Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

Romans 6:3-4

I have a number of friends who have different views on baptism, but the passage above gives us a clear picture. There is no need to read between the lines.

In addition to being obedient to Christ’s instruction, baptism gives us a picture of the internal change God desires to do in our lives. We were symbolically buried in the water and then raised into a newness of life in Christ.

Water Baptism is an external action representing an internal change. As a result of being alive in Christ, we should no longer be controlled by sin. We have been set free from sin and now our freedom is expressed in a life lived to honor God.

Easier said than done? Paul reminds us in verse eleven that we must consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. We are not to give in to our passions – those things that cause us to fail – but we are to present our lives to God. Instead of taking advantage of God’s grace and continuing as before, we must choose God over the world we live in today.