This letter is meant to encourage a community of early Christians who find themselves in the middle of political upheaval, slavery, persecution, and suffering. Jesus was treated as criminal because he demonstrated God’s justice and love while challenging the wisdom of the world. He lived differently than his culture demanded, and he paid the ultimate price for that. His sacrifice was rooted in God’s love for the world and meant to offer a new, different kind of life for those who accepted his gift. These verses remind us that baptism offers us forgiveness of sin and sets us on a path that leads us closer to the heart of God. Baptism is about turning from those attitudes and behaviors that break down our relationship with God and with the people around us and turning towards the One who gives us life and shows us how to live in reconciled relationship according to the ideals of God’s kingdom.
As a follower of Jesus, what attitudes and behaviors do you feel called to leave behind? What practices help bring you to God with a clear conscience?
Today, offer a prayer of confession and find assurance in the promise of new life made available through Jesus’ sacrificial act of love.