The Doorpost: The basis of our unity in Christ

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Ephesians 4:1-6

Last week, we looked at Jesus’ prayer in John 17 where He prayed that His followers would be one with each other in the same way that He and the Father are one. We talked about the fact that we know Jesus was praying according to His Father’s will, so we know that what He prayed will come to pass. We looked at one situation where it did happen.

Today, when we look at the Body of Christ as a whole, and also when we look at our local fellowships, there is frequently evidence that this unity is not yet perfect. What needs to be done? The apostle Paul gives us some guidance in the first part of Ephesians 4.

He begins by telling us some things we should do. We are to be humble, gentle and patient, bearing with each other in love. We are to do everything we can to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Then he reminds us of the basis of this unity. There is one body and one Spirit—only one. We have one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. One. Since this is true, how can we have all of this in common and not have unity? It is impossible for believers who are walking in oneness with Jesus Christ not to have unity with each other. They will be one, just as the Father and the Son are one.

When we see that we do not have unity with another believer or believers, we know that someone’s (or someones’) oneness with Jesus is not perfect. The first thing we must do is consider these verses that remind us of what we have in common. Then we must honestly evaluate our own obedience to Jesus Christ and to His Word. We must be humble enough to realize we could be wrong. We must be gentle and patient, bearing with those we disagree with, even when we’re pretty sure we aren’t wrong. We must make every effort to maintain unity with everyone who shares the same basics of the faith Paul has listed here.

Samaritan Ministries International is made up of subscribers from many diverse parts of the Body of Christ. Every month we can see glimpses of what happens when the members of Christ’s body work and pray together in unity. We need to pray for, and continue to practice, this kind of unity. We must do this, not only with each other, but also with all the other members of the Body of Christ—including those next to us in the pew and those in the church across town.