Unified (Eph. 4:1-16)

Unified (Eph. 4:1-16)

I. Introduction
Good morning. Today, we’re going to continue our study through the book of Ephesians. We are halfway through this letter, having finished chapter 3 just last month. Today, we are looking through the first half of chapter 4, if you’d like to open there and follow along.

A family from the city decided to move to the country and purchase some land to raise cattle. After a while, their friends visited and asked about the ranch’s name. The new rancher said, “Well, I wanted to name it the Bar-J. My wife favored Suzy-Q, one of our sons wanted the Flying-W, and the other liked the Lazy-Y. None of us could agree so we decided to call it the Bar-J-Suzy-Q-Flying-W-Lazy-Y.”
The friend looked around at all the open fields and asked, “Ok, so where are all the cattle?” The rancher said, “Well, none survived the branding.”

Lack of unity can have dire consequences. Unity is necessary for living and thriving. This is true in cattle farming, I’m sure, as well as any business. And it’s most certainly true in the body of Christ. To grow as His body, we must be unified.
The church in Ephesus had great need for unity. This was shown especially in the first 3 chapters, chapter 2 especially. The Jewish Christians saw the Gentile Christians as inferior, but Paul reminds them all that they are one in Christ Jesus. All who are in Christ are recipients of God’s great riches of grace. We all fulfill the mystery that Christ came to establish the church, making us all fellow heirs of the promise of the gospel of Christ Jesus.
Warren Wiersbe, writer of many commentaries, once noted Paul’s balance of addressing doctrine and duty in this letter, noting that chapters 1-3 address doctrine and what we receive from Christ while 4-6 address our duties, the responsibilities of Christians.
As Christ has purchased us to be part of His body, we must strive to be unified in Spirit in His body. And that is what is addressed in our passage this morning.
We’ll be looking at the first 16 verses of chapter 4. Let’s start at the beginning. The first verse is where we see that transition from riches of Christ to the responsibilities of Christians.

II. Eager Unity (v.1-3)
“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, (implied - because of all that you have in Christ Jesus) urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called.” This is a callback to all that has been said in Eph. 1-3, but specifically we can look at 2:10 which says, “We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Walk in the good works that bring glory to God.
For the remainder of this letter, Paul will bring up different aspects of this worthy walk, but in this portion of the letter specifically, Paul addresses unity.
Unity is something that the church then and now are called to, but it is something that was very much a common issue in the early church. In 1 Corinthians, we see a church overwhelmed with disunity and self-service. In 1 Cor. 12 in particular, we see different factions on display as they are arguing over which spiritual gift is the greatest; which group is most valuable? They are one body, and many members, yet the members are at war with each other. As we’ll see in a moment, Paul is using this letter to get out ahead of this problem with the church in Ephesus, reminding them to be individual members that all work for the common goal of growth in the body.
In verse 3, Paul says, “be eager (diligent, endeavor) to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” How important is unity to you? In the church? In your personal relationships?Would you say you are eager to keep unity?
The Greek word translated as “eager” in the ESV means hastily and zealous. The root words means to be swift or speedy. What are you swift, speedy, or eager about?
(Example 1) This week, my family is going on vacation. I’m eager for that time to spend with my family, relaxing and having fun. I’m joyfully anticipating that time. Do we joyfully anticipate unity when we don’t have it?
(Example 2) Have you ever been boiling water on the stove and you take your eye off of it for a bit, only to hear the sizzle of boiled-over water hitting the stovetop? How do you react? Swiftly. Even those who rarely exercise run at at 4.4 40-yard pace. How swift are you to overcome rifts that are among you?
This is the eager unity that Christians are urged to have. When embers of hostility start rising, we are quick to extinguish them. When we see a brother or sister alone, hurting or perhaps just isolated from the body, we are eager for them to be connected to the congregation. If we are “eager to maintain the unity of Spirit in the bond of peace,” we are intentional about overcoming disagreements. We are moved to go the extra mile even when others don’t. As Romans 12:18 says, “as far as it is depends on you, live peaceably with all.” We allow that reach of peace to go further than we may have thought it could.” Eager unity means hastily doing all that you can do to keep that unity.
The success of a church’s longevity and gospel reach depends on it’s members having this attitude. Do we sow peace and unity, or strife and discord?
Recall Jesus’ prayer for His disciples in John 17:21. “that they (those who believe in me) may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” The unity of the church was Jesus’s prayer for us and it is evidence of Jesus through us, as he says in John 13:35: “By this people will know you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
This unity should be both in doctrine and demeanor; belief and behavior. Doctrine will be addressed in verses 4-6, but here, Paul addresses our demeanor. We can believe the same thing, and yet still not be unified.
Are you a fan of a certain team? Maize and Blue? Green and white? I remember growing up going to camp in northern Alabama. I remember one summer I had a friend who was graduating high school and walked on at Auburn as a receiver. I, of course, was an still am an Alabama fan, and we cracked some friendly jokes at each other. Another younger guy, another Alabama fan, from a much more die-hard family (he had a brother named Bryant), was not so friendly. He was relentless iin his verbal assault and his disdain for this young man and his college choice, to the point that the Auburn commit had enough and didn’t even want to be around this other Alabama fan. This other fan and I were unified in our belief, but not our demeanor.
Everyone, we need to be on the same page when it comes to our belief and our trust in what the word of God says. Not all unity is God approved. Unity should not be unity at the cost of truth. We need to be unified under the right things. But let us also be unified, in our behavior and our attitude to one another. If you had siblings, there were likely times when you did not get along, but you still had to share the same roof. You had to work with them in spite of your differences, because they were your brother or sister. The same is true in the church. Since others are our brothers and sisters, we must work to move beyond our differences by behaving with unity in mind.
Here’s what walking in unity looks like (v.2): “(Walk) with all humility, and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love. No relationship that we have works without these ingredients.
Humility - counting others more significant than yourself (Phil. 2:3).
Gentleness - in how we speak with others, especially in difficult circumstances. (Prov. 15:1 - a soft words turns away wrath…”)(Gal. 6:1 - “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness.”) Gentleness goes a long way in keeping unity.
Patience - Patience goes a long way in our unconditional relationships, doesn’t it? Parents, patience allows us to love our kids even on days that they’re driving us crazy. Wives, it allows you to still love your husbands when the put dirty silverware in the sink rather than the dishwasher. Husbands, patience allows you to adore your wife even when there’s hair left in the shower. For all of us, patience allows us to be the listening ear and the calm voice in the room. It allows us to know the current struggle is not the end. Patience looks to the hope of what it is to come (James 5:8 - “You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”)
Bearing with one another in love - Everything just said about patience can apply here. If we share the love of Christ with each other, it motivates us to overcome our disagreements and heal any hurt that may have come between us. “Love bears all things, believes all things, hope all things, endures all things. Love never fails.” (1 Cor. 13:7-8). If we cling to love, we will be victorious over disunity. We “bear with each other.”
These emotions combined allow us to be more merciful, gracious, and forgiving. On the other side, they cause us to be more apologetic, to admit when we do wrong rather than be stubborn and set in our ways. It allows us to be quick to apologize, even if we have also been wronged by that person. When we are eager to maintain unity, and be peaceful as far as is possible for us (Rom. 12:18), we will do whatever we can to move forward in love for the sake of oneness.
It may take time. It certainly takes effort. But that’s what being eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” looks like. Eagerness for unity does not stop until unity is attained. And if we are eager for something, we can’t treat it like something common. Because it isn’t. Look at the next 3 verses.

III. Unity of the Body (v. 4-6)
When we read this, we often look at this to combat denominationalism. There is only one body and one Head, one Lord over all. Now, this is certainly true. Denominationalism is against the desire of God. But, God’s purpose for this inspired writing was not grounded in combating denominationalism. Rather, I believe, it was to encourage this often fractured body into being mindful about what the share as His one, unified Body. “You are One!
Recall the teaching in Eph. 2:18 and following. The Gentiles were once “far off” from the promise, but because of Jesus “peace was preached to those who were off and and to those who were near. (v.19) So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellows citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation (Singular) and members of the household (singular) of God, (v.20) built on the foundation (singular) of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone (singular), 21 in whom the whole structure (singular), being joined together, grows into a holy temple (singular) in the Lord (singular). 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place (singular) for God by the Spirit.
How great it is that God’s redemption plan came to save you, and me, all those who have gone before us, and those will come after. By His one sacrifice, we all with different backgrounds can come together to be one united body. Though we live in a world that is often far from peaceful and united, God offers unity through His Son. What a blessing that is!
Again, this unity that we can achieve in Jesus is not common, and we should not treat it that way. This is a spectacular, Christ purchased unity. As Eph. 3:6 shares, th4 mystery is revealed, that Gentiles and Jews alike are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
In verses 4-6, we have 7 (or 8 depending on how you look at it) ways that we are One. Let’s look at them briefly:

One body
There is only one body. Another fractured congregation in the early church was the church in Corinth, and they are told in 1 Cor. 12:13, “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.” Because of Jesus, the head, we are members of one body.
One Spirit
This is the Spirit that dwells in all Christians to strengthen and guide us (Eph. 3:16). This is the same Spirit that is the guarantee of our inheritance (Eph. 1:14).
One hope of your calling
This is what we look forward to, the coming of our Lord which will bring lead us to eternal life. This is guaranteed to all who believe, making hope a noun (a sure thing) and not a verb.
One Lord
We have one Lord, that is, one master! In Acts 10, as Paul is preaching the gospel to Gentiles, he tells them “as for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all)… To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:36, 43).And as we have one master, we have only one that we must follow, and we have only one Word of that master. This Word strengthens our…
One faith. Notice the coordinating of these last few. They are repeated in rapid succession (one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father). This faith is connected to our God and to are obedience. Faith and baptism in the Lord. Belief and baptism are always connected. As Mark 16:16 says, “He who believes AND is baptized shall be saved…”
One baptism
Much could be said about this and has been said, so here’s the crash course. There are several different baptisms mentioned in the New Testament. But the Bible is fairly clear that the baptism that Paul is talking of here is the one baptism mentioned by Jesus in Matt. 28:18-20 (…Make disciples, baptizing them…). This baptism is for “all nations.” It is no longer those who are circumcised who are God’s people (Eph. 2), but those who believe and our baptized into Him. This could not simply be the baptism of repentance, as is discussed in Acts 19. There, Paul addresses Christians in Ephesus asking if they had received the Holy Spirit (that is the gift of the Holy Spirit) when they believed. They had not even heard of the Holy Spirit, saying that they were baptized into the baptism of John. Paul replies, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” “And (V.5) on hearing that, they were baptized into Jesus Christ.” This could not be the “baptism of the Holy Spirit” that many suggest, as the Holy Spirit. This happened once for the apostles at the beginning of Acts 2, and once for the Gentiles in Acts 10. No, this could only be the baptism that Jesus commanded, and it is a baptism that brings us into His one body (see 1 Cor. 12:13 again). We are baptized into the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit to be cleaned of our sins and to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. There is not other baptism. There is only one baptism for one body and this is commanded by…
One God and (8?) Father of all
Harkening back to One Lord, there is only one God. Paul has been preaching through the 10 plagues and has contrasted Jehovah God with the many gods of Egypt. Can you imagine having to turn to so many different gods of so many different things? We have one God, one master, one Lord, one King. The God of the Jews is likewise the God of the Gentiles. He is the God of creation, the God of the heavens, the God of the earth. He is the Father who made us and has allowed us to be adopted sons and daughters, fellow heirs.
How blessed it is to be one in so many ways. Maybe you look to your neighbors here and you wonder, “what do I have in common with them?” There may be more than you think.
But even before getting to know them, by the reminders of this text we can see that we have much in common. We are one because of God.

IV. Equipped for Unity (v.7-16).
We are one body, but God has also blessed us as individual members of it. Verse 7 says, “Grace was given to each of us according thot he measure of Christ’s gifts. The next verses reference Psalm 68:18 and how he ascended on high, and talks of how Jesus descended to the earthly realm from heaven but ascended back to heaven. In the process, Christ gave us something. He’s equipped us with what we grow in wisdom (as referenced in Ephesians 1). He’s equipped us with His power, to be HIs hands. That’s what is meant in verse 10 when it says, “He ascended far above the heavens that he might fill all things. Christ has filled the world with his power and goodness, and they is displayed in the work of His body. Jesus did not go to heaven and leave us empty handed. And He has given us all skills and abilities to further glorify His name. These skills are different and our roles are different, but all important. Some mentioned were specific to the 1st century (apostles and prophets, v. 11). Others continue (teachers, shepherds, evangelists).
God wants us to be unified. Unified in our love for one another. He wants us to be one in a variety of different ways, and he wants us to know that we are equipped to work for a unified goal. Whether your strength is teaching or leading, service or study, or whatever it may be, it is God who has equipped you and called you to work for the goal of sharing the gospel and growing in the church. Jesus has given us everything that we need.
Though we live in a world of denominationalism where many can think that unity is an unrealistic expectation, that’s simply contrary to what we read here. Unity is not unrealistic when we have been equipped with everything we need to be unified and built up. We are equipped for maturation.
The saints are, as verse 12 says, equipped for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain the unity of the faith of the knowledge of the son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (v.12-14). This contrast of mature manhood to childish ignorance reminds me of a child walking out into the ocean. Sometimes, even small waves will make them lose their balance. But a father can hold their child and walk out into the ocean, standing firm even against some larger waves and strong winds. This is maturity manifested. And if the church uses what they are equipped to do, the body will be stronger and more unified.
Notice, too, that this is not just one person. Evangelists and teachers and shepherds, their job is not to do all the work for themselves but to further equip all members to go and to do the work of ministry collectively and to grow more unified as a body.
Unity comes from spiritual maturity. Unity of the body comes from individual members growing and sharing the mindset of unity. That mindset comes from living out the qualities mentioned in verses 2-3 and it comes from acknowledging that, though we have been blessed with different abilities, are differences are meant to strengthen us, not separate us. Romans 12:3-5 says, “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.” We are many, but we are one. And as we grow more mature individually, we grown more mature as a body, which leads to stronger unity.
And let us realize, too, that we must use what we have been equipped with if we want to continue to grow and be unified. Verses 15-17 says, “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”
“Each part.” “Every joint.”
Michelle gave me a smoker for a gift several months ago, at the beginning of the summer. I did not use it a single time last summer. And you know what, I didn’t have any decisions BBQ either. It wasn’t until I finally used what I had been given that my family was able to reap the benefits of what that I could do with that smoker. You know why? because being equipped is worthless if we aren’t using the equipment.
Are you using what you’ve been given, or are you neglecting it? If you aren’t working, you aren’t growing. And if any of us aren’t working, then we aren’t being built up to our full potential. This passage is pretty clear. Every joint and every part must be joined together and working properly. When we are working, we’ll see more unity, we’ll see more growth, and and we’ll see more accomplished for the sake of the gospel.
This begs the question, if there’s division, are we all working properly? Have you noticed that when people are busy working, there’s less time for arguing and nitpicking? Productivity overcomes a lot of arguments.
Likewise, If we are not growing and maturing in our faith, is there something that God has equipped us to do with that we’re neglecting? This is a question that we ought to ask ourselves: “How am I equipped to serve His Kingdom?” But it’s also one we must ask about others: “How are they equipped to serve His Kingdom?” Growth comes from our willingness to help each other first answer that question and then use what we’ve been equipped with to HIs glory.

Conclusion:
Family, it is a blessing to be one in Christ Jesus. As reminded in this passage, let us walk in eagerness to maintain the unity he’s blessed us with. And let us remember that we are one body, united by our one Lord, having one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father. And, as His body, we are all equipped to serve Him. Though we have different functions, we have one goal: to grow in Him and to do the work of sharing the gospel of Christ Jesus.
This morning, I ask are you a part of that body? You can be. Jesus has provided the way. Believe in Him. Repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins. Put Him on and live as a fully equipped and working member of the body of Christ. Maybe this morning you are thinking “I’m a member of the body, but I haven’t been working as I should. and I’m not sure how God wants to use me.” We as a church family want to pray with you and for to find that answer and then work together to use the gifts God has blessed you with. Maybe this morning, you are struggling with a disagreement with your brother or sister, and that disagreement has created a divide where there should be unity. Maybe you are the guilty party who’s wronged another. Don’t let Satan drive a wedge between you and another. If you are eager to maintain unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, I encourage you to do what’s necessary to keep unity today. Whatever it is that you need, please come now…

Take Home Message: Let us walk with eagerness to maintain the unity that he’s blessed us with and let us remember that we are one body, equipped to serve Him.