Does baptism make me stop sinning?

So do you think we should continue sinning so that God will give us more and more grace? Of course not! Our old sinful life ended. It’s dead. So how can we continue living in sin? Did you forget that all of us became part of Christ Jesus when we were baptized? In our baptism we shared in his death. So when we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and took part in his death. And just as Christ was raised from death by the wonderful power of the Father, so we can now live a new life. (Romans 6:1-4)

If you haven't realized it yet, we do 'continue to sin' even after we say yes to Jesus. There is still a struggle with temptation. We don't just magically 'stop sinning' - we must deal with the urges to do what is wrong when we know what is right. Good news is that we don't do it alone! We have Christ in us to help us with that very real struggle.

Did you ever wonder what purpose water baptism plays in a person's life? If we are honest, some of us may have 'got dunked' without really understanding the real meaning of that action. When we say yes to Jesus, we welcome him into our hearts and ask him to take control of our lives. When we are baptized in water, we are attesting to the fact we have chosen to follow Jesus, wish to live our lives as 'dead to sin' and 'alive to right living'. 

The whole thing about 'taking part in Christ's death' can be a little hard for some to understand. The purpose of baptism is to show we are committed to this walk with Jesus, are reliant upon him to help us live renewed lives, and that we are aware we now live 'new lives'. We are attesting to being 'dead to sin', but we don't always make 'right choices', do we? Does that mean that the action of baptism 'didn't work'? Not at all. Baptism is a testimonial of our faith in Christ to renew our lives - to help us make better choices and walk in all the wisdom he gives.

What changes then? We don't get pulled into sin as easily. It might not happen immediately, but our priorities change. Our choices change. We find ourselves desiring the presence of God. We are easily convicted of our 'sinful deeds' and find ourselves desiring God's restoration quickly. We aren't perfect yet, but we have changed hearts that lead to changed actions, and that is moving us toward God's presence and not away from it. Baptism isn't magical - it is a trusting act that shows we desire more of Christ's activity in our lives until we one day find ourselves aligned with all he desires. Just sayin!