We return to the concept of covenant commitment this week, with the church calendar and Lectionary taking us to the Baptism of the Lord. In Luke’s gospel, John sets up shop along the banks of the Jordan River, in the wilderness away from cities. People come to him by the droves, where he demands that they prepare for the Messiah by submitting to water baptism.
This is loaded with cultural and theological meaning. Jews understood baptism to be initiatory, the rite to be undertaken by Gentile newcomers into the Jewish faith. After a lengthy catechism the priests would initiate proselytes into Judaism through an immersion rite that signified death to the former -- religion, national ties, family ties -- and rebirth into a new new life in a new kingdom. For a Jew to hear he must be baptized to retain the favor of God was deeply revolting.
Luke tells us people began to wonder if John would turn out to be the Messiah, and he flatly denied it. “There is coming one after me mightier than I!” he thundered, “He will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire, and he will separate wheat from chaff!”
Jesus made the 70-mile journey from Nazareth in Galilee to the wilderness of Judea to meet up with John and be baptized into the kingdom of God. As he was praying the sky opened and the Holy Spirit descended in the bodily form of a dove, and rested upon him. God spoke, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”
The church adopted baptism from the Jews to signify personal transformation, leaving the old and coming into the new. It signifies a deep commitment to leave the old pagan life, severing all ties with the past, dying to the old life, and being born anew into the kingdom of God. As with Judaism, the church historically carefully trained converts in the faith, fully told them the commitment they would have to make, and elicited covenant promises or vows at baptism. These involved renouncing spiritual forces of wickedness, accepting the freedom God gives to walk in the light, confessing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and promising to remain faithful and committed to Christ through the church.
We approach baptism as a means of grace, or an act of obedience administered by the church wherein God does something wonderful within us. The Holy Spirit is present in the application of water, and his power begins in our lives to thoroughly purge us from the chaff of our old ways and to purify us to live in God’s kingdom.
Renewing our baptismal covenant means we remind ourselves of baptismal commitments we made (or made for us, if we were too young). Remembering our baptism means we place ourselves back at the point of entry into the kingdom, remember the work of grace God began in us, and renew our promise to live faithfully and holy before him.
This week remember your baptism, and be thankful.
This is loaded with cultural and theological meaning. Jews understood baptism to be initiatory, the rite to be undertaken by Gentile newcomers into the Jewish faith. After a lengthy catechism the priests would initiate proselytes into Judaism through an immersion rite that signified death to the former -- religion, national ties, family ties -- and rebirth into a new new life in a new kingdom. For a Jew to hear he must be baptized to retain the favor of God was deeply revolting.
Luke tells us people began to wonder if John would turn out to be the Messiah, and he flatly denied it. “There is coming one after me mightier than I!” he thundered, “He will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire, and he will separate wheat from chaff!”
Jesus made the 70-mile journey from Nazareth in Galilee to the wilderness of Judea to meet up with John and be baptized into the kingdom of God. As he was praying the sky opened and the Holy Spirit descended in the bodily form of a dove, and rested upon him. God spoke, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”
The church adopted baptism from the Jews to signify personal transformation, leaving the old and coming into the new. It signifies a deep commitment to leave the old pagan life, severing all ties with the past, dying to the old life, and being born anew into the kingdom of God. As with Judaism, the church historically carefully trained converts in the faith, fully told them the commitment they would have to make, and elicited covenant promises or vows at baptism. These involved renouncing spiritual forces of wickedness, accepting the freedom God gives to walk in the light, confessing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and promising to remain faithful and committed to Christ through the church.
We approach baptism as a means of grace, or an act of obedience administered by the church wherein God does something wonderful within us. The Holy Spirit is present in the application of water, and his power begins in our lives to thoroughly purge us from the chaff of our old ways and to purify us to live in God’s kingdom.
Renewing our baptismal covenant means we remind ourselves of baptismal commitments we made (or made for us, if we were too young). Remembering our baptism means we place ourselves back at the point of entry into the kingdom, remember the work of grace God began in us, and renew our promise to live faithfully and holy before him.
This week remember your baptism, and be thankful.
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