We do not grasp God the Father’s love deeply enough.
If we truly saw the passion He has for His Spirit-begotten sons—and even for the people in this world—it would drive us to our knees in humble thanks. It would inspire more love and devotion in us to serve Him.
You see that love in the baptismal covenant.
Baptism is the most important, meaningful ceremony in life. It is a glorious, inspiring covenant between a human being and the Almighty God!
When we are baptized, we receive a whole range of promises and blessings from God. It is difficult to fully comprehend the investment God makes in us at that moment.
God does not take that lightly. From that moment, He is committed to our eternal spiritual success in an intense personal way!
And He is deeply grieved when one of His begotten children breaks that covenant with Him.
Begotten by the Father
God the Father is the one who calls us. John 6:44 tells us, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him ….” The Father must draw us to Him before we can truly come to know Him and Jesus Christ.
After baptism, a minister of God lays hands on the person and prays over him. With that prayer, a person receives the greatest gift in the universe! God imparts a small portion of His spiritual power, the Holy Spirit.
That is what makes us a Christian: the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9).
At that moment, the Father begets that person asHis own son! That Spirit is like a sperm cell entering an ovum: It is the start of a new spiritual life!
Only the Father begets us—not even Christ does that. How amazing to be begotten by God the Father!
Can you understand how important this is to God? When the Father begets a son, that means everything to Him! That is at the heart of His master plan. That was why He created man! The Father is reproducing Himself in human beings, creating more God beings in His own character image.
That is why He made the ultimate sacrifice—sending His Son to this Earth and allowing Him to die: to offer you the opportunity to be born into His eternal Family!
Every individual in whom He has planted His Holy Spirit, the Father has deep, yearning love for. We are His Family, and He is going to make sure we are taken care of if we are loyal to Him. He is not about to let His sons be neglected or mistreated. What love the Father has for us!
God does allow trials in our lives—but those too are blessings from God: “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him” (James 1:12). The Father wants to give you a crown of life! If you love Him—which means you love His law and the government that teaches it—then nobody can break God’s promise to you!
Do you love God like He loves you? Are you proving that love each day? We can’t afford to answer that question casually.
Our Burial at Baptism
The Apostle Paul knew that all men are sinners (Romans 3:23). He knew there was nothing we could do to erase that penalty of death by ourselves. We all need a Savior. It is by God’s grace, after we repent, that the penalty for sinning against God’s law no longer hangs over us. Paul was clear that, after we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, we need to live in accordance with God’s law. But that requires a miracle.
After explaining in Romans 5 about grace and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, Paul says, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Romans 6:1-2). Is the law done away because of grace? Paul answers with an emphatic no!
He goes on to explain the inspiring symbolism of the baptismal ceremony. We must understand this symbolism to comprehend why we need the Holy Spirit and why Christ must live in us today.
“Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?” (verse 3). Paul says we were baptized into the death of Christ. Again, he pointed out in the preceding chapter that we are justified by Christ’s death and saved by His life (Romans 5:9-10).
At baptism, we are fully plunged under water, which is a symbolic burial. The old, carnal man dies with Jesus Christ. Paul explains further: “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).
Now we begin to see the importance of the Holy Spirit and why it is Christ’s life that saves us! Just as Christ was resurrected, or raised from the dead, we arise from that watery grave and proceed to walk in newness of life by the power of God’s Holy Spirit. Our sins have been forgiven.
We agree to bury the old self, and when we are baptized, that old self dies. Paul makes this plain: “For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection” (verse 5). At baptism we die as Jesus Christ did, and when we come up out of that watery grave, we live as He did—not by our own power but by the power of God’s Holy Spirit!
Does our baptism excuse sin? Paul continues, “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin” (verse 6).
To “walk in newness of life” so that we might “not serve sin,” God gives us the gift of His Holy Spirit immediately after repentance and baptism. Walking in “newness of life” means we are now living a life led by the Spirit of God (Romans 8:14).
It should be clear why God gives us His Holy Spirit after baptism: It is by that power that we begin to overcome and actually take on the divine nature of God Himself! And it is by that power that the resurrected Jesus Christ is actually living in us today!
Led by the Spirit
That down payment of God’s Spirit imparts the mind of God. Herbert W. Armstrong said in a July 1983 sermon that this means God injects “His life [and] also His mind, also His character, also His attitude of love, of cooperation, of giving, of concern for others as much as concern for yourself. Selflessness instead of selfishness.”
When we use it, the Holy Spirit produces spiritual fruit in our lives that comes straight from God—His love, joy, faith and other qualities (Galatians 5:22-23). That Spirit also gives us spiritual understanding (1 Corinthians 2:9-14). What an unparalleled gift!
1 John 4:2 shows that through the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ “is come in the flesh.” The tense of the Greek verb translated is come means is coming. It could read “is come and continuing to come,” or “is now coming.” Christ Himself is dwelling in us in Spirit! And when Christ is living in us, we have life! (1 John 5:12). That is an earthshaking truth.
“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). The very mind of God comes through the Spirit. We must let His mind be in us. He will not force it.
“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Romans 8:14). What a profound statement!
To be God’s sons, just having
God’s Spirit is not enough—we must be led by it. That is why there are so few in God’s “little flock” (Luke 12:32), His true Church! God leaves it up to you.
The Father wants to lead His sons. He wants us to follow Him the way His Son Jesus Christ does. Christ said, “And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him” (John 8:29). What a beautiful attitude! No wonder God called Jesus “my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased”! (Matthew 3:17; 17:5).
If we love our Father, we will use His Spirit to keep His commandments willingly and cheerfully (1 John 5:3). That is how we show Him we love Him.
If we are led by the indwelling Spirit of God, always striving to please our Father, then He will do everything for us! “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight” (1 John 3:22). Imagine receiving anything you asked of God! That requires more than just obeying God out of duty. John is talking about an attitude of wanting to do anything possible to please your Father! That attitude gets your prayers answered! Of course, you will be asking for the things that please God.
Obviously, God will only give us what is good for us. But this verse shows that we should not put limits on what we could be given if we are obedient and ask God in a right attitude. That is the formula for success that Christ followed.
Would a father leave a child alone who had such an attitude? No—he would smash a battalion of soldiers to save that son! Take on that attitude, and your heavenly Father will intervene in your life and make things happen for you!
This is the loving family relationship God opens up to us when we enter that baptismal covenant with Him. As we will see, He gives us a lot more than even that!
Repent and Believe
The Father wants to give these glorious gifts generously, but there are conditions we must first meet.
When the New Testament Church began on Pentecost a.d. 31, the Apostle Peter said, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy [Spirit]” (Acts 2:38). Repentance is prerequisite to being baptized and receiving the Holy Spirit.
Before baptism, God leads us to repent of the way we have been living—a life contrary to the law of God. We repent not just for what we have done but for what we are.
Mr. Armstrong wrote, “[Repentance] is a total change of mind and heart and direction of life. It is a change to a new way of life. It is a turning from the self-centered way of vanity, selfishness, greed, hostility to authority, envy, jealousy and unconcern for the good and welfare of others to the God-centered way of obedience, submission to authority, love toward God more than love of self and of love and concern for other humans equal to self-concern” (Just What Do You Mean … Conversion?).
Many misinterpret repentance to mean sorrow. Repentance actually means change. Merriam-Webster defines repent as “to turn from sin ….” Turning from sin—changing your former way of life—means turning to obeying God’s law.
In addition to repentance, we must know and accept that Jesus Christ died for us. This belief, or faith in Jesus Christ’s shed blood, is outwardly manifested by baptism.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). We must have faith in that blood and the fact that He paid the penalty for “sins that are past” (Romans 3:25).
During the baptismal ceremony, God’s minister will ask the potential member of God’s Family the following question: “Have you repented of your sins and accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Savior?” After the individual says yes, he or she is baptized.
Wholehearted Commitment
Baptism is only the starting point of a lifetime of conversion, striving to become more and more like God. It is a commitment to obey God and to replace our carnal thoughts, emotions and desires with the very thoughts of God Himself! We must think like God! That is very difficult to accomplish and a deep subject to think on. We must constantly grow in our conversion. And we must endure to the end. That is all part of our baptismal commitment.
Jesus Christ said, “If any man come to me, and hate not [or love less by comparison] his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26-27).
Do you understand the seriousness of the commitment you make when you enter this covenant with God? You must be willing to give up anything, including the closest members of your own family—you may even have to die—for this cause! God must know that we will never allow anyone or anything to take priority over Him. We promise that whatever burden He gives us, we will bear it and follow God no matter the cost.
You cannot enter that covenant lightly! Before being baptized, you must count the cost.
“So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple” (verse 33). At baptism we tell God that, if necessary, we will give up anything, do anything and go anywhere, to obey Him and keep Him first in our life!
“And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30). At baptism, God “seals” us. He will not withdraw His calling. If we use the Spirit properly, we are as good as saved because that is how God views it. God “calleth those things which be not as though they were” (Romans 4:17).
We are “sealed with that holy Spirit of promise” (Ephesians 1:13). It is a “promise” because God’s part is sure! However, we can break that seal by our actions. Nothing is guaranteed until we are born sons—not just begotten.
Covenants can be broken by men. But God’s Word cannot be broken. This is the character we must build to become members of God’s Family. We must uphold our part of that baptismal covenant!
Our Father is depending on us. He is dedicated to our success. He would not have chosen us if He didn’t believe we could make it. He intensely yearns to consummate this covenant with us—and He can only do that if we faithfully carry out our part of the agreement.
Kings and Priests
Again, Ephesians 1:13 calls what we receive at baptism “that holy Spirit of promise.” It is a promise from God of something even greater.
Verse 14 calls it “the earnest [meaning pledge or down payment] of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” That small measure of Spirit God implants in us at baptism is a down payment of our future inheritance—Godgiving us the full measure of His Holy Spirit when we become spirit beings—born sons of God!
God gives His Spirit to His sons to empower us to grow and overcome. But that gift represents even more. Our Father has magnificent plans for His sons! When He makes that covenant with us at baptism, He is committing Himself to placing us into supremely exalted offices in His eternal Kingdom!
1 John 2:20 says, “But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.” The New King James translates unction as “anointing.” Receiving the Holy Spirit means you have an anointing from the Holy One, from God Himself!
In the Old Testament, priests and kings were anointed with oil when God put them into that office (e.g. Exodus 30:30; 1 Samuel 16:13). When you are baptized and receive the Spirit—pictured by that oil in those ordination ceremonies—God anoints you as a king and a priest in embryo!
John says “you have an anointing,” present tense—not “you might receive.” God sees it as though it is complete.
That is why Revelation 1:6 and 5:10 use the past tense when saying that God “hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father.” Once we are baptized, we have already been consecrated into the highest offices in the World Tomorrow! That is because we are being prepared to rule this world.
What an honor! At baptism we are like spiritual embryos in the womb, just beginning the process of conversion. How awesome and inspiring that, even at that moment, God places us right into that royal priestly office! Then He continues to shape and mold us lovingly into king-priests.
God has such a positive, hope-filled approach to His sons. If we remain faithful, our double-crown as king-priests forever is assured!
This too shows you just how deeply invested God is in every single Spirit-begotten saint. Think of the Father’s emotions in individually choosing each member of the royal, priestly Family that will rule the world with Him in the soon-coming Kingdom. That is a one-in-a-million opportunity that He does not give lightly.
Jesus Christ told His disciples, “In my Father’s house are many mansions [or many offices, it should read]: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:2-3). God has many offices to fill in His millennial temple in Jerusalem, and He is preparing those right now for His firstfruits! These same king-priests will later have offices in new Jerusalem!
This destiny ought to stir us far more than anything else in our lives! The reward given to these pillar-priests, the highest-level offices in God’s Kingdom, is magnificent beyond words! And it starts with the spiritual anointing we receive at baptism.
If you can believe it, there is an even more awesome, inspiring aspect of the baptismal covenant.
A Marriage Covenant
Few understand this truth, but the Old Covenant was a marriage covenant. The covenant God made with ancient Israel on Mount Sinai in Exodus 19 and 24 was a marriage agreement. Read Ezekiel 16, which describes God’s marriage to Israel. Verse 8 reads: “… I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, said the Lord God, and thou becamest mine.”
Sadly, Israel broke its “wedding vow.” It became “as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband!” (verse 32). In verses 38-39, Israel is compared to “women that break wedlock.” In Jeremiah 3:14, God pleads, “Turn, O backsliding children … for I am married unto you ….” That history shows how human beings can fail God, even when He offers them such a special and glorious opportunity.
Ezekiel 16 does describe the Old Covenant marriage with ancient Israel, but it is mostly a prophecy about a New Covenant marriage with God’s Church today. That is the focus.
In verse 8, the expression “spread my skirt over thee” is a sign of marriage. God says you became mine—you became my wife. When does that happen? On the individual level, it happens when we are baptized.
This is perhaps the most exciting aspect of the baptismal covenant. At baptism, the firstfruits make a marriage covenant to obey God and be born again as Christ’s wife. We said we would marry Christ and meet all the covenant conditions.
Only the firstfruits—those called before Christ returns—are offered that noble reward! This is the most exalted reward ever offered to any human being at any time! That will not be the case when people are baptized in the Millennium and beyond.
Verse 9 says, “Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil.” Water and oil are types of God’s Holy Spirit, which applies only to His marriage to the firstfruits.
In verse 10, God says, “… I girded thee about with fine linen ….” Exodus 39:27 shows that Aaron and his sons, the highest-ranking priests in the tabernacle, were the ones who wore fine linen. Revelation 19:8 says Christ’s Bride is “arrayed in fine linen,” which represents “the righteousness of saints.” God is clothing His Bride with the fine linen of righteousness.
God already views the Church today as His wife. This is true even though we are not officially married to Jesus Christ until He returns. Under the New Covenant (unlike the Old Covenant), we must prove ourselves before the marriage.
Nevertheless, Revelation 19:7 says that “his wife hath made herself ready.” The time frame here is before our marriage to Christ, during the preparation stage—but it doesn’t use the term bride-to-be, or fiancée. Christ sees that fabulous marriage as already being consummated! This lady was His wife while she was getting ready for the marriage. This is what God’s Word says.
Can you see what a spectacular covenant God makes with an individual at baptism?
Think of it! He begets you as His own son. He gives you a down payment of His spiritual power, His nature. He anoints you as a king-priest in embryo. And He draws you into a marriage agreement with His Son Jesus Christ!
God is deeply invested! He looks upon us as Christ’s wife, and if we do as He says, that is our destiny. His part of the covenant is absolutely assured, because He is God (e.g. Numbers 23:19; Psalm 119:89-90).
The lesson God is trying to teach us is that a covenant is a promise to keep your word. Our word should never be broken. And if we manifest God’s character, our word should be fulfilled!
Considering the magnitude of the reward God is offering, isn’t He justified in expecting total, unqualified commitment from us? You would have to say that God is offering us the greatest bargain we could possibly have!
Eternal Life or Eternal Death
God’s part of the covenant is sure—but we must be tested first. In fact, it is possible for us to fail and never be a part of that wedding!
We must understand that once God gives us His Holy Spirit, then our eternal life is at stake. God holds us to the promise we made to Him, and He holds us accountable for what we do with His Spirit and whether we fulfill our calling.
Most people don’t realize this, but this world is not being judged today. God is preparing to offer them salvation in the near future, and His people are going to teach them. That is when all people will be judged.
But God is judging His Spirit-begotten people! “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17). Once we are baptized, we are under God’s careful scrutiny in everything we do! Eternal life hangs in the balance. That is why God is so deeply concerned.
“For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy [Spirit], And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame” (Hebrews 6:4-6).
What incomparably majestic spiritual blessings God’s people receive! We have been enlightened. We have tasted of the heavenly gift and tasted the good Word of God and the powers of the world to come! We have partaken of the very Spirit and power of God! Once you have experienced these things, God holds you accountable.
Isn’t He justified in doing so? You cannot simply walk away from those glorious gifts without terrifying consequences!
Your baptismal covenant is a life-and-death, eternal decision!
God is trying to reproduce Himself in you—and He keeps every word of every promise. That is what He needs from us. How could He give us eternal life if He couldn’t count on us to honor our word?
When you meditate on all that God the Father has invested in this relationship, and all that He has given to each of His sons, and all that He is offering us—surely you can understand why He has such high expectations of His firstfruits! Surely you can understand why He wants to see wholehearted devotion—total commitment—just like a father wants from his own children or a husband wants from his one and only wife.
And surely you can see why the Father is so emotionally upset when one of His Spirit-begotten sons treats his calling lightly or neglects his relationship with his Father or turns away from Him!
God Cries Out!
We live in the Laodicean era of God’s Church, the final era before Jesus Christ’s Second Coming. It is a time of horrifying spiritual tragedy—when the vast majority of God’s own people, His very Spirit-begotten sons, have become spiritually lukewarm.
Read Jesus Christ’s heartfelt message to His precious people in this era in Revelation 3:14-22. “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth” (verses 15-16). Those are harsh words! He would only say such a thing to those of us who should know better and who should be honoring our promise to Him.
Is Christ speaking to you?
In verse 17 He describes how these people have grown carnal in their thinking, fixing their minds on physical things, becoming worldly and self-satisfied—but have unwittingly grown “wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” spiritually! What a disaster!
Sadly, this describes nearly all of God’s people in this lukewarm age. Spiritually, this is the greatest crisis on Earth!
We are all susceptible to deceiving ourselves. We have to listen carefully to Christ and accept His correction wherever it applies.
Read the rest of the passage, and again you see the depth of God’s love, even when His people go astray! These are the earnest words of our Husband reaching out to His Bride! He isn’t just criticizing and condemning. He is crying out to remind us of our commitment—to show how to get back on track—to express His devotion—and to make beautiful promises to any individual who will hear and heed!
“I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see” (verse 18). God wants us to be spiritually rich! He wants us to be clothed with righteousness, to be getting ready for that spectacular marriage. He wants to see where we need to repent and change, to open our eyes to the magnitude of our calling. He wants to give us dazzling spiritual vision!
The Father Corrects
“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent” (Revelation 3:19).
Yes, God rebukes those He loves. Our Father chastens us because He loves us. Even the Great Tribulation—the worst suffering in history that is about to befall the whole world—is loving correction from God. This and other passages make clear that most of God’s people will not be protected during the Tribulation.
But God’s “rebuke” is coming now, before the Tribulation! God loves His people and is pleading for repentance now. Anyone who is zealous and repents today will not need the chastening of the Tribulation—and God will protect him or her from it!
“And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth everysonwhom he receiveth” (Hebrews 12:5-6).
God is a Father! He loves His sons deeply. He is doing everything He can to help us make it into His eternal Family. That means He must correct us. We all have a lot of growing to do to achieve our potential and fulfill our calling. We allmust receive correction.
But so many of God’s people are truly off track, rebelling against God, and will not accept His correction!
We will never qualify to enter God’s eternal Family, let alone be Jesus Christ’s Bride, without correction from our Father!
Think deeply on your baptismal covenant. Think about it through God the Father’s eyes. Realize just how important every single Spirit-begotten son is to Him, and how determined He is to help every last one make it into His Family.
For those who have gone astray, God is the father in Luke 15, who allowed his son to depart and make some bad choices—but who was always searching the horizon for any sign of his return. “[W]hen [the son] was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him. … [And] the father said to his servants, Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: And bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. …” (verses 20, 22-24).
Promises Fulfilled
Christ’s loving message to the Laodiceans continues, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Revelation 3:20). He is on the outside, beseeching them to let Him into their lives! They are throwing away the most beautiful relationship a person can ever have!
Christ speaks to the Laodiceans through His physical leader. He doesn’t want to see anyone go through the Tribulation. But they must hear His voice. What else can Christ do? Beyond teaching them, what can you do if your older teenager goes astray?
God will never let you get into a spiritually fatal situation as long as you are listening to His Spirit.
“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne” (verse 21). What an incredible promise!
God makes so many promises to His precious Family. Our baptismal covenant is a series of promises. God gives us the Holy Spirit of promise, the down payment of a spectacular inheritance. We can be “confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). God finishes what He starts. Even when we fail Him, He does not give up on us. He rebukes and chastens us when we need it—in an intense effort to turn us around. Thank God for that chastening! He has said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5).
God fulfills His promises. The question is, will you?
Each one of us must remember the promise we made to God when we covenanted with Him at baptism. We each must use the Spirit of God to examine ourselves and to see ourselves honestly.
If you have gotten spiritually lazy, if your daily contact with God through prayer and study is skimpy or weak, if you have allowed material interests to crowd God out, look at that through the eyes of your heavenly Father! Malachi 1:6-8 will help you.
We each must pray for God to show us our faults (e.g. Psalm 19:12; 139:23-24; Jeremiah 17:9-10). We must pray for God’s correction (Jeremiah 10:24). We must use God’s Word to pierce us even to the thoughts and intents of our heart (Hebrews 4:12).
And then we must be doers of what we know to do, lest we deceive ourselves (James 1:22).
Think deeply on the profound, passionate love of God our Father and Jesus Christ our Husband—and on all they have done to prove that love for you. “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). The more you understand God’s love, the more moved you will be to fulfill your promise to Him—to love Him and serve Him with greater devotion.
If you remain faithful to God and Christ, they are going to consummate that covenant, glorify you, fill you with the Holy Spirit, crown you as a king and priest, and let you share Christ’s throne as His eternal wife!
What spectacular rewards await if we fulfill our baptismal covenant!