Endeavouring for unity

Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. - Ephesians 4.3-6

In case we had any doubts about the importance of unity Paul makes something very clear. There is:

One body

One Spirit

One hope of our calling

One Lord

One faith

One baptism

One God

One Father of all

(Let me say, just briefly, and in case you can't tell, I like the way Paul writes in lists)

We have all of these things to draw us together and so little to really divide us. So why does division seem to reign?

There is, of course, only one cause - we are too selfish to be one. We have problems with oneness because we are not walking worthily. Instead of recognising that despite our marvellous diversity we still have much to unify use. Instead we focus on our differences and preferences and peculiarities. For a good part of my Christian life I tended to measure my spirituality on how separated I was instead of striving for unity in the non-essentials.

Our endeavouring, our efforts, our goal is to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. We can't compromise on Biblical truth. We can't seek unity with error, but we don't need to separate on the dumb stuff.

Endeavouring to keep unity of the Spirit. What a great goal for us to strive for.