Background
Christ has ascended into the highest heaven (v10). He then gave apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers to His church (v11), to prepare God’s people for the works of service. When God’s people, the body of Christ functions normally, with each member exercising their own spiritual gifts, the body of Christ will be built up. The body of Christ will be fully built up when all members all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (v13).
It is Christ Himself who the whole body was joined and held together. Christ does it by letting every members of the body to perform its function (v16).
Paul then talked about how Christians, the members of the body of Christ should live. Christians are all members of one body (v25), we ought to be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other (v32). These and all the contents in v17-32 are the signs of us maturing and growing in unity in our knowledge of Christ (v13).
Division
- Unity of Christ body – the built up of Christ body.
- The living of members in one body of Christ