Ephesians 4:15-16 Paul teaches that the body of Christ (the church) can build itself up in love. Through the indwelling Holy Spirit, we can build up one another. This is what we want in our families, church, and community. We can do this work by practicing the “one anothers” in the Bible. Here is the full sermon manuscript on seven of them: #1: Romans 15:7. “Welcome one another, just as Christ also welcomed you, to the glory of God.” Jesus welcomed each of us, which means He met us where we were. You don’t have to hide your problems or figure out how to fix your defects to be welcomed by Jesus. Jesus welcomes us as we are. He will expect us to change over time because He loves us, but He gives us His Word, and His Spirit, and the church to help us along. As a metaphor, after a long day of playing outside, my boys can get a funky smell. I welcome their hugs just as they are, but because I love them, I expect them to take a shower. Jesus will hug you in whatever state you are in, but He will also show you how to wash the sin out of your life – precisely because He loves you so much. In our families, in our church, we welcome one another as Jesus welcomed us. #2: Galatians 5:13. “For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.” We are free in Christ. The power of sin and death no longer holds us. We are free from the need to prove ourselves, to get approval from others, and to earn our identity. We are free! But that freedom in Christ is not designed to put us back into slavery. Being stuck within ourselves, being wrapped up in ourselves, and living to please our flesh is a kind of slavery. We haven’t been forgiven of our sin only to be enslaved to our desires. Instead, we are free to serve one another. We are free to serve others, and we should delight in that freedom! Every day we are free to build each other up. There’s no law against that, no damage done in that, no regret in that, no fear in that, no shame in that. You are free to serve others and build them up. We should treasure that freedom! #3: Galatians 5:15. “But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.” This is a helpful reminder and warning that how we treat one another always creates momentum. An Old Testament way of saying this is: ‘Those who live by the sword die by the sword.’ Gossip breeds more gossip. Division breeds more division. Envy breeds more envy. Anger breeds more anger. Those who bite will get bitten. We can build family cultures where we build each other up or tear each other down. Whatever we do builds momentum in that direction. #4: Ephesians 4:1-3. “Live worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” Not every division or difference can be reconciled. Jesus acknowledged this when He said, “anyone who is not with me is against me,” in Luke’s gospel. Some differences are literally worth dying for, like when Stephen was martyred in Acts 7 for believing that Jesus is the only way to the Father. But every hill is not a hill to die on, which is why we need humility and gentleness and patience so we can bear with one another. The word ‘bearing’ doesn’t appear to be a very pretty word. It’s not a flowery word like love or mercy or grace or kindness. It’s a workhorse word. A roll-up-your-sleeves word. We are called to bear with one another to maintain unity and peace. A Christian who never draws a line in the sand about any doctrinal matters isn’t following Jesus, but those who are always drawing lines and airing grievances and venting emotions are also missing the mark. If how often we critique outnumbers how often we affirm and encourage, we need to learn more about bearing with others. Good growth of any kind is slow. We bear with one another with humility, gentleness, and patience. #5: Colossians 3:16. “Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.” Something is dwelling richly in all of us. We are all saturated with something. Some people are saturated by anxiety and worry, or anger and hostility, or bitterness. Sometimes we’re saturated with worldly entertainment, or career ambition, or fear of what others’ think. The Bible tells us to be saturated by the promises in God’s Word so that we can teach and admonish one another with gratitude in our hearts. To teach is to instruct, and to admonish means to warn. Whatever we saturate ourselves in we give to others. Let the word of Christ dwell richly in you and your family so we can teach and warn one another. #6: 1 Thessalonians 5:11. “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up as you are already doing.” A few years ago a study was published by Harvard Business Review on how to build great teams. The researchers found that the highest-performing teams were those who communicated encouragement to one another more often than critique. To be very specific, the data showed that the healthiest teams communicated, on average, 6 encouragements for every 1 critique. This created trust, joy, and a deep sense of ownership on the team. Even more, the study showed that when people are encouraged, they overcome their obstacles more quickly. Now just think about that in the context of family. 6 encouragements for every 1 critique. This obviously can’t be manufactured or artificial. It’s a way of interacting with people – looking for the strengths and small victories and affirming those regularly so that the critiques can be well-received. Encourage one another! #7: 1 John 1:7. “If we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all unrighteousness.” Something we all crave is healthy fellowship – to be known by the people who love us and to know the people we love. But this kind of deep fellowship and connection with others can only come by walking in the light. Jesus is in the light. With Jesus, what you see is what you get. He is who He is no matter who He’s with. He’s not hiding parts of his life and generating different identities for different crowds of people. He’s in the light. If we want deep fellowship, we must be in the light too. And when we live in the light with Jesus, His blood cleanses away all our unrighteousness. If you want a strong family culture, but you’re not walking in the light together, you won’t find deep fellowship. You’ve got to be in the light with Jesus so you can have true fellowship with one another. If we could consistently practice these within our families, our church, our workplaces, our communities – then we could build each other up all the time. Here’s all 7 put together: Welcome one another as Jesus welcomes you and delight in the freedom of serving one another, but don’t bite and devour one another. Instead, bear with one another with humility, gentleness, and patience, and let the Word of Christ dwell richly in you so you can teach and warn one another with gratitude in your heart. Build each other up and never stop encouraging one another. And above all – love Jesus first. Go where Jesus is into the light and be cleansed from all darkness so you can have true and deep fellowship with one another.