Baptism is a symbolic illustration of what Jesus went through to bring about our spiritual life.
Today's Scripture:
When we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and shared his death. So, just as Christ was raised from the dead by wonderful power of the Father, we also can live a new life.
Romans 6:4
In ancient Greece, a metalsmith "baptized" hot iron by dipping it into water. This act tempered the metal, strengthening it and helping set the specific shape the smith had chosen for the iron to take. My friend and college football teammate Terry Schappert made a point to bring this out in his first show called "Warriors" on the history channel. We see iron dipped to temper and finish his work. In some respects, that's what baptism does for those who believe in God. It tempers them. It helps strengthen how closely they identify with God and their new form of life in a public yet personal way.
The New Testament records many instances of baptism, including Jesus's own baptism in the Jordan River. The Greek word for baptize means "to immerse."
That's what early Christians did. Early Christians were immersed in water as an outward sign of the inward change God had brought into their lives.
Time and again in Scripture, one of the first things people did after choosing to believe in God was to ask to be baptized. They wanted to demonstrate to God and to those around them that they were serious about their new found faith.
Baptism is a symbolic illustration of what Jesus went through to bring about our new spiritual life. I remember my own baptism at Little River Baptist Church in Little River, TX...last Sunday I had the honor of baptizing my oldest child along with two other young people and sharing that water with them. Being lowered into the water symbolizes Jesus's death and burial in a tomb. Being raised from the water is a picture of Jesus's rising from the dead and beginning a new kind of life, one that doesn't end in death. According to the Bible, baptism doesn't wash away your sins or gain you entrance into heaven. What it does is demonstrate your desire to fully live the life God created you to live.
Selah people' and friends different churches have different traditions about how and when people are baptized. Why you want to be baptized, and not the method in which your baptism takes place, is what in my opinion matters the most to God.
"Peace and joy be yours as you are transformed into all that Christ has planned for you to be."
Your pastor,
Rev Muston (PreacherPatrick)
The New Testament records many instances of baptism, including Jesus's own baptism in the Jordan River. The Greek word for baptize means "to immerse."
That's what early Christians did. Early Christians were immersed in water as an outward sign of the inward change God had brought into their lives.
Time and again in Scripture, one of the first things people did after choosing to believe in God was to ask to be baptized. They wanted to demonstrate to God and to those around them that they were serious about their new found faith.
Baptism is a symbolic illustration of what Jesus went through to bring about our new spiritual life. I remember my own baptism at Little River Baptist Church in Little River, TX...last Sunday I had the honor of baptizing my oldest child along with two other young people and sharing that water with them. Being lowered into the water symbolizes Jesus's death and burial in a tomb. Being raised from the water is a picture of Jesus's rising from the dead and beginning a new kind of life, one that doesn't end in death. According to the Bible, baptism doesn't wash away your sins or gain you entrance into heaven. What it does is demonstrate your desire to fully live the life God created you to live.
Selah people' and friends different churches have different traditions about how and when people are baptized. Why you want to be baptized, and not the method in which your baptism takes place, is what in my opinion matters the most to God.
"Peace and joy be yours as you are transformed into all that Christ has planned for you to be."
Your pastor,
Rev Muston (PreacherPatrick)
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