A Healthy Church Identifies with Christ

Intro: Where do you accept invites? What are you excited to see? Graduations, Weddings, Great concerts? Big events that only happen once?

Healthy Church Understands Ordinances

-and properly administers them

-instituted by Christ

-to do them, need to know

Who, What, When, Where, Why, How....

BAPTISM

Who - believers

When - after salvation, after trusting Christ

READ: - baptizing those who are disciples

READ: - Philip and Ethiopian

ALREADY saved (“What’s to keep me?”)

FOLLOWS repentance/forgiveness

What/How? - Immerse - that IS the word

-the first step of obedience

-really wet, like totally wet (past story - buckets)

-”under”, “down into” - buried with Christ

READ:

Why? - Jesus says so

-Identify with Christ and salvation

-”coming out” publically - LOOK AT ME, I’M A CHRISTIAN!!

-Identity is huge

Never baptized? If you are saved, you need to do this, and properly identify yourself with Christ - not an option

What it’s NOT

Salvation/forgiveness - not to wash away sin

- Repent and be baptized = “on the basis of forgiveness” be baptized

Forgiveness is the grounds for being baptized

Luke-Acts: forgiveness and repentance are connected

No other Acts passages even hint at baptism being forgiveness, the forgiveness has already occurred

SO: REPENTANCE brings…Forgiveness…Holy Spirit…Baptism

- Paul’s priority is preaching Christ, not arguing about who baptized who

(also not) To Get Holy Spirit - not for infants, children, or even adults who do not understand the Gospel

Others teach:

OT - water = baptism (Red Sea, water from rock, Flood)

- water was the judgment

faith saved Noah

“Water and Spirit” - phys and spiritual birth

SUMMARY - outward expression of faith, immersion, and part of healthy church membership

Not a separate requirement, checklist for membership, but this is HOW SOMEONE PUBLICALLY PROFESSES FAITH - FAITH GOES PUBLIC!

(Sports jersey)

COMMUNION/LORD’S SUPPER

Who - believers

When - after salvation

- we rehearse this every time

WHO and WHEN make sense when we realize we are told to remember what He’s done

Why - Jesus said so

Identify with salvation already have, already trusted Christ

Done properly, it reflects salvation, repentance

Recognize Christ’s death, proclaim it, and remember our own death to self

JUST LIKE BAPTISM

Unity - Believers are to share a common bond - Christ

(some churches restrict this to membership - too narrow?)

it should ALWAYS be for believers to come together, professing Christians

not to go through the motions and look important ()

Come remember what Christ did, and proclaim that He is returning

When - “as often as you do this”

weekly? - too much ritual?

monthly? - routine, maybe good?

annually? - to infrequently

What it’s NOT

Forgiveness of sin (sacramental grace)

This IS my body, blood - representative

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN BAPTISM & COMMUNION

Exist to join a believer to the church (BAPTISM)

Exits to join the church together as one body (COMMUNION)

BOTH: To mark off people for the world - (CULTURE SHOCK)

POINT: Church is not at liberty to determine what these ordinances mean

(We can choose some details of how we get them done)

The church baptizes (individual gets baptized)

The church communes (individual examines self)

THESE ARE NOT TO BE PRIVATE

Proper membership requires proper use of ordinances

ASSUMPTIONS

Not saved? Then not baptized yet, and not taking communion

Saved? Not baptized yet? Let’s get it scheduled, and then let’s get you communing with us

Desire is to be baptized, commune, and join the celebration, and rejoice in obedience!

CHALLENGE (Bulletin Q’s)

Why don’t we stick around when someone gets baptized?

Really

Don’t get it?

Don’t care

CLOSE

A healthy church is full of saved baptized members who come together to celebrate with communion. We neither take these ordinances lightly, nor do we misuse them. People need to properly respond to the commands for these ordinances. A healthy church understands Scripture and teaches the principles of these ordinances. If they are not taken seriously, we make them a mockery. If we have questions about them, but never ask, we improperly administer them. When we hear the Spirit tell us to wait, to examine ourselves, or to obey and be faithful, but we don’t, out of fear of “looking or being different,” we fail to follow Christ.