2 minute read.
Daily Reading: Judges 19:1-20:48 ESV, John 3:22-4:3 ESV, Psalm 104:24-35 ESV, Proverbs 14:22-23 ESV
Daily Verse: “After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing.” (John 3:22 ESV)
BAPTIZO (907): “To make overwhelmed (i.e., fully wet); used only in the N.T. of ceremonial ablution, espec. Of the ordinance of Chr. Baptism. Means to baptize and is used of washing oneself (Lk 11:38); the rite performed by John the Baptist who called upon the people to repent that they might receive remission of sins. Those who obeyed came confessing their sins, thus acknowledging their unfitness to be in the Messiah’s coming kingdom. A baptism to be undergone by believers, thus witnessing to the identification with Him in death, burial and resurrection.” [i]
Make overwhelmed
Baptism means making something overwhelmed in its original form. Experiencing the public proclamation of faith in my thirties overwhelmed me. Attending a Baptist church, I struggled with the issue, not understanding why I needed to do it. Raised in the Presbyterian church, the pastor sprinkled my head with water, signifying my parents’ dedication of me to Jesus. So why did I need to do it again?
When I questioned the pastor, he showed me scriptures like the one from today. Public baptism shows your dedication to Christ. The symbolism of going beneath the water means leaving your old life behind, accepting new life from Jesus.
Immerse yourself.
Experiencing baptism did change my life. I did feel different coming up out of the water, lighter, freer. The joy I felt surprised me, almost euphoric, hard to describe—a spiritual moment marking the beginning of my current journey. Instead of my parents dedicating my life to Jesus, I decided to do it.
Going all-in with Jesus and letting Him overwhelm you with His presence in your life does bring unspeakable joy. Dipping below the water signifies dying to self; rising from it means Jesus first in all things. We leave our past sins behind, forgiven and free.
Yes, we will still sin; humanity doesn’t change. But now we have the Holy Spirit to guide and direct us. From within, we’ll receive promptings if we head in the wrong direction. Instead of lying, we’ll tell the truth. When we commit, we keep it. We don’t make fun of people; we love them. We strive to become more like Jesus with every day He gives us.
Immerse yourself in Jesus. Let Him overwhelm your life with joy.
[i] Strong, J., & Strong, J. (2010). The New Strong’s expanded exhaustive concordance of the Bible. Greek Dictionary of the New Testament (p. 50) Thomas Nelson
