“You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” How many children long to hear such words from their father? These words of love and acceptance are words each child craves, yet many never hear them. Some fathers are absent, others were never known. Sometimes, even those fathers who are active in their child’s life are slow to show the tenderness of a father’s love.
Through his Son Jesus Christ, God has demonstrated the lengths he will go to save his people from the powers of sin and death. No love is greater than the love of our Father in heaven. There is no greater value than that which the Father places upon his children.
As we hear the message of the gospel, the Holy Spirit moves us toward the waters of Holy Baptism. Through the waters connected to God’s Word and promise, God reaches out and claims us to be his own. Emerging from the waters of the baptismal flood, we have the same affirmation as Christ Jesus did, we are God’s beloved children.
Living in the bonds of the Father’s love, the baptized enjoy a relationship like no other. It is the assurance that no matter what happens in this temporary world, the Father, whose kingdom has no end, will love us and cherish us forever.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, hold me in the fullness of your love. Amen.
In the Beginning 