The Unity of the Church

The Unity of the Church

Brent Chapman, Regional Director, Fellowship Pacific

Ephesians 4:1–3 – April 27, 2025

The unity of the church is not automatic — it is a spiritual gift from the Holy Spirit that God's people are called to actively guard, fight for, and maintain through Christ-like character.

Sermon Summary

Brent Chapman opened with Aesop's fable of the four oxen and the lion — a picture of how unity protects and division destroys. The familiar phrase "united we stand, divided we fall" sounds stirring, but in practice unity is harder to maintain than the slogan suggests. Pride, suspicion, unresolved hurt, gossip, fear, tribalism, and the loss of shared mission all work against it. Turning to Ephesians 4:1–3, Brent identified three movements in Paul's appeal: honor the calling, show the character of the calling, and protect the unity that the Spirit creates.

The character Paul calls for — humility, gentleness, patience, and long-suffering — is not a list of nice traits but the practical equipment for staying in community when it is costly. Brent grounded this in the real conflict Fellowship Pacific has navigated over the past year, drawing a parallel to the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15, where theological dispute and relational rupture both appear, and yet the church continued to grow. The call to the church today is the same: we cannot change the past, but by God's grace we can walk forward — worthy, humbly, together.

Group Discussion Guide

Icebreaker Question (pick one)

• What's the most "united we stand" moment you've ever been part of — a team, a project, a family situation — where the group held together under pressure?
• Have you ever been part of a group or team that went through a real conflict and came out stronger? What made the difference?

Opening Prayer

Ask the Spirit to speak through the Word and to lead your time together.

Scripture Reading

Read Ephesians 4:1–3 aloud as a group.

Discussion Questions

God Revealed: Paul points to four characteristics of unity: humility, gentleness, patience, and long-suffering. Recount together how Jesus made it clear that these words describe God. Brent cited Matthew 11:29 ("I am gentle of heart."); can you think of other examples?

Humanity Mirrored: Brent named pride, suspicion, unresolved hurt, bitterness, gossip, isolation, fear, tribalism, and the loss of shared mission as enemies of unity. Which of these do you find most quietly at work in your own heart or relationships — and why is it so persistent?

Gospel-Centered Vision: Paul says we belong to (or that he is a prisoner of) the Lord (vs 1), and we are bound in the Spirit to one another in the bond of peace (vs 3). How does these pictures change our motivation for pursuing unity, rather than just the strategy for it?

Transformed Living: The four character traits Paul describes — humility, gentleness, patience, and long-suffering — are costly and sustained, not occasional. What would it look like practically for you to grow in one of these traits in a specific relationship or community you are part of right now?

Sharing and Witness: The church's unity — or lack of it — is visible to the watching world. Have you had a chance in the past weeks to express that unity, protect it, build it?

For Further Study

• John 17:20–23 — Jesus prays for the unity of all who will believe through the disciples' witness; unity is bound to the mission of the church and the world's belief.
• Acts 15:1–35 — The Jerusalem Council navigates a sharp theological dispute and arrives at a shared decision; a model for conflict resolution in the early church.
• Romans 15:5–7 — Paul prays that God grant believers harmony with one another so that together they may glorify God; unity is doxological.
• 1 Corinthians 1:10–17 — Paul confronts divisions in the Corinthian church rooted in personality loyalty, calling the church back to the unity of the cross.
• Colossians 3:12–15 — A close parallel to Ephesians 4; Paul lists compassion, kindness, humility, patience, and forgiveness as the clothing believers put on together.
• Matthew 18:15–20 — Jesus gives a direct process for addressing conflict within the community; the goal throughout is to win back the brother or sister.
• Galatians 6:1–3 — Bearing one another's burdens as the fulfillment of Christ's law; a picture of what long-suffering looks like in community.
• Psalm 133:1–3 — The beauty and blessing of brothers and sisters dwelling in unity; a poetic affirmation of what Ephesians 4 commands.
• Hebrews 12:14–15 — A call to pursue peace with all people and to guard against the root of bitterness that defiles many.
• Philippians 2:1–8 — Unity grounded in the humility of Christ, who is himself the pattern and the power for the character Paul describes in Ephesians 4.