Today the brother Shin, Ik-Soo and the sister Kim, Da-nya are getting baptized. Looking back in time, the sequence of events between our first rendezvous, and their encounter with Jesus ending with the baptism today are passing by like scenes from a movie. Even in the midst of troubled water in their life, they were beautified the most when they turned their eyes upon Jesus. We all know the tears and pains they had to endure to stand here today, and we also know that God had to endure even greater pain and shed more tears for them. No words can describe the excitement and joy that are touching our hearts today. We offer glory and praise to our Lord who invited us into this joyous moment.
Baptism is a Christian rite where we confess the grace of Jesus and our faith to Him by accepting and understanding the cross of Jesus, as well as the grace that comes with His resurrection. By baptism and with His grace, we enter resurrection over the cross, new life over death, the righteousness over sin, truth over falsehood, and freedom from captives. By baptism, we confess that when Jesus died on the cross because of our sin, we also died on that cross, and when Jesus was resurrected from the dead, we also became the beneficiary of new life that came freely by His resurrection. Baptism is the ceremony where we enjoy such grace of God and reveal to the world His grace.
The baptism at church is not just for these two. We, the community of faith, all participate in the ceremony and confess the same spirit of faith recollecting of our own baptisms. It is the time of unity where the participants of baptism and the observing community of faith become one under the same faith and grace. I pray that our heart will be offered with perfection to God.
From pastor, Choi, Ji-Won