This Should Keep Us Busy
Ephesians 4:1-3 NKJV
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Paul has spent the majority of the first three chapters revealing what Jesus has done for us and who we are because of our faith in Him. As a side note, verses 14-21 of chapter three are a great prayer you can pray for yourself and other believers. This is one of the prayers we pray as a staff for those who are a part of The Ark Church. The first three chapters delve into the positional truths of the gospel. How we are positioned through Christ.
In chapter four, always keeping in mind that Ephesians was written as a letter, not in chapter and verse, Paul begins to spell out how we are to live because of what has been done in us through Christ. Chapter four also outlines what is referred to as the fivefold ministry gifts and their purpose in the body of Christ. But he starts the chapter imploring the believers at Ephesus to live differently.
Paul says he is the prisoner of the Lord. In checking other translations, including Young’s Literal Translation, considered one of the most accurate, the wording is the same: a prisoner of the Lord. Paul is saying it is because of the Lord that he is a prisoner. Paul’s commitment to the Lord Jesus and his focus on fulfilling his assignment to proclaim the gospel have made him a prisoner. And it is from this place of difficulty that Paul is encouraging the church.
To beseech is to exhort, to encourage, and Paul is encouraging the believers at Ephesus to walk in a manner that is worthy of what they have been called to. In other words, to live in such a way as to be deserving of the Lord and His Kingdom. We don’t use worthy frequently in today’s vernacular. I can remember humorous skits where the actors would chant “we are not worthy” when encountering rock musical heroes. But when Paul says to walk worthy, it would be like a parent encouraging their child to live in such a way as to bring honor to the family. The same applies to us as members of God’s family. We are to live in such a way as to bring honor to God’s family and kingdom. Then Paul gives some ways to accomplish walking worthy.
With all lowliness and gentleness. The word lowliness does not sit well with us. We have been raised to believe we are not lower than anyone, and yes, that is true in a sense. But a better translation for lowliness is humility. And when it comes to humility, this is something all of us are to pursue. And we can understand taking the lower place where the Lord is concerned. So we walk in submission to the Lord and His way for us with gentleness defined as an inward grace of the soul and calmness toward God. I could use some further revelation of gentleness, but I get the sense it’s the opposite of being obstinate and hard-hearted. I can see adopting a posture of humility and gentleness toward God, which will be evident in our dealings with others, combined with longsuffering. Longsuffering is being patient towards people. Endurance, also translated patience, deals with being patient in circumstances.
And we are working to make sure we keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. The Lord is not about division and strife. We have a mandate to keep a spirit of unity with other believers in peace. We are not always going to agree on all points of doctrine or methodology, but we can agree on the price that was paid to buy us back from the enemy. And we can agree that we should live in a manner that brings honor to the Lord. God is too good, and life is too short to be at odds with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We will not always be able to get there, but on our part, we should be endeavoring,diligent, earnest, and eager.
These three verses should keep us busy for a while, as in eternity.
Prayer
Lord, help me to walk worthy of what You have called me to. Call my attention as to how I can live in humility and gentleness toward You and longsuffering toward others.