You won’t want to miss this Sunday. Family Worship Sunday. Connect 4 Lunch. And, to top it off, we have multiple members of our faith family taking their walk with Jesus to the waters of baptism. To fully appreciate what it is that they are doing, we are going to spend some time looking at what we believe is the biblical understanding of baptism. My prayer is that we’d all get to a place where even if we don't fully comprehend it, we can be certain it's a sacred moment.

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Questions for Reflection & Discussion

If you have been baptized, spend some time reflecting on your baptism. What do you remember from the experience? If you have not yet been baptized, what is one thing keeping you from taking that step?

What is baptism? What are some of the misconceptions you have heard about it? How does scripture challenge those misconceptions?

What is the relationship between faith in Jesus and baptism? 

Could you name the Ten Commandments? Studies done over the years show that the majority of Americans and even Christians struggle to recall them. While memorization is valuable, it's more important for us to grasp the truths embedded within the words spoken by God to His people. Truths that are still relevant for us today.

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Questions for Reflection & Discussion

Why is it important to understand that the commandments are a faithful response to God and not a prerequisite for a relationship with God?

Reflect upon modern-day idol worship. How do modern-day idols (anything or anyone other than God that you make the ultimate thing in your life) affect our lives and relationship with God? What idols are you prone to serving?

Discuss the significance of the third commandment, "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain." How does our behavior and speech reflect on God's reputation? What would the people in your life say or think about God based upon your interactions with them lately?

The people have reached Mount Sinai. The mountain where it all began–just as God had promised when He first appeared to Moses in a burning bush:

I will be with you, and this shall be a sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.

The promise is being fulfilled. The time has come for them to meet the God they will serve. Will they obey His voice? Will we?

I am a sucker for survival shows. Shows where people are dropped into remote locations and they have to live off the land. There is a reason why those shows are filmed in non-arid settings. There is no harsher survival setting than the wilderness of the desert where there is no relief from the scorching sun and the parched earth seems to stretch on forever.

After the Red Sea event, this is where Israel found themselves. In an existentially threatening environment. The wilderness. They learned some quick lessons in the wilderness—what their bodies needed for survival, basic provisions such as food and water. They were also reminded from whom all provisions come. Morning by morning, God provided them bread from heaven, which was but a foretaste of what was to come. Food and water for the soul.