This is part of an ongoing series on the Cornerstone Confirmation Curriculum we are developing at First Trinity Lutheran Church. (Main Confirmation Page)
We are washed clean and connected to Jesus in Baptism, not by our own working, but through the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us.
The Blessing of Baptism
Read Galatians 3:26-27
- Underline: For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
- Write: I am in Jesus.
Read 1 Peter 3:21-22
- Underline:baptism … now saves you … through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
- Margin:Jesus saves
Read Luke 23:39-43
- Underline:And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
- Margin: Baptism not required to be saved
Baptism carries with it an amazing blessing: we are made into God’s special kids. When we are baptized, we are brought into God’s family through the power of Jesus. While we are still sinners, we are able to be in a relationship with God because we have “clothed ourselves with Christ” by the power of the Holy Spirit at work in our baptism. Baptism really does bring the forgiveness of sins to our lives, namely the washing away of the original sin that we inherited from our parents and their parents, all the way back to Adam and Eve. While it is a tremendous blessing, those who have not been baptized but believe in Jesus can still be saved (the thief on the cross was saved despite never being baptized). However, whenever humanly possible, we should be baptized to receive all the blessings that come with it.
The Power of Baptism
Read Ephesians 5:26
- Underline: having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word.
- Margin: Baptism works because of Word
Read Galatians 5:24
- Underline: those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh
- Margin: I am not a slave to sin
Read Romans 8:37-39
- Underline: For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
- Margin: I am forever connected to Jesus
Baptism washes us clean not because of the water, but because of God’s Word spoken and connected to the water. God’s Word brings life, and in the case of Baptism, uses water as an additional vehicle for that life. Baptism gives us the power to overcome in our life, no longer being a slave to sin, but alive in Christ. Prior to the Spirit entering our lives, we were powerless to stop sin. Now, we are connected to God’s divine power, allowing us to choose righteous living instead of sinful through the power of God’s Spirit within us. Baptism also connects us to God in a way that can never be severed. No matter what bad things come our way, we cannot be cut off from God because we are connected to Him in Christ Jesus.