Ephesians 4 – “One”
There is one body and one Spirit – just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call – one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
Ephesians 4:4-6
Let’s break this down:
There is only one…
“One body” – Defined a few chapters earlier as the church of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23; cf. Col. 1:18), and in the following chapter also (Eph. 5:23). Christ’s body is his church, and there is only one body…hence, only one church as far as God is concerned. So why all these different churches with their different names and different doctrines that all claim to follow Christ? See 2 Timothy 4:3-4. Here’s the important question: Christ is the Savior of this body, this church (Eph. 5:23). Do you want Christ to be your Savior? Be a part of the one body, the one church.
“One Spirit” – the Holy Spirit, who inspired the writers of the Scriptures (2 Pet. 1:19-21), whose writings if followed will produce “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3).
“One hope that belongs to your call” – We are called by the gospel (2 Thess. 2:14), the good news of the love of God shown in Jesus Christ (Rom. 5:8), through whom we have hope (Rom. 5:2), the hope of eternal life and salvation (Rom. 8:24-25; cf. 2 Cor. 4:16-5:10).
“One Lord” – Jesus Christ, our only Master. Only in him do we find the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). Here’s a thought to ponder, however. It’s easy to call Jesus our Lord, but do our actions back up our words? Study very carefully Matthew 7:21-27, and then examine yourselves.
“One faith” – Want an interesting project to do? Get out the Yellow Pages, turn to “Churches,” examine the numerous different kinds of churches listed there under all those sub-headings, and call each one. Ask to speak to the preacher or some other authority in the church. Ask them to tell you what that church believes and why they believe it. You won’t get to the “D” section in the sub-headings before you see just how many different “faiths” man has come up with. What does God say? There’s only one faith, and it comes from the words of Christ (Rom. 10:17). He wants his followers to all say the same things and be completely united (John 17:20-23; 1 Cor. 1:10-13; Phil. 2:1-2), and the only way that’s going to happen is by sticking only to God’s Word (Prov. 30:6).
“One baptism” – Different churches today baptize in different ways for different reasons. Sprinkling, pouring, immersion, etc. Done as a sign that you’ve already been saved, done for remission of sins, done to save a baby from sins he or she inherited from their parents, etc. What does God say? There’s only one baptism. Every time you read about baptism in the New Testament, you’re reading a transliteration of a Greek word which means to immerse, so that means that the one baptism is immersion. Sprinkling and pouring are out. It’s done for several reasons according to the New Testament. Want to be saved? Read Mark 16:16 and 1 Peter 3:21. Want your sins forgiven? Read Acts 2:38 and Acts 22:16. Want to be in Christ and clothed with him? Read Galatians 3:27. Want to be spiritually circumcised by God? Read Colossians 2:11-12. Want to be spiritually buried and raised from the dead? Read Romans 6:3-4. Want to be a part of that one body of Christ, his church of which he is the Savior? Read 1 Corinthians 12:13. Want to know the requirements for baptism? Read Mark 16:15-16, Acts 2:38, and Acts 8:12, 35-38, and you’ll see that only penitent believers who confess their faith in Christ as the Son of God are candidates for baptism. That rules out babies. Here’s the thing, friends. We hear baptism is something that has nothing to do with salvation. After reading all of these verses from THE BIBLE, do you still believe that?
“One God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” – There is only one God, one Father of us all…and that is the God of the Bible. Think you can hide from him? The writer of Hebrews says it best: “And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Heb. 4:13). Are you ready to give an account to God? (2 Cor. 5:10)