The Importance of Ordinances - NCC 44

Good evening and welcome back to Fellowship.

We’ve been going through 52 Q&As compiled into the New City Catechism.

And tonight we are looking at the importance of Ordinances.

A little history:

7 sacraments in Catholic Theology

Baptism – cleansed from original sin – caused regeneration – encorporated

Confirmation

Eucharist (Lord’s Table)

Penance (Reconciliation)

Anointing of the sick

Holy Orders (giving grace to men who would be priests of the church)

Matrimony (Marriage)

Reformers went from 7 to 2

Baptism (Matthew 28:19-20)

Lord’s Table (Matthew 26:26-29)

Sacraments don’t infuse grace – it is in accordance with the Word of God – appropriated by faith!

THe term Ordinance was used instead of sacrament

Disavow Catholicism

To show it ordained by Jesus

These are Tangible signs of invisible grace

Which brings us to the first question of the night:

Question 43 What are the sacraments or ordinances?

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

Look with me tonight at Matthew 26 and Matthew 28

Question 44 What is baptism?

Baptism is the washing with water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

it signifies and seals our adoption into Christ, our cleansing from sin, and our commitment to belong to the Lord and to his church.

several New Testament meanings

as baptism is in “the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19), this act associates the new Christian with the triune God

Baptism into the Triune God has much significance

Associating with the one true living God…

baptism by immersion vividly portrays identification with the major events—the death, burial, and resurrection—of Jesus Christ (Rom. 6:3-5; cf. Gal. 3:26-28)

another meaning of baptism is cleansing from sin (Acts 22:16; 2:38)

escape from divine judgment is another meaning of baptism (1 Pet. 3:20-21)

Matthew 28:18–20 NKJV

18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Here we find what is called the Great Commission of Christ - with the primary imperative being “Make Disciples”

Then the Greek participles (translated go, baptizing, and “teaching” [v. 20]) describe aspects of the process.

The ESV Study Bible Chapter 28

all nations. Jesus’ ministry in Israel was to be the beginning point of what would later be a proclamation of the gospel to all the peoples of the earth, including not only Jews but also Gentiles. The name (singular, not plural) of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is an early indication of the Trinitarian Godhead and an overt proclamation of Jesus’ deity.

Question 45 Is baptism with water the washing away of sin itself?

No, only the blood of Christ can cleanse us from sin.

Baptism doesn’t wash away sin, it pictures the washing that Christ accomplished with His blood.

Collin Hanson wrote:

Every time I remember my baptism, I hear these words of blessing. Jesus was plunged beneath the waters of judgment, so that I might drink the waters of everlasting life. Because Jesus calls me brother, I can call God my Father. Because the Spirit descended on him as a dove, I have peace with God, who once regarded me as his enemy.

Once I was outside the people of God, estranged from this family due to my sin. But now I am a brother to all who have been likewise baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The church is our home, the place where, despite our disagreements and disputes, we come together to confess that we have one Lord and one faith (Eph. 4:5). To us has been given the Great Commission to follow in John’s footsteps and call others to repentance while we point them to Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). We baptize so they might always know that God loves them, that he is well pleased with them because they now belong to Christ.

We hold to two ordinances - baptism - immersion in water signifying the death burial and resurrection of Christ - the initiatory ritual that signifies also our entrance into the faith community of the body of Christ

But also, we believe Christ ordained the Lord’s Supper

Question 46 What is the Lord’s Supper?

Christ commanded all Christians to eat bread and to drink from the cup in thankful remembrance of him.

Matthew 26:26–29 NKJV

26 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” 27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

Ligon Duncan

The Lord’s Supper is a covenant sign and seal. That means that it both represents and confirms to us the precious promise of God that, through Jesus Christ, he will be our God, and we are his people. In the Lord’s Supper we have a remembrance, a celebration of God’s presence, and an experience of communion. We also have something that nourishes us, and in the Lord’s Supper, we anticipate the glory to come.

Question 47 Does the Lord’s Supper add anything to Christ’s atoning work?

No, Christ died once for all.