We have been taught by others that baptism is a public expression of our salvation experience. The problem is I can't find one Scripture that says exactly that.
The account of the Eunich who stopped along the road, tells us that there were no crowds mentioned, or the necessity of them.
So the question remains, is baptism purposefully a public expression of our faith? Or perhaps it is for another reason that we are baptised beyond just others watching.
Matthew 3:13-17 “Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Mark 1:9-11 “And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him: And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
Luke 3:21, 22 “Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.”
John 1:29-33 “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water. And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.”
Matthew 28:19, 20 “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
Mark 1:4, 5 “John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.”
Acts 2:38 “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
Acts 8:35-38 “Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.”
Acts 16:31, 33 “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.”
Romans 6:3-6 “Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.”
1 Corinthians 12:13 “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”
Galatians 3:27 “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
1 Peter 3:21 “The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:”
Monday, December 1, 2014
Violating and Presuming, Our Enemies!
If we are violating God's principles as outlined in the Word of God, then God never told us to do that thing. Simple!
If we have presumed upon God, done things our own way, leaving Him out of the equation, He will not bless it. Also Simple!
If we have presumed upon God, done things our own way, leaving Him out of the equation, He will not bless it. Also Simple!
Brown Vs. Wilson
When we ignore God and His principles, He may bring terrible times to our life in order to get our attention.
While I believe the Brown family, in the recent shooting incident, is unjust in their lawsuit against an officer who just did his job and was tested in the system and found innocent of wrong doing, he was not living morally, according to one testimony and does not know the Lord.
God can use unjust and wicked people to bring trouble on those He wishes to reach. Perhaps we should pray that both the Brown family and Officer Wilson will become broken over their sin, brought to their knees in repentance and find the saving grace Christ has to offer.
When we are assessing the injustice in the world, at some point we always have to come back to the fact that God has a purpose in all things, even difficult things.
Romans 2:4
"Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?"
Galatians 3:24
"Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."
Was Officer Wilson any better than the Brown family in God's eyes? The answer is no, even though he did not do wrong in his job in the case of Brown vs Wilson, he has other sin in his life. Chances are good that neither the Browns or Wilson know the Lord.
We do not become born again by our good deeds or lack of bad deeds, we are only born again by trusting Christ. He paid the price for our sin on the cross, all we have to do is believe Him. Then He will send His Holy Spirit to live in us, changing us into a new creation. When He does this we are no longer the person we used to be, but brand new Spirits, although trapped in this body of death.
Romans 3:28 -
"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law."
Romans 4:5
"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness."
Galatians 2:16
"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."
Philippians 3:9
"And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:"
When we become born again by the Holy Spirit of God, He cleanses us, cleaning out all the dross that is trapped in that flesh, showing us areas He needs to change in us through conviction of the Holy Spirit. As we are shown each thing, confessing it will bring healing to our soul and more change in our hearts. Confessing our frailties and obeying God will bring spiritual growth.
Hebrews 12:1-17
"12 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 [a]fixing our eyes on Jesus, the [b]author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary [c]and lose heart.
A Father’s Discipline
4 You have not yet resisted [d]to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; 5 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons,
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
Nor faint when you are reproved by Him;
6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we had [e]earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of [f]spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
12 Therefore, [g]strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.
14 Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; 16 that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears."
Now that the dust is settling over this whole matter of injustice in the Brown vs. Wilson case, we can take a long look at the real issues, that being where the people involved are in the matter of eternity. After all, isn't that what really matters?
This life is a vapor and this earth a stopping place until we go to our eternal home, whether it be to everlasting punishment in hell or to heaven to live forever with our Lord in paradise.
Matthew 4:17 "17 From that time Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Luke 24:40-46
"44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day,"
John 3:1-21
"3 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God."
My prayer for the Browns and Officer Wilson is that when they get to court they are broken in their own hearts over a lifestyle of sin and all would repent and become born again. Perhaps even the judge involved will need to be saved too. It would be a miracle, but God can work in all this mess for His glory. Hallelujah!!
Imagine the mouths that would be shut if God did this miracle in all these people.
May God have the Glory!
While I believe the Brown family, in the recent shooting incident, is unjust in their lawsuit against an officer who just did his job and was tested in the system and found innocent of wrong doing, he was not living morally, according to one testimony and does not know the Lord.
God can use unjust and wicked people to bring trouble on those He wishes to reach. Perhaps we should pray that both the Brown family and Officer Wilson will become broken over their sin, brought to their knees in repentance and find the saving grace Christ has to offer.
When we are assessing the injustice in the world, at some point we always have to come back to the fact that God has a purpose in all things, even difficult things.
Romans 2:4
"Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?"
Galatians 3:24
"Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith."
Was Officer Wilson any better than the Brown family in God's eyes? The answer is no, even though he did not do wrong in his job in the case of Brown vs Wilson, he has other sin in his life. Chances are good that neither the Browns or Wilson know the Lord.
We do not become born again by our good deeds or lack of bad deeds, we are only born again by trusting Christ. He paid the price for our sin on the cross, all we have to do is believe Him. Then He will send His Holy Spirit to live in us, changing us into a new creation. When He does this we are no longer the person we used to be, but brand new Spirits, although trapped in this body of death.
Romans 3:28 -
"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law."
Romans 4:5
"But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness."
Galatians 2:16
"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified."
Philippians 3:9
"And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:"
When we become born again by the Holy Spirit of God, He cleanses us, cleaning out all the dross that is trapped in that flesh, showing us areas He needs to change in us through conviction of the Holy Spirit. As we are shown each thing, confessing it will bring healing to our soul and more change in our hearts. Confessing our frailties and obeying God will bring spiritual growth.
Hebrews 12:1-17
"12 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 [a]fixing our eyes on Jesus, the [b]author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary [c]and lose heart.
A Father’s Discipline
4 You have not yet resisted [d]to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; 5 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons,
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
Nor faint when you are reproved by Him;
6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we had [e]earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of [f]spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.
12 Therefore, [g]strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.
14 Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled; 16 that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears."
Now that the dust is settling over this whole matter of injustice in the Brown vs. Wilson case, we can take a long look at the real issues, that being where the people involved are in the matter of eternity. After all, isn't that what really matters?
This life is a vapor and this earth a stopping place until we go to our eternal home, whether it be to everlasting punishment in hell or to heaven to live forever with our Lord in paradise.
Matthew 4:17 "17 From that time Jesus began to preach and say, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
Luke 24:40-46
"44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day,"
John 3:1-21
"3 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?
11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God."
My prayer for the Browns and Officer Wilson is that when they get to court they are broken in their own hearts over a lifestyle of sin and all would repent and become born again. Perhaps even the judge involved will need to be saved too. It would be a miracle, but God can work in all this mess for His glory. Hallelujah!!
Imagine the mouths that would be shut if God did this miracle in all these people.
May God have the Glory!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)