The Promises of Baptism

DAILY BYTE

I have always been fascinated by baptisms, especially as a child. I would watch my mother, who was one of our church’s ministers, go through the ritual with the water and prayer, but that wasn’t the end of it. At every baptism, there was a time, when I – we, as a congregation – also had words to speak!

We acknowledged yesterday that baptism is about being named a beloved child of God, and that this is a mysterious gift that God gives to each one of us, personally.

And yet, baptism is not only about being an individual child of God. Baptism is actually about being children of God in community. When we baptize someone into the community of faith, in the Methodist Church we commit all together to these promises: with God’s help members of the body of Christ will so maintain the common life of worship and service that all children among us may grow in grace and in the knowledge and love of God and of his son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. This is anything but a selfish and individualistic act.

In baptism, we understand ourselves to be beloved, but we also affirm the belovedness of others around us – even when we don’t feel like it or we’ve been hurt by others. Just as no one is prevented from being baptized, God affirms all of our belovedness and uses all of us in this family to transform one another gracefully and walk with each other through times of being in the desert wilderness.

We are all called to different things – but no matter what our specific gifts or vocations, each one of us has the ability to accept and extend grace, following the example of John the Baptist and preparing the way for Christ to do his great work of forgiving and redeeming.

And so, if you have already been baptized, think today about what that really means. How does your baptism change the way that you relate to others? Do you allow yourself to receive grace from God and from other people?

If you have not been baptized, think and pray about whether or not this is the time to accept God’s grace and become a part of a community that shares grace and love with one another. If you desire to be baptized, do not be afraid to speak with a minister!

PRAY AS YOU GO

Gracious God, we thank you for giving us your grace in baptism. Thank you for that sweet mystery and for the way it draws us together as a community – as a family. Together we die to ourselves and our own selfishness and desires, and together we rise to be born again and named as your beloved children. Help us to accept your grace and love, as it overflows in us, so that we learn to share it with others. Amen.