Living

Gravity & the Unifying Work of God in the Church

Scriptures: Ephesians 4:15-16
by Jacob Abshire on August 30, 2021

Think big. Think galaxy big. The observable universe is reported to have an estimated 200 billion galaxies or more. If our galaxy is anything like them, then they each have nearly 100 billion solar systems inside. Our system comprises eight unique planets that orbit around one large star, the sun. Each of these systems, big and small, are held together by an attractive force called gravity.

Now, think bigger. Think God big. “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him” (Col. 1:15-16). He made all that stuff, as well as the stuff we haven’t ventured out far enough to find. He made it all. Since it was made by Him and for Him, He has a vested interest in it all. So He keeps it alive. He keeps it moving. Scripture says, “he is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:17).

Finally, think small. Think church small. It might not sound like a worthwhile idea, but there is a spiritual gravity at work in your community of faith. God says the church is “joined and held together” by the power of God for the purpose of God’s perfecting work (Eph. 4:16). As the sun, a galactic center, pulls stars and planets inward to maintain perfect order and rotation, so the Son pulls you and others inward to maintain a perfect order and function.

Where are you in God’s cosmic system? Are you perfectly orbiting the Lord, contributing to His cosmic infinite purpose? Or, do you spend all of your energies trying to defy the attractive force of God’s gravity? 

Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Ephesians 4:15-16

Jesus prayed for unity just before His betrayal. He asked the Father to make all Christians one, just as He and the Father are one, in order to show the world that He was sent by the Father. The kind of oneness He desired was a spiritual result of salvation that would manifest in the church and to the world. God tells us, in the book of Ephesians, to “maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3). We are not to generate this unity, but preserve and keep it. 

Following this, we are told how God uses His truth and power to effectively bring about practical unity in the church so the world would see it as the body of Christ and know that the Father sent the Son (Eph. 4:13-16). It is God answering the Lord’s prayer.

God uses His truth and power to effectively bring about practical unity in the church so the world would see it as the body of Christ and know that the Father sent the Son.

If you are a Christ follower, you are a part of that answer. God is transforming you and the rest of the church into “one new man” (Eph. 2:15). This new man is Christ to the world. It is Christ as the head and the church as the body. Your part in this body is critical to its overall health.

In the following posts, we will use Ephesians 4:15-16 to launch us into a progression of studies that focus on God’s unifying work in the body by using the metaphor of gravity. The first five will look at the subject from a high perspective, laying a foundation. They will focus on how the Lord unifies His body and to what purpose. The remaining posts will dive deep into the subject to help you discover your place in the body in order to be used and experience the joy of fellowship.

The Father is answering the Son’s prayer in the work He is performing in the church. You are a critical part to that answer. The life of the church and the mission of Christ depends on you and all who are in Christ. It’s time to get into position and work your ministry. I hope you will join me in this journey over the next several weeks.

Download Gravity: Held Together by God and discover God’s powerful work of unity in the church.

Also available for purchase at Amazon and select bookstores.

Meditate on what you learned by downloading this free wallpaper design for your favorite device and letting it stir your affections toward God’s great work of joining and holding together His church.

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