Knowing Your Identity in Christ: I am Unified (Ephesians 4:5)

Have you ever thought about getting baptized?

In this episode of 7 Minute Devotions for Busy Parents, host Christen Clark delivers a dose of inspiration for you as a Christian and parent. She unpacks what it means to be unified in Christ, under "one Lord one faith one baptism", shares a personal story about her own kids’ journey with baptism, and gives practical encouragement for nurturing faith in yourself and your family, and how to approach the topic of baptism:

• [00:01:13] The rally cry of "one Lord, one faith, one baptism"
• [00:03:03] Honest conversations with kids about getting baptized

Follow me on social media!

• Instagram: @7minutedevotions, @christenclark
• Family Podcast: @collidekidspodcast

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hello and welcome to Seven Minute Devotions for Busy Parents. I'm Kristen Clark, and I'm so glad that you're here today. Listen, I know life is full, and as busy parents, it's not always easy to carve out time for ourselves. But like we talked about earlier this week, one of the most important things that we can do is care for our souls. And the only one who can truly do that for us is God. And so that's what we're doing here. We're just taking seven minutes to tune into Him, open His Word, and refocus our hearts on His truth. So I hope that's what today does for you. Today's identity statement is this I am unified. Paul did that a lot. I don't know if you read the Bible and think this is all one sentence, but Paul was really good about the run-on sentence. So just a little Bible nerd trivia for you today. Verse four, it says, 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. And then the sentence goes on and on. But I'm going to stop there because that's what we're talking about today. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. It's such a short verse, but it carries so much weight. Honestly, to me, it almost sounds like a rally cry, like something you would chant in a stadium, maybe at a football game or something. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. I can feel that, right? But Paul's purpose here isn't to hype us up, it's to unify. He's writing to a group of people who came from very different backgrounds, Jews, Gentiles, men and women, slave and free. They were all together in this church. And he's reminding them you are now one, not because you agree on everything, not because you share the same background, but because you share the same foundation, one Lord, Jesus Christ, one faith, faith in him alone, and one baptism, one shared identity in Christ. That is what brings us together. And it's important to see how this fits in the bigger picture. In these verses, Paul is also pointing to the Trinity, one spirit, one Lord, one God and Father. The Trinity is a picture of unity at the deepest level. And that unity is meant to define the church. There is no room for competing gospels, no room for my version versus your version. We are unified by Christ. And that brings us to baptism, because when Paul says one baptism, he's pointing to something that marks us as belonging to Jesus. Baptism, which literally translates immersion, is an outward expression of an inward relationship. Baptism doesn't save you, but it identifies you with Christ. It's a step of obedience, a public declaration that says, I belong to him. And I love this reminder that I heard years ago from a pastor. He said, if it was good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me. Jesus himself was baptized, not because he needed it, but he did it to model it. So for us, it's not really a question of if, but when. Now, this is something that has been really meaningful in our family. I was baptized when I was young. And as my kids grew up, I knew I wanted that for them too, but I also didn't want to force it. I wanted it to be their decision. Like when they were little, they honestly were a little nervous about it. And we weren't at a church at the time that talked about it regularly. So it wasn't something they fully understand. But we kept having conversations about it at home. We shared stories, we went to baptism services. We let them see other people take that step. And over time, something shifted. In fact, one of the turning points was when one of our pastors, who was also my son's baseball coach, talked to the team about baptism. And hearing it from another trusted voice made an impact on him. And eventually both my kids decided that they were ready. And they were baptized on the same day. It was great. We were surrounded by family and friends, and even a few of their teachers came, which was really cool. It was such a special moment. And I'm so grateful we waited for them to understand and to choose it. As parents, we have the opportunity to guide our kids, not just in what we believe, but in how we live it out. We can talk about our faith, we can model obedience, we can create opportunities for them to respond, but ultimately it becomes their decision. And maybe you're listening today and this isn't just about your kids. Maybe it's about you. Maybe baptism is something that you've been thinking about, something that you've been putting off. And if that's you, I just want to encourage you, take the step, be obedient to what the Holy Spirit is prompting in your heart because you never know how much this will impact your family and maybe other people that get to see you make this decision of obedience. Well, before we pray, we're gonna talk through our identity rhythm. So this is something we're doing in every episode this season. I'm gonna read these three short statements: who we are in Christ, why it's true, and how we live from it. So I'll say them through once, and then at the end, we're all gonna repeat the identity statement at the end together so you can remember it and you can carry it with you this week. So our identity statement for today is I am unified. Through Jesus, I am part of one body, united with all believers by one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. Because I'm unified, I choose to walk in unity, stay rooted in the truth of the gospel, and live out my faith with obedience. Let's say the identity statement together one more time. I am unified. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for bringing us together through Christ. Thank you for this example of unity that we see in the Trinity, that we see in Scripture, that we can be part of something that's bigger. We can be part of a body of believers. Thank you for giving us community and the church. And God, I just pray that you would help us to walk in that unity, keep us grounded in truth. And God, I just pray you would guide us and help us to be obedient to your word and to what you're calling us to do. And for anyone who's listening right now who's feeling prompted to take their next step of faith, whether that is salvation or baptism, or just following you with their whole heart and their whole life, God, give them the courage to say yes today. In Jesus' name, amen. Friend, you are part of something bigger than yourself. And I hope that you hear that today. You are unified in Christ. And like I said, if baptism is something you've been thinking about, I hope this encourages you to take that step. Also, if someone came to mind while you were listening, someone with questions about faith or what it means to follow Jesus, send this episode to them. You never know how God might use it. Thank you so much for listening today. Hey, remember who you are and who you belong to.