Text:\u00a0 Ephesians 4: 1-7; 11-16<\/p>\n
If you look at the backside of a dollar bill, you will see the seal of the United States.\u00a0 If you look real closely at the seal you will see the Latin saying:\u00a0 E pluribus unum<\/em>.\u00a0 Do you remember what that means?\u00a0 Out of many, one<\/em>.\u00a0 Out of many peoples has come our one nation-the United States.<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t always seem so united, especially in an election year when candidates exploit our differences.\u00a0 But come a hurricane or a 9-11 and you see those differences melt away. Then we are not black or white or brown.\u00a0 We are not Hispanic or Germanic.\u00a0\u00a0 We are Americans.\u00a0 Out of many, one nation.<\/p>\n Compare that to some of the nations of the world and that\u2019s kind of remarkable.\u00a0 But not near as remarkable as the oneness we share as fellow believers.\u00a0 It\u2019s something that we too often overlook.<\/p>\n Think about it.\u00a0 We are more than fellow citizens of heaven.\u00a0 We are brothers and sisters in Christ here and now.\u00a0 That\u2019s the oneness the apostle Paul speaks of here.<\/p>\n OUT OF MANY, ONENESS IN CHRIST We went to the same high school.\u00a0 We are interested in bee-keeping.\u00a0 We played ball together.\u00a0 We served together in Iraq.\u00a0 We struggle with addiction.\u00a0 Burning man.\u00a0 Quilting.\u00a0 All kinds of things bring people together as one.<\/p>\n Here Paul speaks of what makes us one.\u00a0 It\u2019s more than just having our names printed on a church membership list.\u00a0 It\u2019s more than showing up under the same roof for worship.\u00a0 It\u2019s more than greeting one another with a warm smile and handshake.\u00a0 And it\u2019s so much better than the oneness we once shared.<\/p>\n Go back a few chapters in this letter and we hear about that tragic\u00a0 oneness.\u00a0 You and I were once dead in our sins<\/em>. \u00a0Our hearts were beating with life, but we were lifeless spiritual corpses.\u00a0 And we were by nature, objects of wrath.<\/span> (2:3) Paul writes.\u00a0 From the start we were headed to a real place called hell.\u00a0 So we were one all right.\u00a0 All of us stood together without God and without even a glimmer of hope.<\/p>\n But thanks be to the Lord who is rich in mercy!\u00a0 For look what we now share.\u00a0 Look what makes us ONE.\u00a0 In fact, Paul uses the word one, seven times here to help us remember, to help us take a closer look<\/strong> at our oneness.<\/p>\n Listen:\u00a0 There is one body and one Spirit\u2014 just as you were called to one hope when you were called\u2014 5 <\/sup>one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 <\/sup>one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all<\/span>. You and I are united by faith in the One true God.\u00a0 And here\u2019s the mystery God has revealed and we now believe. We worship one God yet three persons.\u00a0 Paul names them here. One Spirit\u2026One Lord\u2026One God and Father of\u00a0 all.<\/span> We know this God, God the Holy Spirit.\u00a0 He gave us faith to believe in Christ and now lives in our hearts.\u00a0 We know this God, the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for each one of us here.\u00a0 We know this God. This God and Father who is now our Father and \u00a0calls us his children.\u00a0 So take a closer look. We are ONE through faith in Him.<\/p>\n And keep going with these same verses.\u00a0 Paul names some wonderful blessings we share.\u00a0 We are ONE body.\u00a0 In Christ, you and I belong to each other like your hand belongs to your foot.\u00a0 We share ONE hope.\u00a0 We can look forward to the day when the Lord Jesus will say to us:\u00a0 Come take your place at the banquet of salvation.<\/em><\/p>\n But there\u2019s even more.\u00a0 We share one faith<\/span> here.\u00a0 This is not a place where we agree to disagree.\u00a0 We are one.\u00a0 We come together in one faith.\u00a0 And last but not least, we share ONE baptism<\/span>.\u00a0 All of us have received that washing with water through the Word.\u00a0 And there \u00a0\u00a0the Spirit united us with Jesus our Savior and united us with one another.<\/p>\n So lots of things bring people together, but nothing like what we have here.\u00a0 Take a closer look.<\/strong> We have oneness in Christ.\u00a0 Treasure it.\u00a0 But also keep it going<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Last week our former vicar Peter Heyn drove home to Wisconsin.\u00a0 At least for a few weeks before he moves to Florida where he will serve as pastor.\u00a0 Well when he went through Colorado he passed a sign that said the Great Divide.\u00a0 Did you also know there is also a great divider.\u00a0 No, we\u2019re not talking politics here.\u00a0 We\u2019re talking Satan, the devil. He wants to divide us.\u00a0 He wants to turn us against one another.\u00a0 That would make him very happy. For then he could keep us from coming together to encourage one another.\u00a0 He could keep us from working together to share the only name that brings rescue from sin and death, Jesus.<\/p>\n But not just Satan.\u00a0 We also have this sinful nature that drags us all down.\u00a0 It wants me to think when I am with my brothers and sisters in Christ.\u00a0 I\u2019m more important.\u00a0 I want my way.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want anything to do with him or her.<\/p>\n But what happens when we let Satan have his way?\u00a0 We trash our oneness.\u00a0 And that\u2019s serious stuff.\u00a0 Remember what Jesus says about marriage?\u00a0 What God has joined together<\/em>\u2026 It\u2019s the same here.\u00a0 This oneness is something that God has made.\u00a0 So Paul wrote to the Ephesians:\u00a0 3 <\/sup>Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.<\/span> Keep it going.<\/strong><\/p>\n We often use that verse when new members join our congregation. And notice a couple of things.\u00a0 It says here:\u00a0 make every effort<\/span> to keep that oneness.\u00a0 It\u2019s that important.\u00a0 And notice the word keep<\/span>.\u00a0 It\u2019s a word that brings the picture of posting a guard.\u00a0 What do you guard?\u00a0 Things that are valuable.,. important.\u00a0 Well God is telling us to guard what we have here.\u00a0 Make every effort to keep it.<\/p>\n But how do we do that?\u00a0 You see it here:\u00a0 Paul writes: Live a life worthy of the calling you have received<\/span>.\u00a0 You are a child of God.\u00a0 God has called you by the gospel and made you his own through faith in His Son.\u00a0 Live a life that belongs to your high calling.\u00a0 And when it comes to our oneness that means this:<\/p>\n Look at verse 2.\u00a0 Be completely humble and gentle.<\/span> Don\u2019t be like that child who insists:\u00a0 I want, never mind anyone else.\u00a0 That divides us.\u00a0 It puts distance between us.\u00a0 Instead guard our oneness with the attitude of Jesus.\u00a0 Even though he is God, he humbled himself for you.\u00a0 He put you first, then bled and died for you. Be completely humble and gentle. <\/span><\/p>\n Then also Paul writes, be patient, bearing with one another in love<\/span>.\u00a0 How easy it is find that Christian brother or sister that gets on my nerves.\u00a0 You might be thinking of that person right now.\u00a0 By the way, someone might be thinking of you or me.\u00a0 He\u2019s always late.\u00a0 She\u2019s always talking about herself.\u00a0 There something about him that gets under my skin.<\/p>\n But what are we doing to our oneness with that attitude?\u00a0 Have we made every effort to keep our oneness?\u00a0 Be patient with one another as the Lord has been oh so patient with you.\u00a0 Put up with one another.\u00a0 For after all, think of what the Lord put up with in you and me.\u00a0 In fact, think of what he did with all it all.\u00a0 He put it on his innocent Son and punished him in our place.\u00a0 So be patient with one another and keep that oneness going.<\/p>\n The 49\u2019ers and Raiders are in training camp.\u00a0 And those are some big strong fellows.\u00a0 But ask the strength coach and he will tell you.\u00a0 I want them stronger.\u00a0 Well in a way our Lord is like that strength coach.\u00a0 For we are united.\u00a0 We share a blessed oneness.\u00a0 Keep it going.\u00a0 But also keep it growing<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Here Paul has us think of an infant.\u00a0 When were that small, we needed a lot of help and attention. We easily got confused. We did foolish things and needed our parents protection.<\/p>\n Well we Christians are sometimes like that small child, especially when we are new to the faith.\u00a0 But not just those new.\u00a0 Also those who haven\u2019t grown, haven\u2019t been in the Word.\u00a0 They lack the maturity that\u2019s needed in their faith and life.\u00a0 \u00a0So Paul speaks here about no longer being infants. <\/em><\/p>\n I remember when we had babies.\u00a0 I remember hearing one of our kids cry and thinking.\u00a0 C\u2019mon stop being a baby.<\/em> Then I thought that\u2019s silly.\u00a0 He can\u2019t help being a baby.\u00a0 But we can.\u00a0 We can grow up and mature as God\u2019s people.\u00a0 We can grow up in Christ. How?\u00a0 By using what God has given us so we can grow.\u00a0 \u00a011 <\/span><\/sup>It was [Christ] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,<\/span><\/p>\n How do you look at your Bible teachers or pastor?\u00a0 Do you know what they are?\u00a0 They are Christ\u2019s gifts to his church.\u00a0 And not because of who they are.\u00a0 For they too are sinners who struggle every day.\u00a0 Rather they are gifts because of what your teacher or pastor brings you.\u00a0 They bring you God\u2019s precious word and sacraments.\u00a0 They bring you the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. They bring you his precious promises to shore up your faith when things are tough.\u00a0 They bring you his Word to guide you in the way you should go. They are gifts because of the Word they bring.<\/p>\n But their ministry is not just about them teaching and you receiving.\u00a0 Listen:\u00a0 He gave some \u2026to be pastors and teachers<\/span> 12 <\/sup><\/span>to prepare God\u2019s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up<\/span>.\u00a0 So I guess that means.\u00a0 watch out.\u00a0 If you sit and listen here long enough you just might find a way to serve.\u00a0 Maybe visit the sick or teach a class or vacuum the floor.\u00a0 That\u2019s what happens when people get into God\u2019s Word.\u00a0 Good things.\u00a0 As each part does its work<\/span>, \u00a0Good things happen. \u00a0People are loved and served and the body of Christ is built up.\u00a0 We grow closer to our Savior and to one another.\u00a0 We keep on growin\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n And just think how it all got started.\u00a0 Every one of us has a story to tell.\u00a0 Where did God find you and me?\u00a0 I think of a vision given to the prophet \u2013 a valley of dry bones.\u00a0 We were like that valley of dry lifeless bones spread across the landscape of this world.\u00a0 But the Lord picked us up. He gave us life and hope — and knit us together as one, One in Christ.\u00a0 Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Text:\u00a0 Ephesians 4: 1-7; 11-16 If you look at the backside of a dollar bill, you will see the seal of the United States.\u00a0 If you look real closely at the seal you will see the Latin saying:\u00a0 E pluribus unum.\u00a0 Do you remember what that means?\u00a0 Out of many, one.\u00a0 Out of many peoples has come our one nation-the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-352","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=352"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":353,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352\/revisions\/353"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=352"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=352"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=352"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n<\/strong>I.\u00a0 Take a closer look
\nII.\u00a0 Keep it going
\nIII.\u00a0 Keep it growing<\/p>\n