DCAF

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

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Paul has just finished a discourse on why it is so important to live with others in mind, and why those who are strong in faith should not cause those who are weaker or newer to stumble - because Christ did not live to please himself, but rather chose to live a life where he bore the reproaches of others.

Those who are strong in faith live by hope, and according to Romans 15, verse 4, hope comes by encouragement from one another, and what was written in Scripture.

Then comes the exhortation of verses 5-7; it's a cry to be the church and show the world that God is glorious. As a part of New Hope, I hear about team building and teamwork and doing church as a team almost every day. Paul says that living in harmony with one another, united in Christ, with one common cause - glorifying God the Father and his Son, through his Spirit, should be welcoming and gracious toward each other, and all for the glory of God.

There are so many times when it seems right to break from the team, or to disagree and push for my own way, or to not do something with all my effort and heart. But the point is not to do things my way, it's to do things for others because that's what Jesus did, and his example beyond any other is worthy of imitating. When we imitate him, we glorify him. And Christ is most glorified when the church, his body, his bride; a family of believers are in harmony and striving to bring glory to God with "one voice," in unison.

When people see the church they should see something like a beautiful chorus of singers in harmony and unison. Sometimes I wonder if the world sees the church and feels like they're watching a pre-school chorus where everyone's off-key and not everyone knows the song and some people are in la-la land digging their nose, but it's cute to watch because everyone seems so innocent and has no idea what it's like to really live in the real world.

The church is God's family. If we are adopted sons of God, we are like brothers and sisters to Jesus, who is also our Lord. Doing church as a family should be the most awesome thing people in the world see. It should freak them out and blow their minds. It should be something that people see and aspire to be, not shun, reject, and criticize.

O God, guide me into making this a reality in my life first, so that it's not just something I talk about. Show us how to see each other as family, treat each other as such, and then live a life that is an amazing light to the world.