While the apostle Paul was under house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:16) in A.D. 60-62, he wrote the Epistle to the Ephesians. Paul, as was his usual custom in writing his letters, included in the first half (Chpt. 1-3) of the book of Ephesians the doctrine of the gospel of Christ. The last half contains practical guidance for believers’ lives that would lead to a well-grounded faith and the fulfillment of Christian duties arising from the doctrinal privileges graciously granted to us by God.
This article takes a look at one of those duties, namely, the Christian duty of unity, which the apostle writes about in verses 4-6 of chapter 4 of the book of Ephesians.
PAUL’S TARGET AUDIENCE
Our Scripture text is found in the book of Ephesians. Though entitled “Ephesians,” there is disagreement among some scholars regarding whether this letter written by the apostle Paul was actually written to the church in Ephesus. Some are of the opinion that this epistle was a circular letter[1] sent to various churches in Asia Minor. Ephesians was the only of Paul’s epistles that did not contain particularities regarding a local church situation. Also, some say that Paul’s writings from prison were generally more demonstrative and effusive in tenor regarding the things of God. These points may have led some to believe the letter was circular in nature and was intended to be passed along to several churches.
Considering that the epistle is addressed to the saints which are at Ephesus (1:1) in many ancient texts and that Paul includes in his final greetings of the epistle the statement that he has sent Tychicus to them in Ephesus, this writer holds that this letter was written by the apostle to the church in Ephesus.
Though the church at Ephesus was the immediate target audience of Paul’s epistle, it is nevertheless a part of holy Scripture and as such is also intended for the edification and benefit of all Christians. The truth of Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians is as cogent and fitting for Christians of today as it was to the church at Ephesus in Paul’s day.
CONTEXT
Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, summarizes the gospel of Jesus Christ. So far, in the first three chapters, Paul’s letter has dealt with doctrine. He talked about the eternal plan of God for Christian believers; the great blessings of God; the knowledge and power of God; the work of God’s mercy and the gift of God’s grace in the plan of salvation; reconciliation and peace with God; and the church— the true church— the new body of people God is creating to be the citizens of the new heavens and the new earth at the second coming of Christ.
The apostle also writes of the mystery of God’s will that is revealed in Christ. This mystery, according to Paul, was a truth that previous to the coming of Christ was partially hidden but is now fully revealed through the coming of Christ (3:5).
The mystery of God’s will that is taught in the epistle to the Ephesians is the uniting of all saints, Jew and Gentile, in Christ. Thus the Gentiles stand on the same ground before Christ as the Jews with no distinction among them and both are members of the same church, the body of Christ, enjoying the same privileges, promises, and blessings (Eph. 3:3-10).
The apostle writes of the many blessings and privileges that Jew and Gentile believers enjoy without distinction which flow from the plan of salvation devised and decreed by God in eternity by His grace and for His glory. He writes of their predestination and election from eternity by the Father. Paul pointed out that their redemption through Christ united them all in one body, which is the church, and enabled all saints to receive their promise of the inheritance of eternal life.
Paul also contrasted their former heathen state with their current reconciled state in Christ. In their reconciled state, both Jew and Gentile are united in one body in Christ and at the same time, both are reconciled with God and made His children and heirs with equal access to God.
The epistle to the Ephesians shows that the full gospel of Christ was clearly made known to the apostles and prophets of the New Testament so that they could preach to all saints the riches of Christ and the knowledge of God’s plan of salvation, which had been hidden during the Old Testament dispensation but now is fully revealed through Christ (Eph. 3:1-13). The mystery is revealed so “that through the church might be made known to principalities and powers the manifold wisdom of God”[2]
A theme that runs throughout the book of Ephesians is unity. Paul’s doctrinal teaching in the first three chapters of the book show that God’s will in eternity was the unity of all believers through His plan of redemption. We will see that when Paul begins the practical portion of his letter in chapter 4, his primary focus is on the unity in the body of Christ.
EXPOSITION
Beginning in chapter 4, Paul begins the practical portion of his letter in light of the doctrinal truths he has just discussed in the previous three chapters of Ephesians.
In verses 1-16 of chapter 4, the apostle deals with the unity of the church. For our purposes here, we will be focused particularly on verses 4-6. It is here that Paul lists the seven “ones” of the gospel of Christ, namely, one body, one spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father.
The mystery Paul speaks of in Ephesians is the uniting of all the believers as one in Christ and these seven “ones” define what the unity of the body of Christ looks like.
Verses 1-3
In verses 1-3, and considering the doctrine taught in the preceding three chapters, Paul gives the Ephesians a general exhortation to walk deservingly and obediently in accordance with the joyous circumstances to which they were brought by the grace of God. Paul describes the characteristics of their calling, namely, to be the children of God.
The apostle Paul teaches that the Holy Spirit is the author of the unity of the body of Christ. He exhorts his readers to enthusiastically preserve this unity. The means of preserving the unity of the church is peace through love for God and for one another. Unity among the members of the body of Christ requires loving humility and patience which is the fruit of the presence of the Holy Spirit in their communion and fellowship.
Verses 4-6
After urging the Ephesians to preserve the unity of which the Spirit is the author, Paul states the nature and grounds of that unity. This unity of the body of Christ that Paul is teaching is a unity that exists because there is and can only be one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism and one God and Father in the body of Christ. We will look at each of these grounds for unity in turn.
One Body
Paul declares that there is one mystical body of Christ in which all believers in Christ are His members. Note that this is a declaration of fact. It is not an entreaty or an exhortation to an end such as “Let’s all come together as one!” The kingdom of God is one body in Christ and it is never anything else but one body. Only those already united in Christ are in the kingdom. All true believers are members of this body, a spiritual body headed by Christ. Believers in the body of Christ are in a similar relation as the members of the human body, which is a synergism amongst the members of the body. Scripture teaches believers to use their gifts from God in the service of other members of the body of Christ as stewards of God ‘s grace (1 Pet. 4:10, 11).
One Spirit
This spirit is, the Holy Spirit which is indwelling in each member of the body of Christ and is the very life of the church. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit in all believers is the instrumentality that spiritually enables the unity in the body of Christ. Because of the common presence of the Holy Spirit in each member of the body of Christ, any sins against the unity in the church are sins against the Holy Spirit.
One hope
The word “hope” refers to the expectation of future good. This hope arises from the effectual call of the Holy Spirit belonging to the regenerate elect. Since all believers are indwelt by the same Holy Spirit, they also have the future expectations of everything the gospel of Christ promises to all believers such as reconciliation, adoption, eternal inheritance, salvation, and fellowship in the kingdom of God for eternity. Thus Christian hope gives believers the present certainty of the reality of these expectations in the future.
One Lord
The Lordship of Christ makes Him in the absolute sense our owner and sovereign, body and soul. We are the slaves of Christ not in the sense of forced, involuntary servitude but in the sense of voluntary and joyous service to the absolutely unique and unparalleled autonomous deity. Paul, in Romans 1:1 refers to himself as a doulos[3] (Gr. slave) of Christ. Scripture teaches that Christ is our Lord not only because of his divinity but also because of his work of redemption on our behalf. Consequently, we should glorify him with our body and soul. Believers are slaves and subject to the same Lord and master whose sovereignty extends to the believers’ body and soul, which manifests quite an intimate union.
One faith
Clearly this refers to the gospel of Jesus Christ which contains the doctrine of the Christian faith in Christ whereby all Christians are saved. There is a unity of faith amongst true Christians because all true Christians have come to Christ the same way, through belief in Him by faith. Christians are one in their faith in the name of Jesus Christ. All true Christians believe completely in the life and works of Jesus as revealed in Scripture. They hold that the Holy Christian Bible contains the revealed word of God and their faith is grounded upon that Scripture. Christians all accept the lordship of Christ in that Jesus Christ is the Lord and master of their lives. True Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that they are subject to His teachings and all the revelations of God in Scripture. There is a unity of faith existing in the body of Christ regarding doctrines of the faith that are necessary for salvation and a sanctified walk with Christ.
One baptism
Baptism is the method through which Christians profess their faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and savior in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. All the baptized believers make the same profession, accept the same covenant, and are consecrated to the same Lord and Redeemer and are therefore one body.[4] Scripture teaches that “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:27, 28).
One God and Father
The Christian church worships the only triune God as the one and only God. The God of the Christian faith is three persons and one essence. The three persons of the Trinity are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit and equal in all aspects. God owns and is sovereign over all true members of the body of Christ and has adopted them as His heirs. God is their creator and as such the Father of all. All three persons are in all believers with the Holy Spirit indwelling in their souls as the guarantee of their eternal inheritance (Eph. 1:14).
The unity of the church is founded on the Trinity. There exists one Holy Spirit, one Lord, Jesus Christ, and one Father. This mystical union arises from a common principle of life that is a spiritual life of God in the souls of believers. And this life is common among the Trinity and among believers. Considering this truth, it is not surprising that Scripture teaches that not only the Holy Spirit dwells in believers but that Christ and God dwells in them as well.
Hodge writes of the unity of the church in one God and Father in this way.
God, as Father, is over all its members, through them all, and in them all. The church is a habitation of God through the Spirit. It is his temple in which he dwells, and which is pervaded in all its parts by his presence… it is not that God operates “through all” … but that he pervades all and abides in all… to be filled with God, to be pervaded by his presence and controlled by him, is to attain the summit of all created excellence, blessedness, and glory.[5]
There is a perfect unity among the three persons of the godhead and there is also the same spiritual life principle of God in the souls of believers. This ensures one God and Father in the souls of all believers which enables the unity of the body of Christ.
LAST REMARKS
These seven “ones” that Paul wrote about collectively are the elements that make up the fabric of the unity in the body of Christ. It is from the God and Father that all the other elements of Christian unity flow. All the other “ones” mentioned in this passage are the means through which the God and Father accomplish unity in the body of Christ. By these means, the “one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all” draws the members of the body of Christ to Himself. With only the one God and Father utilizing these means, He rules and governs His spiritual kingdom in all the members of the body of Christ in perfect harmony with Himself, therefore, there can only be unity in the church.
Our Lord mentions this unity of the church in His high priestly prayer directed to the Father when He said “10All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one” (John 17:10, 11) (emphasis added).
[1] A circular letter in Paul’s day was a letter intended for and applicable to the congregations of more than one church and not directed specifically to any one church assembly.
[2] Charles Hodge, A Commentary On Ephesians (The Banner of Truth Trust 2003 (1856)), xv.
[3] Most translations of the Bible have improperly substituted the Greek word doulos, which can only mean “slave” in the original Greek, with the English word “servant” or “bondservant.”
[4] Hodge, 148.
[5] Hodge, 149.
