That's so symbolic!

Recently , we had a water baptism service at our church . Over 30 people were baptized in a very moving service. Adults, teenagers and children declared their belief in God and His son Jesus in an outward declaration. One man called it one of the greatest days of his life. That's special!

Water baptism symbolizes the death and resurrection of Jesus. Romans chapter 6 discusses what being baptized in water symbolizes.

3Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
5If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.
8Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
11In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

If we do not take this symbol to heart , then it is just like being in the bathtub or pool. I think of the American flag, to me as an American, it symbolizes all that our nation is about. A person from another country may not feel the same way about the what the American flag symbolizes, but I do see it as an important symbol.

When we are baptized in water whether it is in tank such as we had in church or the Susquehanna river, the Bible declares that we are "joining"Jesus in his burial. Just as the stars on the American flag represent the 50 states of our Union, the water in the baptism tank represents the tomb . Just as the thirteen stripes represent the thirteen original states, when the individual is lifted out of the water it symbolizes the resurrection of Jesus after three days and our sinful nature is symbolically left in the water.

If the citizens of a nation do not take what their flag symbolizes to heart and realize how important or take the time to understand the colors and shapes are on the flag are, the flag is meaningless. If a person is baptized in water and does not take what the dunking under of water means then the act might is not symbolic. A symbol taken to heart can be very meaningful and can represent a milestone in a person's life.

Water baptism is is the outward symbol of an inner, spiritual work that has occured in a believer's life. This outward symbol represents a person's death to their old life and a rising to new life in Christ. We are baptized in water to follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ and because He has instructed us to do so as well.

Water baptism is the outward symbol of an inner, spiritual work that has occured in a believer's life. This outward symbol represents a person's death to their old life and a rising to new life in Christ. We are baptized in water to follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ and because He has instructed us to do so as well. text from http://www.sanmarcoscommunitychurch.org/beliefs.php

Saving Private Ryan

The other night I was watching one of my favorite all time movies - "Saving Private Ryan". The movie tells the story of a group of soldiers in the United States Army during World War II. These soldiers are given the task of finding a James Ryan whose 3 brothers had been killed in the war and he has been given chance to go home because of the sacrifice that his family had already made.

The opening scene of the movie is very powerful as it shows and old man visiting a cemetery in Europe with his family. It becomes quickly obvious that he is visiting the graves of the men who saved him and sacrificed their lives so that he might live. They didn't ask for thanks or even know he was, but their efforts saved his life and allow him to live a happy and fulfilled life.

It remined me of Jesus during this Easter season. He came to save us before we even knew Him, before we were even born. God sent His son to dies for us so that we may live a life fulfilled and happy through a relationship with Him. As we celebrate this Easter, remember that God sent His son Jesus to rescue us from our sin just as the soldiers came and rescued Private Ryan in Steven Spielberg's award winning film.

Romans 5:8

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Let the Redeemed of the Love Say No!

24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.

Matthew 16:24-25

Put yourself in the shoes of Jesus' disciples as they heard Him speak these words to them for the first time. Maybe they were expecting a king, a savior, a messiah who would be a conquering ruler over all who opposed Him. Instead they were hearing that to join Jesus and be a follower of Him meant sacrifice. No one was looking for a suffering Savior and they were not ready to hear what He had to say..

21From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

Jesus' death was necessary so that we could have eternal life. One of Jesus' disciples, Peter tried to tell Jesus that it would never happen, but Jesus let him know clearly that it had to be that way, even though it would not be an easy road.

That's when Jesus looks at all the disciples and tell them that if a person wants to save their life , they must lose it. If I was standing there with the disciples , I would not have totally understood what Jesus meant.

Jesus call us to deny ourselves of the things that the world tries to offer to us. We need to say no ourselves, because God won;t force us to. It's all about a choice. If we truly are redeemed by Jesus, we will choose to follow Him and follow him completely. God rewards us when we make the choice to give up the things we may value and seek after what He values.

26What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?

The things of this world will pass away. The things of God will last forever and Jesus values our soul more then anything...

There is a song that goes "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so" maybe we could change the words to "Let the redeemed of the Lord say NO " !! No to things of the world and yes to the things that the Lord values..love , patience, peace, joy..against such there is no law!