I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, (2) with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, (3) endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  (4) There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; (5) one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

The letter to the Ephesians was written by the apostle Paul while he was in prison in Rome for preaching the gospel. In chapter four, Ephesians, Paul is moving to practical exhortation for mutual ageeement of the faithful to live and govern the church for the purpose of unity.  He is encouraging the faithful to grow in practice and pattern of qualities that will reflect the unity of the Spirit in order to resolve relationship difficulties as Christian men and women live in love and peace.

Humility or lowliness is listed as the first step – this begins with recognizing that all we are and have is due to God’s grace in Christ. As Christ is sufficient for salvation it follows that we are not self sufficient and we may walk worthy of our calling only because of such distinguished unmerited grace. Humility is the opposite of pride, rudeness and all that flows from high regard of self.

Paul supports his argument for unity by saying we are called to one inheritance – to one life; one divine invitation to one faith.  We are to dread animosity which harms us and estranges us from God. Christ cannot be divided.  There is one God, Father of us all.  (The word Father applies only to members of the body of Christ.). We need each other and are dependent on each other. All have different gifts but all partake of spiritual unity in the same Spirit.