One Father One Body

One Father One Body

“Pray then like this:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.”
Matthew 6:9

The scriptures are full of significant and powerful truths. In this intimate discussion of Jesus with His disciples, He is seeking to present to them the substance of true prayer.

“Our Father…”

Jesus, looking past the Cross, seeing beyond the veil through the redemption He Himself would secure on our behalf, invites us into the inner sanctum of the great Jehovah. “Our Father”; may we breathe a holy “Selah” and appreciate the wonder of all that the Son implies here. The Fatherhood of God is only obtained by the “new birth”. Jew or Gentile, bond or free, male or female, there is but one sacred way into this One Family of God.

“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”
Ephesians 4:4-6

Jesus in His private meeting with Nicodemus declared “ye must be born again”. As with him so it is with us. The new birth is a heavenly transaction whereby the Divine Nature of God is imparted into the life of a lost soul producing an organic reality: “bone of His bone” (Ezekiel 37:7) May the Lord grant to us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation of these things. We see this same language in the New Covenant:

“For we are members of His body,
of his flesh, and of His bones.”
Ephesians 5:30

How it grieves the heart of God for us to remain unaffected by this deep and precious truth. The dissection, the scarring, and the sectarian division in the Body of Christ resemble Ezekiel’s valley of dry and severed bones. While many whose standing with God is based on teachings and beliefs, there are many who feel the brotherhood/sisterhood of God because of relationship. There is a power and a drawing to each other; more importantly, there is a vibrancy of faith ministered between those who feel this kinship.

Paul in his unique understanding of the construct of the Body of Christ uses the phrase “members one of another” in his epistle to the Church at Rome and to the Church at Ephesus. There is something so intrinsic in this expression that it can only be comprehended by the very Spirit which is the means of this holy relationship. The religious and the carnal cannot touch the holy ground of this pure call of God. While we may enjoy comradery in a religious affiliation, there is a missing element of wonder which cannot be known except by our mutually walking in the light of God.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”
1 John 1:7

The common denominator is not belief, but light. The Light. Not only that but a “walking” in that Light as HE is in the Light. These are relationships not made with hands. They are not based on personalities, teachings, or affinities with political views or organizations. The bands of the Body of Christ are the result of a relationship to the Head; living ties that bind us together in the grip of His love.

“…holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.”
Colossians 2:19

Paul is declaring to us the singular nature of this wonder. The Bride of Christ will not take on another name. She is devoted to Him and Him alone; her life, her choices, and the deep cry within her heart reflect that. There is a growth and a dynamic that occurs through its joints and ligaments. Wherever God’s people meet in the Life and Light of Him, His presence pervades and touches all who are thus joined. The joints and the ligaments of the relationship are how His nourishment flows and His Body grows.

Psalm 133
The Psalm of Unity

“Behold! How good and how pleasant is the living of brothers, even in unity. It is like the precious oil on the head that ran down on the beard, Aaron’s beard, going down to the mouth of his garments; like the dew of Hermon coming down on the mountains of Zion; for there Jehovah commanded the blessing: life till everlasting.”
Psalm 133:1-3 (LITV)

The flowing of that precious anointing oil is released in unity. The distilling of the dew of His blessings falls upon those who are free from strife and disharmony. May we catch the significance of the focus of God’s Spirit in this powerful Psalm: “for there” (in that place of the singularity of this unity) God Himself “commands” the blessing, LIFE everlasting!

On the day of Pentecost, the people of God were in unity and upon that unity, God poured out the empowering LIFE of the Holy Spirit. No longer were they fearful disciples; in one moment of time, they were fused into the Body of Christ. It was here the Church was born and the light of God fell upon them in cloven tongues of His living fire. It is critical to note here that the unity in Psalm 133 and on the Day of Pentecost preceded the life and fire of the Spirit of God being poured out. Unity precedes His glory. The conflicts, the pride, and the egos of men will prevent His “blessing” from falling in our midst.

The Baptism of the Spirit alone can take us from being separate and distinct people and fuse us into the One Body of Christ. Unity of heart is the atmosphere and the vessel into which God will pour Himself.

“For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”
1 Corinthians 12:13

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“Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace”
Ephesians 4:3

Brian Troxel