A Call to Unity – Eph 4:1-6

One of the major Christian issues of this century has been ecumenism, the efforts of churches to achieve unity. The biblical basis for these efforts toward unity can be found in this passage and in Jesus’ high priestly prayer in John 17.

"And I am no longer in the world,
but they are in the world,
and I am coming to you.
Holy Father,
keep them in your name,
which you have given me,
that they may be one,
even as we are one."
(John 17:11)

Unfortunately, ecumenism has often meant fellowship without regard for differences—fellowship without a common foundation. In contrast, the biblical concept of Christian fellowship is based on the fact that all Christians share the same foundation, for there is only one God. God has established only one church in the world. The fact that the church has divided into many denominations is a consequence of sin and selfishness. How necessary Paul’s exhortation in verse 3 is! Genuine Christian unity is not something we make, but something we receive: it is created by God’s Holy Spirit:

"eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."
(Ephesians 4:3)

Already the Jewish creed was based on the belief that there is only one God:

"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one." (Deuteronomy 6:4)

We, too, should remember that all true Christians are children of the same God and are on their way to the same heaven. When we see Christians quarreling here on earth, we sometimes begin to wonder if they even fit into the same heaven.

In a world divided among many denominations, the Lutheran Church teaches that, at least within the Lutheran Church, there is saving faith. Thus, it does not deny that there are genuine Christians in other denominations, but it emphasizes what God has revealed through Lutheranism. Where salvation is denied to members of other Christian groups, one has entered the realm of heresy.