Before reading ahead be sure to check out “God’s Work of Unity Part 1” via the link below:
When I was younger I had a toy formula 1 racing car that was made out of legos. I liked disassembling it just for the thrill of reassembling it. Eventually, I got fed-up of the disassembling and reassembly and I began using the lego parts to create other things – boats, cars, aeroplanes, etc. In this process, however, I began losing parts, so that when it was time to build back the car it became difficult to do so. I originally wanted to attain having a complete and functional toy car. But, as my interests swayed, I tried to do other things and, in the process, lost essential parts.
“Attain” means to achieve something successfully. It is something that you are seeking to accomplish as it is a deep longing of your heart. Whatever you may place your focus on attaining would reflect what your priorities and values are. Unity in Christ is a spiritual mechanism put in place to help us attain what Christ desires for us to attain. In the case of my lego car, I valued having a complete, functioning car, until my priorities shifted to other ideas. Those other ideas seemed “cool” and “innovative” at the moment, but they ended up causing me to use the parts of the car out of their intended purpose, and they even caused me to lose the parts of the car altogether! If I had maintained the right “unity” of the parts, and allowed them to be built and kept for their designated functions, I would have attained a complete and functional toy car.
A Special Emphasis on us making up the Body of Christ
“11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” – Ephesians 4:11-16 (ESV)
This passage of scripture actually deals with some parts of its own. However, those parts aren’t Lego blocks. Instead, they’re us! Along with 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 and Romans 12:4-5, Ephesians 4:11-16 highlights the importance of understanding that we belong to the Body of Christ. Verse 16 even shows us that we should be equipped joints that hold the body together, just as literal, physical joints, tissues, bones, tendons, etc., hold a physical body together. Just as the case with my Lego car, it is disadvantageous when we move from building the Body of Christ to building other things that are contrary to the Kingdom of God, just because we might feel like “trying something out”.
A Special Emphasis on Leadership
This passage then goes a step further and zooms in on the role of leadership in this bodily structure. It starts off by showing that there are some who are given to operate as more than equipped joints in the Body. Some are called to be Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Shepherds (Pastors), and Teachers. The God-given function of these leadership roles is not for bragging rights or for being showered with praise, reverence and/or accolades. Instead, as seen in verse 12, God gave some persons the mandate of operating in these offices of leadership for the equipping the saints for the work of ministry so that the Body of Christ can be built up. Therefore, if all members of the Body are the joints, tissues and tendons, then the leadership would be the Body’s multivitamin or exercise plan!
What Leaders and all Believers must aspire to attain
Whether you are a leader or not, once you have trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, you are automatically called to set your priorities on what pertains to Him and His Kingdom (see Matthew 6:33). It is easy for us to be caught up in so many things, especially in the distractions that this present world brings before us. But it is time that we stop and set our eyes on what Christ has instructed us to set our eyes on.
In everything that you do as a Believer, whether it is by Evangelizing, Praying, Preaching and Teaching the Word, conducting Youth Ministry, Worship leading, playing Music, etc., there are key things that you must seek to attain (to acquire or to see successfully accomplished in and around you). You might therefore wonder, “what are these things that I as a Christ must seek to attain?”. Well, Ephesians 4 has helped us out! Here are 4 primary things that every believer must seek to attain, all of which are facilitated by the mechanism of God’s work of unity.
#1: Attain the Unity of the Faith
I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. – 1 Cor. 1:10 (ESV)
That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. – St. John 17:21 (ESV)
We must be united in Christ. We must share and adhere to His Word, to every one of His commandments. We must operate in the unity that He requested of us to operate in, which are mentioned in St. John 17 and let it manifest like it did with the Early Church in Acts 4 and onwards.
“And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.” – Acts 4:32 (KJV)
“endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”Ephesians 4:3-6 KJV
#2: Attain the Knowledge of the Son of God
And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. – St. John 17:3 (ESV)
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. – St. John 1:14 (ESV)
Jesus Christ is the Son of God and, as St. John 1 highlights, the ultimate revelation of the fullness of God Himself to mankind. Because He was manifested, we were now able to commune with God without being consumed by His holiness. Knowing Christ – having a relationship with Him – (not just knowing of Him) is the ultimate requirement that God has given to every human being. Christ is our hope of glory, our salvation, our advocate, our example, and the only one who can make us “worthy enough” to stand before God on Judgment Day, even making us able to come boldly before His throne in prayer.
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, – Hebrews 1:1-3 (ESV)
#3: Attain Maturity
Our same main scriptural passage states that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ (Ephesians 4:14-15).
For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. – Hebrews 5:12-13 (ESV)
God has called us not to always be “drinkers of milk” but to be “consumers of solid food”. In His Kingdom there must be growth of the parts that make up His Body. If the joints, tendons, and tissues are therefore expected to be healthy and maturing, imagine what the multivitamins are required to be! We as leaders must be mature in every sense for the healthy growth of the Body. The fact is this – unhealthy leadership will always create an unhealthy Body.
#4: Attain Completeness in Christ
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. – 2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)
And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, – Revelation 5:9 (ESV)
You yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. – 1 Peter 2:5 (ESV)
Our main scriptural passage tells us that we must attain to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. This measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ refers to the spiritual completeness that Christ desires us to live in, which would be us living in the power of His Holy Spirit and guided by His Word! His Spirit and His Word are ONE, and they work together to help develop believers into complete beings in the sight of God. God therefore does not require perfect leaders. He requires leaders who are willing for Him to mend every brokenness through the action of His Holy Spirit and His Word.
“Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: in whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; and having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” – Colossians 2:8-15 (KJV)
Attaining completeness in Christ also involves us having victory over sin and its deceitfulness. Hebrews 3:13 tells us that we must “encourage one another” while we have the opportunity now. This verse continues to tell us that such an encouragement would “help us to overcome the deceitfulness of sin”. Unity and brotherly love is not just about looking cute and doing something “nice”. It is a deep spiritual principle that even results in us engaging in offensive warfare against the tactics of the enemy. Such things would come about through a unity that would lead to us becoming complete in Christ.
Conclusion
God’s work of unity has a motive, a means, a mark, and a measure. It also seeks to help us to attain key things, all of which would lead to us achieving completeness in Christ. I guess you can say that all of this leads to maturity in our faith in Christ. Unity helps us not to be “unstable in all our ways”. It brings stability that is needed to set us on the right track.
Beacon Of Flavor 