Find Your People, Day 5 By Jennie Allen Ephesians 2 tells us that we—you and I and everyone ever to live—were dead in our trespasses and sins and that we were children of wrath, meaning that we deserved for God to send a meteor our way. “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ” (Ephesians 2:3-5). Jesus rescuing us from our sin and giving us a way out changes not only our eternal future with Him, but also empowers us to love like Him here. “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18). You and I are to give that reconciliation and hope away to living, breathing, broken, longing people. God purposefully set you in your place and in your time to love people in such a way that they will feel their way toward Him and find Him. Jesus not only provides the means to live a full, thriving life with each other and with Father God, He also modeled how it would look! He laughed and learned and sang and grew up in the context of a village. He found His people in unexpected places, not universities or temples. His people were prostitutes, uneducated fishermen, hated tax collectors, children, and mothers-in-law. They were often, by any onlooker’s estimation, the wrong ethnicity, the wrong gender, the wrong age, the wrong status, the wrong personality type, the wrong people.Jesus’s people were all wrong—except that they were willing. And they were wanting. And they were all in. Jesus made a habit of pushing away crowds and eating with His twelve. Within that twelve, there were three He spent the most time with. But what began in a village with a tight group of people would reach generations and the ends of the earth. This is the endgame of community: we find our people, and together we build safe, beautiful outposts that offer the love of God. God, in this weary, tired world it feels like just more work to be “all in” with people who have hurt us or could hurt us. Help me to focus on the endgame: building a community, a circle of friends, that can be a beautiful beacon of Your love. May nothing stand in the way of the relationships You are preparing for me. Amen. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. John 15:15 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:4‭-‬8 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:17‭-‬19

What’s baptism and why does it matter? When you think of “baptism,” what comes to mind? If you said “dunking someone in water”—you’re not wrong! Many churches have different approaches to baptism, but the ultimate purpose of baptism is to outwardly express an inward change. It is both a symbolic expression of faith and an act of obedient surrender and repentance, which is why it’s the natural next step someone takes after they make a decision to believe in and follow Christ. This public act allows us to identify with Christ’s death and resurrection, repent from the way we used to live, and celebrate the new, eternal life we have because of Jesus’ sacrifice. But even before Jesus came to earth, God symbolizes His ability to redeem people and make them new by having them pass through water. It happened to the Israelites as they crossed the Red Sea, and again when they crossed the Jordan River. It occurs to Naaman the leprous commander in 2 Kings who is healed once he dips in the Jordan River seven times. (And these are just a few examples!) In each of these instances, God prophetically showcases His power and glory by using water to illustrate His ability to cleanse, heal, restore, and redeem. When Jesus comes, He publicly confirms His commitment to God through baptism. And by doing so, He also foreshadows what will happen when He dies for humanity and arises from the dead three days later. So when we take part in baptism, we are choosing to live like Jesus by following His example. We are choosing to let God redeem and heal us by dying to our old selves and allowing Him to raise us up to a new life. Baptism matters because it’s something that Jesus exemplified, and commanded His disciples to do. So as you process what baptism means to you, look for opportunities to bring others along with you. Talk to them about what it means to follow Jesus, and consider inviting them to take part in the act of baptism. Here are some questions you might want to ask…Do you believe you need Jesus? What does believing in Jesus mean to you? Do you believe that Jesus died for you and rose again? What does following Jesus look like? How have you asked God to forgive you for your past mistakes? Have you invited Jesus into your life? Action Step: Take a few moments today to cultivate discussions about faith with other people who are in different places in their walk with God. Then, reflect on it.