Unity Enriched by Diversity of Gifts
But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. Ephesians 4:7 (NIV)
We have previously noted that the new society God is calling into being has two characteristics. First, it is ‘one’ people, composed equally of Jews and Gentiles, the single family of God. Secondly, it is a ‘holy’ people, distinct from the secular world, set apart (as Israel was in Old Testament days) to belong to God. Because God’s people are called to be one people, they must manifest their unity, and because they are called to be a holy people, they must manifest their purity. Unity and purity are two fundamental features of a life worthy of the church’s divine calling. Paul treats the unity of the church in 4:1-16 and the purity of the church in 4:17 – 5:21.
Paul elaborates four truths about the kind of oneness God intends His new society to experience:
It depends on the godliness of our character and conduct (4:2)
It comes from the unity of our God (4:3-6)
It is enriched by the diversity of our gifts (4:7-12)
It demands the maturity of our growth (4:13-16)
The first two points were looked at in previous devotionals and so we come to:
Christian unity is enriched by the diversity of our gifts
There is a strong contrast between 4:6 and 4:7. In 4:6 Paul spoke of God as the Father of us all, who is above all, through all and in all. 4:7 though begins with ‘But to each one of us grace has been given.’ Paul’s emphasis has shifted from unity (all of us) to diversity (each of us).
Although there is only one body, one faith and one family, this unity is not uniformity. We are not all the same, not just because of our different cultures, personalities and backgrounds, but because of the different gifts which Christ gives His church.
‘But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it’ (4:7). ‘Saving grace’ (charis), the grace which saves sinners, is given to all who believe, but the grace this verse speaks of, ‘service-grace’ (usually rendered charismata [Romans 12:6; 1 Corinthians 12:4]) the grace which equips God’s people to serve, is given in different degrees ‘as Christ apportioned it’ (4:7). The unity of the church is due to charis, God’s grace having reconciled us to Himself, but the diversity of the church is due to chaismata, God’s gifts distributed to Christians.
Paul uses the word ‘grace’ here in the sense he used it in 3:2,7,8 where it meant the privilege of a special calling in God’s service. There can be no place for boasting with such a gift because it isn’t merited or earned (cf.1 Corinthians 4:7). No one has all the gifts and no one has no gift. We are all called and we are all equipped. Christ apportions out, in His wisdom, different kinds of gifts to different Christians.
And he has generously given each one of us supernatural grace, according to the size of the gift of Christ Ephesians 4:7 (The Passion Translation)