. It is in this context that we can really grow if we
approach these relationships in love. Love is the key!
Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk
worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with
patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the
unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
Notice some key elements in this passage. Paul is urging use
to “walk worthy of the calling you (we) have received.” To accomplish this, he
focuses on three personal attributes and two active attributes. The three
personal attributes are humility, gentleness, and patience. I believe these
three personal attributes are what makes you and others attractive in
relational sense. It is with this personal disposition that we then do the
action of our calling.
The first action is to bear one another in love. One thing
that can be said of relationships is there are moments of unpleasantness. Even
the best of friends and lovers will reach a point in their relationship where
something unpleasant will afflict them. It could be something the other has
said or done. Or it could be some difficult or tragic event in their lives. The
key to get through those moments is to bear one another in love! This is a real
test of love. If the relationship dissolves in moments of unpleasantness, then
what you called love was more likely affection. You see love bears all things (1 Corinthians
13:7). To be sure love celebrates the warm affection and gratitude of a
good friend! However, love also perseveres when the warmth and affection have
subsided.
The second action is to make every effort to keep the unity
of the Spirit through the bond of peace. In this way we are eager to keep
unity. How different this is from our modern culture. Most are eager to create
disunity. As believers though Paul is telling us that we must make every effort
to keep unity. There is a key qualifier here though “of the Spirit.” This
points to the reality that Christians are united by the Holy Spirit of God. It
is not a spirit of unity for which we are longing. Even the world longs for
this at times. It is unity under the provision and authority of God.
If you are looking for what unity of the Spirit looks like
consider the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Notice that these traits
of the Spirit are central to the verses we are looking at. Notably love, peace,
patience, and gentleness. When we live these out in community then God’s
sanctifying work is accomplished in our lives.
Then we will no longer be little children, tossed by the
waves and blown around by every wind of teaching, by human cunning with
cleverness in the techniques of deceit. But speaking the truth in love, let us
grow in every way into him who is the head—Christ. From him the whole body,
fitted and knit together by every supporting ligament, promotes the growth of
the body for building itself up in love by the proper working of each
individual part.
The body of Christ, that is the Church, is to function to
build up one another into maturity (Ephesians
4:11-13). This is accomplished through spiritual gifts given by Christ (Ephesians 4:7).
Notice in verse 14 that we are not immature, tossed about by every trend in
teaching, susceptible to clever argumentation, cunning, or deceit. BUT “Speak
the truth in love” and grow into Christ. It is by Christ that we are put
together as a body of believers. Further it is this body then that “builds
itself up in love.” This building up in love is to ensure the “proper working
of each person.”
Love is the contrast to immaturity and instability. When we
fail to love we lack the staying power of mature love. Young love is
passionate, but shallow. Mature love is secure and deep. What is more speaking
truth in love creates stability of teaching and learning. When speaking the "truth" while love is absent it is the cleverness, craftiness, and deception that are the foundation of what becomes unrighteous teaching.
I have a strong reaction to people that try to persuade
others using deception. I have this reaction even when I agree with their
underlying point. We have reached a point in our public life that many believe
(or act as if they believe) cleverness, craftiness, or deception are acceptable
as long as they support or promote our beliefs and desired outcomes. This is
the way of the world.
As believers we cannot fall into the ways of the world no matter what. Speak TRUTH in LOVE is a simple yet profound reality of Christian teaching and faith. This is the standard by which we must walk and live. Our very souls and other’s souls depend on it!
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