Ephesians 4:7 7But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Paul shifts from writing about the church as a community to a statement about individual believers. There is always a balance that must be maintained between the church as a group and as individuals. The church is made up of individuals who become one body because of the common faith they share. Too much emphasis on community results in the loss of personal responsibility. Too much emphasis on the individual may open doors to the temptation and pull of selfishness.
God gives grace (charis) to each person and to the church as a whole. Although there is the strong unity in the church that comes through the bond of love, the individuals in the church are all different. Each person is given a different “gracing.” This verse has similar thought to 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12, which both mention different spiritual gifts (charismata) within the context of the unity of the church.
The challenge in this verse is to understand the last few words: the measure of the gift of Christ. What is this gift? Within the context of this letter, the first option is the gift of God’s saving grace (2:8; 3:7). Another option is to read this as the gift being Christ himself. These two options are essentially the same thing. Another possibility is to interpret the “gift” as spiritual gifts like in 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12. Against this interpretation is that Paul uses a different word for “gift.” Here the word is dōrea and in the other passages, it is charismata. This would caution us not to interpret this verse from an individualistic perspective, as if each one of us is given some special gift from Christ, but rather, that the gift is the grace God gives to us in Christ.
The word for measure (metron) can show quantity. In this case, the gift of grace through Christ is beyond measure. God’s grace in Christ is so beyond our imagination and ability to even comprehend. And this grace is given to each and every person who truly comes to Christ in faith, asking for this gift. God does not choose favorites and give one person more grace than another. This grace is available to all who call on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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