Baptism: Believe & Belong

This one here that I'm holding up, or not sure what page number, if you've got a different one.

So Acts 1094.

And on the little sheet here that I'm holding up, with Alex's story on the inside,

on the very back, there's a place there where you can take notes.

So if you want a pen, that's what the box is being passed around.

If you want a pen and you want to take notes or jot down anything, just put up your hand and you can get a pen.

But you can fill that sheet out on the back there or just jot down any notes or any questions that you might have after our talk.

And I'm going to ask Stephen, who's going to come up and who's going to read for us from Acts.

Thank you, Stephen.

Acts chapter 2, verse 37.

Acts 2:37

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles,

Brothers, what shall we do?

Peter replied, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins.

And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, for all whom the Lord our God will call.

With many other words, he warned them and he pleaded with them.

Save yourself from this corrupt generation.

Those who accepted his message were baptized and about 3,000 were added to their number that day.

Thank you, Stephen.

Well, I'm going to pray and then we're going to look at that passage that was just read and see what it has to say to explain baptism to us.

So let's pray again.

Our Father God, we thank you for your word.

We thank you for the Bible.

We thank you that it is written in our own language and in a way that we understand.

But most of all, we thank you that this is the way in which you, the creator God, speaks to us.

This is your word to us.

And so we pray for the help of your Holy Spirit to understand that, not just with our heads,

but that it would change our hearts and change our lives.

So that we too understand what it is to follow Jesus and to make him the most important person in our whole life.

So help us now, we pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, the other day when I went to collect this portable poo over here for today's baptism,

I was loading it into the boot of the car because it all breaks down very neatly.

And this man was walking by and he stopped and he asked me,

what is it?

So I began to explain what it was and was trying to explain baptism.

And this is what he says, oh, it's a jacuzzi.

Well, I hope I do a much better explanation this morning than what I was obviously making then.

And he started to make some joke about making lots of bubbles.

Well, in case you think Alex is going to be coming up and having a jacuzzi while we all watch,

let me explain.

Again, baptism is all about a person, Jesus Christ.

In the book of Acts, which we just had read to us,

the whole book is actually a story about the good news of Jesus

and how it begins to spread all the way across the world to all kinds of people in all kinds of places.

And as people hear the good news about Jesus,

as they hear, in response, people get baptised.

So in chapter 2, verse 41, of what we just had read,

look at what it says there.

Those who accepted his message, that's the message of Jesus Christ, were baptised.

So they heard and they were baptised.

Or let me give you another example.

You can flick on a couple of pages to Acts chapter 8.

Acts 8 · chapter mention

So keep going in your Bible until you see a big number 8 on your page

and then find a smaller number which says 35.

So Acts 8, verse 35.

Acts 8:35

This is a different person speaking.

This person is called Philip and he's speaking about Jesus to a very wealthy and important man

from Ethiopia.

And he's been reading the Bible and then, verse 35, it says,

Philip began with that very passage of scripture

and told him the good news about Jesus.

And as they travelled along the roads,

they came to some water

and the eunuch said,

Look, here's water.

Why shouldn't I be baptised?

And he gave the orders to stop the chariot.

And then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water

and Philip baptised him.

So they heard the good news about Jesus

and they were baptised.

Now although Alex is going to be getting baptised very shortly,

it's actually not about him.

It's all about Jesus Christ.

In fact, baptism is a wonderful picture

about the good news of Jesus Christ.

It pictures two things.

First, believing in Jesus.

It's a picture of believing in Jesus.

Now when we talk about believing in Jesus,

we don't just mean we believe that Jesus exists.

If we were to do a survey,

lots of people would say,

Yeah, I believe Jesus exists.

It's actually about entrusting your whole life to Jesus.

So let me give you an example.

If your house was on fire

and you were up at the top window

shouting for help

and the fire brigade arrives

and the fireman comes along

and he puts up his ladder

and he climbs up

and there he is right beside you at the window,

it's no good at that point saying,

Oh, I believe in firemen

and telling all the rest of the people,

Look, a fireman!

I believe in firemen.

No, if you really believe in firemen,

you'll jump into his arms

and let him rescue you

or jump onto his shoulder

or whatever you want to do.

But you will entrust your life to him.

And in the same way,

if we believe in Jesus,

that means we entrust our whole life to him

to rescue us.

And that's essentially what this passage in Acts chapter 2 is about.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

Let me explain.

Look at verse 37,

the first part of our reading.

Acts chapter 2, verse 37.

Acts 2:37

Sorry, you need to go back there

and we'll stay in Acts chapter 2.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

Acts chapter 2, verse 37.

Acts 2:37

It says there right at the beginning,

When the people heard this,

well, what have they just heard?

When they heard this,

what have they just been hearing about?

Well, Peter is the speaker

and he's been telling them

all about the good news of Jesus.

And it starts back in verse 22.

So have a look at verse 22.

Peter began to explain who Jesus is.

Men of Israel, he said,

listen to this.

And we need to listen too.

Jesus of Nazareth was a man

accredited by God to you by miracles,

wonders and signs

which God did among you through him

as you yourselves know.

You see, when Jesus came onto this earth,

when he lived his life on this planet,

he did many miracles and wonders.

We may have read about it

or heard about it.

By a simple word,

by just speaking,

he calmed a storm.

By a simple word,

he silenced demons

and he controlled evil.

And by a touch of his hand,

he healed people.

And by a touch of his hand,

he could even raise the dead.

And all of these amazing miracles and wonders,

look at verse 22,

were signs.

These signs,

these miracles,

were pointing

to who Jesus is.

You see,

Jesus was doing

what only God could do.

Only God

could calm the storms.

Only God

could raise the dead.

So here was Jesus,

God,

in human form,

walking on the earth,

a person just like you and me,

controlling the world

and controlling

all that was wrong

and putting it right.

And he was showing everybody

who he was.

That he was God

come down to earth.

But look what happened

to this Jesus

in verse 23.

Let's read verse 23.

This man,

this Jesus,

was handed over to you

by God's set purpose

and foreknowledge

and you,

with the help of wicked men,

put him to death

by nailing him to the cross.

Incredible, isn't it?

He was going around

healing people,

raising the dead,

calming storms,

silencing demons

and then people

put him to death.

He was a man

who had done nothing wrong.

No fault

could be found in him.

He was perfect

without sin.

But yet,

he was put to death

and verse 23 tells us

they nailed him

to the cross.

Why?

Why would they do this

to this man,

Jesus?

Well,

look at verse 23

at the very beginning.

It tells us

that Jesus' death

was actually

part

of God's plan.

It wasn't an accident.

It wasn't a mistake.

But it was all part

of God's perfect plan.

But what does

his death mean?

Why did he have to die?

Well,

listen to this.

This is the way

Alex puts it

in his story.

You can read it

afterwards

in the middle pages.

This is what Alex says.

The death of Jesus

wasn't just

an ordinary death.

Unlike most deaths,

it was a good thing

because it was for us

so that we could have

eternal life.

You see,

Jesus' death

on the cross

was God's means

of dealing with

the problem

of sin.

Let me try

and explain that

to us

a little bit better.

I've got a CD here

or a DVD

if you like.

And I want you

to imagine

that this is

a record

of your life

up to this

very point.

So that means,

Alex,

everything

you've ever said

or anything

that we've ever said

is on here,

public or private.

It's been recorded

and it's on here.

Everything

that you've ever done

has been videoed,

public or private.

And it's all on here

to watch.

Everything.

But not just

everything you've said

or everything you've done,

everything you've thought.

So this is a very clever CD

or DVD.

It knows your mind

and it's got

every single thought

recorded here.

Now,

who of us

would like

our life

uploaded

onto YouTube

or published

on Facebook?

Would you?

I'd like

some parts

of my life

on YouTube

but there's

an awful lot

that I would not

want anybody

to know about.

And I think

Ewan

would be

exactly

the same.

You see,

every one of us

has things in our life

that we're deeply ashamed of,

embarrassed about,

things we do wrong,

things we say wrong,

things we think

that are wrong.

And the problem

with that is,

we call it sin,

is it acts as a barrier.

So if God is there

and we are here,

it's a barrier.

It cuts in the way

of a relationship

with God.

We cannot enjoy God.

We cannot know God.

We cannot love God

as we ought to.

So why did Jesus die?

Well,

when Jesus came,

he was perfect,

wasn't he?

And he takes

my record

and your record

of your life

and he takes it

on himself,

all the bad things

that we've ever done

and Jesus

is punished.

He takes the blame

for all the wrong things

we have ever done.

That's why he died

on the cross.

But not only that,

listen to this,

it gets even better.

Jesus doesn't just

take our record.

I want you to change

this around now.

Imagine this is

the record of Jesus.

His perfect,

pure,

good life.

Nothing wrong.

Sinless,

perfect in every way.

That record

is now given to us.

So when God

looks at us,

he doesn't see our life,

he actually sees

the life of Jesus.

The record of Jesus

is given

to us.

Listen to how Alex

puts it

in his story again.

He says this,

Jesus died for us.

He died to take away

our sins

so that we could

have eternal life.

Jesus died for all

the sins I committed

in the past

and all the sins

I'm going to commit

or continue to commit.

He took the blame

for all the wrong things

I have done.

Without him doing so,

there would be no one

to take away my sins

so I would have

no chance

of getting into heaven.

Isn't that incredible?

What a wonderful story

to be able to tell.

That's why Jesus

is the most important person

to Alex's life.

But Jesus didn't just

stay dead, did he?

Thankfully,

look at verse 24.

God raised him

from the dead,

freeing him

from the agony

of death

because

it was impossible

for death

to keep its hold

on him.

Jesus did die

but God raised him

from the dead.

Now this is meant

to be a time

of celebration

and we don't really

want to be talking

about death,

do we?

Because death means

the end of relationships.

It means

separation

from those

we love the most,

sadness,

heartache

and pain.

And we can find

a cure

for most things

in life,

for most illnesses

and diseases,

we can find a cure

but nobody

has ever come up

with a cure

for death.

Except

when Jesus

rose from the grave

he defeated

death.

He destroyed

death.

He beat it.

Or as it says

in verse 24,

it was impossible

for death

to keep its hold

on him.

He broke out

of its chains.

He defeated it.

And he offers

that to us.

So here we have

this wonderful picture,

this wonderful story

of Jesus

who comes to us,

the God-man,

to defeat

or to deal

with our sin

by dying on the cross

and to defeat

death for us

by rising again

from the grave.

Now that is

good news.

But what do we do

with this good news?

Is it just information

for our heads

and go,

hey, that was a nice story

that I heard

on Sunday morning?

No, it requires

a response.

Look at verse 37

of Acts chapter 2.

Acts 2 · chapter mention

When the people

heard this,

so when they heard

this good news

about Jesus,

his life,

his death,

his resurrection,

they were cut

to the heart.

They were deeply

affected in their lives

and they said

to Peter

and the other apostles,

brothers,

what shall we do?

And Peter replied,

repent

and be baptized

every one of you

in the name

of Jesus Christ

for the forgiveness

of your sins

and you will receive

the gift

of the Holy Spirit.

it.

So, in response,

there's two things.

Repent

and be baptized.

Now, repentance,

a religious word,

but it's a double action.

It means two things.

It means

turning away

from something

or someone,

turning away

from believing

in yourself

and turning

to believe

and entrust

your life

to Jesus.

I don't know

if you know

that Alex

is presently

learning to drive.

I think he reckons

himself to be

a good driver.

And for Alex,

he's,

well,

he can't just

have an ordinary car.

He's got to have

a BMW E30.

If you don't know

what that is,

it's one of those

old models

with the square back

and those square lights

and maybe a flat top

as well.

Yeah, yeah,

you'd like that.

Okay.

Now, imagine Alex

has just passed his test

and he's driving

along down the road

elbow out the window.

You know how it is.

And he realises

he's gone the wrong way.

So he throws it

into reverse,

tears backward,

pulls up the handbrake,

does a 180 degree

turn.

Don't worry,

mum and dad,

he won't do that.

Just an illustration.

And he drives off

down the road

in the opposite direction

to what he was going.

That's what repentance is.

It's a sudden

and radical change

in direction.

The conscious moment of

I'm going in the wrong direction,

I need to turn around

and go in the right direction.

So you turn around

and you believe,

you entrust your life

to Jesus.

No longer do we believe

in our own ability

to deal with sin and death.

Instead,

we throw ourselves,

we entrust our life

to Jesus

who deals

with the punishment

that we deserve.

He takes the blame

for the record

of our wrong

and he destroys death

that we can never defeat

on our own.

So in response,

we repent,

we say sorry,

we entrust our life

to Jesus.

But it also says,

doesn't it,

in verse 37,

repent and

be baptised.

Now baptism

is very simply

a visible demonstration

of believing in Jesus.

It's a big,

big picture

of what it is

to trust Jesus.

So when Alex

gets baptised here,

he's going to go down

into the water.

He's going to go

backwards down

into the water.

Which is a picture

of Jesus dying.

So when Alex

gets baptised

and he goes down

under the water,

Alex is in effect

as saying,

you know what?

Jesus died for me.

And when Jesus died,

he was dying

in my place,

for me.

And I am accepting

Jesus' death

on my behalf.

And then,

of course,

we will bring him up again.

He doesn't have to hold

his breath for too long.

But he's going to come up

out of the water,

which is a picture

of resurrection.

Jesus was raised

for me.

And Alex is saying

at that moment,

when I come out

of the water,

I'm saying that

Jesus defeated death

for me in my place.

I can never do it,

but I am trusting

Jesus with my life

so that when I die,

I will just rise

and live with him

for all eternity.

So the act of baptism

is this wonderful picture

of believing in Jesus.

And then second,

and this is going

to be quick,

baptism is a picture

not just of believing

in Jesus,

but belonging to Jesus.

Because we all want

to belong,

don't we?

Nobody wants to be

left out and to be

Norman no-mates.

Most of us long

for a real community.

I hope there's no

Normans here,

by the way,

and that you have

got friends.

But we all want

relationships,

don't we?

We want that support

and encouragement,

a place where we're safe

and have that sense

of belonging.

And we don't want

to be left out.

So when we believe

in Jesus,

we also belong

to Jesus.

We become part

of his family,

where we're welcomed

into the family

of Jesus.

We can call Jesus

our brother

and God our Father.

We won't ever

be left out.

Look at verse 40.

With many other words,

he warned them

and he pleaded with them,

save yourselves

from this corrupt

generation.

Now, they're very

strong words

to be saying

save yourself

from this corrupt

generation.

Well, basically

what he's saying

is this.

He's saying

leave your old

way of life,

a life without

Jesus,

and now devote

yourself to your

new way of life,

a life in the

family of Jesus.

So you're leaving

your old life

and you're now

joining the family

of Jesus.

Now, when we join

the family of Jesus,

we're joining those

who also believe

in Jesus,

which is what we

call church.

Joining the family

of Jesus is becoming

part of the family

of Jesus,

people who trust

him.

So look at verse

44.

We didn't read this,

but I think it's

helpful just to read it.

In verse 44,

this is what it

says here.

All the believers,

so all those who

have entrusted

their life to Jesus,

all of them

were together

and they had

everything in common.

They shared

their life together.

Selling their

possessions and

goods,

they gave to

anyone as he

had need.

So those who

had extra

were able to

give to those

who didn't have.

And they made

sure that nobody

was left

on their own.

Verse 46,

every day they

continued to meet

together in the

temple courts.

They would eat

bread,

they would just

simply have meals

together in their

homes,

eating together

with glad and

sincere hearts.

You see,

they would,

just like we're

doing now,

they would meet

together to read

the Bible and pray

and talk about

Jesus.

They would look

after each other's

needs in a

practical way.

They would care

for one another.

And for many

people,

church is just

boring.

It's that kind

of little slot

on a Sunday

morning when I

want to be in

bed and do my

own thing and

get up at kind

of two o'clock

and play games

or whatever we

do.

But church isn't

just about a

meeting on a

Sunday morning,

it's 24-7.

It's all about

people who believe

in Jesus and

belong to Jesus.

It's about a

family that cares

and supports.

And so Alex

is saying,

I belong to

the family of

Jesus.

In fact,

listen to what

he says in

his story.

He says,

the good thing

about being a

Christian is that

you know you're

going to heaven.

I wonder if you

could say that,

that you know

you're going to

heaven.

Where there's

eternal life with

all the other

believers.

So that's

something to

look forward to.

But what about

now?

He says this,

another good thing

about being a

Christian is that

you get to meet,

to be with

the other

believers.

You see,

church is all

about people who

believe in Jesus

and belong to

Jesus and who

share this life

of Jesus

together.

Now the question

is, how do

people know

that you belong

to Jesus?

Well, they were

baptised.

That's how people

knew.

So in verse

41, this is

where we started.

Those who

accepted his

message were

baptised.

And about

3,000, only

one is getting

baptised today,

but there were

3,000 on that

day.

3,000 and

they were added.

They joined.

They became

part of the

family of

Jesus.

So when Alex

is getting

baptised, he's

not just saying

I believe in

Jesus and

this is some

kind of little

private thing

that I'm doing

all on my

own.

He's saying,

no, this is

something public.

I'm joining.

The family

of Jesus.

So,

where does

that leave

us all?

Well, Alex

has found

out who

Jesus is.

He believes

in Jesus.

He knows

he belongs

to Jesus.

And he's

going to get

baptised.

But what

about you

and me?

Is this just

for Alex?

Or is this

for you and

me as well?

Well, look

at verse 39.

The promise,

he says,

this promise

of forgiveness,

the promise

of the Holy

Spirit,

is for you

and for all

your children

and for all

who are far

off, for all

whom the Lord

our God

will call.

You see,

this isn't

just about

Alex.

This is

something for

everybody,

for you

and for

me.

And it

requires all

of us to

respond.

So I want

to leave us

with this

question.

What is

your response?

We know

what Alex's

response is,

but what's

your response

to this good

news about

Jesus?

Will you

believe in

your own

ability to

deal with

your own

sin and

death?

Will you

present your

record to

Jesus and

go,

right,

I've done

a good way

of excusing

everything so

far in my

life.

I think I'll

kind of

excuse most

things with

God.

Will you

trust him

with just

your life,

your record?

Or will you

present the

record of

Jesus as

being perfect

for you?

Will you

entrust

yourself to

Jesus who

deals with

death?

Have you

found a

cure for

death?

The only

cure for

death is

Jesus who

rose again

from the

grave.

Do you

believe?

And do

you belong

to the

family of

Jesus?

We must

answer that

question,

each one

of us.

Alex has

responded with

a big yes

to all of

those.

I hope

you do

too.

Let's

pray.

Father, we

thank you

for the

good news

of Jesus.

Thank you

that he

died.

Thank you

that he

rose again

from the

grave.

We thank

you for

Alex's

clear and

sure

testimony

of his

believing in

Jesus,

entrusting

his whole

life to

him,

and his

trusting in

the resurrection

of Jesus

that he

will live

with him

forever.

Please help

us to

understand what

we have

heard,

and please

help us if

we are not

yet believing

in him,

to believe in

him,

and if we

are,

that we would

go on trusting

in him all

our lives.

Amen.

Before we

do baptise

Alex,

we're going

to sing

one last

song.

When I

was lost,

you came

and rescued

me.

Reach

down.

This is

Jesus who

came down

to reach

down to

us so

that we

could belong

to him.

Look at

those words

there.

You know

all the

things I've

ever done,

but Jesus'

blood,

that's a

reference to

his death,

has cancelled

everyone if

we believe

in him.

Let's

stand

together.

As we

sing this

song.

song.

When I

was lost,

you came

and rescued

me.

Reached

down into

the pit

and lifted

me.

Oh,

Lord,

such love,

I was as

far from

you as

I could

be.

You know

all the

things I've

ever done,

Jesus' blood

has cancelled

everyone.

Oh,

Lord,

such grace

to qualify

me as

your own.

There is a

new song

in my mouth,

there is a

deep cry

in my heart,

a hymn of

praise.

to almighty

God,

hallelujah.

And now

I stand

firm

on this

rock,

my life

is hidden

now,

with Christ

in God,

the old

has gone,

and the new

has come,

hallelujah.

Your love

has lifted me.

me.

Now I

come into

your family,

for the

Son of God

has died

for me.

Oh,

Lord,

such peace

I am as

loved by

you as

I could

be.

In the

full assurance

of your

love,

now with

every

confidence

we come.

Oh,

Lord,

such joy

to know

that you

delight

in me.

There is a

new

song

in my

mouth,

there is a

deep

cry,

in my

heart,

a hymn

of praise

to

almighty

God,

hallelujah.

And now

I stand

firm

on this

rock,

my life

is hidden

now,

with Christ

in God,

the old

has gone,

and the new

has come,

hallelujah.

Your love

has lifted me.

Many

are the

wonders

you have

done,

many

other

things

that you

have

planned,

beautiful

the grace

that you

give to

us,

all that

we don't

deserve,

all that

we cannot

earn,

but it's a

gift of

love,

your love

has lifted

me.

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

love,

there is a

new

song in

my mouth,

there is a

deep

cry in

my heart,

a hymn

of praise

to almighty

God,

hallelujah.

And now

I stand

firm

on this

rock,

my life

is hidden

now,

with Christ

in God

the old

has gone,

and the new

has come,

hallelujah,

your love

has lifted

me.

please do

take your

seats,

I'm going

to ask

Alex to

come up,

and Rob,

Rob,

Rob isn't

getting

baptized,

he's just

the unpaid

dunker.

Is it

cold?

Yes,

we want

it to be

memorable.

We're going

to come in

and join

you in

just a

minute,

Alex,

but just

to let

people know,

well,

if you can't

see and you

want to see,

you can stand

up at the

back or

gather around,

that's fine.

this water

is just

ordinary

water,

a little

bit of

hoss,

just a

teeny

weeny

bit.

It's not

going to

change

Alex's

life,

the water

itself,

I'm not

going to

pray over

it,

it's not

magical

in any

shape or

form,

it is

simply

a symbol,

a picture

of Alex's

belief,

and his

entrusting

himself to

Jesus,

this death,

this

resurrection,

and he

has come

to see that

Jesus is

the most

important

person in

his life.

So,

Alex,

I'm just

going to

ask you

two questions

and then

we're going

to jump

in there

and baptise

you.

So,

here we

go.

Do you

believe

that Jesus

died for

you and

rose again

from the

grave for

you so

that you

might belong

to Jesus

now and

for all

eternity?

Yes,

I do.

And do

you promise

with the

help of

the Holy

Spirit to

serve

God

in the

family of

Jesus,

that is

the

church,

and in

the

world,

now and

for so

long as

you live.

Yes.

Okay.

Alex, on your confession that you trust the Lord Jesus Christ

with all of your life, we now baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and

of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Well, we're going to continue the celebration and have tea and coffee and there'll be some

food served from the hatch. Before we do, we're going to pray. And so let me just pray

for us all right now. Let's pray together.

Father God, we thank you so much for today. We thank you so much for the story of Alex,

for his life. We thank you so much for his family. Thank you for his testimony that he

follows you and loves you. We pray that you will strengthen him all of his days as he

seeks to walk with you and to live for you. Thank you for the food and the drink that

we're going to enjoy together. We thank you for your many gifts. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.