A Lent devotional on 1 Peter 3:18-22
“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the Spirit. After being made alive, he went and made proclamation to the imprisoned spirits – to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolises baptism that now saves you also – not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at God’s right hand – with angels, authorities, and powers in submission to him.”
For two years I struggled with depression, feeling hopeless, worthless and like I had no purpose. Miraculously, God provided me such healing and growth that, not only was I able to come back to church, but I was in such a place in my faith that I knew that God was calling me to be baptised. I was baptised a few months ago now, and I am still in awe of how incredible the blessing of God is to be washed clean of my sins, and to be a new creation where my past burdens no longer have a hold over me.
As Christians, particularly those who have been Christians for a long time, it is easy to forget that Jesus' sacrifice is just as relevant today as it was when we first gave our life to God. We have to make a conscious decision every day to live our lives according to God’s will, and every day we fall short of how we should be. How incredible is it that, through Jesus' blood, we are washed clean and made new and can have a personal relationship with God.
Whether you are a new Christian or have been a Christian for 60 years, Jesus still washes us clean every day. Have confidence and be reassured in the fact that no matter what we do, we are never too far away for God and we can have a “clear conscience toward God” (1 Peter 3:21).
