Ephesians 4:1

Ephesians 4:1 states, I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,  Paul declares himself to be a prisoner of Christ.  Those in power may have believed that they had Paul imprisoned, but Paul said he was simply a prisoner of the Lord.  We likewise need to be held prisoner to the will of God that we might walk worthy of the vocation to which God calls us.  The underlying calling of any Christian is to live for the glory of God and to share the good news of salvation through Christ.  As I have said before, as followers of Christ we cannot divide the world into the sacred and the secular.  Whether gathered together in worship or out in the world during the week, our lives are to be a constant witness for and worship of God.  Verse two adds, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;  We are not called to live in the riches of the world and by showing off our superiority to others, especially fellow Christians.  We are to live humbly in our faith and be guided by a love of others.  This ability comes only by accepting Christ through faith and living under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  Verse three continues, Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  Paul tells us that we are to endeavor, or to work, to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  Since Paul says we are to endeavor to do this, I believe that means that it might not always be easy to accomplish.  Sometimes it may be very difficult to live at peace with our fellow Christians, but we should try hard to make sure that it is never because of our attitude.  This does not mean that we are always to just claim that it is not our fault, but that we are indeed living under the leadership of the Holy Spirit and reaching out to others in love for them.  Verse four declares, There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;  Paul stated this point many times.  There may be many local fellowships of believers, but we are all a part of the same fellowship of Christ.  We should feel just at home in one true fellowship of believers as we do in any other, as long as they and we are really worshipping God under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  Verse five adds, One Lord, one faith, one baptism,  Paul was writing to those who were facing the question of whether the Jewish and the Gentile Christians were equal.  He declared that there was but one faith, one Lord, and one baptism.  We today must proclaim the same truth.  The way we worship may vary, but the One we worship never can.  Verse six continues, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.  In Paul's day, and even today, the Jewish people felt that they alone had a relationship with the heavenly Father.  Paul said that all who came to the Father through the sacrifice of the Son really had that relationship.  The nature of where we are born or what family we are born into can never bring salvation to nor exclude a person from salvation.  We should be united since we are all God's children if we accept Christ through faith.  Verse seven concludes, But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.  We are given salvation by the grace of God.  This is a gift that cannot be earned.