“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Ephesians 4:2
In Ephesians 4:1, Paul urges Christians to, “live a life worthy of your calling.” This doesn’t mean that we have to try and deserve our place in God’s family. It means, rather, that we should recognize how much our place in God’s family deserves from us. The focus is not on our worth, but on our calling…our position in Christ Jesus.
This high calling is from God. It brings with it sonship and the benefits of all that God owns. Our calling is eternal. The honor and privilege of being a Christian should shape our lives. Our lives, therefore, should display the worth of our calling. There are earthly positions and callings that require a high level of integrity and honor, aren’t there? We expect those in these positions to live in a way that does not diminish the position to which they are called. How much more, then, should our lives reflect our calling?
Love is essential to such a life. Paul says that in order to live a life worthy of our calling, we must, “maintain the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” He also tells us how to maintain this unity – through humility, gentleness, patience, and love. The realization of our high calling should bring us low. Humility and gentleness go together and lead to patience. Prideful people are not gentle or patient.
Therefore, as Christians let us not be prideful, but humble. Let us not be harsh but gentle, forgiving one another as we have been forgiven. Then the unity Christ died to give us will reign in our hearts, in our congregations, and in the body of Christ as a whole. Only then can we bring glory, and not disgrace, to the great God who has called us into His family.
Dear Lord, I am aware today that I do not deserve my place in Your family. It is only by Your grace that I am saved. Help me to live a life worthy of my calling. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Topics: Family
