As we journey through life together, navigating the cultural complexities of our nation’s landscape and the challenges we face, it’s crucial that we pause and reflect on how we can “one another” one another well.
Drawing inspiration from Apostle Paul’s timeless words to the Ephesians this past Sunday, we explored the practical implications of the Gospel for our everyday lives by asking ourselves the following question:
How can we “one another” one another well?
Just as Paul encouraged the early Christians to remain steadfast in their faith and resist the allure of false gods, we, too, are called to cling unwaveringly to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus in the midst of a nation with rampant secularism and idolatry.
Summed up in three movements—putting off, putting on, and putting away—that derive their foundation in one culminating verse, Ephesians 4:32, that Paul distills the essence of our daily walk as Christians:
“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”
Kindness, a term used in various contexts, is often seen differently by the world.
While the world emphasizes kindness as something we generate on our own—something we do—God’s Word reveals that true kindness is the empowerment of the Holy Spirit—something we become.
So, how can our being and doing kindness align? More importantly, what’s the big deal about being kind, specifically being kind to one another?
Why are we called to be kind to one another?
As recipients of God’s grace, we’re called to reflect His kindness by extending it to those around us. This means forgiving one another as Christ forgave us sacrificially and unconditionally.
His ultimate act of love on the cross paved the way for us to extend forgiveness to others, no matter the offense.
This could take the form of practical assistance and guidance, a shoulder to lean on or cry on, a listening ear, financial assistance, and so on.
And this weight, these burdens, is what we will see God actually calls us to carry for and with others.
When we carry each other’s burdens, we fulfill Christ’s law of love and sow seeds of service, both physically and spiritually.
Just as Jesus bore the weight of our sins out of love for us, we’re called to bear one another’s burdens in love, showing others the tangible presence of Christ.
As we pray today, let’s ask for restoration for those burdened by sin and for all of us to deepen our connection with Jesus and the Christian community, supporting and taking action to help bear one another’s burdens.
Let’s be the church that carries each other’s burdens, fulfilling the law of Christ and spreading His love to the world.
So let’s pray together, seeking forgiveness and restoration in our relationships, both past and present. Let’s lift up our broken familial ties, fractured friendships, and strained work relationships, seeking God’s grace, mercy, forgiveness, and healing in every aspect of our lives.
Today, let’s devote our lives to putting off the old self, putting on the new self, and putting away the ill-fitting clothes of sin. Then, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we can help others do the same in Christ Jesus.
Let’s embrace Christ’s kindness and embody it in our interactions, truly practicing “one anothering” well and as God intended.
How kind is your “one anothering” to forgive another?
See you today at 12 pm, and don’t forget tomorrow is National Day of Prayer.
God bless,
Pastor Alvin & Mallary Brown
alvin@makingamosaic.com :: mallary@makingamosaic.com
General Prayer Requests & Updates
For evangelism to flourish so communities and campuses in the greater Fort Worth area will be reached, and the lost will see and experience the love of Christ and be drawn to his kingdom.
For signs and wonders to follow the preaching of His Word.
For team unity and laborers to help carry the load.
For finances and provisions.
For fully funded campus missionaries (2 per campus) to help reach the next generation — Texas Christian University (TCU), Tarrant County College (TCC), Texas Wesleyan University (TWU) and Tarleton State University – Fort Worth (TSU), University of Texas at Arlington (UTA), and Dallas Baptist University (DBU).
Alvin Brown, the Lead Pastor of Mosaic Church Fort Worth, brings over a decade of pastoral ministry experience and more than 20 years of operational and technical leadership expertise. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Telecommunications Management from DeVry University and an MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management. He enjoys spending quality time with his wife, Mallary, and their three children and contributing as a writer to various media outlets.
