Ephesians 4:4

“There is one body and one Spirit -- just as you were called to one hope when you were called.”

This verse begins what might be called Paul's unity appeal. There is one God and one church. No matter how we express this, it comes back to one God and one Body united to him by faith.

all of the divisions and controversies; all of the doctrines; all of the different approaches to church life; these are nothing compared to our unity in Christ.

there is only one body of Christ. The church is organically linked under the Holy Spirit so that when one part hurts because of persecution or because of sin then all parts hurt.

if you ask how many churches are in a particular town or locality, the correct answer is “one”. If you ask how many churches there are in the world, the answer is still “one.”

The church is the Body of Christ and as such there can only be one body, one church. If it were any other way, we would say that Christ's body is pulled apart, cut into many pieces or that Christ has many bodies .

each expression of the one church, then, is in some ways deficient unless it actively seeks unity with other expressions of the church .

this unity is not denominational or institutional. This is an organic unity that grows in recognition that Christ is as validly present in another congregation as He is in my congregation..

in human terms, it seems that any true unity beyond denominational boundaries is impossible. On the other hand, God is the God of the impossible, and He delights to do what people say cannot do be done.

it is possible that the rediscovery of the apostles will provide a focus for unity in the future. Apostolic networks are based around relational connections and therefore transcend denominational constraints. It may be that the apostles bear witness to the organic unity of the church over and above institutional structures.

there is one Spirit over the church. The Holy Spirit who leads and directs me is the same Spirit who leads and directs you. The one Holy Spirit is the one who transforms people through His fruit (Galatians 5:22) and the one who equips the church with His gifts (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).

As stated in the previous verse, when Christians fight and refuse to enter into the unity of the Holy Spirit, it is they who are divided, not the Spirit .

while it is possible that evil spirits can afflict congregations and denominations, this does not affect the fact that there is one Holy Spirit that leads the church. If individuals, congregations, or denominations are deceived and pursue another spirit, the one Spirit of God is not removed or overcome by this.

we cannot say that my group has more or less of the Spirit than another group because the one Spirit is present in both. One group might be more receptive to the Spirit than another group, but this does not mean they have more of the Spirit .

in Acts 19, Paul meets with the church in Ephesus and discovers there they are lacking. He asks them if they received the Holy Spirit when they believed, and they say “We have not even heard there is a Holy Spirit.” So Paul baptises them and they receive the Holy Spirit with tongues and prophesying (Acts 19:1-7).

The ignorance of the Ephesian believers about the Holy Spirit did not mean they were not saved. They were open to the Holy Spirit and when they were properly instructed, they received the baptism in the Holy Spirit. This is not a different Spirit, but the same Spirit.

There is one hope to which we have been called.

there are not different heavens for different believers. There is not a Catholic heaven, an Anglican heaven, and a Baptist heaven. No, we all share the one hope in Christ.

We have been forgiven through Christ and are being sanctified by the Holy Spirit. Our hope of salvation is that we will be raised to eternal life with God.

this hope unites all Christians because it is the shared hope. It is the same promise given to all believers that we are counted as righteous in Christ. We died with Christ and we will rise with Him.

the Spirit of God is like a deposit guaranteeing that all the promises of God will be given to us in full.

at the moment we are limited by our flesh and blood bodies. Our souls have been corrupted by sin, and so we can only see eternity through partial vision .

but we have this hope, that by the grace of God we will spend eternity in a new heaven and earth, in never ending joy .

key points in this verse

• there is one body of Christ

• The church is divided institutionally, but God sees just one church

• There is one Holy Spirit who cannot be divided even when Christians are divided

• We have the one hope in Christ that all who believe in Him will be raised with Him to eternal life