The unit is given
For the apostle Paul, there is no such thing as denominations, that is, types of churches. The true community is not an association of people who “believe” something to be true. There is only one worldwide community of faith, the “body of Christ”. It does not come from affirming dogmas, nor is one placed there by birth. The true community is formed between people who received the same vocation. Believers are by definition called (Rom 1:6-7).
This community is now called upon to maintain the unity of the Spirit:
“So now I exhort you, I, the bound in the Lord,
that you walk worthy of the calling to which you have been called,
By doing so with all humility and gentleness,
bearing with one another in love with longsuffering
and are eager to preserve the unity of the spirit
through the bond of peace:
- A body and
- a spirit, as you also are called to be
- a hope of your vocation;
- a gentleman,
- a belief,
- a baptism;
- one God and Father of all,
above all and through all and in all of you.”
Eph 4:1-6 (Rev. Elbf.)
The true basis for fellowship with one another is not that we must bring about unity, but merely that we must preserve it.
A sevenfold unity
True fellowship is presupposed by Paul. It does not have to be worked out, it just has to be kept in mind. Unity is already there because it is given by God and comes from our vocation. The 7 points are in an inversion:
- One body
- A ghost
- One expectation
- A gentleman
- One faith
- A baptism
- One God and Father of all.
Central is the one Lord. “But if we are true, we should make all things grow in love, into Him who is the head, Christ Jesus, from whom the whole body … carries out the growth of the body, for its own edification in love” (Eph. 4:15-16).
Expectation and faith are mentioned right next to it. It is these two things that are once dismissed, but are formative today. Expectation is the outlook that is not yet fulfilled (Rom 8:23-25). Faith is the acceptance of things not yet seen today (Heb. 11:1). Both will be dismissed one day – faith will be replaced by looking, and the expectation will be fulfilled. Expectation and faith accompany us in the here and now and are therefore characteristics of a true community until He comes. Therefore, of the trio of “faith, expectation and love,” the greatest is love, because love is the abiding thing of the three (1 Cor. 13:13).
A spirit and a baptism accompany us. It is God’s Spirit in us, as it says, “The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Rom 8:16). It is also this Spirit that unites us all: “For in one Spirit we are all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free: We are all imbued with the one Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:13). Baptism should not refer here to water baptism, because it is about things that God has made – not about actions that we would have to perform. Baptism by the Spirit into the body of Christ, as mentioned in the letter to the Corinthians, seems more conclusive.
One body and one God and Father of all. This first and last point are also related. Paul elsewhere describes our calling as follows: “so we also, the many, are one body in Christ, but individually members one of another” (Rom 12:5). The whole body grows according to God’s growth (Col 2:19), for there is “one God and Father of all, over all and through all and in all of you” (Eph 4:6).
Unity of the spirit becomes visible in everyday life
The unity of the spirit is preserved through the bond of peace. The creation of unity is God’s work. Preserving this unity is our task. We preserve them through peace. A bond of peace holds together what would otherwise break apart. The bond of peace is the characteristic of the already given unity.
Here the sevenfold unit:
First and foremost is the recognition that there is only one body, only one community. There are local imprints, but in terms of our calling, there is only the one worldwide church (Gr. ekklesia, called out ones), which consists of people who are called out ones of Christ Jesus (Rom 1:6), who are called in accordance with God’s purpose (Rom 8:28). This is the community to which we belong.
In second place is the one spirit. It is God Himself who has sealed us and given the deposit of the Spirit in our hearts (2 Cor. 1:22). It is also said that whoever clings to the Lord is one spirit with Him (1 Cor. 6:17). Therefore, we should act accordingly and walk among ourselves.
In the third place, we preserve the one expectation, because we share not only the vocation, but also the outlook. We may have a perseverance in the expectation of our Lord Jesus Christ (1Th 1:3) that we share with every other member in the body. Let us encourage one another in view of the expectation that lies ahead!
In fourth place is the one Lord, Christ Jesus. “But for us there is only One God, the Father, from whom the universe is (and we are turned to Him), and only One Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom the universe has become (and we are through Him)” (1 Cor. 8:6). The same Lord who is my Lord and your Lord. Again, there is no difference.
In fifth place is the one faith. In the basic text, “believe” and “trust” are the same word. There is only one trust that can apply, and that is a trust of God in His Word and His promises. “Believing God” is central in the Bible, not a “believing in God,” much less belonging to a particular religious organization. When we speak of “one faith”, it is an expression of trust, of encounter, of vitality. Life is central, only that can be shared.
In sixth place is the one baptism. We already saw that no cultic action is meant here. This is about the one baptism that binds us together. No symbolic act of baptism is meant, but baptism here is the imagery showing the unifying action of God’s Spirit (1Cor 12:13). The one baptism is indeed also only one, and it is not performed by us, but is the same for all (that is, not dependent on cultic actions).
In the seventh place is a God and Father of all. There are not several, only one. Keeping the unity of the Spirit also means recognizing our God and Father as above all and in all. It is not our opinion that is the best, but above all opinions and above all understanding there is still God, who is God and Father to all. Humility is in order.
From the vocation it logically comes to the way of life:
“I therefore exhort you, I the bound in the Lord,
that you walk worthy of the callingto which you have been called,
bearing with one another in love with all humility and meekness,
with longsuffering
and diligently endeavoring to preserve the unity of the Spirit
by the bond of peace.”
Eph 4:1-3
