In my last post, I wrote about how, when Jesus was baptized, the Father revealed Jesus’ identity and the Father’s disposition to Him.  Jesus is the Father’s only son and the Father is well pleased with Him.

 

In our baptism, much the same thing happens.  God tells us our identity and His disposition to us…in Christ.

 

In your baptism, God put His name on you and called you His child.  He forgave your sins and declared you holy and righteous.  If heaven were to have opened up at your baptism, God would have said, “This is my beloved son/daughter, with whom I am well pleased.”

 

He still says that to you, today.

 

Sometimes we have trouble accepting God’s forgiveness and love.  We look at our lives, the sin we have committed and hurt we have caused, and we question whether God still calls us His child and whether He is pleased with us.  This is the lie of devil.  It places our focus on ourselves rather than on Jesus where it belongs.  Our hope isn’t in ourselves.  It is in Jesus.

 

Don’t listen to the devil or his lie.  It’s Jesus’ obedience that makes you righteous.  It’s Jesus death and resurrection which makes you sinless and makes you right with God.  It’s Jesus.  To quote Martin Luther,