Gifted People (Part 2)

Yesterday we learned that we are all people that have been given grace. We all have a place, a gift, to equip us in God's work, all the while, striving for unity, maturity, and the fullness of Christ.

The continuation of the Ephesians 4 passage gives more information about the accomplishment of these goals. Re-member, you exercising your gift, along with others exercising their gifts, brings the unity that Jesus is expecting from us. Read carefully.

Ephesians 4:14-16
"14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work."
The contrast presented convinces us that before the body of Christ can be united, we have to decide if we are going to bounce around like waves, or if we are going to speak the truth in love so we can grow into a mature body. How does the truth of that verse fit, in comparison to your life?

In a moment of personal evaluation, do you see parts of your life that need adjustments, in order that you may be-come in every respect like the mature body of Christ?

Note the verse says it is Jesus that joins and holds the body together, but growth is our part, as each gifted person is built up in love, and each part doing its work. Do you see the Lord's plan as one in which you play a role in the suc-cess of the body? Think of what you can do to build up others.