Common Bonds
Ephesians 4:1-6
November 16, 2003
Morning Service
Introduction
How many of you have played the board game Tribond?
Tribond is one of those board games that you either love or hate. The object of the game is to move all three of your pawns into the home base by answering a series of questions. Each of the questions asks what the three items mentioned have in common.
For example: a card might list tree, car and elephant wanting the answer that they all have trunks. The game can either be fun or frustrating but the key to winning is figuring out what the common bonds of various items.
The same is true for the church. if we are to ever find victory to the fullest; we have to discover our common bonds and make that our focus. Anything less is not acceptable.
One of the things that truly impressed me about this church was the fact of the great diversity that exists here. Some of you might not see it this way but your church is very diverse.
There are some of you here who have been a part of this church for over a decade and there are some who have been attending for just a few months. There are those who are older and there are infants in the nursery. There are those who have been long time Christians and there are those who have just recently given their life over to Christ. This church is diverse.
If you look at the various backgrounds that exist here there is even more diversity. There are those who have always been Wesleyan or Pilgrim Holiness. There are those who come from a background in the Methodist church. There are some that come here from the Nazarene church or other holiness denominations. There are others who come from the Baptist church, Church of Christ, the Lutheran church and the Catholic church just to name a few of those that people have mentioned to me. This church is diverse.
We also come from a variety of occupations. There are full time students construction workers, police officers, stay home moms, management personnel, steel workers and those who are retired. All of this merely scratches the surface of the great diversity that exists within this church. I think that I have made my point that this is a diverse church.
Those things that make us different also make us stronger. Our differences give us the ability to pull from so many different talents and abilities as we have the need. However, this can create some interesting challenges; with all of this diversity, unity can be a truly difficult feat to accomplish.
So how can a church with this much diversity experience true unity that we need to accomplish greater things for God?
We need to remember that the things that unite us are far more important than the things that divide us.
If we focus on our differences, our focus is on each other. if we focus with unity, our focus is on God – Author Unknown
As believers, we are united by seven common bonds. Please open your Bibles to Ephesians chapter four. We will begin with the first verse and finish with verse six.
I. We share a common body
This does sound a bit strange but it is true. When you placed your faith in Christ, you became a member of a new body. The church is meant to be a visible representation of Jesus Christ in this world.
In practical terms, the church is to be the witness for Christ where the rubber meets the road. We are meant to show Christ’s love to the unlovable, reveal Christ’s forgiveness to the unforgivable and radiate Christ’s light in the midst of darkness.
Just as the church cannot be invisible; so each Christian is meant to have a visible role in the ministry of the church. When Christ can be seen in you and through you; that is when you can truly make an impact for His kingdom.
What are you doing to make Christ more visible in your life?
II. We share a common Spirit
There is only one Spirit within the church and it is by the work of the Holy Spirit that the church moves and lives. The Spirit spans division and pulls together diversity.
The same Spirit that seeks to guide me, also seeks to guide you. The same Spirit that seeks to convict me of sin, also seeks to convict you of sin. The same Spirit that brings sanctification in the lives of others, also seeks to bring sanctification in your life.
The problem is that too often we become led by our flesh and what we want rather than by what the Spirit desires. It is during these times that we get ourselves into the most trouble spiritually.
Are you seeking after what the Spirit desires or are you seeking what you desire?
III. We share a common hope
The hope that we share as Christians is that we will one day be forever in the presence of Jesus and share in His glory. Our hope becomes a reality by one of two ways:
· We pass from this life to the next
· Jesus returns and takes His people to be with Him
This hope is a real and vibrant part of the life of the church. It is this hope that gives us focus when life becomes a blur. It is this hope that keeps us going through the toughest difficulties in life.
When a person is focused on this hope, all differences begin to fade away. Have you placed your focus on divine hope or have you placed your focus on human hype?
IV. We share a common Lord
Those who have believed in Jesus and have placed their faith in Him all share the same Lord. The simple fact is that Jesus is Lord and there is none above Him, beside Him or before Him. He is the Lord of the universe. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.
It is the same Jesus who left His glory to live a human life and surrender that perfect life as a payment for your sin. Jesus died to be your Savior and lives to be your Lord!
Jesus is the one, true Lord and it through Him and Him alone that we can find salvation. Today, Jesus wants to be the Lord of your life. have you given Him complete Lordship over every area of your life? Are you motivated by His direction for your life and for the life of this church or are you more motivate by your desires for the church?
V. We share a common faith
Faith is not belief without proof but trust without reservation
There is only one faith that leads us to God the Father and that is through Jesus Christ. There is no other faith that will bridge the gap between heaven and humanity. Faith is the commitment to follow Jesus and accept His leadership for your life. It is in essence making an allegiance with Jesus and allowing Him to join forces with you to live your life.
When we place our faith in Jesus it changes our lives because it gives us someone to trust in an untrustworthy world. Do you completely trust Jesus with your life or are you just giving Him lip service? Do you completely trust Jesus with this church or are you just acting like you trust Him?
VI. We share a common baptism
The purpose of water baptism is revealed in the personal identification with Christ’s death and resurrection. The role of baptism is to initiate believers into the body by giving them a means of making a public statement of their faith in Christ.
The reality is that every believer truly comes into the body through water baptism and thus there is one mode of entrance. Baptism is symbolic of Christ’s death and resurrection but far too often we don’t allow the old life to die and it creeps into our new life in Christ. It is impossible to live the new life in Christ to the fullest without letting go of the old attitudes and ways of living. it is this baggage that creates division and difficulty within the church.
What baggage of the old life are you still trying to carry in your new life for Christ?
VII. We share a common God and Father
As Christians, we believe there is only one God who reigns over all of creation. We share the same heavenly Father, which makes us one family. Every believer is led by the same God.
· God is above all: He is the supreme sovereign of the universe
· God works through all: He desires to work through all to accomplish His plan and purpose
· God is in all: He dwells in the lives of all believers and is present with every believer always
Since the same God is over everyone, works through everyone and is in everyone, we should stand united. Our common bonds are far more powerful and far more important than our differences.
Conclusion
Shortly after the close of the Civil War, in a fashionable Richmond church, members of the congregation were invited to come to the altar rail to receive Holy Communion.
After several rows of worshipers came and left after receiving Communion side by side, a black man walked down the aisle toward the altar. A tense silence gripped everyone. No one got up to come down to receive the bread and wine, although many had not yet received Communion. The black man started to kneel alone.
Quietly, a tall, graying man with a military bearing stood up and strode down the aisle to the black man’s side. Together, they knelt.
Before the officiating clergyman could continue, people recognized that the person kneeling beside the black man without showing any distinction was General Robert E. Lee. Although Lee said nothing, everyone realized he had shown his faith through his act of joining that lonely black worshiper at the altar.
The church is called to a similar unity and it is only when we pursue this Christ centered unity that we will find all of the greatest of God’s blessings being poured out among us.
When differences arise put your focus on the common bonds that we all share.
There is one body and one Spirit-- just as you were called to one hope when you were called-- one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
