| “…make my joy complete by being like-minded…” |
| —Philippians 2:2 |
To what measureable level of spiritual connection do we feel towards our fellow “Christ’s-ones”—the Christians we have in our lives? Of course, we feel a very kind and loving connection to some of them. But unless we are unusual, there are some of our brothers and sisters in Christ with whom we feel little natural connection. Even so, what about a “supernatural” connection?
No one said that living the “Christ Life” was going to necessarily be easy. We are, after all, still sinners—still stained by the sin curse of Adam that passed down to us through our parents for all the generations back to Adam. Nevertheless, we have been bonded by the blood of Jesus to all those who have sensed His call on their lives and, by the prompting of the Holy Spirit, have awakened to the marvelous outpouring of God’s mercy, grace, and unfathomable love. Jesus not only died for us, He lives within us by the Holy Spirit. And, that, dear ones, bonds us inseparably to our fellow believers—even those with whom we find it difficult to connect on a natural human level.
The Apostle Paul tackled this very dilemma when he wrote these words recorded in Philippians 2:1-2:
Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.
Paul knew that those in the church at Philippi had such a love bond with him that he used that very connection to encourage them to recognize and build on that same kind of love bond that existed, through Christ, with their fellow citizens of God’s Kingdom.
And, so it is with us today. We who belong to God, through the shed blood of Jesus, have a love bond that ties us together in a mysterious and an amazing supernatural bond of love. That bond exists to bring us comfort and joy, as we struggle to follow the will of God revealed to us by His Holy Spirit. We are not alone in our battle against the sin and darkness of this world. We have a gigantic crowd of like-minded fellow believers, who stand with us in this battle.
Let us begin this day with profound gratitude for our fellow Christians. And, let us open our hearts to allow God to bond us together for His purposes, as we work as His ambassadors to this troubled and very needy world.
Based on a blog originally posted on Thursday, October 27, 2016
