Maintain Unity

The first three chapters of Ephesians are devoted to Paul detailing all the blessings awaiting those who follow Christ. In this chapter, Paul changed topics a bit and explained how believers conduct life as those so unimaginably and completely blessed by Jesus. 

When Paul used the word “walk” in these next two chapters, he was referring to how one lives out the habits of daily life. 

In essence, Paul stated in these chapters that fear of dark powers and magic should be replaced with the understanding that the blessing of Christ strips the power from darkness, as Christ reigns preeminent over all.

Don’t Gain but Maintain Unity (1-6)

Paul called upon the Ephesian church to behave in a manner equal to how they were treated by Christ and called by the Father. In other words, the way the Father behaved toward them through the sacrificial life of Jesus was exactly how God would fill them to behave toward others (1-2). Notice they were not asked to try to manufacture unity but to live in the love and unity Christ had already established. Humility, gentleness, patience, and bearing with one another in love were not character qualities one sought to achieve, but character qualities that followers lived out so the church could remain how it had been built, “unified” and at “peace.”  

In Paul’s mind, there was “one body.” There was “one body” because there was only “one Spirit,” “hope,” “Lord,” “faith,” “baptism,” “God and Father.” He was over and through and in all. 

Paul never quite saw everyone being individually baptized in water or baptized in the Holy Spirit; they were all baptized into Jesus' one baptism on the cross. They were all baptized into the one baptism in the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. In Paul’s mind, it was always about Jesus, and the Church was built on what had already been accomplished (3-6).

Let Jesus Build (7-16)

Next, Paul let the Ephesians know for certain that Christ was building His Church, having made preparation for its leadership when He busted out of hell with all the former saints who had died and been held captive in hell before His death (Matthew 27:52-53). Having freed those imprisoned souls, Jesus also stopped by the earth, appeared to many, and then left gifts to His Church. These gifts were given to each person in His Body. These gifts unleashed God’s grace in the Church; these gifts all represented a measure or portion of the whole leadership gift resting on Jesus our King (7-10).

Paul then listed out the gifts Jesus gave to His Church to lead and equip the Church to finish His mission of filling the universe with Himself.

• Apostles: those sent to plant His word

• Prophets: those sent with a prophetic word

• Evangelists: those sent with the gospel word

• Pastors: those sent with a healing word

• Teachers: those sent to teach His word (11) 

Paul clearly explained the responsibility of all those gifted with His gifts, noting how the gifts are aimed at living out and presenting the word of God:

• The gifts equipped the Body to be made into an army of servants.  

• As the Body served each other, the Body would be built up or become a stronger, unified whole (12).

• Unity was key to maturity. As the Body shared God’s word and served each other in love, it naturally matured in faith (13).

• The Body became confident of who they were in Christ, no longer children tossed to and fro by every thought and lost in an identity of not belonging to Christ (14).

• The Body became truth speakers who could articulate, in love, each other’s identity in Christ and their true potential. 

All of this led to every member of the Body being able to grow fully into Christ the Head, all being who they were created to be (15).

Paul’s vision of the Body was definite: Jesus was the Head, but the Body was held together at every “joint” or relationship. When every relationship within the Church practiced its gifts—apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher—the Body would grow in miraculous proportions, and they would love each other in amazing ways (16).

Don’t Be Feeling-Driven but Jesus-Driven (17-24)

Finally, Paul reminded the Ephesians that believers should not live like Gentiles. Gentiles lived as people thinking constantly about things with no aim or purpose. The word futility really meant to think thoughts that were not centered around Christ (17).

Because the Gentiles did not put Christ at the center of their thinking, their thoughts had no purpose. They were constantly deceived by their lusts, enlisting their feelings to make decisions. Their way of thinking made them undiscerning, callous of heart, sensual, greedy, and completely distant from God (18-19).

Paul cautioned the Ephesians that they had not learned to follow Christ in this way. Paul assumed everyone was taught not about Christ but in Christ. He assumed all were taught how to hear from and follow Jesus (20-21).

Paul called upon the Ephesians to put off all of that desire-driven lifestyle and further called them to renew their thought processes, which had been corrupted (22). They had been corrupted due to the influence of always thinking about how to get what makes a person feel good.

Paul called upon them to instead renew their thinking by letting Jesus be at the center with their mental conversation centered on Him. When they changed the way they thought, Paul told them they would begin to see the new nature forming in their lives (23-24). Paul was not calling them to change what they thought about but to change the way they thought, with Jesus ever at the center of every thought. They were no longer to allow their thoughts to float around aimlessly on their desires and lusts, but purposefully on Christ. 

Take Off the Dirty; Put On the Clean (25-32)

Paul went into greater detail, contrasting the old nature with the new nature in Christ: 

• Instead of speaking falsely to get something they wanted, they were to speak the truth from the motive of love.

  The Holy Spirit had introduced them to the Person of Jesus, so Paul called them to take off a feeling-focused life like a pair of dirty underwear and put on a Christ-focused life, which would make them and their thinking completely different. When Jesus became the center of their thinking, they would speak truth with great love to those next to them and in need (25).

• Instead of letting anger rule them, they were to take on a heart of reconciliation and deal with it before the day ended.

  Those who put Jesus at the center of their thinking would be angry but not angry at souls. If they did get angry or let their thoughts drift from Christ, they would not leave their thoughts that way. Before sunset, they would correct and get their thinking right once again (26). In this way, the devil would not have an opportunity to get an inroad back into their brain and set up a stronghold (27). 

• Instead of stealing to get ahead, they were to put on self-responsibility and go to work and become givers.

  Those who had changed the way they thought would find corrupt habits of greed replaced with honest service, hands busy helping others instead of always grasping for more (28). 

• Instead of being crude and sarcastic, they were to fill their mouths with grace-language.

  Those who changed their way of thinking would also find the way they spoke to be different, with no lust-laced phrases corrupting good morals. Conversations would concentrate on building everyone up for the moment they were enduring (29).

• Instead of grieving the Holy Spirit with their feeling-driven lives, withholding forgiveness from those who offended them, they were to forgive.

  Because thinking had changed, no one was saddening the Holy Spirit by allowing wounds and hurts to grow and become controlling. When radical thoughts bent on expressing hurt and wounding were conveyed, vengeance came into play, contempt was displayed, slander was justified, and malice or feelings of ill will became common (30-31).

When thoughts were centered on Christ, Paul laid out the consequence: people would be meeting needs with kindness. There would be tenderheartedness and inner emotional affection for one another. There would be the gracious forgiving of offenses. No doubt it is hard to forgive, so Paul gave the secret to forgiveness. Those who placed Jesus at the center of their thinking would forgive God’s way—Christ in us forgiving those who offend. The Ephesians were encouraged never to depend on their own resources for forgiveness but on Christ (32).