(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

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Matthew Chapter 3. If you do not have a Bible, just raise your hand and an usher will bring you one. Matthew Chapter 3. We will read the entire chapter as our custom. Matthew Chapter 3. Just keep your hands up and an usher will bring you a Bible. Matthew Chapter 3. The Bible reads, in those days came John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, repent ye for the kingdom of heaven is at hand for this is he that was spoken of by the prophet of Zias saying, the voice of one crying in the wilderness prepare ye the way of the Lord make his paths straight and the same John had his raiment of camel's hair and a leather gurn about his loins and his meat was locusts and wild honey then went out him Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region round about Jordan and were baptized of him in Jordan confessing their sins but when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism he said unto them Oh generation of vipers who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance and think not to say within yourselves we have Abraham to our father for I say unto you that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham and now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance but he that cometh after me is mightier than I whose shoes I am not worthy to bear he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire whose fan is in his hand and he will thoroughly purge his floor and gather his wheat into the garner but he will burn up the shaft with unquenchable fire then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John to be baptized of him but John forbade 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 become with us to fulfill all righteousness then he suffered him and Jesus when he was baptized went up straight way 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 let's pray Almighty God thank you for this church and thank you for this time this morning please bless pastor please let the sermon glorify and bring honor to you in the name of Jesus Christ I pray amen amen all right we were there in Matthew chapter number three and if you look down at verse number 16 we see of course a very well-known passage and we see the baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ Matthew chapter 3 in verse 16 the Bible says in Jesus when he was baptized went up straight way 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 and today's sermon is going to be a comprehensive study on the subject of baptism and we're gonna learn everything you need to know about baptism and we're gonna answer the who what when why and how of baptism baptism is an extremely important doctrine it's an extremely important subject it is a subject that is often misunderstood and it's important because of the fact that baptism is the next step for a believer after salvation and it is the first step for a believer after salvation it is the first step in the process that comes after salvation or that that should come after salvation the process of discipleship and if somebody does not ever get baptized after salvation then they're already off to a bad start they're already in disobedience to the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ so baptism is extremely important something that we need to understand I'd like to give you five thoughts this morning on the subject of baptism and if you're taking notes and I always encourage you to take notes on the back your course week courses place we write down some of these things and maybe you can jot these things down number one I'd like to begin with the purpose of baptism the purpose of baptism and this is the why the why of baptism why does somebody need to get baptized now we already saw in Matthew chapter 3 and verses 16 and 17 that the Lord Jesus Christ himself was baptized and of course Jesus was baptized as an example for us we are to be followers of the Lord Jesus Christ and we are to follow in believers baptism now you're there in Matthew chapter 3 keep your place there we're gonna come back to it but go with me if you would to the book of Romans Romans chapter number six Romans chapter number six and look down at verse number three so what is the purpose of baptism why does somebody need to be baptized and the first reason is because baptism the purpose of baptism is to identify you with Christ it's to be identified with the Lord Jesus Christ like we've already mentioned we saw that the Lord himself was baptized as an example for us to follow in Romans chapter number six and verse number three I'd like you to notice these verses with regards to baptism Romans chapter number six and verse three the Bible says this know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death I want you to notice here what the Bible is saying 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 should walk in newness of life I feel like Mike's a little echoey or if you could help me with that brother Oliver if you could help me with that I'd appreciate it I want you to notice here in Romans 6 3 that the Bible says that we were baptized when somebody's baptized they are baptized into Jesus Christ they were baptized into his death verse 4 we are buried with him by baptism into death and what baptism does is that it identifies us with the Lord Jesus Christ it is a something we do that allows us to be identified with him and identifies us with the death and the burial and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ and the reason that we want to get baptized is because of that identity throughout the years I've used several illustrations to teach people about the subject of baptism and one of the illustrations that I like to use is that baptism the purpose of baptism it is an external thing that we do in order to show what happened in our internal spirit what happened in our heart when you got saved you believed on the death burial resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ that's what the gospel is and when we get baptized that is something we do externally to show what happened to us internally oftentimes I'll use the illustration of a wedding ring and I'll say baptism is like a wedding ring if you think of a wedding ring for those of us that are married you probably wear a wedding ring I've got my wedding ring here of course on my finger and what is the purpose of a wedding ring the purpose of a wedding ring is to identify that you are married that's the sole purpose when somebody has a ring on this specific hand and on this third finger it identifies the fact that they are married 20 years ago a little bit over 20 years ago my wife and I just celebrated our 20 year anniversary this last June and 20 years ago my wife and I stood at an altar and we made vows to God and we made vows to each other and we got married but most of you in fact probably the vast majority of you except for my family none of you were there yet a perfect stranger can know can meet me and know that I'm married or they can meet my wife and know that she's married by seeing a ring on our fingers the wedding ring there is an external thing to identify something that happened privately that you did not see and it identifies the fact that we are married and that is what baptism does baptism is something that's done externally and it shows what happened privately or internally and I want to cover this and we're going to talk about this later on in more detail and we'll have another lesson on this as well but baptism has nothing to do with salvation baptism is not required for you to be saved and you could be saved and never be baptized because baptism is simply something that is done externally now I don't say that to diminish baptism I think baptism is an important thing but we need to understand that baptism is simply an external showing of something that happened internally just like a wedding ring a wedding ring is there to show to an external world that I am married it's there to show that my wife is married now I think that every married person should wear a wedding ring and not be ashamed of the fact that they are married it's very important to show that you're married I'm you know just an ugly guy so it's not as big of a deal but my wife is a very beautiful lady and she better have that wedding ring on her hand when she goes on about right when she goes out in the grocery store and she's running errands she needs to have that wedding ring on her finger so that others can readily identify that she is married that there was an event that maybe they were not privy to that they did not see that they were not a witness to but it is an external showing of something that happened privately here's the thing about a wedding ring the wedding ring does not make you married you wear a wedding ring because you are married people sometimes don't wear wedding rings you might lose your wedding ring and if you take your wedding ring off and lose your wedding ring are you no longer married you're still married it doesn't work this way now I'm married now I'm not right now I'm married now I'm not that's not how it works whether you wear a wedding ring or not if you're married you're married what's the purpose of the wedding ring it is there to show to have an external showing of the fact that you are married this is what baptism does it is an event that takes place publicly you are publicly baptized to identify yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ on June 5th 20 years ago I put a ring on my wife's finger she put a ring on my finger and that identifies that we are committed to each other baptism identifies your commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ now whether you ever get baptized or not if you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ you're safe and whether you ever wear a wedding ring or not if you got married you're married but the purpose is to identify baptism identifies us with the Lord Jesus Christ not only that though baptism also identifies us with other believers you're there in Romans I'd like you to flip back if you would to the book of Acts Acts chapter number two if you go backwards you go past you go into the book of Acts we're talking about the purpose of baptism the why of baptism and we see that baptism is to identify you with Christ and baptism is also to identify you with other believers Acts chapter 2 and verse 41 Bible says this then they that gladly received his word were baptized and here of course we see the great day of Pentecost when three thousand were saved and baptized on the same day and the Bible says here that they gladly received his word that is a reference to salvation the Bible says that faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God then they that gladly received his word were baptized and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls when the Bible says here that there were added unto them the question we need to ask is added unto who and what was added unto was that these three thousand souls were added unto the local congregation of believers there in Jerusalem because when they got saved and baptized they publicly identified themselves with other believers so when we asked the question what is the purpose of baptism the purpose is identity it is to identify you with Christ and it is to identify you with other believers now maybe you're here this morning or you're listening to the sermon and you've not been baptized and sometimes people shy away from baptism and they'll say water is not something I want to do and I'm embarrassed or I'm shy or whatever might be the question I have to ask you is this wouldn't you think it'd be odd wouldn't you think it'd be odd if you got married as an individual if on your wedding day you got married you walk down the aisle you said the vows you said I do the preacher said you may kiss the bride you kiss you sign the contract you did all those things and then the next day your wife says to you I'm glad we're married but I don't want to wear your wedding ring when that were you what if your husband said I'm glad we're married but I really don't want to I don't want people to know we're married I don't want to wear this wedding ring and have everybody think I'm married wouldn't that be a concern to you you might wonder well are you ashamed of our marriage are you ashamed of me are you embarrassed of me and that is the question that I would ask you if you're here today if you're listening to this and you say well I'm not baptized and I don't want to be baptized the question I would ask you is are you ashamed of the Lord Jesus Christ are you ashamed to be identified with the Lord Jesus Christ because baptism identifies us with the death burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ it identifies us with Christ and it identifies us with other believers which is why you need to be baptized in order to be a member of a local church you don't have to be saved you don't you don't you can be saved and not be a member of a local church but if you want to be a member of a local church you need to be baptized and identify yourself publicly with Lord Jesus Christ and with other believers. So I said number one this morning, we talked about the purpose of baptism. That is the why of baptism. Why do we need to be baptized? To identify you with Christ and to identify you with other believers. But I'd like to give you a second thought this morning and it is the picture of baptism. The picture of baptism. This is the what. What is it that baptism actually is? Now you're there in Acts. I'd like you to go back to Romans where we just were, Romans chapter 6, and look at verse number 4. We already saw that baptism identifies us with Christ. Notice Romans 6.4, therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death. Now I want you to notice that the reason that baptism identifies us with Christ is because baptism is a picture. I'd like you to just make a note of these words there in Romans 6.4. Notice these words, therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death. And I'd like you to mark these words. In fact if you don't mind writing your Bible, maybe you can underline these words in your Bible. It says that like as. That like as. 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 should walk in newness of life. Look at verse 5. For if we have been planted together, notice these words, mark these words in your Bible. If we have been planted together in the likeness, in the likeness of his death, we shall be also, notice these words, in the likeness of his resurrection. The Bible tells us that 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 should walk in newness of life. It says for we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. I highlight those words for you. That like as. In the likeness of his death. In the likeness of his resurrection. Because baptism really is a picture. And you might ask what does it picture? What is the picture of baptism? And baptism pictures the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. When somebody's baptized and they enter into the water, as somebody is standing there and the water crosses their body, that is a picture of the cross. When the pastor then takes the individual and brings them under the water, that is a picture of the burial. And when they come up out of the water, that is a picture of the resurrection. Baptism is a picture of the death on the cross, the burial, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a picture of his death, burial, and resurrection, which is why it identifies us with Christ. And we need to understand that baptism is a picture. Primarily it is a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. But that's not the only thing it pictures. Yes, the primary picture, when someone enters into the baptistry and the water crosses their body, that is a picture of the cross, the death of Christ, when they go down under the water, that is a picture of the burial. When they come up out of the water, that is a picture of the resurrection. And what the individual who's getting baptized is saying, they're saying, I believe that Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and that he rose again from the dead. And that is what I'm trusting in for my salvation. So it's a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. But like I said, there's other pictures that we can see in baptism. That is the primary picture of baptism, but there's also a secondary picture of baptism. The secondary picture of baptism is that when someone gets baptized, they are stating, I believe that because I place my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, that one day when I die and I'm buried, I will in the future be resurrected with Christ. That'll happen at the rapture. That'll happen at the resurrection of the saints. But what we're saying is, because we are dead with Christ and we are buried in Christ, that we will one day rise with Christ. So we see that there is the primary picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. And there's the secondary picture of our death and burial and our hope in a future resurrection because of our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. But I want you to notice that there's also a third picture in baptism, and it pictures what should come after salvation. Because notice there in Romans 6 and verse 4, look at it again, 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, notice these words, Even so, we also should walk in newness of life. Oftentimes, when somebody gets baptized, there'll be a saying that is said with that baptism, and there's different sayings that different churches do, but the saying that we do here is that as the individual goes down into the water, I'll say, buried with him in the likeness of his death, and as they come up out of the water, I'll say, raised to walk in newness of life. That is a quote from Romans chapter 6 and verse 4 where the Bible says, Even so, also we should walk in newness of life. And although baptism's primary application, the primary picture is that it pictures the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, and though the secondary picture is that it pictures the fact that we believe that when we die and are buried, one day there'll be a future resurrection, and we'll be resurrected with Christ in that future resurrection. It also pictures what should happen in the Christian life, which is that your old man should die, and your old man should be buried, and that God saved you not of works, but he saved you to work, and as a result of being baptized and taking the first step in that in that path of being a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ and being a follower, a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, then you and I should walk in newness of life. It pictures the fact that our old man should die, and we should walk in that new man, that new spiritual man that was made, quickened, made alive at salvation. So we see that baptism is a picture. What does baptism picture? The death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, our own death, burial, and future resurrection. It also pictures what every Christian should be living, which is a death of the old man and a walking in the new man. But let me just say this, baptism is a picture, and we've already talked about this a little bit, but I want to talk about it again. I want to make sure we understand this. Baptism is a picture, and we need to understand this, that baptism is just a picture. It is only a picture. It is not salvation. It only pictures salvation. And again, many people teach that baptism is part of salvation. I'll actually be preaching an entire sermon on that next week, and we'll be talking about what the Bible actually says about those things. But I just want you to understand, the Bible teaches that baptism is a picture of salvation, and it is not salvation. It is the like as, it is in the likeness of, it is the likeness of salvation, but it is not salvation. So don't let anybody tell you, well you need to be baptized in order to go to heaven. That is works. That is trusting in action. That is trusting in a thing. Baptism is a picture. It is the likeness of his death. It is the likeness of his resurrection. It is the like as of Christ raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father. It is simply a picture of salvation. It is not salvation. Now what I have here, and this is an illustration that I often use, and this is an illustration that I'll use with a new convert if I'm explaining baptism to them. I usually don't have a picture this big. Maybe usually I'll use a picture on my phone or something like that, but for the purposes of this sermon, I have this picture. And here, what is pictured is a picture of my children. I've got a picture here of my children. I'm not sure how well you can see it, but there's some good-looking kids there in that picture. They take after their mother, of course. And I've got this picture here of my children. And what you're seeing in this picture is a likeness of my children. This is the like as of my children. This is what my children look like. You want to know what my children look like? This is what they look like. But here's what you need to understand. This is a picture of my children. These are not my children. Wait a minute, Pastor. You just said that they were your children, and you're talking about a wedding ring, so what are you talking about now? This is a picture of my children, but these are not my children. I don't carry my children around in a frame. You say, well, where are your children? They're right over there, sitting over there. They look like this, but this is not them. This is a picture of them, but this picture is not my children. The picture is a likeness of my children, but it is not my children, because isn't that what a picture is? It's not the thing. It is the likeness of the thing. It is what the thing looks like. You want to know what my children look like? They look like this picture, but this picture is not my children, because my children are not printed on a piece of paper, and they're not carried around in a frame. Well, baptism is not salvation. It is the picture of salvation. It is the likeness of salvation. It is the like as of salvation. Salvation is in your heart you believed in the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what saved you. Baptism is an external image showing, saying, this is what happened in my heart. I believed in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, and when I believed on Christ, my old man that was dead in trespasses and sins was put to death, and a new man was quickened, and he was raised up, and I believe that one day at the resurrection I'll be physically raised up at the rapture. It's a picture of salvation. It's not salvation. Just like a picture of my children is the likeness of my children. It's the image of my children. It's what my children look like, but the picture is not my children. The picture is simply an image of my children. You're there in Romans Go back to Acts, if you would, if you go backwards into the book of Acts again, Acts chapter 8. We're talking about baptism, and again this is meant to be a comprehensive lesson on what baptism is, and we're talking about the different characteristics of baptism and things we need to understand about baptism. The first thing is the purpose of baptism. That's the why. Why do we get baptized? To identify yourself with Christ, to identify yourself with other believers. Then we talk about the picture of baptism. That's the what. What does baptism picture? It pictures the death, burial, resurrection of Christ. It pictures our personal death, burial, and our hope in a future resurrection, and it hopefully pictures the fact that your old man has died and you're walking in newness of life, but we must remember that baptism is a picture of salvation. It is not salvation, and we need to make sure we never mix those things up. Now I want to give you a third thought this morning. We talked about the purpose of baptism. That's the why. The picture of baptism. That's the what. Let's talk about the prerequisites of baptism. That's the how. How is this to be done? What are the prerequisites? What is required for someone to be baptized? And this is important because you need to know if you need to be baptized, or maybe you had some form of baptism that was not scriptural baptism, then you need to understand what is scriptural baptism. Oftentimes when I talk to people about baptism, I don't just use the term baptism, although that's a biblical word, but today baptism means so many things in so many different churches and religions and organizations. I like to use the term biblical baptism or scriptural baptism. Have you been scripturally baptized? What does that mean? That means have you been baptized based off what the Bible says, but what does the Bible say? What are the prerequisites of baptism? How is this to be done? There's three things that the Bible tells us in regards to the prerequisites of baptism. Number one, it should be after salvation. You're there in Acts. I'd like you to go to chapter 8. I'm not sure if you're in chapter 8. Look down at verse number 35. Acts chapter 8 and verse 35. The Bible says here, then Philip opened his mouth and began at the same scripture and preached unto him Jesus. Here we have Philip preaching the gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch. The Bible says that he opened his mouth and began at the same scripture and preached unto him Jesus. Look at verse 36. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water. And the eunuch said, see here is water. And I want you to notice the question that the eunuch asked. He asked this question. What doth hinder me to be baptized? The word hinder means to delay or to stop. And here you have Philip preaching the gospel to this Ethiopian eunuch. And as they're riding in a chariot, they're going down the road. They cross by some water, certain water the Bible says. And he asked this question. He says, what doth hinder me to be baptized? What is stopping me from getting baptized? I want you to notice the answer to the question in verse 37, Acts 837. And Philip said, if thou believeth with all thine heart thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And I want you to notice in verse 38, the Bible says, and he commanded the chariot to stand still. And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized them. Now I'm preaching on baptism this morning. I'm not preaching on the subject of Bible versions, but let me just say this. Most modern Bible versions today, if you don't have a King James Bible in your hand right now, if you have a modern Bible version, your Bible probably goes from verse 35, verse 36, straight to verse 38. Verse 37 has been removed. They don't even have the decency to change the numbers. They just remove it and just completely skip it. You go from 36 to 38. And I want you to see that that is an attack on the doctrine of baptism and the doctrine of salvation. Because when you remove verse 37, you go from what does hinder me to be baptized, and apparently nothing. Because in the very next verse, they're going down and getting baptized. But the Bible says, when the question was asked, what does hinder me to be baptized, a very specific answer was given in verse 37. And Philip said, if thou believeth with all thine heart, thou mayest. So according to the Bible, what is hindering someone from getting baptized? They have to believe. When are they scripturally allowed? The words are used, thou mayest. When is someone allowed to be baptized scripturally when they believe in their heart? And Philip said, if thou believeth with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe. He said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He said, I believe. So therefore, the Bible says in verse 38, and he commanded the church to stand still, and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized them. So I want you to notice that the Bible teaches that baptism is something that should be done after salvation. It should be done after someone believes. What does hinder me to be baptized? If thou believeth with all thine heart, thou mayest. Now you say, well, is that what the Bible teaches about baptism? Then where does that leave us with a lot of teachings on baptism? Because there's a lot of non-biblical baptism teachings out there that actually bring baptism before salvation, or they'll add it with salvation, and we'll talk about that next week. But let me just say this, if you were baptized before you were saved, that was not a scriptural baptism. That was a non-biblical baptism. You say, well, give me an example of someone getting baptized before they were saved. Well, here's a very famous example, infant baptism. Somebody's baptized as a baby. You say, well, if I was baptized as a baby, does that count? No, that is a non-biblical, non-scriptural baptism, because according to the Bible, you're supposed to get baptized after you believe. And babies aren't able to believe. The Bible says that a baby is not even condemned. If a baby dies, the Bible teaches they go to heaven. It's not until they reach a certain age of accountability when they understand the difference between good and evil and sin and righteousness, and they understand the commandments of God and the fact that they've broken God's law and that they need to be saved, then someone can believe. But when someone is baptized as an infant, if you're saved and you're baptized as an infant and you're counting that as your baptism, that is a non-scriptural baptism because you were baptized before you believe. Sometimes people, they just get baptized. There are churches where you don't just baptize anybody, and oftentimes people have a testimony where they say, well, I got baptized. I wasn't saved. I got saved later on. Somebody knocked on my door and gave me the gospel, or I came to church and somebody got me saved later on, but I was baptized at one point in my life. But if it was before salvation, then I'm here to tell you something. Call it what you want. It wasn't baptism. They might have called it baptism, but all you did was got wet, and all you did was, you know, take a bath, because scriptural baptism happens after salvation. What doth hinder me to be baptized? If thou believeth with all thine heart thou mayest, and he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. I want you to notice the prerequisites of baptism, the how of baptism. First, it is after salvation. I want you to notice, secondly, not only does the Bible teach that baptism is after salvation, the Bible also teaches that baptism is by immersion, by immersion. So what does that mean? That means you go down into the water. Notice again there, Acts 8, look at verse 38. And he commanded the chariot to stand still, and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized them. The Bible says that they went down both into the water. They got out of the chariot, they went into the shore, and then they went down. They went down into the water. They went where they could get some water where there was enough water for them to go down into the water. Why? Because baptism is by immersion. You go down into the water. Go back to Matthew chapter 3, if you kept your place there in Matthew. Notice the baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ. Look at verse 16. Matthew 3, 16. And Jesus, look at these words, Matthew 3, 16. And Jesus, when he was baptized, look at these words, went up straightway out of the water. So the Bible says in Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water. Now the only way you can come straightway out of the water is to first go down into the water. So you want to know how Jesus was baptized? He was baptized by immersion. He went down into the water, and he came up straightway out of the water. Fill up with the Ethiopian eunuch. Fill up here with the Ethiopian eunuch. The Bible says that they went down both into the water. So we see that baptism is not only after salvation, but it is by immersion. Because remember, what is the picture? What is the picture of baptism? It's the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. It pictures being buried, so you go down into the water in the same way that a body would go down and be buried under the ground in the earth. It is by immersion. So what is a non-biblical form of this? Well, non-biblical forms of baptism today, which are not by immersion, is baptism by sprinkling, or baptism by pouring. Pouring water on somebody or sprinkling. You say, well, I was baptized, when I was baptized, somebody poured water over my head, and they said that I was baptized. Well, I'm not trying to hurt your feelings, but I am trying to teach you the Bible, and that was a non-biblical baptism. That is not baptism. Jesus, I've seen pictures of so-called Jesus, which nobody knows what Jesus looked like, but drawings from the Renaissance that people make of Jesus, and they'll show Jesus and John standing in water, and then he's pouring water on the top of his head with a cup or something. No, no, he came up straightway out of the water. That's what the Bible says. He went on into the water. He came up out of the water, because baptism is by immersion, and again, I'm not trying to hurt your feelings, but I am going to tell you the truth, and if your baptism was by sprinkling, your baptism was by pouring, if your baptism was by somebody standing with a spray bottle and sprayed you, then that's not baptism. Maybe it was a hot day, and you can thank him for it, but that wasn't baptism. Baptism requires being immersed down into the water, because when you don't take someone down into the water, when you just sprinkle them with water, or you pour water on their head, that messes up the picture of baptism, which is the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now why do people come up with nonsense like this? They come up with nonsense like this because a normal human being, adult person, is going to say, well, I'm not going to take a baby and put them under water, so if I'm going to baptize a baby, I'm going to sprinkle them so they don't go under water. Okay, but then the question you need to be asking is, why are you baptizing a baby? Babies don't need to be baptized. Baptism happens after salvation, and it happens by immersion. Go to John chapter 3. You're there in Matthew, Mark, Luke, then you have the book of John, John chapter 3. Go to John 3 and look at verse 23. John chapter 3 and verse 23. I just want you to see this. The Bible says, and John, this is John the Baptist, he's called that because he's the one that was chosen by God to begin baptizing in the New Testament, and John also was baptizing an anon near Salem. I just want you to notice what the Bible says here, because there was much water there, and they came and were baptized. Here the Bible is telling us where John was baptizing, and it tells us the reason he chose that area to baptize, he was baptizing an anon near Salem, he chose that because there was much water there. Now if somebody could be baptized by sprinkling or by pouring, why would John have to go somewhere where there's a lot of water? You could do that anywhere. The reason that he chose a place that had a large body of water to baptize, obviously this was the ancient world, the reason he chose a place with a large body of water like a river to do baptizing in is because it had to be by immersion. The individual's body had to go down into the water. So we see the prerequisites of baptism, the how of baptism, what are the requirements? Number one, it should be after salvation. Number two, it should be by immersion. Let me give you a third thought in regards to the requirements of baptism. And the Bible teaches that it should be by a ministry that you can identify with, because you remember what is the purpose of baptism? It's to identify you with Christ, but also to identify you with other believers. I want you to notice that this was important to Jesus. Matthew chapter 3, look at verse 13, if you go back to Matthew chapter 3, we're looking at the baptism of Christ, and notice the conversation Jesus has before his baptism, Matthew 3, 13. The Bible says, Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan, unto John, to be baptized of him. So Jesus specifically comes to John the Baptist, to be baptized of him. However, John the Baptist, being a very humble man, responds in verse 14, but John forbade him saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and cometh thou to me. So Jesus comes to John and says, I need you to baptize me. And John is very humble. And he says, look, if anybody should be baptizing anybody, you need to be baptizing me. I don't need to be baptizing you. That's a very humble response. But notice what Jesus says in verse 15. And Jesus answering said unto him, suffer. The word suffer is an older word. We don't use it a lot today. It means allow. He says, suffer it to be so now. He's telling John, allow it to be so now. I need you to baptize me. Don't say no. Don't refuse. Allow it. Suffer to be so now. Now notice what Jesus says, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then the Bible says this, then he suffered him. I want you to notice that Jesus says, I need you to allow this John, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. You see that word righteousness, if you see the first part of the word, it says right. And this is what Jesus is saying. If we're going to do this right, John, I need you to do it. I need you to baptize me, suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Now why did Jesus need John to baptize him? I believe the reason that Jesus needed John to baptize him is because Jesus agreed with the teachings and the doctrines of John the Baptist. And Jesus wanted to identify himself with John the Baptist and the ministry of John the Baptist. Think about this. Jesus could have been baptized by any religious leader. There are all sorts of religious leaders in the first century world. There are Pharisees and Sadducees and scribes and priests and lawyers. Somebody one time said to me, well none of those people were baptizing. Well it was new to John too. There was no baptizing in the Old Testament. He could have picked anybody and said, hey, can you baptize me? But he chose John because he wanted to identify himself with John. He said, suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. See, Jesus did not want to identify himself with the Pharisees because he did not believe in what they were teaching and their doctrine. He did not want to identify himself with the Sadducees or with the priests or with the scribes or with the lawyers. He needed to identify himself with John's ministry. So scriptural baptism should be done by somebody that you can identify yourself with. You're identifying yourself with Christ, but you should identify yourself with a church or a ministry that you believe in. And here's what I'm saying. Because people often say, well I was baptized at a Jehovah's Witness temple. I was baptized at a charismatic, tongue speaking church. And the question I ask people, I say to them, if they're in a church like this and they're saved, well are you a tongue speaking charismatic? No, I'm not. Then why would you think it's okay to identify yourself with them? I was baptized by a Presbyterian church. Are you a Presbyterian? Are you a Calvinist? No, no, no. I believe whosoever will may come. I believe salvation is by grace and by grace. Then why are you identifying yourself with a church that believes that? Now no church is perfect, but you need to find a church that you agree with, at least on the main subject of salvation, and that you can identify yourself with, and that's a church you should be baptized with. And by the way, we don't baptize people who aren't saved. Someone comes here and they say, I'd like to be baptized, but I don't believe in eternal security. We're not going to baptize you. Why? Because baptism would identify you with us, and we believe in eternal security. We believe it's not of works. We believe it's grace. We believe that salvation's a gift. So therefore you should be baptized with a ministry that you can identify with. Now let me just take a moment to answer some questions, because whenever I preach to those people, they inevitably ask this question, and I think it's important for me to deal with it. You're there in Matthew. Go to John if you would. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. Let me just say this. It does not matter who physically baptized you. What matters is the ministry that you were baptized under. That's who you're identifying yourself with, because sometimes people, and I've been asked this question, and I understand it's a valid question, but maybe they were baptized at a church. Maybe it was a good church, a church of like faith and practice. They believe salvation the way we do, or whatever. They believe the Word of God. They believe things that are good, but then the pastor ends up being a bad guy, or the deacon that baptized him ends up being a bad guy, and then people get concerned with that. Like, well, do I need to be rebaptized? Is that something I need to do? The Bible teaches that it doesn't matter who physically baptized you, like who physically took you under the water and brought you up. What matters is the ministry that you were baptized in, and that you identified yourself with. Let me prove it to you. John chapter 4, look at verse 1. John 4, 1. The Bible says this, when therefore the Lord Jesus knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John. Okay, so officially, officially, you have two ministries. You have the ministry of John the Baptist, who started baptizing, and then Jesus, after he was baptized by John the Baptist, began his ministry, and then the ministry of Jesus was also baptizing, and the Bible tells us, when therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John. So according to John 4, 1, the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ, and here we're told that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John. He baptized more people than John baptized. But look at verse 2. This is in parentheses. Here we get a clarifying statement. Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples. So I want you to notice that the Bible identifies anybody who was baptized under the ministry of Christ as being baptized under the ministry of Christ, but Jesus physically didn't baptize anybody, according to John 4, 2. I mean, do you see the verse? Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples. So who was doing the baptizing? The twelve disciples. But it was the ministry of Christ. Now they were baptizing hundreds of people, then thousands of people. Say, well what if I got baptized by Judas Iscariot? Don't worry about it. You were baptized in the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. You understand that? Now I often tell people if it really bothers you, and if you don't like it, if you just want to be rebaptized, it's not going to hurt you to get rebaptized, and you can get rebaptized. But I don't want to try to manipulate people into thinking they need to get baptized. Look, no church is perfect. Maybe the church you came from wasn't perfect. Maybe they weren't right on end times or right on dispensationalism or whatever. Look, that doesn't matter. If they were right on salvation, if they're a church of like faith and practice, if they're not teaching damnable heresy, and you were baptized after salvation and by immersion of a church that teaches the right gospel, then you're fine. You're good to go. And you say, but what if the guy that baptized me turned out to be bad? It doesn't matter who physically baptized you, but it does matter the ministry with which you identify yourself with. Now here's the thing. If you were baptized at a Pentecostal charismatic tongue-speaking church, I don't care if the guy that baptized you was saved or not. That is not a church you need to be identifying yourself with. So it matters who you identify yourself with. So what are the prerequisites of baptism is that they are after salvation, by immersion, by a ministry you can identify yourself with. And look, just to be clear, here at Greater Baptist Church, we accept the baptism of other churches of like faith and practice. We don't require that every new member get baptized. We do require that every member be baptized. And if you haven't been baptized, we'd love to baptize you. And we can take care of it. But if you were scripturally baptized after salvation, by immersion, by a ministry that's not preaching damnable heresy, then that is a baptism that we accept. But here's what you need to understand. You can't just call whatever you want baptism. The Bible is clear about what makes baptism scriptural and what makes baptism biblical. So we've seen the purpose of baptism. That's the why. To identify you with Christ and with other believers. The picture of baptism. That's the what. It pictures the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, the future resurrection of us because of our belief in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. And hopefully, it pictures the fact that your old man is dead and you're walking in the newness of life. Then we see the prerequisite of baptism. That's the how. It's after salvation, by immersion, by a ministry that you can identify with. Let me give you a fourth one this morning, and that is the performance of baptism. And that is the when. When should someone be baptized? Well, we've already talked about the fact that baptism should happen after salvation. But I want you to notice in the book of Acts, if you're there in John, just flip over to Acts chapter 16. Acts chapter 16. And look at verse 29. Acts chapter 16 verse 29. Here we find a very famous story of the Philippian jailer. The Bible says in Acts chapter 29, and he called for a light and sprang in and came trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas. Now if you're familiar with the story, you know that Paul and Silas have been imprisoned, and there is a Philippian in the city of Philippi, there is a Philippian jailer that is watching over them. They're singing praises to God. And the Bible tells us that this is happening at midnight. The Bible says in verse 25, and at midnight, Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises unto God, and the prisoners heard them. And of course, there's an earthquake and all the gates of the cells open, but none of the people run away or escape. And as a result, this Philippian jailer is so impressed with this, that the Bible tells us in verse 29, then he called for a light and sprang in and came trembling and fell down before Paul and Silas, and brought them out and said, here's a great question, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? He asked the question, what must I do to be saved, verse 31, and they said, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. Notice they didn't say go to church, they didn't say get baptized, they didn't say go to the confessional booth, they didn't say any of that. The question was, what must I do to be saved? And the answer is clear, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved. Look down at verse 32, and they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house, and he took them, look at verse 33, I want you to notice this phrase, and he took them the same hour of the night, the same hour of the night. Now, we were already told in verse 25 that this was midnight, so what was the hour of the night? Midnight. This whole event happened at midnight, when did he get saved? At midnight. And the Bible says in verse 33, and he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes, and look at it, was baptized, he and all his straight way. See the word straight way there? The word straight way means immediately. The Bible tells us that the Philippian jailer got saved, his entire household got saved, and he took them the same hour of the night, and he was baptized, he and all his straight way. So when was the Philippian jailer baptized? He was baptized at midnight. He got saved at midnight, and shortly after that, in the same night, the Bible says in the same hour of the night, he was baptized. So here's what we learn about the performance of baptism, or the when, because we've talked about the why, and the what, and the how. So let's talk about the when. When should someone get baptized? Well, we already know that it should happen after salvation, but let me say this, it should happen after salvation, as soon as possible after salvation. You should be baptized as soon as possible after salvation. When did the Philippian jailer get baptized? He was baptized the same hour of the night. It was immediate. Baptism is not something that should happen several weeks, or several months, or several years after the fact. In fact, there are churches out there who'll put someone through some 12-week course before they get them baptized, or allow them to be baptized, or they'll watch them to make sure that they actually change their lives, and that there is actually fruit to their salvation, and they'll do these things, but this is not scriptural. The Bible says that baptism should happen immediately, as soon as possible after salvation. We see the Philippian jailer, that he was baptized the same hour. Go to Acts chapter number 10. Acts chapter number 10. So we see the purpose of baptism, that's the why. The picture of baptism, that's the what. The prerequisite of baptism, that's the how. The performance of baptism, that's the when. Let me give you the last one this morning, and it is the prospect of baptism, the prospects of baptism. This is the who. I want you to notice in Acts chapter 10, in verse 47, the Bible says this. This is Peter speaking, and he says, Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? And in verse 48, I want you to notice these words, the Bible says this, And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord, then prayed they him to carry, to tarry certain days. I want you to notice the Bible says here that Peter commanded them to be baptized. And baptism is a command of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not an option. This is not something that you just kind of decide. This is something I want to do. Now, please don't misunderstand me. It is not required for salvation. What do you need? What is required for salvation? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. But if you want to be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, if you want to be a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, then you need to be baptized. It is a command that God has commanded. The Bible says, and he commanded them to be baptized. Go back to Matthew real quickly. Matthew chapter 28. I want you to notice that this is a command that God gave. In Matthew 28 verses 19 and 20, we have what is known as the Great Commission. This is the commission that God gave the local church. But a commission is really a command. It's something we're commissioned to do. We're told to do this. We're commanded to do this. What is the command? Matthew 28 19. Look at it. Go ye therefore. Jesus is speaking to all believers in all generations. And he says, here's what I want you to do. I want you to go ye therefore. And what he does is he gives us a threefold commission. What are we supposed to do? Go ye therefore and number one, teach all nations. That's referring to preach the gospel to every creature. Go out soul wedding, get people saved. But number two, look at it and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. And then number three, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you. And lo, I am with you all the way, even unto the end of the world. I want you to notice that between the first and the third step, the first step is this, teach all nations. That's synonymous with preach the gospel to every creature. That's get them saved. Then verse 20 has step three, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I've commanded you. And lo, I am with you all the way, even unto the end of the world. That's what we would call discipleship. That's teaching them to observe all things. That's teaching them everything that Jesus wants you to know, wants you to do, discipleship, following. But notice between salvation and discipleship is step two, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Why is that the second step in the Great Commission? Because it's the first step of discipleship. It happens after salvation and it is a command. It is commanded by the Lord Jesus Christ. So we see the prospects of baptism. Who are the prospects? Who should get baptized? Well, number one, if you've not been baptized, say I've never been baptized. If you've not been baptized, you should get baptized. You should be baptized. If you're saved, you should get baptized and identify yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't be ashamed of Christ. Be proud to identify yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ. But let me say this. If you've not been scripturally baptized, you should be re-baptized. Because maybe you're here and you say, well, I was baptized, but it was before I was saved. Or I was baptized, but it was in a church that doesn't teach the right gospel. Or I was baptized, but it was by pouring or sprinkling. If you were not scripturally baptized, then you should be re-baptized. So who are the prospects of baptism? Who needs to be baptized? Anyone that's never been baptized should get baptized. This church is full of children. And maybe you're a child here, a young person. You're saved, but you've not yet been scripturally baptized, then you should be baptized. Obviously, we only baptize children with the permission of their parents. We only baptize children when they are old enough and mature enough to be able to communicate a testimony of salvation and tell us that they are saved. But there's nothing wrong with children being baptized. If they're saved, they should get baptized. So if you're here and you've not been baptized, you should get baptized. Or if you say, I have been baptized, but it was not a scriptural baptism, then you should be re-baptized. I'd like to just give a thought quickly about this idea of being re-baptized, because I think it's important. I don't know if you noticed, but when you drove into the parking lot, you may have seen a sign that said Verdi Baptist Church. This is a Baptist Church. We are named Baptists. And so a sermon on baptism to me is very important. It's literally in our name. We're a Baptist Church. You might wonder and ask, well, why are you a Baptist Church as opposed to any other type of church? We are named Baptists because our Christian forefathers, and I'll just give you a brief explanation on this, but our Christian forefathers during the time of the Dark Ages, the time that historically is known as the Dark Ages, which this was a time when the Roman Catholic Church ruled the world. The reason that it's known as the Dark Ages is because while the Roman Catholic Church ruled the world, they chained the word of God to pulpits. They did not allow the common man to read the word of God and to know the word of God. They didn't even allow people to learn to read. It was a time where that vast majority of multitudes were illiterate and people did not have access to the word of God. The Bible says that the word of God is a light, is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. So for this period of the Dark Ages, when the Roman Catholic Church ruled the world, it's known as the Dark Ages because they kept the word of God from people. But during this time, and something we should always know, is that God always has a remnant. And during this time, there was always a group of believers who were outside of the Catholic Church. They were not in the Catholic Church. They were outside. There was a remnant of believers. There was a group of believers that had their testimony going back all the way to the Lord Jesus Christ on the shores of Galilee. But these remnant of believers who were outside of the Catholic Church, they were teaching that baptism comes after salvation and that baptism is by immersion and that baptism should be done by a church that you can identify with. So when these Bible-believing Christians, they went by many different names, when they went out and evangelized and got people saved and converted Catholics and taught them the true salvation, that it's not through the Pope, not through the Catholic Church, not through the sacraments, not through works, but through believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. When these new converts would get saved, then they were taught to be re-baptized because their infant baptism, their Catholic baptism, was not a scriptural baptism. And as a result, these individuals, this remnant of believers who were teaching new converts because the Catholic Church was ruling the world at the time and many people were Catholic and coming out of Catholicism, they were teaching these people to get re-baptized because of the fact that their baptism was not scriptural. These people were branded by their enemies by the Catholic Church. They were branded re-baptizers. They were called Anabaptists. The word Anna is Latin. It's a term that means to redo or to do again. They were called Anabaptists. And this was a mocking thing. They would call these individuals, oh, that's an Anabaptist. Why are they an Anabaptist? Well, because they teach people that they need to get re-baptized. And the reason that they were teaching people that they need to be re-baptized is because people's baptisms were not scriptural. They're baptized as babies. They're baptized by sprinkling. They're baptized by pouring water. So they were teaching people, hey, you need to be re-baptized. You need to get baptized scripturally. They were called Anabaptists by their enemies. They were referred to as Anabaptists. Eventually, the term Anna was eventually dropped and they were simply known as Baptists. And our forefathers suffered persecution and many of them gave up their lives to follow in believers baptism. To follow the Lord's command of baptism and to be baptized, to identify themselves with Christ. What does it cost you? No one's going to persecute you. No one's going to kill you. No one's going to do anything to you. But I'm here to tell you that if you're here this morning and you've not been scripturally baptized, then you need to be baptized. Let me just give you a couple of thoughts and we'll finish up. You're there in Matthew 28. Flip back to Matthew chapter 3, if you would. I want you to notice just the baptism of Christ again. Matthew chapter 3. Let me give you a word on compliance. When it comes to baptism, you should comply. You should obey. And I want you to notice that when you comply, it pleases the Lord. Matthew 3 16, notice what the Bible says. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straight way 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, verse 17, and lo, a voice from heaven saying, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. Why don't you notice when Jesus was baptized, God the Father was pleased. It pleased the Father. And when you and I are baptized, it pleases our Heavenly Father. So a word on compliance is this. You should comply because it pleases the Lord. But let me also just quickly give you a word of caution. It's really interesting to me that we see the baptism of Christ in Matthew chapter three. We see it there in verses 16 and 17. And then the chapter ends. The next chapter begins chapter four in verse one. And here's what we need to understand is that the chapter divisions and the verse divisions were added later. When Matthew wrote the Gospel of Matthew, he didn't say, OK, that's the end of chapter three and I'm going to start chapter four. That was added later. We're thankful for that. It allows us to be able to find scriptures and turn to passages quickly. But this is all a continuous story. The Bible says that Jesus was baptized in Matthew chapter three, verses 16 and 17. And then the very next thing that happens, Matthew chapter four and verse one, the Bible says this. Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. When my wife and I started Verity Baptist Church in our living room 14 years ago, we began to knock doors and preach the Gospel to people and get people saved, began to bring people into our home and began to teach people about baptism and discipleship. And it was always interesting to me how it would seem like someone would start coming to church. They'd be excited to be coming for a few weeks, coming for maybe six weeks or a couple of months. And they're learning, they're growing, and they finally come to the place where they are ready to get baptized or willing to get baptized. We baptize them and then we never see them again. And this didn't happen once. This happened many times. I mean, this happened multiple times. It got to the point where I was afraid to even baptize people. Because I kept thinking, every time I baptize somebody, they just disappear. Every time I baptize somebody, they never come back. And I was just like, I don't even want to baptize them. I'm going to stop preaching on baptism. And then I read Matthew chapter 4. Obviously, I'd read it before, but I read it and it grabbed me. And I understood. When you follow the Lord and believers baptism, when when a new convert takes that first step in baptism, you know that it pleases the Lord, but it also upsets the devil. And it is not a coincidence that Jesus was baptized at the end of chapter three. And the first thing that happens in chapter four is that Jesus was let up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. So let me give you a word of caution. I hope you get baptized. It pleases the Lord. I hope you comply. But here's a word of caution. It upsets the devil. So don't be surprised when you take the first step in believers baptism, the first step in discipleship. If the devil meets you Monday morning, the devil meets you the next day and begins to tempt you, begins to stop you. Don't let that surprise you. The Bible says resist the devil and he will flee. And you should be ready to follow the Lord in believers baptism. Why? Because it is a command that God has given us to identify ourselves with Christ and with other believers. Let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, Lord, we do love you. And we thank you for the clear teaching in the Bible on baptism. And I know that there's a lot that we've said and there's a lot to say with regards to baptism. But I think it's important. It's important we understand these things. And Lord, help us to to know what baptism is, know what it entails. And if there's anybody listening to this and they need to be baptized, Lord, I pray you'd help them to have the courage to step out to identify themselves with Christ and to be baptized. We love you. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Right, we're going to have Brother Matt come up and lead us in a song. And I think we do have a baptism this morning, so we'll go ahead and prepare for baptism at this time. Turn to song number 89. Song 89. 89 on the first. Does Jesus care when my heart is pained too deeply for mirth and song? As the burdens press and the cares distress and the way grows weary and long. Oh yes, he cares. I know he cares. His heart is touched with my grief. The days are weary. Long nights dreary, I know my Savior cares. Does Jesus care when my way is dark with a nameless dread and fear? As the daylight fades into deep light shades, does he care enough to be near? Oh yes, he cares. I know he cares. His heart is touched with my grief. The days are weary. The long nights dreary, I know my Savior cares. On the third. Does Jesus care when I've tried and failed to resist some temptation strong? When for my deep grief I find no relief, all my tears flow all the night long. Oh yes, he cares. I know he cares. His heart is touched with my grief. When the days are weary, the long nights dreary, I know my Savior cares. On the last. Does Jesus care when I've said goodbye to the dearest on earth to me? And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks. Is it all to him? Does he see? Oh yes, he cares. I know he cares. His heart is touched with my grief. When the days are weary, the long nights dreary, I know my Savior cares. All right, well we have Jeremiah coming for baptism. Let's go and take a picture. You want to look right there? All right, and if I could just quickly tell you a story about Jeremiah. We actually have two baptisms this morning. But you know, I was preparing all week this sermon on baptism and I kept thinking to myself, it should be nice if we had a baptism when I preached on baptism. And I was just asking the Lord if there was any way that we could have a baptism. Lord, I'd appreciate it. I didn't know if anybody needed to be baptized or anything. And this morning Jeremiah showed up. First person in church this morning walked through the doors and said to brother Oliver, I need to be baptized. And so he came for the right sermon. And so praise the Lord for that. And of course we got him saved and now he's getting baptized today. So Jeremiah, have you accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior? All right, amen. Jeremiah, by your profession of faith, I baptize you my brother in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost buried in the likeness of his death raised to walk in newness of life. I think we have one more baptism. I'm not sure if we're ready for it. Maybe we can sing another stanza. Thank you. The song 121. On the first. Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace. Over all victorious in its bright increase. Perfect yet it floweth fuller every day. Perfect yet it groweth deeper on the way. Stayed upon Jehovah. Hearts are fully blessed. Fighting as he promised. Perfect peace and rest. All right. Well, we also have Thomas coming for baptism and Thomas and Julian have been coming to our church since Easter of this year and we really enjoyed getting to know them. They've been just great to be a part of our church and he wants to identify himself with the church that preaches the right gospel and so we're excited for Thomas. Thomas, if you accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior. All right. By your profession of faith, I baptize you my brother in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost buried in the likeness of his death raised to walk in newness of life. God bless you. You want this one. All right. And all God's people said. Amen. Praise the Lord. Well, God bless you. Thank you for being here this morning. We appreciate you coming out. I do want to encourage you to be back tonight 6 PM. Tonight we're going to get back into our Declaring Doctrine sermon series and we're going to be talking about a very specific subject because we're talking about doctrines of the church and we're going to talk about what the Bible teaches about selling in church. So I want to encourage you to be here for that. If there's anything we can do for you, please let us know. I'm going to ask Brother Matt if he would not mind dismissing us with a word of prayer. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the wonderful sermon this morning about baptism. Also, thank you for the baptisms, Lord. Let's pray that you bless everyone today. Keep us safe. Be with us all, winners as I go out, Lord. Bring us back to church safely this evening. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Amen.