Romans 6:4 We 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.

I’ve heard this verse used numbers of times in baptismal ceremonies, and I think I’ve used it myself a few times. However, I don’t think we meditate enough on what it means for each individual believer. There are various places that speak to this idea, perhaps most notably 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” The problem is, we often don’t feel very new. Old habits, thought patterns, ways of speaking and the like can be remarkably persistent. This is part of the whole already/not yet of the Kingdom of God. From God’s perspective, everything is already accomplished and made new, but from our perspective in time, sometimes it seems like nothing at all has changed. This is where faith comes in. The devil wants us to focus on our flesh, both what feels good and what doesn’t, but God is Spirit, and though He is certainly present in the material world, since He created it, He is above it all, and He wants to lift us up to His level. That is humanly impossible, but in Christ it is glorious reality. That is why the imagery Paul uses in this chapter is so important. We need to embrace the death of our old self so that we can walk in the glorious reality of the new life that Christ purchased for us with His own body. Baptism without repentance doesn’t save us, but properly done, it is a graphic picture of being buried in order to rise again.

I have actually been water-baptized twice, once when I was seven and made a clear-cut decision to follow Christ, and once again when I was 24, after God showed me how black with pride my soul was, and the impact of my repentance was so great I thought I had not been saved before that. I’m not sure the second baptism was necessary, but it didn’t hurt! Recently there has been a move of God going on in North Georgia, (the state, not the country) and baptisms are a regular part of it, with some pretty spectacular miracles happening in the process. My thinking about baptism is certainly expanding! The thing is, we all get mired in how things have been, physically or emotionally or spiritually, and God has to remind us that the past is past for us, and He is always new. At 76 I’ve got a lot of past, but God still has new for me, and I’m to welcome all that He has planned so that I may walk in it for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for all that You have been doing in and around me. Thank You for even using me in some of it! May I indeed take my eyes off of myself, as I keep telling other people to do, and indeed fix them on You, to recognize the new that You bring into my life and walk in it with joy, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!