Dear Baptized Ones,

     This coming Sunday we are invited to participate in the baptism of Edmund Wesley Maphet as part of our worship in Romans 14:5-9. What a blessing to be included in this sacramental reminder of the interdependence of the weak and strong within the body of Christ! Just as God’s grace was at work before Edmund was born as many of us prayed in our helplessness for Amanda and Jordan to be blessed with a sibling for Artie, His grace was also at work to convict us of sin and our need for Jesus when we were even more helpless than an infant. Even infants somehow know to depend on and trust their parents at some level. In sharp contrast as sinners, we were hostile to every effort of our Abba Father to love us. Praise God that Jesus conquered our hostile weakness through His life, death, and resurrection as signified in baptism! Now that we’ve been made more than conquerors in Jesus our Lord, we’re also invited to serve Edmund and his family by loving them as we’ve been loved through repentance, forgiveness, and hospitable discipleship. One of the key ways that we improve upon our own baptisms is in loving others for whom Jesus is Lord.

In preparation for participating in Edmund’s baptism, reflect on John R.W. Stott’s words in The Message of Romans: God’s Good News for the World on Romans 14:5-9:

“It is wonderful that the apostle lifts the very mundane question of our mutual relationships in the Christian community to the high theological level of the death, resurrection and consequent universal lordship of Jesus….For he died and rose to be Lord.”

     Pray for the Holy Spirit to help you remember your weakness without Jesus as Lord. Pray for a deeper understanding of how God’s love strengthens us for His glory, our joy, and the life of the world!

In Christ,
Cameron