Daily Devotionals

Trouble Maker Week 2: Saturday

 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes Galatians 3:27

One thing that stands out about Olympic athletes is their commitment to their sport. These athletes train practically 365 days a year for hours on hours to become the best of the best. These athletes can talk about how much they love their sport, they can talk about how they plan to win a gold medal, and they can talk about their plans to practice, but none of these prove their commitment. Their actions are what prove their commitment. The hours they put in every day show just how committed they are. What they do says far more about their commitment than what they say. Their practice is an outward sign of their commitment to their sport. Similarly, when we commit our lives to Christ, one of the first instructions we are given is to show our commitment to Christ through the action of being baptized. 

At the beginning of His ministry on earth, Jesus set an example for us by choosing to be baptized. He was showing His commitment to God the Father by doing this. Scripture teaches that when we place our faith in Jesus, we are called to show our commitment through baptism. This commitment is not one simple action of being dunked under the water; it is a commitment to follow Jesus for the rest of our lives and leave our old lives behind. The apostle Paul wrote about it this way in Galatians 3: “And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes” (verse 27). In other words, when we are baptized, we show that we are one with Christ. This means committing to Him not just in that moment but every day.

 Baptism is one act of commitment to Christ that symbolizes the commitment we desire to show Him every day moving forward. From the moment we place our faith in Christ, we commit our lives to Him. Baptism is simply one act of obedience that shows commitment. Our commitment, of course, does not stop at baptism. After all, following Jesus means a lifestyle of commitment to Him.

Moving toward action

As you think about the truth that following Jesus calls us to live a lifestyle of commitment to Him, evaluate your life. Is anything holding you back from being a fully devoted follower of Christ? What is it? Are you willing to let go of that thing so you can fully commit to Him? Tell a trusted friend or mentor about what is holding you back, and think of one step you can take to begin letting go this week.

Going Deeper

Galatians 3:1-29 (NLT)

"Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. 2 Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. 3 How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? 4 Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it?

5 I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.

6 In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” 7 The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God.

8 What’s more, the Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would make the Gentiles right in his sight because of their faith. God proclaimed this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9 So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith.

10 But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” 11 So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” 12 This way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says, “It is through obeying the law that a person has life.”

13 But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” 14 Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.

15 Dear brothers and sisters, here’s an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or amend an irrevocable agreement, so it is in this case. 16 God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ. 17 This is what I am trying to say: The agreement God made with Abraham could not be canceled 430 years later when God gave the law to Moses. God would be breaking his promise. 18 For if the inheritance could be received by keeping the law, then it would not be the result of accepting God’s promise. But God graciously gave it to Abraham as a promise.

19 Why, then, was the law given? It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised. God gave his law through angels to Moses, who was the mediator between God and the people. 20 Now a mediator is helpful if more than one party must reach an agreement. But God, who is one, did not use a mediator when he gave his promise to Abraham.

21 Is there a conflict, then, between God’s law and God’s promises? Absolutely not! If the law could give us new life, we could be made right with God by obeying it. 22 But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin, so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ.

23 Before the way of faith in Christ was available to us, we were placed under guard by the law. We were kept in protective custody, so to speak, until the way of faith was revealed.

24 Let me put it another way. The law was our guardian until Christ came; it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith. 25 And now that the way of faith has come, we no longer need the law as our guardian.

26 For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. 28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you."