Baptism, it is a death and resurrection in our spiritual lives, but as I read my morning devotional (Oswald Chambers) regarding it, I began to think about how baptism is much more than a symbol... it is actual death.
All in Baptism
Baptism, it is a death and resurrection in our spiritual lives, but as I read my morning devotional (Oswald Chambers) regarding it, I began to think about how baptism is much more than a symbol... it is actual death.
We have experienced the excitement, and anticipation that leads up to baptism, but once we have been buried with Christ, and raised to put on warm dry clothes, what comes next? What do we feel and do the day after our baptism? Some feel a bit of a let down as the excitement ebbs, others feel like they are charged with electricity, but many have a sense that something big is about to happen, yet they just don’t know what. This is what every pilgrim feels once they reach the starting point of their pilgrimage, and so it is with every Christian as they begin their journey of faith, walking with Jesus in the newness of life.
You say you are a Christian, but are you really? Have you taken the name of Jesus without having been born again? What a mysterious happening this is when we confess openly our faith in Jesus Christ, and go down in the waters of baptism. The joy and change that rushes over us leaves no doubt that our journey has begun, and that we are no longer dancing around the monicker of Christian, but have indeed become one. Are you still flirting with the flame of faith, or have you entered entirely into it... has it burned up the old you, and replaced it with the smoke and incense of a new and glorious person? Have you entered into the great mystery of faith?
Why is it that we go to our knees at the altar before God? Why do we call out the name of Jesus and go down in the waters of baptism as He did? Do we truly believe, or do we come here out of a fear of what lies ahead? Maybe we think it is safe to purchase a ticket just in case this God stuff is all true? Ask yourself my friend; “Why do I come, or why did I come?” If it is for any reason other than true belief then you had better seek Him more diligently because He knows your heart.