Keeping the Unity: Unity in the church (or any close relationship) doesn’t just happen. It takes work…and lots of it! In the church, our union with Christ means we ought to have unity with each other. But staying united takes loads of humility, gentleness, and patience. This is not easy; is it worth it? Absolutely. Recorded on Jun 9, 2024, on Ephesians 4:1-6 by Pastor David Parks.
Podcast: Download (73.5MB) | Embed
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Email | RSS
Our series, Ephesians: The Gospel in Life, serves as an epilogue to Finding Life in Jesus’ Name from John’s gospel. The Apostle Paul’s letter to the Ephesians reveals much about how the life found by faith in Jesus actually works. This series will touch on themes of grace, identity, purpose, family, the church, spiritual warfare, and more. If you’re considering the life of Jesus or if you’re ready to follow him today, this series is for you.
Sermon Transcript
We’ve been working through Paul’s letter to the Ephesians in a sermon series called The Gospel in Life. And today, as we start Chapter 4, we’re going to consider the unity we have as a church, that because of our union with Christ — which, we’ve seen is one of the main themes of Ephesians — but because of our union with Christ, we also have unity with everyone else who has this same union with Christ. This past week, Holly and I went back through a hard drive with all our old pictures, and I came across our old, grainy wedding video. Some of you know that Holly and I met when we were ten years old. So, even though we got married when we were young, it still felt like we knew everything about each other. Of course, that was far from true, but, you know, young love! But what that video captured was that on our wedding day, Holly and I were two who became one. And Holly and I were blessed not to have much conflict early on in our marriage. But do you know how hard we’ve had to work over the last hundred and fifty years of our marriage to stay one? Even in the best of circumstances, it takes a lot of work to keep a marriage healthy. But this is just a picture of the work needed to keep the relationships healthy that we have here in the church. There are many things that might be different about us or threaten to divide us, but we have been made one in Christ. But how can we keep our unity here in the church when there are so many forces that seek to pull us apart? If you have your Bible/app, please take it and open it to Eph 4:1. We’ll read through this and unpack it together.
Ephesians 4:1 (NIV), “1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” In Chapter 1, Paul made it clear that every believer is called in Christ — called into a relationship with God, called from death to life, called into hope, called into the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, called by the power of the Spirit, and so much more. In Chapter 2, we saw that this calling was a result of God’s gracious gift and because of God’s eternal love — not because of anything we had done or ever could do. Remember? “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” We’re not saved by works, but saving faith is faith that produces good works. Remember? “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” So, the way of salvation is not by works. But the Christian life is full of good works done because we’ve been saved. Now, it’s always important to make sure we get the order right. Otherwise, we can become confused and think that salvation depends on us. This is why Paul and other NT authors usually start with what the gospel is, but then they pivot to talking about what the gospel does in life. In Ephesians, Chapters 1-3 are mostly about what the gospel is. But here, at the start of Chapter 4 and through the end of the letter, Paul turns his focus more to what the gospel does. And Paul urges his friends in Ephesus to…what? To “live a life worthy of the calling” they had received. To live a life (lit., to walk in a manner) worthy of the cross of Christ, worthy of the gospel of God’s grace. Of course, here in Chapter 4, we don’t move away from faith; we don’t leave the grace of God as we learn to follow Jesus and obey all that he has commanded of us. We come to Christ by faith, and we continue in Christ by faith. “We live [walk] by faith, not by sight.” (2Co 5:7). But in Christ (and by faith in Christ), we are responsible for the way that we walk through life. A Christian who thinks that faith in Jesus is where their responsibilities end doesn’t understand what they’ve been called into. But what does Paul have in mind for a life worthy of our calling? How is he urging us to live?
Ephesians 4:2 (NIV), “2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.” The life that Paul has in mind is guided/shaped by a particularly Christ-like set of virtues. He gives us three to think about. First, let’s consider humility. What is humility? Well, humility is the opposite of pride. Being humble doesn’t mean you’re a doormat and let people walk all over you. It means you have nothing to prove, and you don’t need the attention or credit from others; you’re secure in who you are. You don’t always need to get your way. Being humble means you know you’re not perfect, so you’re open to feedback, correction, learning, and growth. And that’s ok; you know that’s life. It doesn’t devalue/demean you or mean that other people are better than you. It means you’re comfortable with the fact that you’re human. It means you can apologize when you’re wrong. It means you can laugh at yourself; you don’t have to take everything about yourself so seriously. In fact, humility really means you don’t have to think about yourself that much at all. Paul writes in his letter to the Philippians, “…in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” (Php 2:3-4). Humility is more concerned about others than about yourself. So first, Paul says, be completely humble. And you know what? It takes humility to admit we’re not yet completely humble. Second, let’s consider being gentle. Being gentle is the opposite of being harsh, rough, or aggressive. Being gentle means you aren’t explosive; people don’t have to walk on eggshells around you. Now, being gentle doesn’t mean you’re weak or that you’re not passionate about anything. It just means you have self-control — you’re in control of your anger, frustration, and irritation. These things don’t rule you. As a result, you can choose to be kind, considerate, and respectful of others. If strength is needed, you can apply strength, but you don’t need to constantly flex on everyone. If authority is needed, you can apply authority, but you don’t leave a wake of bodies behind you. Gentleness means you can forgive others when they sin against you. You don’t have to punish people or hold a grudge. Gentleness means you understand there are better ways to influence others beyond using fear, guilt, or shame to manipulate people into getting your way. Now, from the outside, a gentle person might seem like they have less power or influence than someone who is more of a bully. But think about the difference between a little stream and a mighty river. The river will look calm on the surface; it doesn’t appear that much is happening, while the little stream will splash and roar. But which one has more power? Which one has more influence? Obviously, the river. Be completely humble, gentle, and, third, “be patient, bearing with one another in love.” Patience means being calm, being ok, it means having peace when we’re unable to get immediate gratification. As far as I can tell, the only time we need to be patient is when we need to wait, when we can’t get what we want when we want it, or we can’t get where we want to when we want to. Now, if there were no other people on the planet, if God made all this creation just for you, then maybe you wouldn’t have to be patient as often. But I still think you’d have to be patient! You’d still have to wait for the weather, you’d still have to wait for the seasons to change, you’d still have to wait to grow up, and so forth. But it’s not just you, is it? There are literally billions of us here! So, it’s inevitable that we’ll have to wait at times. It’s inevitable that we’ll get in each other’s way or step on each other’s toes or someone will want to drive 2 MPH slower in front of us on the highway, or misunderstand something we’ve said, or commit some other terrible offense. In this context, then, in the real world, humility, gentleness, and patience are what love looks like. This is what Christ looks like. This is all part of learning to live a life worthy of our calling in Christ. But these virtues are so different than the ways of the world, right? How many people do you work with or go to school with who could be described as humble, gentle, and patient? How many interactions on social media are guided by humility, gentleness, and patience? Not many. But, the truth is, what Paul is urging us toward was counter-cultural in his day, as well. Greek and Roman philosophers had lists of virtues — of positive values for life/society, such as justice, courage, wisdom, and self-control. But no one included humility, for example, as a positive virtue. That is, not until Jesus. Not until the Son of God came from heaven, not to be served (as he deserved) but to serve and give his life as a ransom for sinners (see Mk 10:45). Only after Jesus did people start to see humility as a noble thing, as something to aspire to. But if we actually lived like this, if we actually followed the way of Jesus in our attitudes and actions toward others, as counter-cultural as it always is, what do you think would happen?
Ephesians 4:3 (NIV), “3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” What would happen if were completely humble, gentle, and patient, here, in our church? We would be one. We’d enjoy the unity of the Spirit. We’d have peace. If everyone was putting everyone else’s needs ahead of their own, and keeping their anger under control, and staying calm when having to wait for something/someone, then everyone would be cared for and honored and loved and no one would be lacking in any way. Now, “Make every effort” means to be zealous, to try, to care…about what? To keep/guard the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. This is something that will take work/effort. But we’re not expected to do this work without any help. The truth is, the hard work has already been done. Back in Chapter 2, Paul said that Jesus is our peace — that through his death on the cross for the sins of the world and his resurrection from the dead, Jesus broke down the barriers between people and God. “He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.” And now, through hearing and believing the gospel, we’re united with him and with everyone else who is united with him. Paul isn’t saying we need to manufacture this unity. In Christ, we are already one. However, we must make every effort to keep/guard the unity, to keep the peace between one another. As Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Mt 5:9). But why does Paul have to urge us to live like this? Why does this take so much energy? Why does this take so much effort? Well, the reason is…have you ever met people before? Are people easy to get along with? Are people easy to love? Or are people incredibly hard to love? I say it all the time, but really loving other actual people is the hardest thing in all the world to do. Of course, it’s the best thing. It’s what we were created for. But in a broken world, to expect sinful/foolish people to love other sinful/foolish people so that we’re truly one might seem impossible. Now, it’s not impossible. But it’s worth pointing out that it did take the death of the Son of God and the gift of the personal presence and power of God in the person of the Holy Spirit indwelling/empowering us in order to unite us with one another in Christ. In other words, it took a whole lot to make this possible, so it shouldn’t be that surprising that it might take some effort to keep the unity/peace. But this commitment, this work, would be helpful in every part of your life: home, work, society. But remember, Paul’s focus here is in the church. He’s writing to the Christians there in Ephesus. And a church of Jesus Christ ought to be a whole community of peacemakers. Paul ends this passage focusing on all that we have in common in the church.
Ephesians 4:4–6 (NIV), “4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” This is God’s word. So, in Chapter 4, Paul switches from the temple metaphor for the church to the body metaphor. And no matter how many local churches or denominations there might be in the world, there is still only one body of Christ. There is still only one Holy Spirit who fills and guides, and gives life to this one body. Paul will continue to develop this body analogy in our passage next week. But for now, it’s worth pointing out that our unity doesn’t delete all the beautiful differences from one Christian to another or one local church congregation to another. Unity doesn’t mean uniformity. But that’s where the body metaphor is brilliant. There’s one body, though there are many different members, gifts, personalities, and so forth. But because of all that we share through faith in Christ, that we have one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father over all, we have a common bond and one that crosses space and time. This means you have more in common with a Christian who lives in China/Zambia/Argentina/Alabama today than with your non-Christian next-door neighbor. This means you have more in common with the Apostle Paul, King David, Mary/Hannah/John/Isaiah/Ruth, or any other of the faithful men and women in the Bible than with your non-Christian coworker, family member, or friend. Of course, this lack of spiritual unity doesn’t give anyone permission to mistreat their non-Christian neighbor/coworker/whoever. You must love your neighbor as yourself, regardless of what they believe about Jesus. But when you think about what really matters for eternity, we have way more in common with other believers than we have that divides us. If you’ve been saved by the grace of God, then none of us earned our way into this family; we’re all on the same footing before God. If you’ve put your faith and trust in Jesus, then our lives are all built on the same chief cornerstone, and we’re all rooted and established in the same love — the love of Christ! Isn’t that incredible? Isn’t that so unlike the ways of the world? The world says the only people you should love are people who like you or are like you. But if the gospel is true, then it’s not just true that you can be united and have real love and peace with anyone in Christ — but that you do, and you must guard this unity!
Now, normally, at the end of our sermons, we try to make the connection from the text to apply to our lives today. I’d like to close with an encouragement and an invitation for you today. First, the encouragement. I don’t believe our church is struggling with this. I believe our leadership and our church as a whole is very healthy and unified. Do you remember several weeks ago how Paul said that he had heard a good report about the church in Ephesus? That he’d heard in Rome about their faith in the Lord Jesus and their love for all God’s people? This is how I feel about you. Every week, I see examples or hear stories about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for one another here, and it brings me great joy as your pastor. This church is awesome. So my encouragement is to keep going. Keep working at this. Even the best garden needs to be weeded to continue to flourish. And there are way too many forces in this broken world that seek to divide us for us to grow complacent about the unity/peace we enjoy with one another. Finally, an invitation. If you aren’t a Christian here today, I want to invite you to come to Jesus. Or, if you are a Christian but are struggling with any of the virtues that Paul mentioned that will guard our unity with one another, I want to invite you to come back to Jesus. Don’t forget it was Jesus who opened his arms wide to all people, saying, “28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” May we be people who, by the grace of God and the power of his Spirit, are growing in humility, gentleness, patience, and all the other virtues of Christ. And may this church enjoy the unity and reflect the peace of Christ out into the community and the world around us. Let us pray.