Read:
Too often, we feel like we have to clean ourselves up before God will accept us. But in his letter to the Romans, Paul is clear: Christ died for us while we were still sinners.
God didn’t wait for us to be perfect. Instead, he washes us clean of our sin, making us “whiter than snow."
That’s a relief! It takes the pressure off. But Paul also warns against a trap that can easily sneak in: if God gives grace in place of sin, why not just keep sinning?
Paul wrote, “Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives.”
Just as the bride has taken off her cleaning clothes and put on her beautiful dress, God has taken our dirty sin and replaced it with Christ’s righteousness. In other letters, Paul wrote about taking off the old and putting on the new. The bride doesn’t walk down the aisle to start cleaning the carpet! Our old lives have been replaced with the new.
Paul reminds us this comes about through baptism. We’re saved by faith, and baptism is the symbol that shows the world we are alive in Christ. If baptism is your next best step, let us know! We want to celebrate with you.
Pray: Dear God, you have replaced my sinful nature with Christ’s righteousness. Help me to live each day with the mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience of Jesus. Amen.