Ephesians 1:8-10 With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.
God’s will is to unify all of creation through Christ. This was the purpose for which Jesus came, to break down the dividing wall of hostility (Eph. 2:14) that separated us from God and from each other. Unity is that important to Him. If unity is so important to God, shouldn’t it be a priority for us, His children? Unfortunately, all too often, we put up our own walls within the body of Christ. Whether it is denominations, social classes, cultural differences, or racial groups, we choose to divide over our differences instead of celebrating the variations within the body.
How awesome our God is that He created such diversity in His kingdom. I love what Pastor Steve Combest says about this. He describes our differences as different ingredients in the soup God is making. We all bring our own flavor to the pot, our own texture, our own color. Bite into an onion by itself and it’s not all that great but when added to a chili it is delicious. God knows what he is doing, He has the recipe. The end product is going to be great. So why do we try to make it all the same flavor?
I’ve also heard our differences described as a stain glass window. Each one of us a broken piece of glass of different size and color. By ourselves we don’t amount to much. It is only together that we are part of a beautiful picture and when God’s light shines through us it is amazing!
We are each given a deposit of the Spirit (2Corinthians 1:21-22). We each have an understanding and revelation of who God is. It is only together that we start to grasp who God really is and how deep and how high and how long and how wide His love is for us. So, what can you do today to bring unity to the body of Christ? What differences can you celebrate? God has a purpose for us all in His grand plan. So go ahead and flavor the world with your unique gifts!
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