Conversation Guide Baptismal Covenant and Community Engagement

This conversation guide explores how the vows made during baptism invite us as disciples of Jesus Christ to engage with our community and work for justice. The baptismal covenant is a commitment to personal faith and active participation in God’s mission in the world. This guide will help participants understand how these vows can shape their involvement in community engagement and justice work. It includes practical steps to live out these commitments. This guide can be broken into three sessions for use in a Sunday school lesson, outreach/evangelism committee, leadership team gathering, small group, or with those passionate about community engagement. Feel free to make a slideshow of the vows or print out the baptismal vows and share them with the class. If doing this in more than one session, begin the time with prayer and reading through the vows with the class. If you’re interested in diving deeper into baptism, Communion, and United Methodist membership vows, check out the new Belong series, a set of resources to deepen members’ engagement with baptism, Communion, and membership vows. Click here to learn more.

Session 1

Leader: Begin the session with prayer; then read the lighter text and have the class answer with the bold text.

On behalf of the whole church, I ask you:
Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness,
reject the evil powers of this world,
and repent of your sin?

I do.

Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you
to resist evil, injustice, and oppression
in whatever forms they present themselves?

I do.

Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior,
put your whole trust in his grace,
and promise to serve him as your Lord,
in union with the church which Christ has opened
to people of all ages, nations, and races?

I do.[1]

1. Reflecting on Your Baptism:

Share a memory or a story from your baptism or from a baptism you witnessed. How did it feel? What did it mean to you?

When you think about the vows made during baptism, either by you or on your behalf, what do you think those vows ask of you in your daily life?

In what ways do you see baptism connecting us to the larger community, both within the church and beyond it? How do these connections call us to engage with and serve others?

2. Renouncing Wickedness and Evil

The vow to renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness and reject the evil powers of this world calls us to be vigilant against systemic issues like poverty, injustice, and discrimination. It’s a call to avoid evil and actively oppose it.

What does wickedness and evil look like today?

Where or how do you see wickedness and evil at work?

Lectio Divina combines scripture reading and prayer, Explain Lectio Divina (click here for more information) and invite the participants into the practice.

• focusing on hearing what scripture says to you.
• It's a way to slow down, meditate, and connect with God's Word, not about emptying the mind for a mystical experience.
• Suited for small groups or individuals, it involves centering the heart using a sacred word like "love" or "Jesus."
• There are four movements:

Lectio: Read the passage slowly, listening for a word or phrase that stands out.
Meditatio: Reflect on how the passage applies to your life.
Oratio: Respond by opening your heart to God in prayer.
Contemplatio: Sit quietly with God, listening for his “still, small voice.”

Read Ephesians 6:10-17 aloud and invite participants to listen for a word or phrase that stands out. Ask what word or phrase stood out and give participants time to answer.

Reread the passage and invite people to reflect on how a word, phrase, or the entire passage applies to their lives.

Reread the passage and ask, “What is God inviting you to do?”

Read Matthew 5:13-16. Ask, “What does it mean to shine light into the world? What does shining light into the world look like when we are renouncing wickedness and evil?”

Action Steps:

Option 1: Invite participants to create an action plan out of the invitation from Lectio Divina.

Option 2: Choose a local issue, such as food insecurity, unhoused people, access to health care, or public education. Commit to learning more about the issue and create an action plan for the next steps.

Close in prayer.

Session 2

Resisting Injustice and Oppression

Leader:

Begin the session with prayer; then read the lighter text and have the class answer with the bold text.

On behalf of the whole church, I ask you:
Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness,
reject the evil powers of this world,
and repent of your sin?

I do.

Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you
to resist evil, injustice, and oppression
in whatever forms they present themselves?

I do.

Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior,
put your whole trust in his grace,
and promise to serve him as your Lord,
in union with the church which Christ has opened
to people of all ages, nations, and races?

I do.[2]

Ask the participants if they worked on their action plans from last week. Was there anything new or unexpected that surprised them about their chosen issue? Where did they see God at work in relation to their action plan, in the conversations, the learning, the listening, or prayer as they took their steps?

1. Reflecting on Your Baptism:

How do you understand the relationship between your baptism and the work of justice, mercy, and service in the community? In what ways do you feel called to live out your baptism when it comes to justice, mercy, and service?

This vow challenges us to use the freedom and power God gives us to resist any form of injustice and oppression. It’s an invitation to stand with marginalized people and work for their liberation.

Ask:

• Can you share when you or someone close to you experienced oppression or exclusion? How did it affect you? What did it teach you about the realities of these issues in our world?
• What forms of oppression or exclusion do you see in your community or society today? How do these issues show themselves in ways that might be overlooked or normalized?
• How do you think our baptismal vows challenge us to respond to oppression and exclusion?

Scripture: Micah 6:8

Explain Lectio Divina (click here for more information) and invite the participants into the practice.

• Lectio Divina combines scripture reading and prayer, focusing on hearing what scripture says to you.
• It's a way to slow down, meditate, and connect with God's Word, not about emptying the mind for a mystical experience.
• Suited for small groups or individuals, it involves centering the heart using a sacred word like "love" or "Jesus."
• There are four movements:

Lectio: Read the passage slowly, listening for a word or phrase that stands out.
Meditatio: Reflect on how the passage applies to your life.
Oratio: Respond by opening your heart to God in prayer.
Contemplatio: Sit quietly with God, listening for his “still, small voice.”

Read Micah 6:8 aloud and invite participants to listen for a word or phrase that stands out

Ask what word or phrase stood out and give participants time to answer.

Reread the passage and invite participants to reflect on how a word, phrase, or the passage applies to their lives.

Reread the passage and ask, “What is God inviting you to do?”

Read Isaiah 1:17 and ask: “What is Isaiah calling the people to do? What does that look like for us today?”

Action Steps:

Option 1: Invite participants to create an action plan out of the invitation from Lectio Divina.

Option 2: Partner for Change: Find a local organization or advocacy group working to address an issue such as racial inequality or access to healthcare. Attend an event or meeting and explore how you or your church can support their efforts through volunteering or advocacy. Are there avenues to build relationships between the church and the organization or group?

Close in prayer.

Session 3

Confessing Christ and Serving as His Representatives

Begin the session with prayer; then read the lighter text and have the class answer with the bold text.

On behalf of the whole church, I ask you:
Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness,
reject the evil powers of this world,
and repent of your sin?

I do.

Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you
to resist evil, injustice, and oppression
in whatever forms they present themselves?

I do.

Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior,
put your whole trust in his grace,
and promise to serve him as your Lord,
in union with the church which Christ has opened
to people of all ages, nations, and races?

I do.[3]

Reflecting on Your Baptism:

What are some specific ways you believe our baptismal vows could influence your daily interactions with others, especially those who are marginalized or in need?

What challenges do you think we face in living out our baptismal vows in today’s world? What opportunities do you see for our church to engage more deeply with our community?

Confessing Christ as Lord isn’t just about words; it’s about living in a way that reflects his love and justice. This vow calls us to represent Christ in all we do, especially in how we engage with and serve those in need.

What does it mean to you to confess Christ in your everyday life? How does this confession influence how you interact with others, especially those in need?

How do you see your baptism as a call to serve others in the community? In what ways can you live out your baptismal promises through acts of service and compassion?

What are some practical ways to represent Christ in the community today? How can your church’s engagement with the community reflect the love and justice of Christ that we commit to in baptism?

Scripture: Matthew 25:31-46.

Explain Lectio Divina (click here for more information) and invite the participants into the practice.

• Lectio Divina combines scripture reading and prayer, focusing on hearing what scripture says to you.
• It's a way to slow down, meditate, and connect with God's Word, not about emptying the mind for a mystical experience.
• Suited for small groups or individuals, it involves centering the heart using a sacred word like "love" or "Jesus."
• There are four movements:

Lectio: Read the passage slowly, listening for a word or phrase that stands out.
Meditatio: Reflect on how the passage applies to your life.
Oratio: Respond by opening your heart to God in prayer.
Contemplatio: Sit quietly with God, listening for his “still, small voice.”

Read Matthew 25:31-46 aloud and invite participants to listen for a word or phrase that stands out.

Read the passage again and invite participants to reflect on how a word, phrase, or the entire passage applies to their lives.

Reread the passage and ask, “What is God inviting you to do?”

Read James 2:14-17. Ask, “What does an alive faith look like? What does it look like for our congregation to be alive with faith when we think about our baptism and how we live that out in the world?”

Action Steps:

Option 1: Invite participants to create an action plan out of the invitation from Lectio Divina.

Option 2: Reach Out in Love: Identify a group in the community that is often overlooked, such as the elderly, refugees, or those with disabilities. Take a simple, concrete step to serve them. This could be visiting a nursing home or starting a conversation with someone from this group to understand their needs better.

Close in prayer.

Living out our baptismal vows involves more than our individual confession; it’s about active engagement in our communities and working for justice with God’s love flowing in and through our hearts. Each vow invites us to a deeper commitment to God’s mission in the world. By taking practical steps, we can begin to fulfill these vows in our daily lives and transform the world to look more like that of God’s beloved community.

[1] The Baptismal Covenant I, https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/book-of-worship/the-baptismal-covenant-i.

[2] The Baptismal Covenant I, https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/book-of-worship/the-baptismal-covenant-i.

[3] The Baptismal Covenant I, https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/book-of-worship/the-baptismal-covenant-i.