January 12, 2025 | Pastor Brian King
Passage: 1 John 3:1-16
Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again…Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. John 3:3,5
Of course, we are well aware that Baptism is natural water. But after the Holy Spirit is added to it, it becomes a veritable bath of rejuvenation, a living bath which washes and purges man of sin and death…And thus the person who has been baptized is said to be born anew…” Martin Luther
John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?”. Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Matthew 3:15
“Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.
In Baptism, God brings grace to the broken.
“Here Christ is speaking of Baptism, of real and natural water such as a cow may drink. - Martin Luther
In Baptism, God sanctifies the ordinary.
“Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ…” Colossians 3:17
“Through the divine mandate of labor there is to come into being a world which, knowingly or not, is waiting for Christ, is designed for Christ, is open to Christ.” D. Bonhoeffer, Ethics
In the baptized life, the mundane becomes holy. God makes it sacred. God makes YOU sacred.
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