Acts 2:39--For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself.
What is baptism? Baptism is the water included in God's command and combined with God's Word. Which is that word of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Matthew, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
Devotional Thought--As Peter spoke to the crowds on the day we now celebrate as Pentecost, many people who heard about Jesus and His life, death, and resurrection were "cut to the heart" and asked what they should do in light of this. Peter responded that they should be baptized, and then he spoke the words in the verse above.
In baptism, God's people receive God's promise. In verse 28, Peter spoke about the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit, which are given in baptism. He then calls it a promise that is for those who heard that day, for their children, and for everyone that the Lord God would make His own.
In your baptism, you are connected to a greater community than you could ever imagine. It's not only all who are alive today, but all who will live, and all who have lived and now received their eternal inheritance. While you individually have been baptized, that action of God's has made you a part of a huge community.
That means that the life you live in your baptism is not your life alone. It is a life that is shared with every other person who has been baptized. If you neglect the gifts of your baptism, it affects the community. When you rejoice in your gifts in baptism, and announce them to others, or share them with others, it also affects the community.
Being included in God's promise, being forgiven, and being given God's Spirit changes you. Yes, it brings you from God's wrath and condemnation into His eternal grace and kingdom. But it also changes how you see your life. You're now connected intimately to a large community, and what you do will affect part of that community. How you wear God's name impacts the believers around you.
As you think about your life, how does your baptism affect the group of God's people that you regularly worship with? Do you experience that baptismal connection with them, or do you simply treat one another as you would any other person? As a person who has been given God's gifts in baptism, what could you do differently to demonstrate that you take your baptism seriously in relation to your connection to other believers?
What is baptism? Baptism is the water included in God's command and combined with God's Word. Which is that word of God? Christ our Lord says in the last chapter of Matthew, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
Devotional Thought--As Peter spoke to the crowds on the day we now celebrate as Pentecost, many people who heard about Jesus and His life, death, and resurrection were "cut to the heart" and asked what they should do in light of this. Peter responded that they should be baptized, and then he spoke the words in the verse above.
In baptism, God's people receive God's promise. In verse 28, Peter spoke about the forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit, which are given in baptism. He then calls it a promise that is for those who heard that day, for their children, and for everyone that the Lord God would make His own.
In your baptism, you are connected to a greater community than you could ever imagine. It's not only all who are alive today, but all who will live, and all who have lived and now received their eternal inheritance. While you individually have been baptized, that action of God's has made you a part of a huge community.
That means that the life you live in your baptism is not your life alone. It is a life that is shared with every other person who has been baptized. If you neglect the gifts of your baptism, it affects the community. When you rejoice in your gifts in baptism, and announce them to others, or share them with others, it also affects the community.
Being included in God's promise, being forgiven, and being given God's Spirit changes you. Yes, it brings you from God's wrath and condemnation into His eternal grace and kingdom. But it also changes how you see your life. You're now connected intimately to a large community, and what you do will affect part of that community. How you wear God's name impacts the believers around you.
As you think about your life, how does your baptism affect the group of God's people that you regularly worship with? Do you experience that baptismal connection with them, or do you simply treat one another as you would any other person? As a person who has been given God's gifts in baptism, what could you do differently to demonstrate that you take your baptism seriously in relation to your connection to other believers?
No comments:
Post a Comment