Baptism (part 4)

Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). 

Baptism is a sacrament.  A sacrament is when God uses something of this world to touch our lives with His power.  The Lord God knows that we have a hard time believing in things that cannot be seen or touched; our weak faith needs something physical to grab hold of.  In baptism, God uses ordinary water to bring us His blessing. 

Baptism draws its power from the spoken word of God.  That’s how our Lord accomplishes things—by speaking.  In the beginning, God said “Let there be light,” and there was light (Genesis chapter one).  This is typical of how the Almighty One does things.  Jesus said “Lazarus, come forth” and a dead man walked into the light of day, alive once more (John chapter 11).  When God speaks, wonderful things happen.  When God’s word is spoken as baptismal water is applied, lives are touched by the Lord personally and are blessed by Him.

Baptism is not optional for a Christian.  Baptism is part of God’s plan for everyone’s salvation, as we find in Luke chapter seven: the Pharisees and the experts in the Law rejected God’s plan for them. They refused to be baptized.  1st Timothy chapter two says, God wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.  The Lord uses baptism to achieve this goal: He says, Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved (Mark 16:16). 

The day of your baptism is the pivot point in your life.  Before baptism, we are lost and condemned sinners; after baptism, we are children of God who are guaranteed forgiveness when we humbly admit our failures.  If you have a baptismal certificate at home, I suggest framing it and putting it on the wall in your bedroom.  If there is ever a night when you are lying in bed, unable to sleep because you feel terrible about your behavior, turn on the light and look at that piece of paper.  On it, there is a date—the date when Christ took you in His arms and said, never will I leave you, never will I forsake you (Hebrews 13:5).  No matter how you feel, God’s promise is unchanging reality.  Your forgiveness is assured because when Jesus died, His blood purged the guilt of all your sin. There is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).  That is the Lord’s guarantee which is made to you in holy baptism.  It is a life-changing promise that will support you every single day, regardless of the challenges you might face.