June 17

When Jesus came to be baptized, John recognized in Him a purity of character that he had never before perceived in any man. The very atmosphere of His presence was holy and awe-inspiring. Among the multitudes that had gathered about him at the Jordan, John had heard dark tales of crime, and had met souls bowed down with the burden of myriad sins; but never had he come in contact with a human being from whom there breathed an influence so divine. All this was in harmony with what had been revealed to John regarding the Messiah. Yet he shrank from granting the request of Jesus. How could he, a sinner, baptize the Sinless One? And why should He who needed no repentance submit to a rite that was a confession of guilt to be washed away?

          Desire of Ages, page 110 from the chapter, 'The baptism'

     No doubt you would have the same reaction. Why? We all fall short of the glory of God. We are just like the people of Israel standing on the plain surrounding Mt. Sinai, “don’t come too near God. We don’t match you and your purity”.

     The theme we have followed so far is founded on faith. Should we not have complete information we should simply carry on despite the evidence because God can be trusted.

     Jesus asked to be baptised. Despite the feelings and despite the misgivings – and of course the personal insecurities John was persuaded to go ahead with the rite of baptism.

     How often do we consider that we are unable to do God’s will until all our questions and needs are be answered?

     ‘Jesus is waiting for me’, says Larry Sparks. Please click on the picture to listen. Thanks Bryn.
   

     Housekeeping details for you

     The point of this short blog will become clear if you decide to use this reading in the way we intend it. Netherfield Seventh-day Adventist Church believes in healthy churches. You can see what that means if you head to the relevant Healthy Churches page of the website. We also want other churches to be healthy. That means you can join in our campaign to create healthy churches, with healthy people serving the people in those churches.

     A healthy church is one where Jesus comes first. A healthy church is one where the people work together to put Jesus first. One thing we are doing is to join people together to spread that news. I would like you to look at our prayer partners page. This will explain how we want you to use this short devotional. Very basically we want you to find a like-minded Christian friend who you will join with to : choose to pray together every day, decide together on a way to serve other people together, to help them grow as Christians - and to invite the Holy Spirit into your life every day. This blog that you will receive every day simply gives a common spiritual purpose. If you are a newcomer and want to join the blog with this object in mind click here