God the Spirit: The One who Makes Us One

by Laura Springer, Th.M., Ph.D.

Key Passages: Ephesians 4:1-6

Supplementary Passages: John 17

For the past several weeks, we have been physically separated. We have been gathering in virtual space, worshiping God, hearing the Word proclaimed, and chatting with one another, but we all know that this is not enough. It makes our hearts hurt. Why?

Separation makes our hearts hurt because to be Christian is to be in a relationship with God, and that relationship always takes place as persons-in-community. The face-to-face gathering is a core practice that lives out our identity in Christ. To neglect or be barred from meeting in person can cause damage, whether it is caused by “Safer at Home” orders or contention.

Now, contention and distance happen; these are part of life under the sun. But these need not, indeed, must not create division. Why? Because our unity is not a feature of our liking one another or enjoying the same things. Our unity, our life together, whether gathered or dispersed, belongs to and is sourced in the Spirit. Our unity is decidedly not our own. It is God’s.

This unity is possible because “There is one body… one Spirit… one hope… one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all…” (Ephesians 4:4-6 ESV). We are in Jesus by the Spirit, so we are one.

But we must never let the fact of our unity lull us into complacency, for God calls us to work hard to support this unity by partnering with the Spirit because our unity is actually God’s unity.

Working hard at unity while partnering with the Spirit is how we live a communal life worthy of the call to relationship with God. All believers, not a select few, are responsible for maintaining the unity of the Spirit by working diligently to support what binds us to God and one another.

God designed the gathered church as a physical, face-to-face community. So, gathering on the church campus and in life groups feels right because it is right. Gathering in virtual space feels a bit off. Yet, virtual gatherings are real, for they live out our soul-to-soul relationship with one another and God. Let us allow the experience of our current separation and participation in virtual gatherings to increase our yearning for the face-to-face life in the Spirit of the gathered church.