Psalm 34:11-18, Isaiah 7:10-8:8, 1 Peter 3:1-22 - Lectionary for 12/1/11

Today's readings are Psalm 34:11-18, Isaiah 7:10-8:8, and 1 Peter 3:1-22. As we look at the end of our reading from 1 Peter we see that Jesus is the sole mover in salvation. He suffered for sins so that we would not have to bear the wrath of God. He is the righteous one, we are the unrighteous ones. He is the one who brought us to God. He is the one who makes all who believe alive in the spirit. He is the one who delivers his people from death. Baptism here is shown as a true means of grace, that which delivers us from death. As Noah and his family were brought through the water, not due to any righteousness of their own but because Noah believed God, so we are brought through the water of death not because of our righteousness but because of the righteousness of Christ our Savior. We are washed, not with water, but with the death of Jesus on our behalf. Salvation is of the Lord, not of ourselves. Therefore we cannot claim that baptism is our work, our testimony, our anything. It is rather that which God has applied to us as he cleanses us. What of people who have believed before they are baptized? Should they still be baptized? Certainly. This is the example of Acts chapter 10, where people who had not been baptized were baptized because it was clear they already believed. Yet that is not the pattern we see in other passages of Scripture, such as this one. Here the baptism seems to create faith. It is a means of grace, a way that God's grace is applied to our lives. May the Lord call many people to himself, washing them with water and his Word, creating faith in their hearts. And may we always be faithful to nurture that faith so it lives to eternity in every believer.