Attending an orchestra concert with my parents, I basked in the lovely music emanating from the stringed instruments.
As I enjoyed the wonderful performance, I noted the orchestra members. Everyone looked different. Individual orchestra members displayed differing ethnicities, hair colors, builds, heights, and shapes. Each member also harbored differing personalities, histories, families, likes, and dislikes. Yet a shared love of music bound each one. And together, they created a harmonious masterpiece that delighted all who heard its beautiful melody.
The orchestra reminded me of the body of Christ. While each of us possesses different gifts, interests, struggles, and triumphs, a shared love for Christ and a similar identity bind us as His beloved children. We are also united in our shared mission of spreading the love and hope of Jesus to the world.
We live in a world filled with division, strife, and disagreement, and the church is not immune. The apostle Paul spoke to such division in the body of Christ in his letter to church members in Corinth. The need for unity in the body of Christ is just as crucial today as it was then.
When disagreements or differing opinions attempt to divide us, let us remember that Christ binds us. Remaining united through our shared love, identity, and mission, we create a beautiful melody: the song of Christ’s mercy, hope, and love.
Think of how you can help Christ’s body show a beautiful melody.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay and jools_sh.)
(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)
Emily Marszalek enjoys the simple pleasures in life with her best friend, Nick, and their two Goldendoodles, Charlie and Lucy, in the Pacific Northwest. Her writings have appeared in publications including Angels on Earth, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Listen to Your Dreams, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Blessings of Christmas, Chicken Soup for the Soul: Kindness Matters, CBN.com, The Lutheran Digest, Refresh Bible Study Magazine, Daily Inspired Life, and Insight.