Topic:  We Are United in Christ – Daily Treasure devotionals – Faithwheel.com 25 October    2022 

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We Are United in Christ

Teri Anderson, Guest Writer

TODAY’S TREASURE

May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God (Romans 15:5-7).

Yesterday, we reflected on the mercy and privilege of being called by God to Himself and to His family. United through Christ’s saving work, we are tangibly connected to a community of His people. Today, let’s focus on the unity that God provides when He called us to Himself.   

Romans 15 speaks to specific ways we reflect God’s character as redeemed people united to Him and to each other. He is described as the “God of endurance and encouragement.” These qualities are also attributed to His people as evidence of our new nature. Hebrews 10:24-25 reminds us,  “And  let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and  all the more as you see  the Day drawing near.“ Enduring and encouraging are given here as imperatives. We are to welcome one another, point each other to God, and glorify God with one voice. Of course, times or places may exist when meeting together is not possible (illness, quarantine, persecution, etc.), but those are exceptions. What might be lost when we don’t live out the truth of being able to live “in harmony with one another?”  

LIFE-GIVING ENCOURAGEMENT

During our recent quarantine, working from home has meant running a Zoom weekly training meeting, attending a weekly business networking meeting, and even teaching women skincare tips through a tiny screen. Our family has attended virtual Sunday School, Facebook Live worship services, and a virtual Bible study.  In the midst of being home, I tripped, breaking an arm.  I couldn’t bend that arm to “fix” the entire back of my hair for all these virtual gatherings!  But no one could see the mess hidden from the webcam; my outward persona was intact! What a picture of what happens when we isolate intentionally! When we can’t be together, life’s messiness can be hidden away, and not just our outward appearance!  In fact, an entire week after the x-rays, I realized (and repented) that I had not even communicated about the fracture to my church family, the people to whom God has united me! That meant not giving anyone but a worn-out husband the opportunity to be stirred to love and good works for me, to encourage me to endure. What else comes to your mind that might be beneficial for building genuine gospel relationships that cannot happen with social distancing?  

Relationships in God’s family are to be edifying, characterized by grace, pointing each other to Jesus when we fall short.  These Gospel friendships are to be safe places where we accept one another and pursue unity rather than uniformity. Romans 15:5-7 reinforces the reality that when we are united with Christ Jesus and living in harmony within His church, God is glorified.  

PRAYER

Meeting together in cyberspace for a short season has certainly been an alternative solution to gathering face-to-face, but what other blessings are added when we reconnect in person?  Pray through Romans 15:5-7 and Philippians 2:1-4, applying these truths to the gospel relationships where God has placed you, praying that you may be one voice glorifying God.

So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others (Philippians 2:1-4).

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