Paul was in the city of Corinth.  Silas and Timothy were with him as he devoted himself to the word of God.  Many of the Jews in Corinth rejected his teachings about the Lord Jesus.

How did Paul react?
(NASB) Acts 18:6 “…he shook out his garments and said to them, ‘Your blood be on your own heads!  I am clean.  From now on I will go to the Gentiles.’”

And he continued to teach and preach Jesus Christ.
(NASB) Acts 18:7-8 “Then he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God, whose house was next to the synagogue.
8 Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household, and many of the Corinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized.”

It is always a bold choice to be baptized publicly – it is a symbol and a statement of your belief in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

For some reading this devotional, you have endured the opposition and perhaps the ostracism of family and friends because you chose to be baptized in the name of Jesus.

As followers of Christ, we are choosing to be identified with our Savior, Who chose to be identified with us!  Isn’t that amazing?  Jesus, the perfect Son of God, identified with us when He was baptized.

In the book of Acts, we repeatedly read of individuals believing then being baptized in the name of Jesus.
In many places in the world today, it is a courageous step to be baptized.  Ostracism, arrest and/or imprisonment can result.

Following Jesus is a courageous act and perhaps a costly choice.  May each of us, the followers of Christ, be courageous and keep our eyes on our Jesus.
May our belief be in the living Lord Jesus and our spiritual growth continue no matter our circumstances.

(NIV) Hebrews 12:1-3 “THEREFORE, SINCE we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.  2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”