The Bible is the autobiography of God. It is His story and we are living out not our lives but the very story of God and His creation. A fundamental truth of this epic is the power of one. Just as we recognize the power of unity in a military fighting force or sports team we see the same power of oneness in everything God does. For us it is important to recognize this unity as His children. In Ephesians 4:3 Paul writes that we are to be “diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” With this plea the following truths are set forth (vv 4–6); There is:
One Body – What mankind (and Satan) has done to cause division in the church and create the plethora of denominations, false teachings, and confusion has led to a weakening of the cause of Christ. God commanded that we be united (1 Corinthians 1:10, 12:25) but warned that divisions would come (Acts 20:29–30; 1 Timothy 4:1). While the religious world recoils at the doctrine of one true church the Bible bears out that there is one body and in it there is great power.
One Spirit – The job of the Spirit was to reveal God’s words, His message, to mankind (John 14:26, 15:26, 16:13). It was the spirit who proclaimed and confirmed the message through inspiration and with powerful miracles. Let us not miss the great power in the Spirit: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).
One Hope – The Bible reveals then the one true hope: salvation from our sins and eternal life in Heaven, escaping the eternal torment of a devil’s hell. Many people have tried to assert that even if Christianity is false, or if God is not real, this life is still the best life to live. However the Bible disagrees. In fact Paul says, “If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable” (1 Corinthians 15:10). There is eternal power in the one hope.
One Lord – We have all heard the old adage of there being too many “cooks in the kitchen” or “too many chiefs and not enough Indians.” Spiritually speaking the world has too many lords: self, family, work, money, sports, sin or anything else that unseats Christ from the throne of your heart. There is power and freedom in having the one true Lord of lords ruling your life.
One Faith – Another damning division and effective tool of Satan has been the idea that there are many different faiths. This has taken a bit longer than denominationalism to materialize but we now are told that it really doesn’t matter what you believe, what faith (system of belief) you follow everyone goes to heaven (except for the really bad people). But as Christians we need to be more assertive with our defense of the one true faith (Jude 3). It is this one faith that has the power to save us (Ephesians 2:8).
One Baptism – The Bible lists seven different baptism, so what do we make of this “one baptism” here in Ephesians 4? The only one commanded, taught and said to put us into Christ (Galatians 3:27) and wash away our sins and save us (Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21) is the baptism in water for the remission of our sin in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Jesus shed His blood to redeem us and coming into contact with that blood is essential (Romans 6:3–6). There is power in the blood and there is power in the one baptism.
One God and Father of all – This is His story. He is the author of life, both limited physical life and eternal spiritual life. He is omnipotent (all-powerful)!
There is power in one but that power is not in you and I individually as finite, sinful human beings. We must then be submissive, obedient, and faithful. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31).