Mystery, gift, commitment
Katy Emslie-Smith
July 02, 2024
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Matthew 28: 19-20 (NIVUK)
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’
Water – beautiful, life giving, cleansing, healing, powerful, uncontrollable. Water is mystery, captivating in all its forms and beauty, running where it will and carving out its own path. We know water in our daily lives and are completely reliant on it for life but we cannot fully master it in all its forms, nor do we fully understand it. We know that immersion in water takes every ounce of our attention and focus, every sense tuned to gaining access to life giving air again. How masterful of Jesus to identify this natural element used in symbolic action to help us begin to understand the deep mystery of what it is to be baptised in the name of the Father, the Son and the Spirit.
Submersion in water, the downward journey of dying to self, then rising up through the surface in arcs of silver spray, lead us on the journey to follow Jesus into all the creative possibilities of resurrection life with him. Our first gasp is filled with the new breath of the Spirit, the Father’s strong arms are ever present to support and aid. Every baptism retells the salvation narrative, dying and rising, which now echoes in every corner of the universe. It is gift, and the unique act which marks becoming a disciple as a whole life commitment, body, soul and spirit. Water and willingness are all we need.
Prayer:
Jesus, thank you for the way you teach
With elements of ordinary life,
Water, wine, bread,
Profound truths about who we are
In you and in your community.
Amen
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