Remember Your Baptism

When you become a Christian, you are no longer the same person.  The symbolism in baptism is significant – the new believer goes under the water into a “dark grave” to signify death to self.  He then arises from the water to show the new resurrection life he has in Jesus.  When you come to faith in Jesus, you should be baptized.  It is a sacrament; a powerful presence of the Holy Spirit.  Old sins have passed away, forever forgotten in God’s sight.  A new life has begun.  The future is bright and filled with hope.  Baptism symbolizes God taking a dead heart and making it alive in Jesus. Jesus was baptized, though not because he needed to be.  Jesus was sinless.  But Jesus wanted to show us our need for the declaration that we have died to self.  During baptism, we go under the water as we die to our sinful nature.  We rise out of the water anew with an identity in Jesus and a new life only his way provides. Paul describes the significance of baptism this way: “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:3-4). Remember your baptism.  Never forget the symbolism behind this powerful, poignant moment.  Why?  Because in times like these when life can seem dark and hopeless, it helps to remember that you are a new creation.  A child of God.  A beloved son or daughter whose identity is in Christ alone. When you feel anxious, remember your baptism.  Remember the water going over your head and remember your death to self.  Remember your body coming out of the water to a new life in Jesus, bought with a price - his precious blood shed for us.  Never forget how every inch of your body felt the water cover it.  This should be a vivid and regular reminder to you that every part of your life is always under Jesus’s control.   Our new Lord and Master, Jesus, will oversee everything in our lives.  Why worry?  He controls all!