This is part 2 of 3 posts in this series called Walking Worthy as “One” in the Body. In this series, I am sharing 3 main points directed to us as leaders that are found in Ephesians 4:1-6. You can read part 1 here.
The second point I want us to focus on from these verses is: Walk Worthy
Unity begins as we walk out OUR (see point 1) calling in a worthy manner. We see how we are to do this in Ephesians 4:2—with all humility and gentleness, with patience, accepting one another in love. It says it this way in the Message: And mark that you do this with humility and discipline—not in fits and starts, but steadily, pouring yourselves out for each other in acts of love.
Here are some key ways we walk worthy:
- Humility is foundational to Christian unity and calling. It means leading like Christ—even if you have authority over others, you choose to submit it to your Father. That is certainly not what our world teaches. Jesus had ALL authority and yet He led with humility.
- Gentleness means being meek (not weak, but strength under control) and courteous. We must think before speak and act, including on social media. We see too much meanness shared on social media. We often react without thinking about how it will affect others or even ourselves.
- Patience is endurance when God’s timing doesn’t match up with ours. Culture teaches us that everything is immediate in life. But that’s not so true of spiritual endeavors. When I was a much younger woman, I didn’t realize (even though I was a believer) that God had a plan for my life this side of heaven. He wanted to be involved in my life daily—moment by moment—and my purpose in life was not up to me, but up to Him. Over one weekend a Christian mentor came into my home and showed me that God had a plan for me, and that He wanted to have a daily relationship with me. I had to get into His Word and pray personally, spending alone time with Him and asking His direction for my day. I still have so far to go in my spiritual growth, but I see progress over the years. There is always something new I’m reading, learning, studying, failing at, and relearning. It takes continual patience in the journey. God has had SO much patience with me.
- Accept one another in love even if they annoy us. We are to look beyond others’ faults to find the good things about them—assuming the best, not the worst of others. God calls us to love those who look, talk, and believe differently than we do. Sometimes He will ask us to just love them. He asked me to do this in a healing, restoration process in our family. I was not to figure it all out or fear being hurt again, but to just love them.
So we are to walk out our callings and we are to walk worthy. Point 3 will be in the last part of this series next Monday!
Chris Adams is senior lead women’s ministry specialist at LifeWay Christian Resources in Nashville, Tenn. Learn more about Chris here.
