Eternity

Baptism is a powerful, public way to show that our lives have changed through God’s forgiveness—it’s not about earning forgiveness but declaring the freedom we’ve already received. It also encourages us to hold on to hope in the resurrection, which promises a real, renewed life with God, where all pain and brokenness will be healed. Finally, saying “amen” to the Creed is like saying, “Yes, I’m all in” committing to live out these truths every day, letting our faith shape how we love, work, and face life’s challenges.

References:

• “In the new heavens and new Earth, there is no death, no suffering. There are no funeral homes or abortion clinics or psychiatric wards. There are no assaults or missing children or drug rehabilitation centers. There is no bigotry, no muggings, no killings, no worry or depression or economic downturns. There are no wars. There is no unemployment, no anguish over failure and miscommunication. No more of that forever. No conmen, no locks. No death, no mourning, no pain, no boredom, and no arthritis. No handicaps, no cancer, no taxes, no bills. No computer crashes, no weeds, no bombs. There is no drunkenness, no traffic jams or accidents. There are no septic tank backups. There is no mental illness, no unwanted e-mails. There are close friendships, but no cliques. There is laughter, but no put-downs, no laughter at the expense of someone else. There is intimacy, but no temptation to immorality. There are no hidden agendas, no backroom deals, no betrayals. Imagine mealtimes full of stories, laughter and joy, without any fear of insensitivity or inappropriate behavior, anger, gossip, lust, jealousy, hurt feelings, or anything else that eclipses our joy. That will be heaven. Can you imagine the beauty?” - Randy Alcorn
• “To confess the faith and say ‘amen’ is to make what we believe into something shared and public and recognizable, not just a fleeting thought in the heart. When we say ‘I believe’ in our baptism, or ‘we believe’ in a Sunday liturgy, we are making a commitment that is a pledge of allegiance, joining us to other believers around the world in the body of Christ, some of whom are bound to get into trouble for making this commitment.” - Philip Carey

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