MJD ministry
BAPTISM
- Baptism is when a person, converted to Christ, expresses that faith by being immersed in water. It is a very symbolic event and, often, a deeply spiritual experience too. You don't get baptized to be saved, you get baptized because you are saved.WHAT IS BAPTISM?The word “baptise’ means to plunge, sink, drench or soak! This is why many Churches baptise people by dipping them right under water. It was usually done this way in New Testament and often in the open-air.Read about Jesus’ baptism in . Where was Jesus baptised?
Mark 1:9–11 NSFLB It came to pass in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And immediately, coming up from the water, He saw the heavens parting and the Spirit descending upon Him like a dove. Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Today people are baptised in the sea or river, or in a swimming pool. Some churches have their own pool in the church building.WHO SHOULD BE BAPTIZED?Anyone who loves Jesus and knows Him as Saviour and Lord.BAPTISM IS ALWAYS LINKED WITH FAITH IN JESUS.Look at . Many of the people at Corinth did two things when they heard Paul’s message. What were they?Acts 18:8 NSFLB Then Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his household. And many of the Corinthians, hearing, believed and were baptized.1)----------------------------------------------- 2) -----------------------------------------What two things did the people who heard Peter’s preaching do ()?Acts 2:41 NSFLB Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.1)----------------------------------------------- 2) ----------------------------------------BELIEVING IN JESUS AND GETTING BAPTISED BELONG TOGETHER!WHY BE BAPTIZED?1) TO OBEY JESUS’ COMMAND.Read . What three things did Jesus tell His friends to go and do?Matthew 28:18–20 NSFLB And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, “teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.1) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------By being baptised, we obey Jesus’ command. What does say about this?John 15:14 NSFLB “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2) TO SHOW YOUR FAITH IN JESUS.People demonstrate about all sorts of things these days. By being baptised, you demonstrate publicly that you love Jesus and want to live for Him.From Jesus’ words in , what will happen to the person who is ashamed of being known as a Christian?Mark 8:38 NSFLB “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3) TO PREPARE TO SERVE JESUS.From , when did the Holy Spirit come down on Jesus?Matthew 3:16 NSFLB When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------It wasn’t until after this experience that he went out to preach and heal. It was the same with Saul. See how he describes his conversion in .Acts 22:6–16 NSFLB 6 “Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. 7 “And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ 8 “So I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’ 9 “And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. 10 “So I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.’ 11 “And since I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus. 12 “Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there, 13 “came to me; and he stood and said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that same hour I looked up at him. 14 “Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. 15 ‘For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16 ‘And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’What did he need to do before he began his work (verses 15-16)?--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Now look at . Why did Ananias say he had been sent to Saul?had been sent to Saul? --------------------------------------------------------------------------Acts 9:17 NSFLB 17 And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------SO BEING BAPTISED AND FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT ARE EVENTS THAT SHOULD COME BEFORE WE BEGIN TO SERVE THE LORD.WHAT DOES BAPTISM MEAN?Baptism is a sign of four things that happen to a person who believes in Jesus. They can be summed up in four words: 1) Washing; 2) Burying; 3) Drinking; 4) Joining.1) WASHING AWAY PAST SINS.What was Saul told to do in ?Acts 22:16 NSFLB 16 ‘And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------And from , what did Peter tell the crowds they must do to have their sins forgiven?Acts 2:38 NSFLB 38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Just as a bath cleans the dirt from our bodies, so baptism shows that as a Christian we have been “washed clean’ from the effects of sin. Note that water baptism does not wash away sins, only the Blood of Jesus can do that, but it symbolises what has already happened.2) BURYING THE OLD LIFE.What does Paul say happens when a person becomes a Christian?2 Corinthians 5:17 NSFLB 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------When you become a Christian, you make room for Jesus’ new way of life by saying goodbye to your old way.WHEN WE JOIN OUR LIVES TO JESUS, GOD MAKES WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM APPLY TO US.This is what means;Colossians 2:12 NLT 12 For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.write it out below and underline the two experiences we share with Christ in baptism.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3) DRINKING GOD’S HOLY SPIRIT.Very often in the New Testament, baptism in water is linked with being baptised with the Holy Spirit. We have already seen that the Holy Spirit came on Jesus and on Saul at their baptisms.What gift does Peter say is given to those who turn from sin and are baptised? See .Acts 2:38 NSFLB 38 Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Read . What does the end of verse 13 say about the Holy Spirit?1 Corinthians 12:12–13 NSFLB 12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------JUST AS IN BAPTISM THE WATER WASHES RIGHT OVER YOU AND SOAKS YOU FROM HEAD TO FOOT, SO GOD WANTS TO FLOOD YOUR LIFE WITH HIS SPIRIT!4) JOINING THE BODY OF CHRIST.The Bible describes the Christian family as the body of Christ. When you become a Christian, you became part of the Body. Baptism is a way of showing this publicly. See again.You cannot be a lone Christian doing your own thing. Being committed to Jesus also means being committed to a local group of Christians - loving them, serving them and worshipping with them.WHEN SHOULD I BE BAPTIZED?AS SOON AS POSSIBLE! MOST OF THE FIRST CHRISTIANS WERE CONVERTED AND BAPTIZED ON THE SAME DAY!Turn to . In this story, Philip baptises an important Ethiopian official.Acts 8:26–40 NSFLB 26 Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is desert. 27 So he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship, 28 was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. 29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.” 30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 The place in the Scripture which he read was this: “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He opened not His mouth. 33 In His humiliation His justice was taken away, And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.” 34 So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. 36 Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” 37 Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” 38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. 39 Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to Caesarea.How long had he been a Christian when he was baptised?Was it: a) 10 years; b) 6 months; c) minutes; d) all his life?d) all his life? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------HERE IS A QUESTION TO ASK YOURSELF, FROM VERSE 36.Here is water---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------REMEMBER!Getting baptised does not make you a Christian, you get baptised because you already are a Christian. Mark 1:9–11MESSAGE
Acts 18:8MESSAGE
Acts 2:41MESSAGE
Matthew 28:18–20MESSAGE
John 15:14MESSAGE
Mark 8:38MESSAGE
Matthew 3:16MESSAGE
Acts 22:6–16MESSAGE
Acts 9:17MESSAGE
Acts 22:16MESSAGE
Acts 2:38MESSAGE
2 Corinthians 5:17MESSAGE
Colossians 2:12MESSAGE
Acts 2:38MESSAGE
1 Corinthians 12:12–13MESSAGE
Acts 8:26–40MESSAGE
