Overall, Paul is telling in Ephesians 4 how to do our part to maintain unity in the Body of Christ - how to make sure we do all we can to preserve this beautiful masterpiece, this beautiful dwelling God has made.
25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil. 28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. 29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
Paul says, it's not like we need to create the Church; Christ already has. Though the word let indicates an imploring exhortation, these instructions really are things we do not need to make happen; we need to let them happen. We need to let the truth come out in a loving way. We need to let go of resentment, bitterness and our decision that we deserve to hold on to anger. We need to let go of laziness and covetousness, and give of ourselves and our substance to one another. We need to let the Holy Spirit clean house in our hearts and minds, so that what comes out of our mouths builds up and does not tear down. We need to let go of our supposed right to judge and punish, and let God give us forgiveness to share. What are we willing to let happen today?
No comments:
Post a Comment