In the Lord Spirit

 

I beseech you therefore, I, the prisoner in the Lord, to walk worthily of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, bearing one another in love, being diligent to keep the oneness of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace (Ephesians 4:1-3).

Wow. That’s quite a charge. As believers, we all know that this is the kind of living we should have. We know we should be lowly and meek. We know we should have a genuine care for one another, and that we should endeavor to take care of the oneness. But how can we really do this in our experience?

In our interactions with most people, especially those that we like, these verses aren’t that hard to apply. But what about that one person we simply cannot be with—the one who just drives us crazy? How can we possibly fulfill Paul’s charge with people like that. How can we reconcile Paul’s charge and the fact that we’re not always lowly and meek, we don’t always bear one another in love, and we often break the oneness?

There are two phrases in these verses that give us the secret to having a walk that is worthy of our calling: prisoner in the Lord and oneness of the Spirit. 

Paul considered himself as one who was confined to, trapped in the Lord. For Him, there was no escaping. If we are in the Lord, we realize that He is the one who has these virtues in Ephesians. The Lord Himself said, learn from Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart (Matthew 11:29). We do not have the virtues of being meek or lowly, but the Lord does. We don’t have the capacity to bear one another in love, but the Lord does. If we are in the Lord, these virtues become ours.

We also need to see that our maintaining and keeping the oneness is not something that we are able to do. It is the oneness of the Spirit. It is so crucial that we see the matter of the Spirit. When we are apart from the Spirit, we are divisive, we do not care for others, and we do not have the virtues that are mentioned in these verses. But when we stay in the Spirit, we keep the oneness of the Spirit.

Actually these two phrases speak the same point. It is so important for us to realize that the Lord is the Spirit. How and why do we say this? Because the Bible says so! In 2 Corinthians 3:17, it says so clearly, and the Lord is the Spirit. First Corinthians 15:45 says that the last Adam [Christ] became a life-giving Spirit. It is not a small thing to realize that in His resurrection, the Lord became the life-giving Spirit. It is only by the Lord becoming the Spirit that He is able to enter into us (John 14:17, 20; 20:22). Because the Lord is the Spirit, we can be a prisoner in Him. Because the Lord is the Spirit, all of His virtues can become our virtues. 

So when we find that we are not able to get along with one another, when we discover that we are not lowly or meek, what should we do? We should turn to the Lord who is the Spirit in our spirit (Romans 8:9-11, 16; 1 Corinthians 6:17). We should cry out to the Spirit by calling on His name. According to Romans 10:13, when we call on His name, we will be saved. This salvation is not just for our redemption, but also for salvation from not being lowly and meek, or not keeping the oneness.

Thank You Lord for being the Spirit in my spirit. Thank You that all Your virtues can be mine because you are the Spirit. Because I am in You, I can have a walk that is worthy of my calling. Lord, keep me in You. We love You Lord Spirit!