<\/p>\n
\n\u201cDo you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life\u201d (Romans 6:3,4).<\/p>\n
IN THE GOSPEL, THERE IS AN INSEPARABLE LINK BETWEEN CHRIST\u2019S DEATH AND OUR BAPTISM. The death of Christ is obviously important; it is by His death that the forgiveness of our sins was made possible (Matthew 26:28). But to whom is this forgiveness granted? And at what point is the gift received? Paul gives us a clear answer when he says that when we are baptized into Christ, we are baptized into His death. \u201cWe were buried therefore with him by baptism into death.\u201d<\/em> It is in baptism that we die with Christ, and it is when we submit to this command that God fulfills His promise to forgive us, based on Christ\u2019s sacrifice on our behalf.<\/p>\n Baptism is the crucial turning point in our obedience to the gospel. Separating \u201cbefore\u201d from \u201cafter,\u201d it is the point at which, dying with Christ, we are resurrected to our new life. Just \u201cas Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father,\u201d it is now our duty and privilege to \u201cwalk in newness of life.\u201d<\/p>\n How could there be a more radical turning point in a person\u2019s life? As Paul described it in another letter: \u201cI have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me\u201d (Galatians 2:20).<\/p>\n Baptism, then, is an act in which we become connected to Christ\u2019s death, burial, and resurrection. There is nothing meritorious about it as far as we are concerned; it is purely an act of faith, commanded by the Lord. \u201cHaving been buried with him in baptism,\u201d we are \u201craised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead\u201d (Colossians 2:12).<\/p>\n In 2 Timothy 2:11, Paul spoke of the hope made possible by the gospel when he said, \u201cIf we have died with him, we will also live with him.\u201d It is no exaggeration to say that whether we have died with Christ is the most important question we will ever ask.<\/p>\n Buried with Christ and raised with Him too, Gary Henry \u2013 WordPoints.com + AreYouaChristian.com<\/p>\n
What is there left for me to do?
Simply to cease from struggling and strife,
Simply to walk in newness of life.
(T. Ryder)<\/p>\n