One Hope, One Calling!

 “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”                    Ephesians 4:4-6 NET

It seems like an unlikely verse to discuss unity, but there it is in all its stunning beauty. Paul clearly states that there is only one body of Jesus Christ, His Church, also known as His Bride. The bride motif is used frequently in New Testament scripture, especially when Paul is trying to drive a point home about the identity of the Church. The bride is first mentioned in the Songs of Solomon and carries forward from there. Song of Solomon is a love song about a beautiful woman and the Shepherd who loves her passionately. Their journeys together in the fields and the city explore the depths of their love for one another. It is a metaphor for Christ and the Church.

In the highest regard, Jesus holds His body, His ecclesia, with a love that surpasses all understanding. He demonstrated the depth of His love by sacrificing Himself for this body, which is not just one physical entity but a collective of faithful, loyal believers. These believers, His steadfast love, are the focal point of His passion and desire, much like the bride in the Song of Solomon.

Similarly, there is only one Spirit, whom we refer to as the “Holy Spirit,” who is the true motivator or actor in this divine drama. The Holy Spirit is a person who carries out God’s work by reaching out and drawing people to Jesus. The best analogy for this is in Genesis 24, where Abraham tasks his chief servant with finding a wife for his son Isaac from among his people (relatives). It narrates the servant's journey to fulfill his master's command and locate the wife, who will become the ancestor of what would eventually become Israel. The story is one of humility and gentleness as the servant obediently carries out his duty.

We were called to the ‘one hope’ of our calling, that we are received in the beloved. We are brought back to the bridegroom as a bride adorned for her wedding. We make that long journey through the desert places to finally reach the destination our heart longs for: to be brought before our King, our Savior, our Bridegroom. The bridegroom has paid the price for the marriage by offering Himself a ransom for our life with Him. That payment also covers the cost of the wedding feast that will commence when we are finally united with our Bridegroom.

There is ‘one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.’ Paul sums up what we have been talking about, as it encompasses all of these: one Lord, our Bridegroom King, one faith that entails believing loyalty, and one baptism that is the death of our sinful nature and the resurrection to newness of life in Christ Jesus. All these speak of our ascension into our life in Christ Jesus, whom the Holy Spirit has led us into. And finally, one ‘God and Father of all,’ our heavenly Father, has meticulously orchestrated this plan to demonstrate that coming home is a time of celebration and gladness, and a marriage to Jesus is the plan to put all of this into motion.

The capstone of this thought is ‘(God) is over all and through all and in all.’ Jesus clarified that if you see Him, you see the Father. It states that God's power in Christ resides over all of us, in us, and through us. Not only that, but the power of God is over, and through all of creation, everything declares His glory. It is a divine rhapsody that tells the story of His power throughout the ages. The best part is that we are welcomed in, that is, the mercy of God multiplied.

Paul is trying to point out to the Ephesian Church that unity in Christ is far more than words on a page; we become one with Christ in our lives, much like in a marriage where two become one flesh. The old life has been buried in baptism, and the new life in Christ has come forth from the grave. We are new creatures in Christ. Our society has corrupted the ‘new life’ genre as being ghoulish or zombie-like, but that is not how Paul saw it or how we see it now. The new life is Christ (The Anointing) residing within us and transforming us to become more like Him, totally alive and full of His love.

As we grow in Christ, we connect with other believers, and Jesus becomes present among us as a life-giving spirit ready to connect us with His desires. With our willingness to obey, He calls us to be His ambassadors. As we share Jesus with others, it becomes evident that the goal of Christ is for Him to utilize us, much like Abraham’s servant, to find the right person to be wed to Jesus. This calling is unique and necessary because Jesus has purchased ALL humanity through His blood sacrifice and desires ALL people to become His brides because He lives and prays for us. "From such a vantage, He is able to save those who approach God through Him for all time because He will forever live to be their advocate in the presence of God." Hebrews 7:25 The VOICE

Stephen Barnett