Ephesians 4:4-6 - Church Unity

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--one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 

Message: Church Unity

Time: Paul wrote the letter to the Ephesians sometime in AD 60–61, around the same time he wrote Colossians and Philemon. Ephesians deals with topics at the core of being a Christian - faith and practice, no matter the situation.

What the Lord is Saying:

Since this is a study in 2017 about the 500th celebration of the Reformer's the focus is on understanding these doctrines. The doctrine of the church or its ecclesiology is actually argued to be a return to scripture. One way in which many beliefs come together is through a creed. Churches will often have bylaws to emphasize things that they believe to be their mission. For example, the church I attend has a bylaw or ministry focus that is on evangelism and equipping the saints. They do not believe the church is there to cure societal evils, but to focus on the person first and their sin problem. But churches differ and can have different emphasis and different ways to carry out their mission. Meanwhile a creed hopefully aligns all of these differences into one to summarize foundational Christian beliefs. 

One such creed is the Apostles creed that came about at the midpoint of the 5th century. This creed originally was in Latin and has been translated to English. 

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit
and born of the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried;
he descended to hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic* church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting. Amen.

*that is, the true Christian church of all times and all places

In our study now is 4 truths about the church of Christ: its unity, its holiness, its catholicity, and its Apostolicity. 

Today is looking at church unity. Yes, there are different churches that are visible in our world - different denominations, but the true church is one Body. This oneness is mentioned in today's scripture. 

As we mentioned and studied there is a church we see and a church we cannot see - a visible church and an individual church. Even in Paul's day there were different churches but there is a core faith defined by the gospel that unites all Christians regardless of where they hold their church membership. Differences remain but the true church is one and the invisible church transcends our local assemblies.

I really like this idea of there being a church unity and yet as I converse with people I continue to wonder if others agree with this. I know my church does, and does see the basic tenets that others have that agree with them. And yet a place like 7th day Adventist take a harder stance on Sabbath while Church of Christ takes a harder stance on baptism and Catholics a harder stance on Mary -- so each of those I think tend to think no one is like them. But overall, I still see the common thread of the beliefs of the Apostles Creed, even though each has different flavors of what they emphasize. 

Summary: Church Unity means the church is bigger than our local assembly. And there are core beliefs among believers and this speaks to our unity. 

Promise: Doctrinal differences are secondary and we don't all agree on everything. We can therefore have church unity where we can. 

Prayer: Lord, I really believe this and am thankful for this truth that I see in your scripture. It is hard at times to reconcile all the differences and the personal feelings that go along with those differences. I am thankful for those people that hold to the idea that differences are okay, but there are central truths that speak to all of us. I hope that others would see this and not be so focused on conforming people to their brand. Thank you for making me the way I am and the peace I have with that. It helps me in talking to others and ministering to them. I know  you are using me Lord and I am grateful. Help me to stay true to You always and me in the process. 

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am now working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines celebrating the 500th year of the Reformation. The month of August is about the Body of the Lord - the Church recovered in the Reformation; July was the right use of God's Law; June was justification by faith alone; May about solus Christus - Christ Alone; April, salvation by grace alone; March, the sovereign providence of God; February, the doctrine of revelation, Scripture that sola Scriptura seeks to preserve; January, the doctrine of God.  

The Body of Christ - The Church is the Body of Christ and Christ loves the church. We are to imitate Christ and see that the Church is how Christ carries out His purposes in the world. The Head of the Church - Christ is Head of the church and he only has final authority and gives life to the church. Life is found only in Jesus Christ our Lord. - The Church We Can See - Belonging to a church is not optional, for anyone. We are meant to live in a community with other believers, to hear the Word of God preached, and to grow. The Church We Cannot See - What we see is the Visible church, the invisible church only God knows because He is omniscient and that is the Church we cannot see.