The next thing we need to look at is Holy Baptism. And if you are not baptized, now is the time.
If you believe what you have read so far - that God made the world and everything in it; that God's law is His will for His creation; that human beings have rebelled against God's will and fallen into sin; that you, too, are a sinner and will die unless you are saved from your separation from God; that the Father sent His Son Jesus to pay the price for your sins and to draw you back to Himself so that you can live forever; that Jesus will return on the last day to usher in eternity - if you believe these things, then it is time for you to be baptized.
Basically, believing these things is a miracle of the Holy Spirit. He has "called you by the Gospel" and "enlightened and sanctified you." And now He would give you an amazing gift: Holy Baptism.
On the surface, baptism looks like an initiation rite. Before you are baptized, Christians think you should be baptized. After baptism, they clearly recognize you as one of their own. That sure looks like an initiation rite!
And it is! There's no sense denying it! When foreign nationals desire American citizenship, they learn facts about America, as well as the duties and obligations, rights and privileges citizens enjoy. But they are not citizens yet. They cannot claim those rights and privileges, nor must they exercise the duties and obligations of citizenship. Only after they are "sworn in" can they claim these things! They can claim to be an American before then, but only after the ceremony will America recognize them as a citizen.
Baptism is a lot like that. God has made great promises for those who trust Him and all He has done for us in Jesus. But Jesus has also called us to be baptized. Until you actually do what Jesus (the one you would claim as your Lord and Savior) says, what "right" do you have to call yourself His disciple.
However, as we will see in the next seven posts, baptism is so much more than JUST an initiation rite!
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