Devotions this week are based on Week 6 How Would You Answer (WATCH HERE)
I want to start today’s devotion just giving thanks to God for our amazing daughter who graduates from high school today! Thank you Lord for your faithfulness to her…go with her in the next chapter of her life!
Ephesians 4:14 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.
Ephesians 4 ends with a beautiful picture of the Church growing up into Christ. Paul says we are no longer to be infants, tossed back and forth by waves and blown here and there by every wind of teaching. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Christ, who is the Head. Then Paul says that from Christ, the whole body grows and builds itself up in love “as each part does its work.”
That phrase is worth carrying with you: each part does its work. It is simple, but it is powerful. The body grows when each part is connected to Christ and each part contributes what Christ has given. The Church is not built by one person doing everything. It is not built by a few visible people carrying the whole load. It is built as the ascended Jesus works through every member of His body.
Paul says this growth is spiritual. The Church grows in unity, faith, knowledge of the Son of God, maturity, discernment, truth, and love. That kind of growth is not flashy, but it is beautiful. A spiritually healthy church is not merely busy. It is becoming more like Christ. It is learning to embrace grace, speak truth without cruelty and love without compromise. It is becoming a steady hope in a world of confusion.
This growth is also missional. A body that is growing in Christ becomes a witness to Christ. Jesus told His disciples in John 13, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The world notices when a group of people from different backgrounds, ages, personalities, and stories are joined together in humble, patient, truth-filled love. The unity and maturity of the Church become part of its witness.
In a stone archway each stone has a place. Some stones are more visible than others, but every stone helps bear weight. If one stone is missing, the structure is weakened. In the same way, each member of the body matters. Some serve publicly. Some serve quietly. Some lead. Some encourage. Some pray. Some give. Some teach. Some comfort. Some invite. Some repair. Some organize. Some simply show up faithfully with love. But together, under Christ the Head, the body grows.
This is why your faithfulness matters. A kind word matters. A prayer matters. A meal matters. A lesson matters. A visit matters. A conversation matters. A hidden act of service matters. Not because these things are impressive by themselves, but because they are joined to the work of the ascended Christ.
Jesus is not gone. He reigns. He gives. He builds. And He builds through His people as each part does its work.
Reflect: What small act of faithfulness might Christ use to build up His body this week? How can your love for other believers become a witness to someone outside the Church?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are the Head of the Church. Keep me connected to You and faithful in the work You have given me. Help our church grow spiritually in maturity and missionally in witness as each part does its work in love. Amen.