357. Baptism And New Life (Biblical Worship)

We teach how baptism makes the gospel visible, forms a people, and flows from Christ’s command to make disciples. Scripture, historic voices, and a clear definition show why this church ordinance belongs at the center of gathered worship and mission.

• definition of ordinances as visible words of the gospel
• baptism commanded by Christ in Matthew 28
• believer’s immersion symbolizing death and new life
• Romans 6 and Colossians 2 on union with Christ
• public witness before the gathered church
• historic insights from Calvin and Zwingli
• connection to church membership and the Lord’s Supper
• preaching, baptism, and growth in Acts 2
• call to share the gospel in everyday places

We pray that we can see many, many baptisms in a given year, in a given month, in a given week, and that is connected to us proclaiming the gospel of grace, that we would speak the gospel in our community, in our families, in the places of our work, in our friendship circles, that we would proclaim the gospel for the glory of God, that all might come to faith in Jesus Christ

Transcript

What An Ordinance Is

Baptist Faith And Message On Baptism

Gospel Seen In Baptism

Baptism And The Gathered Church

Invitation To Proclaim And Close

SPEAKER_00 0:07

Hi friends, welcome to Moments of Worship on this Tuesday, February the 24th. This podcast seeks to be an encouragement to you in the worship of Almighty God each weekday. I am Keith McMinn, worship pastor at Bethel Baptist Church in Yorktown, Virginia, and also have the pleasure and honor to lead abiding God.org. Well, as we continue our biblical worship series, we're going to look at one of the ordinances of the church Baptism. First, a definition of what ordinance means. The ordinances are visible words of the gospel instituted by Christ that portray His saving work, strengthen the faith of believers, and proclaim our union with Him in the context of corporate worship. And today we look at baptism. Now the Baptist Faith and Message two thousand, which is the doctrinal statement of the Southern Baptist Convention, states Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer's faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Savior, the believer's death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Jesus Christ. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lord's Supper. Matthew twenty eight, nineteen through twenty says, Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Baptism is a command of the risen Christ, given to his gathered people where the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit is spoken over a believer in the presence of the Church. It is the public declaration of the work of grace in someone's life being raised to life when they were dead in their trespasses and sins. Romans six, three through four declares, Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. In baptism, the gospel is not only heard but seen, buried with Christ, raised with Christ, and walking in newness of life before the eyes of the congregation. The reformer John Calvin wrote that baptism is the sign of initiation by which we are received into the society of the church, in order that, engrafted in Christ we may be reckoned among God's children. It's not a private moment but an entrance into the visible people of God, where the church sees the gospel, rejoices in the gospel, and worships. Colossians two twelve says, Having been buried with him in baptism, in which you are also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead, baptism declares the powerful working of God, not the work of man, but the promise of God received by faith. Acts two forty one tells us so those who received his word and were baptized, and they were added that day about three thousand souls. The preached word, the visible sign, and the gathered people together display the glory of the gospel as the church is built up in worship. Another reformer, Zwingli, wrote, Baptism is a sign of the people of God, by which we are joined together into one church, so that when baptism is observed in the assembly, Christ is confessed publicly, his people are marked out visibly, and his saving work is set before our eyes. And we pray that we can see many, many baptisms in a given year, in a given month, in a given week, and that is connected to us proclaiming the gospel of grace, that we would speak the gospel in our community, in our families, in the places of our work, in our friendship circles, that we would proclaim the gospel for the glory of God, that all might come to faith in Jesus Christ. Well, thank you for joining me on this moments of worship. I look forward to seeing you right back here on Wednesday. Well, until then and forever, may we worship Jesus Christ. Thanks for listening.