Devotional Thought on Ephesians 4:5

"One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism" (Eph 4:5)

Now, so as we said before. "Whosoever will be saved must above all else cling to the true Christian faith." So thats it, our sinful nature says. We must be better than everyone else. Or worse yet, we WELS members will be the only ones in heaven...everyone else is wrong and therefore won't be saved. Not so fast my friends. Jesus condemns that very attitude when he describes the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. Was the Pharisee morally better? By the world's standards, certainly. Did the Pharisee know more about the law? Positive. Yet which was considered the more righteous before God? The man who humbly laid himself at the feet of his merciful Father and pleaded for his grace and favor.

We on earth live in the church militant, which is a far cry from our home in heaven which is described as the church triumphant. There will always be wars and rumors of wars, even in the Christian church within and between the varying denominations. Let us never speak about who is "better" or "best" But rather, preach Christ crucified. The Holy Spirit will not create false faith, and will not strengthen the unbelief of the apostate. Rather than focus on who is wrong or who is right, simply preach the Word in its truth and purity, and the light which guides our path will reveal himself, much more perfectly than we ever could.

"I believe in the Holy Christian Church, the communion of saints..."

We have a church that is much more important than the earthly church we are members of. We have the Holy Christian Church that spans across humanity wherever the Word is taught correctly and the sacraments rightly administered. It knows no denominations, and no schism. There, there is only unity...for there is One Lord, One Faith, and One Baptism.