Ephesians 4:3-4

4:3

Make – imperative, command

every – do all you can

effort – work at it; this is so important that all my energy should be committed to this goal:

to keep – already established; so now the charge is to maintain it, to prevent anything that might endanger or destroy it

the unity – common purpose; each contributing differently to one goal. Unity, per se, can never be static. It is always found as a group cooperates toward a common goal.

of the Spirit – that the Spirit has created and maintains, as the Spirit sets a goal before us—gives us a vision of what He wants to do through us—then He leads us to that goal or ministry.

through – agency, how is the unity kept? Answer: through…

the bond – secure connection

of peace – right relations

NLT: binding yourselves together with peace – in this construction, peace, or right relations, forms the chords, the chains, that hold us securely together. Peace, right relations, is only possible with a prudent level of honesty and transparency, plus a healthy dose of patience and forbearance (v.2) along with humility and gentleness. In other words, the qualities listed in v. 2 form the bonds of peace needed in v. 3 to keep the unity of the Spirit.

4:4

There is – established fact, accomplished in past and currently true

one – the term is used 7 times in 2 verses. Major concern of Paul, both in this epistle as well as in others. His churches included wealthy, influential people, plus merchants, humble shop keepers, servants, slaves and beggars. Their political views may have been as diverse as their economies. But Paul calls them to unity, oneness, of the Spirit. It is human nature for me to prefer the company of those who are most like me or who most agree with me on social and political issues. But God has placed me in a congregation where the majority have political views somewhat more conservative than mine. Their views of other ethnicities tend to be vastly different. And their preferred style of worship seems to be significantly other than mine. In this context, God calls me to “make every effort” to live at peace, because whether I admit it or not, whether I like it or not, we are one.

body – physical structure? This is elusive because we have used the term in its figurative sense for so long that my mind immediately jumps to the unity-with-diversity motif. And in fact, Paul will do that soon. But his emphasis here is the unity part of that notion. A human body that works against itself has a serious medical problem, such as cancer. With such a disease, the person has a foreign, alien body within himself that eventually destroys the host body. At the least, the alien body prevents the host from normal behavior. So I need, ought, to give my worship community a brief physical exam. Are there elements within our fellowship that (who) are working for their own benefit instead of the benefit of the body as a whole? What—if any—elements are distracting us from normal operation? Drawing us away from what Jesus Christ Himself would do if He were physically present? Then given my current role as a layman: Am I contributing to the normal, healthy functioning of the body of Christ? Or to the distractions?

and one Spirit – The term can refer either to the Holy Spirit (as both NIV & NLT have with the capital “S”) or to the spirit of the group (in which case the lower case ‘s’ would be used). Perhaps both senses can fit the context. The Spirit is one and we worship Him as part of the Trinity. As our fellowships gather to worship, godly leadership will guard us so that no other spirit being gains access. In my fellowship group, I think sometimes—or some of us—allow some seemingly benign spirits in: For example, complacency and materialism to name a couple common ones. We usually think of these as attitudes. But especially in a worship group context the attitudes are more likely the outworking of spirit beings who oppose and seek to undermine the work of God through Christ in our fellowship and in our community.

What if we interpreted the term with a lower case ‘s’? That would suggest that our fellowship of believers operates with a common spirit or attitude or feeling. It is clearly not true nor realistic to expect that we all have the same feeling or attitude. But we could, as a group, operate and work with a common purpose. And the idea of a common purpose guiding our respective ministries blends well with Paul’s pending topic of diversity.

just as – draws a comparison between one body and S(s)pirit vis-à-vis our hope

you were called – I constantly need this reminder that all of what God is doing and wants to do in my life is evidence of His calling—not evidence of my choosing Him, but of His choosing me. This does not say anything about TULIP Calvinism’s claim that God did not choose others. It simply affirms, confirms and reminds that from the start to the end, this salvation, sanctification and glorification is the work of God in Christ. I/we are just the fortunately blessed recipients of His calling.

to one hope – In the NT, “the hope” consistently refers to the return of Christ. And that hope carries with it the implication that when He returns, we shall be like Him. When I dare to compare myself—where I am in my spiritual pilgrimage—with Christ and where He is spiritually, I find it (admit it) impossible to believe that when He returns I will be like Him. But those two realities combine to form the one hope of the NT.

when you were called – accomplished fact