1 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore it says,
“When he ascended on high he led a host of captives,
and he gave gifts to men.”
9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 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.
The phone rang one afternoon as I was writing these devotions. It was a member of the congregation, an elderly man. He was in failing health and the pandemic was raging. He hardly ever left his house. We kept in touch via phone. Today he called me. He was frantic. Someone had left a message on his phone telling him that his Social Security number had been compromised and his account was being shut down. There was a number to call so he could set things right. But before he called that number, he called me. I am so glad he trusted me enough to make that call to me first.
Most likely you are aware that this is a scam. Had he called that number he would have been prompted to give them a great deal of personal information, perhaps even access to his bank account. He could have been robbed of what little money he had left. I urged him not to call the number back, to ignore the message that had been left on his phone. Isolation and the gradual diminution of his faculties had left him vulnerable and unsure of himself. The voice sounded so authoritative on the message. He was wavering. So, I had him call another friend, an attorney we both knew, someone he had worked with before, someone he also trusted. Together we talked our friend away from the dangerous edge of being a victim of unscrupulous and cunning people who prey on the elderly.
Paul urges us to walk in a manner worthy of our calling. If you examine that walk a little more, you will see that it entails the essential ingredients of living together in the community of the church: honesty, love, patience, gentleness, and service rendered to a common Lord Jesus. Paul goes on to say that such a walk leads to a maturity in which we are no longer tossed about like infants on the waves of human cunning and craftiness in deceitful schemes. My elderly friend had walked as a Christian for many years. When he was vulnerable, that community came to his rescue, and he was not subject to the cunning and deceit of those who sought him harm. His pastor and a Christian attorney helped him work properly and built him up in love. It is easy to disparage the church. It has so many faults. It is hard to love the church sometimes and we are tempted to go it alone. But in truth, we need each other. Alone we are very vulnerable. Someday I may need that calm voice of someone I have served with and have listened to before to tell me not to do something. Go to church, join a committee, the choir, or another group. Serve side by side with other Christians. Christ is building you up to a maturity which is unassailable by our foe.