Scripture

Our verse for today comes from John 3:22, “After this, Jesus and His disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where He spent some time with them, and baptized.”

Background

Summer is passing. Of course there still will be some hot days ahead, but it is only a matter of a couple of months before autumn is here, with all its beautiful colors and refreshing weather and shift in activities. Perhaps you’ve had your big vacation for the year, taking advantage of the summer sun at the coast, or heading somewhere else to escape the heat. Or maybe the fall or winter better suits your interests, calling you to snow-capped mountains, or to the beach when the heat and the crowds are gone. If you do get away for a spell, it’s important that you make some time to relax and recharge. It’s tough to come home from a trip so exhausted that you need to go back to work just to get some rest. When Jesus went out to the Judean countryside with His disciples, it wasn’t so much a vacation they were enjoying as it was a retreat. And not the business retreats that we all know of, where several days are spent listening to talks made up of a bunch of fluff and blather. This was the church retreat of all church retreats. The disciples getting some alone time with Jesus, away from the cities and the crowds, focusing only on Him, and He only on them. If you’ve been on a quality church retreat or to a Christian conference, then you’ve had a small sampling of what the disciples were getting.

Application

But those opportunities don’t come along for us every day, do they? It’s not practical, affordable, or even possible to attend these type gatherings every week. But that shouldn’t keep us from spending time with Him, nor from being baptized. For in addition to immersing His disciples in water, I think Jesus also immersed them in the ways of His Father. He flooded them with kingdom truths and dunked them in His love and compassion. But if the disciples hadn’t been there, they would have missed out. They simply needed to take the time to be with Jesus. And 2,000 years later, nothing has changed. He’s still got the time, and He’s able to baptize. Will you spend your time with Him and get immersed?

Charge

As we seek Him today, make sure that however many minutes you spend with Jesus are spent being immersed in Him and His grace. Don’t just be in the same room as Him so you can say you’ve done your part for the day.

Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words