Today’s Living Word comes from Mark 1:5 " Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins.” Mark 1:5.
The word got out. John was preaching a baptism that was not just ritualistic, not just something we do, but something God does. Original sin, (that which we are conceived in, see Ps 51:5..."in sin did my mother conceive me,") sins of commission, sins of omission, were all being forgiven by the grace of God through the rite of baptism, coupled with God-given faith.
No wonder the people flocked to him, and they all came with confession on their lips. What is it to confess? Simply stated, it is to agree. When someone confesses to a crime they agree that they did it. To confess our sins then is to agree with God and His Word that we are sinners.
So they all came out to John admitting that they were sinners in need of forgiveness or remission of their sins, and they were convinced that when John’s baptism was applied they had that forgiveness directly from God. This was the same attitude of the Ethiopian Eunich who upon having the gospel explained to him by Phillip said, "See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?" Acts 8:36
Do not delay baptism for yourself or for your children. It effects the remission of sins.
I’m Duane Matz and that’s today’s Living Word.
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