Permission to add the NIV, the CEV and The Message? Thanks.
NIV:
There is one body and one Spirit — just as you were called to one hope when you were called — one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
CEV:
All of you are part of the same body. There is only one Spirit of God, just as you were given one hope when you were chosen to be God's people. We have only one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. There is one God who is the Father of all people. Not only is God above all others, but he works by using all of us, and he lives in all of us.
Message:
You were all called to travel on the same road and in the same direction, so stay together, both outwardly and inwardly. You have one Master, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who rules over all, works through all, and is present in all. Everything you are and think and do is permeated with Oneness.
But I think that to understand what it means, you need to get it in context, by reading verses 1-3 and verse 7 as well. Basically it's telling us we need to behave like a community, and not go off and do our own thing. There's no such thing as a solitary Christian - a Christian
has to be part of a church. Verses 4-6 home in on the reason why - there's one God, one faith, so we are one family, one community and one church.
But as verse 7 says, that doesn't mean we all think and act the same. We all have our own unique gifts - and yet they're all very much needed by the one church, to
make it into one church. A bit like the different parts of a body, I guess. I suggest looking at 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 for a fuller explanation.
