Be On Your Guard!
"Endeavoring to keep the unity of
the Spirit in the bond of peace."
Ephesians 4:3
Everyone guards what is valuable. We guard our time,
our money, our health, relationships. The more valuable
something is, the greater the effort we exert to preserve
it. Another insight: We can’t keep or preserve
something
we don’t already possess.
Paul exhorted the Ephesian church to keep—the word
means
to “keep, preserve, or guard” the unity of their life in Christ. He
doesn’t tell them to create unity; that’s something God's done
(Ephesians 2:13-18). God brought together Jews and Gentiles
(all people—Galatians 3:28) into one spiritual Body through the
cross of Christ. God has given us spiritual unity as a gift; it's up
to us to manifest it. Is that easy? No, the word for endeavoring
in Ephesians 4:3 means “to hurry, to be diligent, to make every
effort.” When cracks or splits appear in the unity of the Church
it’s because someone didn’t make every effort to guard
and
preserve it.
Are you making every effort to keep the unity
in your home, your friendships, your workplace,
your church? The unity of our life in Christ is
too precious not to guard.
"Unity in Christ is not something to be
achieved; it is something to be recognized."
A. W. Tozer
