Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. - 2 Peter 1:10-11
What is your calling?
Paul states in the 4th chapter of Ephesians that we must live a life worthy of the calling we received. He then goes on to explain what it means to live a life worthy of our calling.
- Be completely humble and gentle: The first requirement is to be gentle with compassion and humility in all our dealings. We must also learn to be patient with one another so that we can bear with one another in love. We must not therefore be impatient but understanding of each other’s weaknesses so that we can maintain the bond of peace by keeping the unity of the spirit. The Holy Spirit helps us be well-tempered and patient with all types of people. We cannot live peacefully except that we take the help of the Holy Spirit to keep us humble and gentle in all our dealings with people.
- As a second requirement, we are to ensure that we serve as one body and one spirit just as we have been called to one hope; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. It is only through the unity of our faith, our baptism and our hope that we can have one body through which we are able to serve the one Lord and God who is Father overall.
Having one faith means that we believe exactly the same things that are written in the Bible. We do not interpret incorrectly but are led by the Holy Spirit into a genuine understanding of our faith. This is not a faith that is based on human rules or traditions but the genuine power of God.
Being united in one baptism implies having the same trials and hardships that all are united with. We all go through the same sufferings that are common to the body of Christ. We cannot claim a baptism which is different from the rest of the body because God has the same standard for all.
We are also to be unified in one hope because God the Holy Spirit is the source of all hope. It is through His intercession that we are able to attain the plans that God has for us. Even when we do not know what we ought to pray for, the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans in accordance to the will of God. (Romans 8:26)
- We have been given grace as Christ has apportioned it (Eph 4:7) The Bible says that when Christ ascended to heaven he took many captives. He also gave many gifts to his people(vs. 8). The gifts that he gave were the graces that enabled them to become apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, given with the aim and purpose of equipping his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. (vs . 11-13)
In giving us these gifts, God requires that we be faithful stewards of the grace that has been apportioned to us. We are required to use our gifts to equip the body of Christ for works of service which alone can cause the body of Christ to be built up in all the faith and knowledge of the Son of God. This will make us mature sons of God and help us attain the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. This is the third requirement to attain our calling. Verse 14 reveals how attaining to maturity and the fullness of Christ will keep us from being tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.
- The fourth requirement for attaining our calling is to speak the truth in love (vs. 15). When we speak in love, we edify the Body of Christ. We will then grow up into Him who is the Head, that is Christ. 16From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. As each one does their function, the whole body benefits. The Body of Christ is then ready for ruling and reigning in the kingdom of God.
Summary:
We must remember that we are called to make our election sure. Doing this will ensure that you receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Fulfilling these four requirements will help us attain our calling:
First, we are required to be gentle with compassion and humility in our dealings with all people. We must be gentle and bear with each other in love.
Second, we are to serve as one body and one spirit just as we have been called to one hope; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Third, we must use the gifts of grace that Jesus apportioned to us in order to attain the fullness of faith and knowledge required for attaining to the maturity and the fullness of Christ.
Fourth, we must speak the truth in love so that the Body of Christ is edified and built to its fullness of purpose and destiny of ruling and reigning with Christ.