What is the Basis for Our Unity? Ephesians 4

Paul spent the first three chapters building the doctrinal foundation for what we believe as Christians. Critically he states that we have been saved by grace through faith, not by works.  Importantly Paul builds this foundation before he moves to chapters 4-6, as he prescribes the practical application of the gospel to our lives. Before we just start doing stuff "for the Lord", we need to understand why we do them and how God has equipped to live a life worthy of our calling. 

Unity and Maturity in the Body of Christ

4 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 

Paul calls us "prisoners" for the Lord.  Though you have probably never been a prisoner, Paul was.  A prisoner had their rights taken from them from the governing authorities because of violating the law.  But Paul uses it in the sense that we have given up our rights in order to follow Jesus.  Instead of living with the sense of entitlement to always satisfy our own desires, which was the issue with the Ephesians, Paul urges us to give up our rights in order to serve our new master.  Paul urges us to live a life worthy of our calling, which is to follow Jesus Christ first and foremost.

2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  

The first application of this new calling is to be "completely humble".  Not sort of, or kind of, but completely.  Humility is our calling card as Christians.  The opposite of humility is pride.  Since it is by grace we have been saved, we have no reason to boast.  

Paul says humility is "considering others as better than ourselves".  If we think it is asking too much of us, consider Jesus' example of humility. Paul writes in Philippians 2, "Jesus did not consider equality with God as something to hold on, but emptied himself and became a servant even unto death."  If Jesus, the Son of God, could  completely humble himself surely we can.  

 

Gentleness is a good complement to humility.  Gentleness is treating others with respect and being gracious to them.  It is giving people the benefit of the doubt, and making the best construction of your neighbor's behavior.  

Finally, we are to "bear with one another".  Simply put, when a brother or sister in Christ is going through a hard time, we gather around and come alongside of them.  We care for them, encourage them, and pray for them.  These are three ways we live out a life worthy of our calling as Christ followers.  You can see how much of a difference these character qualities would make in the atmosphere of your church and in the world today. 

3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  

We are all given the gift of the Holy Spirit when we come to faith in Christ.  The Holy Spirit lives in us and is the source of our peace.  Therefore, when we come together as the body of Christ, there is a corporate sense of that peace.  This is why when you walk into a Spirit filled church, you feel a sense of peace and unity.  

When we don't act according to the three qualities just mentioned: humility, gentleness and patience, it takes away peace and unity we have been given through the Holy Spirit.  Because we already have this peace and unity, Paul urges us to do everything it will take to keep it.  

4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 

Unity is very important to Paul because he sees how divisions in churches like Corinth can destroy the work of God in that place.  Quarreling, pride, and division do not create an atmosphere that people want to be a part of it.  By nature it will be unattractive to any guests who might come to your church.  

So Paul lists seven areas where we have unity in the body of Christ.  The most basic essense of our unity is the body of Christ itself?  The body of Christ is made up of everyone who has come to faith in Jesus, as their Lord and Savior.  They are born again.  The body of Christ, the church, is not about a certain denomination like Protestant, Catholic or Orthodox. It is universal for all those who believe in Jesus.  

In our past, even in the Protestant church, denominations like Methodists, Presbyterians and Lutherans have tended to get caught in arguments over minor issues of doctrine.   Often these debates/divisons are unproductive and dilute the unity God has given us.  

If we spent as much time reaching out to lost people, as we have spent arguing over matters of minor importance a lot more people would be saved.  The most basic unity we have in the body of Christ has nothing to do with what KIND of church we go to, but the common confession we have that Jesus is Lord to the glory of God the Father.  

I am not saying there is anything necessarily wrong with being a part of a denomination, after all I am pastor in the Lutheran church.  My point is that our denominational identity should never trump our identity as Christians.  What unites us is far greater than what divides us. 

Next, Paul says there is one Spirit.  That spirit is the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is God, and one of the three persons of the Trinity.  The One Holy Spirit is the agency or means by which the unity of the church is established through each believer as we come to faith in Christ.  

Finally, there is one hope.  Our hope centers around the death and resurrection of Christ. The same hope we have is that even though we die, yet shall we live.  When someone dies, this common hope is of enormous importance as we celebrate their life together as a community. The hope we all have is that when we lose a loved one we will see them again in heaven.  And this hope will not disappoint us, because it has been poured out into our heart through the Holy Spirit.

5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 

One Lord is fairly obvious. It is the Lord Jesus Christ.  Jesus is Lord over all things, and one day every knee shall bow and tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.  (Philippians 2:10-11) Just as their is one God, there is only one Lord.  This is why Jesus says, 'I am the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6).  If there were another way or another person who could lead us to God the Father, that person or Lord would be God.  

Finally, there is one baptism.  Baptism has caused a lot of controversy in the history and life of the Church.  Some say this is only a "spirit baptism", which happens when we are born again.  Others say this pertains to "water baptism", which is part and parcel of "spirit baptism".   Again this is an area where we can get caught up in our own particular or denominational view, but suffice it to say that baptism is a command Jesus gave to the church.  

Before he went back to the Father, after he rose from the dead, he said to his disciples in Matthew 28, "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit." 

When Peter preached his first sermon on Pentecost and the believers were cut to the heart by his words he said, "Repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and you wil receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."  

We could spend a lot of time going through all of the scriptural examples of how baptism was practiced in the 1st century, but the key the thing is as Jesus says in Mark 16 to the disciples, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned."  Belief and baptism are part of saving faith.  Baptism is not our work so it is not antithetical to the gospel.  It is a gift of God just like saving faith is.  

So what can we conclude?  Just is there is one faith and one hope we come to believe in Jesus once and we are baptized once in obedience to Jesus' Great Commission in the name of the One Father, One Son and One Holy Spirit.  Whether you were baptized as an infant and came to faith later in your life the key thing is that you believe and are baptized.

 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.  

Paul concludes with the most important part of our unity, the unity of One God and Father of us all.  This is why Christians have a "monetheistic" belief system.  We believe in only One God.  We reject polytheism, which is found in Buddhism, Hinduism and designer religions like the New Age movement.  

We were adopted by God the Father, saved by Jesus the Son, and we have been given the gift of the indwelling of the One Holy Spirit.  One God expressed in three persons.  Note Paul mentions each part of the Trinity separately, but shows us that within the Trinity there is complete and perfect unity from which all unity flows! 

Can you see why unity is important to Paul?  What can you do to keep the unity in your church?  What issues threaten the unity of the church today?  Why is unity so important as we seek to carry out Jesus' Great Commission?