Baptism: Prayer & Preparation
Response to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
A. Background & Comments:
• Last Sunday Pastor Mike led us in consideration of what it means, in part, to be baptized. He helped us see that identifying with Jesus Christ is a very important part of this act. Today, we hope to add to what Mike has presented – so well – to us!
• First, however, to bring clarity, there are a few pre-suppositions we bring to this topic:
- Baptism is normative for people confessing faith;
- Baptismal mode is a secondary issue;
- Baptism is an age-of-consent matter.
- Baptism is the most appropriate response to the resurrection of Jesus Christ: identifying with, obeying & representingJesus Christ your Savior.
B. Main Thought:
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- This passage teaches us that faith in Jesus Christ is recognizable because we accept the call to declare publicly that we are followers of Jesus Christ.
If you are considering baptism as a step in your life, then you need to understand that…
I. Baptismal Commitment Flows From Experience of Faith & Forgiveness (vs. 8)
“The word… is in your mouth and in your heart…”
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- The Apostle Paul refers back to an OT verse (Deut. 30:12) to describe the conditions for the salvation of an individual. Even in the OT, the need for a personal faith experience of God’s forgiveness was foundational!
- The Bible uses various terms to describe this experience of inner belief & forgiveness: the most common in the NT are “born again”, “saved” & “justified”.
- Lets be honest about this: there are many people who – while professing faith / undergoing baptism / being church members – have never truly known what it is to be forgiven! It is the essential difference between shallow religion & real relationship.
II. Baptismal Commitment Accompanies
Words of Faith (vs. 9a)
“… if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord’… then you will be saved.”
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- It seems rather simplistic to suggest that words of confession are part of coming into meaningful faith, but consider the cost for the Roman Christians to “come out of the closet”. To actually confess faith in Christ & be baptized meant a sure & certain trip to the gallows.
- Around the world today – in many places – this dynamic has not changed: these words of confession, in other geographical contexts, show that you mean it & that Jesus Christ is the very center of your life!
III. Baptismal Commitment Centers Upon Resurrection Faith (vs. 9b-10)
“… believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead…”
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- In order to become a Christian – having confessed your sinful condition & Jesus Christ as the Son of God – you need to accept & adopt his resurrection from the dead: you must believe in the “right” Christ.
- Jesus Christ the nice guy, the good teacher, the prophet, the doer of good are all poor substitutes for the real Jesus: alive, risen from the dead. See I Cor. 15:55-57.
- If you do not believe the resurrection as a real, bodily, statement of fact then you should never submit yourself to the act of baptism. If you do, it will only prove that your life & values are based upon what you think is a myth.
Implications for Life
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- Wait a minute! This passage does not once mention the word “baptism”… what’s up with that? Good question: throughout the New Testament the concept/behavior of baptism is the next, natural, hand-in-hand response to public confession of faith. See the Philippian Jailer (Acts 16:25-33) & the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:26-40) as examples.
