Water baptism is a ceremony, which means nothing unless the participant is acting in faith. Ceremony is designed to give us an image by which we can experience a spiritual reality. The reality is this: when we believed on Jesus we were spiritually baptized into His body; we became one with Him; and all He has is ours. This is our first step toward experiencing reconciliation. Because the message of reconciliation is missing in modern churches, baptism becomes pointless.
In water baptism we are activating our faith to experience the spiritual reality, unless done by faith it is a useless ceremony! When we are plunged beneath the water, in our heart we should be acknowledging, I died and the old me was buried with Jesus. When we are raised up out of the water, in our heart we should be acknowledging, when Jesus was raised up I was raised up with Him. This is what the Scripture says: …buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, Colossians 2:12-13.
Failure to participate in water baptism, based on faith in our participation of the resurrection, is one of the primary reasons many Christians never experience the capacity to live a new life in Christ! JOIN ME this week as we take more practical faith steps to enter into the reconciliation.
