Ephesians 4:1-7 I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift.
One is an interesting word. Most people don’t like it because it seems lonely. Athletes like it because it means they’re the top of their field. When you get married, the minister says, “the two shall become one,” meaning they are a combined unit now.
The verses we’ve been reading aloud the past few weeks are talking about the type of “one” that a marriage is talking about. We are the Bride of Christ and as a result we make up one body of believers. The wonderful thing is that each member of the body of Christ is an individual with unique gifts. I look at this as the most amazing puzzle ever created with each piece incredibly different from the other but fitting together to produce a beautiful picture. Let’s look at how this plays out at STP.
What do we need in order to put on our show? First of all, we need a theater, we need seats, and we need an audience. We need people to volunteer to do lighting, sound, music, to usher, to apply makeup, to fix hair, to retrieve or sew costumes. We need actors and choreographers and stage managers and I’m sure I’ve missed a few. Each piece is extremely vital to the mission of spreading the gospel onstage.
Imagine a stage full of directors. That’s a scary thought, right? Imagine each one of them trying to influence where a specific scene is headed. What will happen? I imagine it will be total chaos with everyone going every which way. There would be no unity of purpose, no unity of direction, and no understanding of the goal. The puzzle pieces would all be the same director-shaped pieces!
Now let me have you imagine one more thing – imagine Jesus called only the righteous to follow Him – those who always do good, never evil; who always think of others before themselves; who follow every law and command in the Bible. Who would have followed Him? Each one of Christ’s early followers had a purpose and were completely relatable to everyday people like you and me. Think about Peter – always opening his mouth before engaging his brain; Luke – the doctor – who explained Christ’s coming to the Romans; Matthew – the tax collector – despised by everyone, yet Christ ate with him and wanted him to follow; even Judas served a purpose – although he betrayed our Lord, he was the practical money man; Saul persecuted and executed Christians, yet Christ turned his life around, gave him a new name, and he preached the gospel to all nations. Each one of these men was unique, yet when they followed Christ they became one. They put aside their wants and their ways of doing things to do things the way Christ called them to do.
No matter what our giftings are, God wants us to use each one of them. Right now, you’ve been called to use your gifts on the stage at STP to proclaim the good news in a unique way through drama. You’ve also been called to use whatever talents you have to give life to the characters you’ve been asked to play. I hope you can see that each of you brings something completely unique to these plays that each class absolutely needs. We are like a giant puzzle, each piece unique, but creating a beautiful picture when we come together. When we are united onstage, our audience sees the message of God’s good news.