Adam's Baptism Service

Baptism is about what God has done, not what we are qualified to do.

We respond to the gospel with repentance and faith - which is what we mean by the word ‘conversion’. Conversion need not be a sudden act, but rather a lifelong process of surrendering, grace, and returning to Jesus. For Josephine, baptism is the first step in her journey into the Christian faith, where she will be spiritually formed and matured by the practices, prayers, and people of the church.

Baptism is not just about one person and their God but about a person surrounded by their family and the church in the context of God’s grace.

In bringing our children to church for baptism, we are following in the path that God set be for His people when God first established a covenant with Abraham. God made a legal obligation to be faithful to His promise to Abraham and his descendants and gave Abraham the ritual of circumcision to be a sign of that promise. And that sign was to be passed down to Abraham’s children, and his grandchildren, and his grandchildren were to pass it down to their children. Why? Because throughout the Old Testament, covenant formation is a family affair. Abraham’s faith meant that he would usher his children into the faith through circumcision and example, instruction, and ritual.

At the core of the biblical story is the family. Abraham and Sarah with their children; Moses instructed Israel through its family leaders; it was the family that was to celebrate the various feasts and festivals together; Joseph, Mary, and Jesus with his brothers and sisters. Paul applies his gospel message by instructing Christians how to live as family - fathers, mothers, children. Family-centered faith was the plan of God from the beginning.