You've probably heard the expression about beating a dead horse. In some ways, that's how a catchphrase is supposed to be. You hear it over and over again, and you kind of groan every time you hear it. It's gotten stuck inside your head. You think you've heard it all before. And typically, that's about the time when it's really starting to take hold.
As the person initiating our catchphrase, I'd dearly love it if everyone was getting to that stage already. We introduced it at Easter, and over the past few weeks, it's been part of our Sundays together. If you've been reading through the blog, you've seen it a lot over the past couple of weeks. And by now, you might be thinking, okay, time to move on to another topic. And what that means to me is that I've just now started to get your attention about it.
As God's people are connected together in Christ through baptism, there are several connections of importance. Of utmost importance is their connection with God. In baptism, God's promise of hope and salvation is extended to you. You belong to God. In a sense, you are part of that promise that God spoke the people of Israel when He gave them the commandments. If you read Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5, you see where God gave the commandments. And right before you get into those familiar words, you have these words: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." God speaks essentially those same words to you when you are baptized. You are brought into the household and people of the one true God.
When that happened, you were also introduced to another connection. You have a connection with every other person in this world who is connected to God. You're not alone with God. It's not just you and Jesus walking together. It's you, and Jesus, and every other person that also shares that saving connection. The Bible uses a number of different pictures to describe this. The body of Christ. A priesthood. A people who belong to God. A temple of the Holy Spirit.
You're connected to God, and you're connected to other believers. And you are still connected to the people of the world. When Jesus prayed the night He was arrested, and just before He was crucified, He prayed for you. Not that you would be removed from the community connections around you, but that you would be kept in God's hands. You are still connected to the community of humanity. And as you are sent into that community, you do so as one who is connected to God, and who has connections to a great community of faith.
God will give you many opportunities to live out those first two connections in your connection with the community of humanity. My prayer is that you find yourself recognizing when God opens doors to share your Christ connection with the community, and that God's Spirit works greatly through you to bring them into that Christ connection as well.
As the person initiating our catchphrase, I'd dearly love it if everyone was getting to that stage already. We introduced it at Easter, and over the past few weeks, it's been part of our Sundays together. If you've been reading through the blog, you've seen it a lot over the past couple of weeks. And by now, you might be thinking, okay, time to move on to another topic. And what that means to me is that I've just now started to get your attention about it.
As God's people are connected together in Christ through baptism, there are several connections of importance. Of utmost importance is their connection with God. In baptism, God's promise of hope and salvation is extended to you. You belong to God. In a sense, you are part of that promise that God spoke the people of Israel when He gave them the commandments. If you read Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5, you see where God gave the commandments. And right before you get into those familiar words, you have these words: "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery." God speaks essentially those same words to you when you are baptized. You are brought into the household and people of the one true God.
When that happened, you were also introduced to another connection. You have a connection with every other person in this world who is connected to God. You're not alone with God. It's not just you and Jesus walking together. It's you, and Jesus, and every other person that also shares that saving connection. The Bible uses a number of different pictures to describe this. The body of Christ. A priesthood. A people who belong to God. A temple of the Holy Spirit.
You're connected to God, and you're connected to other believers. And you are still connected to the people of the world. When Jesus prayed the night He was arrested, and just before He was crucified, He prayed for you. Not that you would be removed from the community connections around you, but that you would be kept in God's hands. You are still connected to the community of humanity. And as you are sent into that community, you do so as one who is connected to God, and who has connections to a great community of faith.
God will give you many opportunities to live out those first two connections in your connection with the community of humanity. My prayer is that you find yourself recognizing when God opens doors to share your Christ connection with the community, and that God's Spirit works greatly through you to bring them into that Christ connection as well.
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