'baptism' Tagged Posts (Page 4)
Daily Devotions: January 11, 2020
We apologize for the content not being in what was sent. I had a hiccup here, please forgive me! Cyndy, Program & Development (including website) Director January 11, 2020 For full passage click: Matthew 3:13-15 … “Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him.” vs. 13 The relationship between Jesus and John the Baptist has been a source of endless speculation from the beginning. That there was a connection is obvious, it’s mentioned numerous…
Daily Devotions: October 31, 2019
October 31, 2019 For full passage click: Ephesians 1:11-14 … “In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit;” vs. 13 In the ritual of Holy Baptism, after the baptism and the tracing of the cross on the forehead, these words are often said, “Child of God, you have been sealed with the Holy Spirit and marked…
Daily Devotions: July 26, 2019
July 26, 2019 For full passage click: Colossians 2:11-15 …“when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” vs. 12 People have argued for centuries about the proper mode of baptism, whether it should be by sprinkling, pouring or immersion. In general, those practicing infant baptism have used sprinkling or pouring, but even they have to admit that immersion symbolizes one of…
Daily Devotions: May 28, 2019
May 28, 2019 For full passage click: Acts 16:25-34 …“At the same hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds; then he and his entire family were baptized without delay.” vs. 33 When the Philippian jailer, in the aftermath of an earthquake, asked what he needed to do to be saved, Paul was quick with a response, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved, you and your household.” Some have used Paul’s answer…
Daily Devotions: January 11, 2019
January 11, 2019 To read full passage click: Acts 8:14-17 …“Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. The two went down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit…” vss. 14-15 These were exciting, heady days for the community of believers in Jerusalem. There was opposition and opportunity, and the movement lacked a play book and written instructions. Before long, they were…
Daily Devotions: January 7, 2019
January 7, 2019 To read full passage click: Isaiah 43:1-3 …“But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” vs. 1 The Israelites were feeling very alone. They’d been transported hundreds of miles from their homeland and were living as strangers in a foreign country. Many felt that their God had deserted them, and…
Daily Devotions: July 13 , 2018
July 13, 2018 Ephesians 1:11-14…“In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit;” vs. 13 It’s likely no accident that the words of this verse remind us of what is said following baptism in many of our congregations, “You have been marked with the cross of Christ and sealed with the Holy Spirit.” From the very beginning…
Daily Devotions: March 11, 2018
March 11, 2018 John 3:19-21 … “And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil.” vs. 19 The contrast between light and darkness was an important one in the gospel of John. In his prologue he describes the Word as the light of the world, a light which darkness was not able to overcome. In this section, he tells his readers that even though…
Daily Devotions: March 10, 2018
March 10, 2018 John 3:14-18 …“And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” vss. 14-15 We can wonder a lot about the writers of the gospels, who they were and why they were motivated to write. Obviously they never guessed that the simple stories they put together would face the unrelenting scrutiny of Greek scholars around the world. But…
Daily Devotions: March 9, 2018
March 9, 2018 Ephesians 2:6-10 … “For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.” vs. 10 God hasn’t given us all of these amazing gifts of grace as an exercise in generosity; but—because God is madly in love with us, and there’s a method to God’s madness. In Christ Jesus, specifically in his resurrection, there’s been a new creation in which we were…
Daily Devotions: March 8, 2018
March 8, 2018 Ephesians 2:1-5 … “But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—” vss. 4-5 All humans are pretty much the same. We all have strong passions, what the writer of Ephesians calls the desires of the flesh. And those passions aren’t intrinsically good or bad, that’s just the way we’re…
Daily Devotions: March 7, 2018
March 7, 2018 Psalm 107:17-22 … “Some were sick through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities endured affliction; they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death.” vss. 17-18 The psalmist was a realist. As he looked at his people’s history and saw the way so many suffered, it was obvious that they were reaping the consequences of their careless decisions. That continues to be the way it is for so many.…