Ephesians 4:5

“... one Lord, one faith, one baptism,... “

Paul continues his list of things that unite christians.

we have one Lord, Jesus Christ, our Saviour and our Redeemer .

To confess that Jesus is Lord is to proclaim that he is the supreme ruler in our heart, and in our lives.

to say that Jesus is Lord is to deny every other idol that would seek to become lord in our lives. To say “Jesus is Lord” is to say that money is not our lord, that self is not our lord, the family is not our lord .

for people in the Roman Empire, there was a requirement that all people acknowledge Caesar is lord. This meant to swear allegiance to the emperor as the single entity that united all the tribes and nations under Roman sway.

at various times, under several Emperors, it was compulsory for every person to offer incense and publicly declare “Caesar is Lord.” This was not a problem for most people, and Jews were given an exemption, but for christians this was a big imposition. For christians Jesus is the only Lord, and even Caesar has to submit to Him. This became a flash point between the Kingdom and the Empire leading to widespread persecution .

there is only one Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ .

to say “Jesus is Lord” is to commit to obeying him in every sector of life. It is about obedience and loyalty. If an employer or a government asks us to do something contrary to God's plan, then we respectfully refuse. As the apostles said in Acts 5:28, “ we must obey God rather than men.”

there is one faith.

Christ is not divided into denominations, and faith is shared across denominations.

even where there is a variety of expressions of christianity, it is one faith. Although it often seems that the church is fragmented, the truth is that christians agree on 99% of doctrine, and disagree on relatively minor points .

issues of church government, eschatology, the use of spiritual gifts, and so on, pale into insignificance compared to the central truth about salvation, the love and holiness of God, the hope we have in Christ, and the Trinity .

there is one faith. We are used to arguing about the marginal details that we forget that there is no disagreement on the important points of doctrine.

when we look at the New Testament, especially the book of Acts, we see a diversity of expressions of faith. There is no hint that the church at Rome is separated from the church at Antioch, even though they operated in very different contexts. They may have had very different worship Styles and doctrinal positions , but they were United in their love for the lord. A deficient faith does not mean no faith.

there is one baptism.

there are so many different beliefs about baptism that it is almost impossible to accept that there is just one baptism. There is infant baptism, adult baptism, sprinkling and full immersion. Some will only baptise in churches, while others will only that baptise in public spaces. Some baptise into the name of Jesus, but others baptise into the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Some baptise immediately on profession of faith, but others say that teaching in the ways of the Lord must come first.

in all of that variety, Paul says there is one baptism.

baptism is about being introduced or Incorporated into the Body of Christ. Whatever and however it is practised, it is a sign that a person has been welcomed into Christ's Kingdom and therefore into the church .

baptism is always a faith statement whether it is a child being baptised or an adult. In either case, we cannot see the future of the person, or whether they will remain true to Christ. All we know is that on this day this person (or their parent) is claiming to be a follower of Jesus. We cannot see if that is a true claim, or whether they will persevere to the end. So the church baptises people in faith.

the sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion carry the power of the Holy Spirit in an enhanced way. They are vehicles of God’s grace, and not just religious ceremonies. When the church baptises a person, the Spirit of God is moving.

Baptism represents a person dying and rising to new life in Christ. The old nature is drowned in the water, and the person is raised to eternal life in God. Baptism is about death and resurrection more than it is about cleansing.

this verse has often been invoked to prohibit a person from being re-baptised. This is not the intention here. If a person is baptised and subsequently leaves the fellowship of the church for a time, there is nothing to stop them from being re-baptised. The second occasion is as much a celebration of the “one baptism” as the first occasion .

key points in this verse

• there is one Lord, Jesus Christ

• Christians must determine that nothing else can be lord in their lives

• We may disagree on doctrines or practice, but there is one faith

• There is one baptism into the one church