"For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink." - 1 Corinthians 12:13
French writer Henri Barbusse tells of a conversation overheard
in a trench full of wounded men during the First World War. One of the
men, who knew he only had minutes to live says to one of the other men,
“Listen, Dominic, you’ve led a very bad life. Everywhere you are wanted by
the police. But there are no convictions against me. My name is clear, so,
here, take my wallet, take my papers, my identity, take my good name, my
life, and quickly, hand me your papers that I may carry all your crimes
away with me in death.”
The Good News is that through Jesus, God makes a similar offer. Something
wonderful happens to us when we trust Christ and are baptized. When we are baptized, we publically identify ourselves with Jesus and our name is clear before God.
In Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit baptizes us into one body. Today in prayer, if you have not made a public profession of your faith in baptism, consider doing so to bring glory and honor to Christ.
"Those who see baptism only as a confession of our faith have missed the main point. Baptism is tied to the promise of forgiveness." - John Calvin
God's Word: "There is one body and one Spirit-- just as you were called to one hope when you were called-- one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." - Ephesians 4:4-6
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