Ephesians Devotionals
Bob Morris
Radical Unity (Ephesians 4:3-6)
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
It is always a good idea to understand the appropriate division of labour in any task. In the Christian walk it is helpful to know what God’s job is and what ours is. In the matter of unity, God by nature is one and he is over all and through all and in all. There is just no room for any other God in the universe. It follows that there is one Father, one Lord, one Spirit (the Triune God), and the one hope, one faith, and one baptism they confer. No other ultimate reality exists. God has given to us who follow him the unity he has within the divine God-head.
What is our responsibility? Make every effort to keep in practice the unity that already exists in reality. This whole passage (4: 3-13) culminates in the day when practice matches reality and we attain to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Until then we have to work mighty hard to make the visible unity in the church (the one body) match the reality. Markus Barth underlines the strength of “make every effort”:
…not only haste and passion, but a full effort of the whole man is meant, involving his will, sentiment, reason, physical strength, and total attitude.
Yet how easily we can concede defeat in seeking unity in the local fellowship of believers, let alone the unity between various fellowships! It is usually easier to switch or quit than to “make every effort." Many of us hate confrontation and seek to avoid it at all costs.
Jesus’ prayer to the Father just before he went to the cross underlines how critical Christian unity is to mission. In John 17: 22-3:
"I have given [my disciples] the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one – I in them and you in me – so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."
Love for one another is the distinctive mark of the disciples of Jesus Christ (John 13: 35). But love for each other - unity - apparently is also the key to others knowing God loves them. Surely if we knew that our being at peace with each other was a prerequisite of people coming to Christ, we would make more effort at keeping the local church at peace. Where does “keeping the unity of the Spirit” begin? In our attitudes. Paul told the Philippians, “In your relationships with one another, have the same attitude of mind Christ Jesus had) (Phil. 2: 5)
Loving Father, we confess we find it hard to get along with all the people you have called to yourself. Help us to increase our efforts to keep the peace with one another, and reflect the unity you have given us in Christ. Amen.
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