Ephesians 4:4-6 There is one body and one Spirit–just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call– (5) one Lord, one faith, one baptism, (6) one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

Paul’s plea for unity is followed up in Ephesians 4 with Biblical truth that forms solid doctrine for the Christian believer. Whenever there is repeating words I do my best to try to understand why they are there. In these three verses we see two words that are repeated many times. The words are ‘one’ and ‘all.’

The first word, ‘one,’ has immense implications to our walk with Christ. Many today will state that we serve a God of love, which is true, but it doesn’t encompass the entirety of God. These statements in verses 4-6 stand on the solid foundation of the first three verses, and as he talks about unity, he lays out seven truths that unite all believers in Christ.

• One body – The church of Christ is made up of all believers forming the body. Though it may include many different church bodies, we are all one together in Christ. We are His bride.
• One Spirit – We all have one Holy Spirit who is in us. All the spiritual gifts we receive are from one Spirit and therefore maintain the unity of us all.
• One hope of your calling – As Christians, we have the same hope. We are looking forward to the same heaven, the same pleasures, the same joys. We have hope in the Lord’s return as we walk in the same Spirit.
• One Lord – There is one Lord… His name is Jesus Christ. Regardless of where you are on this planet, we all serve the same Lord and Savior.
• One faith – this is the belief system that we hold to as Christians. Some today may be straying away from true Biblical faith, but the true united believers all share one faith.
• One baptism – this may have a twofold meaning. There is one baptism of the Spirit that all believers receive, but it could also pertain the water baptism of the regenerated person who puts their faith in Christ. However, pertaining to “one body,” the one baptist is probably referring to the baptism of the Spirit.
• One God and Father – We are all children of the family of God. We serve the same loving and gracious Father and because of that we ought to walk in unity.

Unity in Christ is essential, so Paul wants the doctrines of God to be clearly defined so that there is no compromise or misunderstanding of what it is all about for the saints in Ephesus. So for us today, we are also able to identify the true church, hope, and faith when we encounter it.

Blessings,
Keith