Value #4- BAPTISM
“. . . God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is,
eight persons, were saved by water. And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you—not as a
removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.” I Peter 3:20-21
“Get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away, calling on his name.” Acts 22:16
Reflection:
Few things “feel” better than being clean; taking a hot shower, putting on clean clothes, sleeping in clean sheets, rubbing your tongue over clean teeth, drinking clean cold water, riding in a clean car, living in a clean house, etc. Cleanliness is something we experience, we feel, smell, taste, and see it and it “feels” good. However, no amount of outward cleanliness can compare to a clean conscience that too is something we “feel”. Most of us know what it is like to not “feel” clean on the inside, but no one talks about it more powerfully then David in Psalm 51. Having fallen victim to the power of sin he begs to be clean again, “Have mercy upon me O God, according to your steadfast love; . . . wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin . . . indeed I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me. . . . purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean, wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. . . Create in me a clean heart, O God . . . Restore to me the joy of your salvation.”
In the Bible, baptism was always associated with forgiveness and hence accompanied by confession and repentance. It marked a new beginning, a forgiveness of sin, a cleansing of the conscience. What better symbol than water to mark forgiveness, though applied to the outside, we can “feel” it on the inside. However, it is not baptism that cleanses us (or save us) or brings our forgiveness, it is a reminder that Jesus has died for our sins and was raised to new life to give us life. He went “down into death” and was “raised up into life”, hence the symbol of baptism by immersion. We sing about being “washed in the blood of the lamb” but the idea of being “washed in blood” doesn’t make me “feel” clean like being washed in water, so baptism becomes the reminder that Jesus washes us on the inside.
In Psalm 51, David reminds us of the concept of “original sin”, we are born into sin as a human condition as opposed to simply becoming “sinners” by our actions. Because sin is a condition that can’t be corrected by simply changing our actions (washing our clothes so to speak), it therefore must be washed away from the inside. Jesus has done it and baptism and its reaffirmation becomes our experiential reminder of it. Do you want to really “feel” clean, turn again to your baptism and remember, “if we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”(I John 1:9)
Practice: This week, when you take a shower or bath, use it as a time of self-examination and confession. As the water washes over you, feel your sin being washed away. Then put on clean clothes and begin again.
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