Israel 2022 - Reflection #18 - Jordan River re-Baptism

 

On a beautiful morning, June 14th, 2022, I was baptized in the Jordan River. 

I was first baptized as a young man at Good Shepherd United Methodist Church as a part of my Confirmation Class joining as a member of the Church. At the time, when I was 16 years old, I was most certainly old enough to realize what baptism represented. But, also at that time, I really tied baptism to joining the church and not a profession of faith. I was raised in the United Methodist Church but also had strong ties to the Church of God (Anderson) as my grandfather was a Church of God pastor. The UMC believed in the baptism of infants. The COG did not. When I raised my family, we followed the traditions of the UMC and each of my children were baptized as infants.

As my faith has grown and matured over the past 50 years, (Yes, this summer marks 50 years since I committed my life to Christ, my SPIRITUAL BIRTHDAY), I look back and wish I had done things differently. I also have witnessed many baptisms by immersion and somehow feel I missed out on a very powerful event. My view now, is that Baptism is a symbolic act of profession of faith. As many have said, "It is an outward sign of an inward commitment." I believe, rather strongly, that the Bible supports full adult immersion and that this beautiful event should be a result of claiming Jesus as your Lord and Savior. 

When the opportunity presented itself to be baptized in the Jordan river, I prayed and studied asking if this was the right thing to do. 

I did not take this event lightly. Early in my adult life, I had several pastors tell me it was NOT appropriate. They claimed, that multiple baptisms would indicate that one baptism wasn't good enough and for the most part I agree. Only one Baptism is needed and I could find no situation in the Bible where someone was baptized more than once. So, I knew that if I were Baptized again it would not be out of necessity but out of a desire to share with the world all that Jesus has done for me in the past fifty years.

I DO know someone else that was baptized when he really didn't need to be. (Please don't take this wrong. I am not comparing myself to Jesus.) Jesus did not need to be baptized. In Matthew 3:14, John tried to talk Jesus out of doing it. Then Jesus said, "It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires."(Matt. 3:15) I did not need to be Re-baptized, but I desired to publicly reconfirm the power of Jesus in my life. 

Today, I publicly profess, Jesus is my Lord and Savior. I believe he was sent because of the Father's unending love for me, to die on the cross for my sins. He rose again, conquering death so that I might live with Him in eternity. The symbolism of going down into the water, washing away my sins, and rising up as a new creation is a powerful act of faith. Even if I gave my life to Jesus 50 years ago, this symbolic act fills me with joy today and I felt the presence of His Spirit as I experienced this simple moment in my life.