[0:00] This one here that I'm holding up, or not sure what page number, if you've got a different one. So Acts 1094. And on the little sheet here that I'm holding up, with Alex's story on the inside, on the very back, there's a place there where you can take notes.
[0:32] So if you want a pen, that's what the box is being passed around. If you want a pen and you want to take notes or jot down anything, just put up your hand and you can get a pen. But you can fill that sheet out on the back there or just jot down any notes or any questions that you might have after our talk.
[0:51] And I'm going to ask Stephen, who's going to come up and who's going to read for us from Acts.
[1:02] Thank you, Stephen. Acts chapter 2, verse 37. When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, Brothers, what shall we do?
[1:24] Peter replied, Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
[1:35] The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, for all whom the Lord our God will call. With many other words, he warned them and he pleaded with them.
[1:47] Save yourself from this corrupt generation. Those who accepted his message were baptized and about 3,000 were added to their number that day. Thank you, Stephen.
[2:03] Well, I'm going to pray and then we're going to look at that passage that was just read and see what it has to say to explain baptism to us. So let's pray again.
[2:14] Our Father God, we thank you for your word. We thank you for the Bible. We thank you that it is written in our own language and in a way that we understand. But most of all, we thank you that this is the way in which you, the creator God, speaks to us.
[2:33] This is your word to us. And so we pray for the help of your Holy Spirit to understand that, not just with our heads, but that it would change our hearts and change our lives.
[2:51] So that we too understand what it is to follow Jesus and to make him the most important person in our whole life.
[3:05] So help us now, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, the other day when I went to collect this portable poo over here for today's baptism, I was loading it into the boot of the car because it all breaks down very neatly.
[3:26] And this man was walking by and he stopped and he asked me, what is it? So I began to explain what it was and was trying to explain baptism.
[3:37] And this is what he says, oh, it's a jacuzzi. Well, I hope I do a much better explanation this morning than what I was obviously making then. And he started to make some joke about making lots of bubbles.
[3:51] Well, in case you think Alex is going to be coming up and having a jacuzzi while we all watch, let me explain. Again, baptism is all about a person, Jesus Christ.
[4:09] In the book of Acts, which we just had read to us, the whole book is actually a story about the good news of Jesus and how it begins to spread all the way across the world to all kinds of people in all kinds of places.
[4:25] And as people hear the good news about Jesus, as they hear, in response, people get baptised. So in chapter 2, verse 41, of what we just had read, look at what it says there.
[4:41] Those who accepted his message, that's the message of Jesus Christ, were baptised. So they heard and they were baptised.
[4:53] Or let me give you another example. You can flick on a couple of pages to Acts chapter 8. So keep going in your Bible until you see a big number 8 on your page and then find a smaller number which says 35.
[5:10] So Acts 8, verse 35. This is a different person speaking. This person is called Philip and he's speaking about Jesus to a very wealthy and important man from Ethiopia.
[5:29] And he's been reading the Bible and then, verse 35, it says, Philip began with that very passage of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
[5:42] And as they travelled along the roads, they came to some water and the eunuch said, Look, here's water. Why shouldn't I be baptised? And he gave the orders to stop the chariot.
[5:55] And then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptised him. So they heard the good news about Jesus and they were baptised.
[6:09] Now although Alex is going to be getting baptised very shortly, it's actually not about him. It's all about Jesus Christ. In fact, baptism is a wonderful picture about the good news of Jesus Christ.
[6:26] It pictures two things. First, believing in Jesus. It's a picture of believing in Jesus. Now when we talk about believing in Jesus, we don't just mean we believe that Jesus exists.
[6:42] If we were to do a survey, lots of people would say, Yeah, I believe Jesus exists. It's actually about entrusting your whole life to Jesus. So let me give you an example.
[6:54] If your house was on fire and you were up at the top window shouting for help and the fire brigade arrives and the fireman comes along and he puts up his ladder and he climbs up and there he is right beside you at the window, it's no good at that point saying, Oh, I believe in firemen and telling all the rest of the people, Look, a fireman!
[7:16] I believe in firemen. No, if you really believe in firemen, you'll jump into his arms and let him rescue you or jump onto his shoulder or whatever you want to do.
[7:29] But you will entrust your life to him. And in the same way, if we believe in Jesus, that means we entrust our whole life to him to rescue us.
[7:44] And that's essentially what this passage in Acts chapter 2 is about. Let me explain. Look at verse 37, the first part of our reading. Acts chapter 2, verse 37.
[7:56] Sorry, you need to go back there and we'll stay in Acts chapter 2. Acts chapter 2, verse 37. It says there right at the beginning, When the people heard this, well, what have they just heard?
[8:11] When they heard this, what have they just been hearing about? Well, Peter is the speaker and he's been telling them all about the good news of Jesus. And it starts back in verse 22.
[8:24] So have a look at verse 22. Peter began to explain who Jesus is. Men of Israel, he said, listen to this.
[8:37] And we need to listen too. Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs which God did among you through him as you yourselves know.
[8:53] You see, when Jesus came onto this earth, when he lived his life on this planet, he did many miracles and wonders. We may have read about it or heard about it.
[9:03] By a simple word, by just speaking, he calmed a storm. By a simple word, he silenced demons and he controlled evil.
[9:14] And by a touch of his hand, he healed people. And by a touch of his hand, he could even raise the dead.
[9:26] And all of these amazing miracles and wonders, look at verse 22, were signs. These signs, these miracles, were pointing to who Jesus is.
[9:41] You see, Jesus was doing what only God could do. Only God could calm the storms. Only God could raise the dead.
[9:52] So here was Jesus, God, in human form, walking on the earth, a person just like you and me, controlling the world and controlling all that was wrong and putting it right.
[10:07] And he was showing everybody who he was. That he was God come down to earth. But look what happened to this Jesus in verse 23.
[10:22] Let's read verse 23. This man, this Jesus, was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.
[10:40] Incredible, isn't it? He was going around healing people, raising the dead, calming storms, silencing demons and then people put him to death. He was a man who had done nothing wrong.
[10:54] No fault could be found in him. He was perfect without sin. But yet, he was put to death and verse 23 tells us they nailed him to the cross.
[11:06] Why? Why would they do this to this man, Jesus? Well, look at verse 23 at the very beginning. It tells us that Jesus' death was actually part of God's plan.
[11:19] It wasn't an accident. It wasn't a mistake. But it was all part of God's perfect plan. But what does his death mean? Why did he have to die?
[11:32] Well, listen to this. This is the way Alex puts it in his story. You can read it afterwards in the middle pages. This is what Alex says. The death of Jesus wasn't just an ordinary death.
[11:45] Unlike most deaths, it was a good thing because it was for us so that we could have eternal life. You see, Jesus' death on the cross was God's means of dealing with the problem of sin.
[12:04] Let me try and explain that to us a little bit better. I've got a CD here or a DVD if you like. And I want you to imagine that this is a record of your life up to this very point.
[12:21] So that means, Alex, everything you've ever said or anything that we've ever said is on here, public or private. It's been recorded and it's on here.
[12:35] Everything that you've ever done has been videoed, public or private. And it's all on here to watch. Everything.
[12:45] But not just everything you've said or everything you've done, everything you've thought. So this is a very clever CD or DVD. It knows your mind and it's got every single thought recorded here.
[13:01] Now, who of us would like our life uploaded onto YouTube or published on Facebook? Would you? I'd like some parts of my life on YouTube but there's an awful lot that I would not want anybody to know about.
[13:23] And I think Ewan would be exactly the same. You see, every one of us has things in our life that we're deeply ashamed of, embarrassed about, things we do wrong, things we say wrong, things we think that are wrong.
[13:37] And the problem with that is, we call it sin, is it acts as a barrier. So if God is there and we are here, it's a barrier. It cuts in the way of a relationship with God.
[13:50] We cannot enjoy God. We cannot know God. We cannot love God as we ought to. So why did Jesus die? Well, when Jesus came, he was perfect, wasn't he?
[14:05] And he takes my record and your record of your life and he takes it on himself, all the bad things that we've ever done and Jesus is punished.
[14:18] He takes the blame for all the wrong things we have ever done. That's why he died on the cross. But not only that, listen to this, it gets even better.
[14:30] Jesus doesn't just take our record. I want you to change this around now. Imagine this is the record of Jesus. His perfect, pure, good life. Nothing wrong.
[14:41] Sinless, perfect in every way. That record is now given to us. So when God looks at us, he doesn't see our life, he actually sees the life of Jesus.
[14:54] The record of Jesus is given to us. Listen to how Alex puts it in his story again. He says this, Jesus died for us.
[15:06] He died to take away our sins so that we could have eternal life. Jesus died for all the sins I committed in the past and all the sins I'm going to commit or continue to commit.
[15:20] He took the blame for all the wrong things I have done. Without him doing so, there would be no one to take away my sins so I would have no chance of getting into heaven.
[15:34] Isn't that incredible? What a wonderful story to be able to tell. That's why Jesus is the most important person to Alex's life. But Jesus didn't just stay dead, did he?
[15:48] Thankfully, look at verse 24. God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
[16:03] Jesus did die but God raised him from the dead. Now this is meant to be a time of celebration and we don't really want to be talking about death, do we?
[16:16] Because death means the end of relationships. It means separation from those we love the most, sadness, heartache and pain.
[16:29] And we can find a cure for most things in life, for most illnesses and diseases, we can find a cure but nobody has ever come up with a cure for death.
[16:41] Except when Jesus rose from the grave he defeated death. He destroyed death. He beat it.
[16:52] Or as it says in verse 24, it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him. He broke out of its chains. He defeated it.
[17:04] And he offers that to us. So here we have this wonderful picture, this wonderful story of Jesus who comes to us, the God-man, to defeat or to deal with our sin by dying on the cross and to defeat death for us by rising again from the grave.
[17:24] Now that is good news. But what do we do with this good news? Is it just information for our heads and go, hey, that was a nice story that I heard on Sunday morning? No, it requires a response.
[17:38] Look at verse 37 of Acts chapter 2. When the people heard this, so when they heard this good news about Jesus, his life, his death, his resurrection, they were cut to the heart.
[17:53] They were deeply affected in their lives and they said to Peter and the other apostles, brothers, what shall we do? And Peter replied, repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
[18:15] it. So, in response, there's two things. Repent and be baptized. Now, repentance, a religious word, but it's a double action.
[18:30] It means two things. It means turning away from something or someone, turning away from believing in yourself and turning to believe and entrust your life to Jesus.
[18:45] I don't know if you know that Alex is presently learning to drive. I think he reckons himself to be a good driver. And for Alex, he's, well, he can't just have an ordinary car.
[18:57] He's got to have a BMW E30. If you don't know what that is, it's one of those old models with the square back and those square lights and maybe a flat top as well.
[19:08] Yeah, yeah, you'd like that. Okay. Now, imagine Alex has just passed his test and he's driving along down the road elbow out the window. You know how it is. And he realises he's gone the wrong way.
[19:21] So he throws it into reverse, tears backward, pulls up the handbrake, does a 180 degree turn. Don't worry, mum and dad, he won't do that.
[19:32] Just an illustration. And he drives off down the road in the opposite direction to what he was going. That's what repentance is. It's a sudden and radical change in direction.
[19:46] The conscious moment of I'm going in the wrong direction, I need to turn around and go in the right direction. So you turn around and you believe, you entrust your life to Jesus.
[19:58] No longer do we believe in our own ability to deal with sin and death. Instead, we throw ourselves, we entrust our life to Jesus who deals with the punishment that we deserve.
[20:12] He takes the blame for the record of our wrong and he destroys death that we can never defeat on our own.
[20:23] So in response, we repent, we say sorry, we entrust our life to Jesus. But it also says, doesn't it, in verse 37, repent and be baptised.
[20:35] Now baptism is very simply a visible demonstration of believing in Jesus. It's a big, big picture of what it is to trust Jesus.
[20:47] So when Alex gets baptised here, he's going to go down into the water. He's going to go backwards down into the water. Which is a picture of Jesus dying.
[21:00] So when Alex gets baptised and he goes down under the water, Alex is in effect as saying, you know what? Jesus died for me. And when Jesus died, he was dying in my place, for me.
[21:14] And I am accepting Jesus' death on my behalf. And then, of course, we will bring him up again. He doesn't have to hold his breath for too long.
[21:25] But he's going to come up out of the water, which is a picture of resurrection. Jesus was raised for me. And Alex is saying at that moment, when I come out of the water, I'm saying that Jesus defeated death for me in my place.
[21:40] I can never do it, but I am trusting Jesus with my life so that when I die, I will just rise and live with him for all eternity. So the act of baptism is this wonderful picture of believing in Jesus.
[21:57] And then second, and this is going to be quick, baptism is a picture not just of believing in Jesus, but belonging to Jesus. Because we all want to belong, don't we? Nobody wants to be left out and to be Norman no-mates.
[22:12] Most of us long for a real community. I hope there's no Normans here, by the way, and that you have got friends. But we all want relationships, don't we? We want that support and encouragement, a place where we're safe and have that sense of belonging.
[22:25] And we don't want to be left out. So when we believe in Jesus, we also belong to Jesus. We become part of his family, where we're welcomed into the family of Jesus.
[22:38] We can call Jesus our brother and God our Father. We won't ever be left out. Look at verse 40. With many other words, he warned them and he pleaded with them, save yourselves from this corrupt generation.
[22:57] Now, they're very strong words to be saying save yourself from this corrupt generation. Well, basically what he's saying is this. He's saying leave your old way of life, a life without Jesus, and now devote yourself to your new way of life, a life in the family of Jesus.
[23:18] So you're leaving your old life and you're now joining the family of Jesus. Now, when we join the family of Jesus, we're joining those who also believe in Jesus, which is what we call church.
[23:36] Joining the family of Jesus is becoming part of the family of Jesus, people who trust him. So look at verse 44. We didn't read this, but I think it's helpful just to read it.
[23:49] In verse 44, this is what it says here. All the believers, so all those who have entrusted their life to Jesus, all of them were together and they had everything in common.
[24:03] They shared their life together. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. So those who had extra were able to give to those who didn't have.
[24:16] And they made sure that nobody was left on their own. Verse 46, every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They would eat bread, they would just simply have meals together in their homes, eating together with glad and sincere hearts.
[24:33] You see, they would, just like we're doing now, they would meet together to read the Bible and pray and talk about Jesus. They would look after each other's needs in a practical way. They would care for one another.
[24:44] And for many people, church is just boring. It's that kind of little slot on a Sunday morning when I want to be in bed and do my own thing and get up at kind of two o'clock and play games or whatever we do.
[24:59] But church isn't just about a meeting on a Sunday morning, it's 24-7. It's all about people who believe in Jesus and belong to Jesus. It's about a family that cares and supports.
[25:11] And so Alex is saying, I belong to the family of Jesus. In fact, listen to what he says in his story. He says, the good thing about being a Christian is that you know you're going to heaven.
[25:25] I wonder if you could say that, that you know you're going to heaven. Where there's eternal life with all the other believers. So that's something to look forward to. But what about now?
[25:36] He says this, another good thing about being a Christian is that you get to meet, to be with the other believers. You see, church is all about people who believe in Jesus and belong to Jesus and who share this life of Jesus together.
[25:55] Now the question is, how do people know that you belong to Jesus? Well, they were baptised. That's how people knew. So in verse 41, this is where we started.
[26:08] Those who accepted his message were baptised. And about 3,000, only one is getting baptised today, but there were 3,000 on that day.
[26:20] 3,000 and they were added. They joined. They became part of the family of Jesus. So when Alex is getting baptised, he's not just saying I believe in Jesus and this is some kind of little private thing that I'm doing all on my own.
[26:35] He's saying, no, this is something public. I'm joining. The family of Jesus. So, where does that leave us all?
[26:48] Well, Alex has found out who Jesus is. He believes in Jesus. He knows he belongs to Jesus. And he's going to get baptised.
[27:01] But what about you and me? Is this just for Alex? Or is this for you and me as well? Well, look at verse 39. The promise, he says, this promise of forgiveness, the promise of the Holy Spirit, is for you and for all your children and for all who are far off, for all whom the Lord our God will call.
[27:28] You see, this isn't just about Alex. This is something for everybody, for you and for me. And it requires all of us to respond.
[27:41] So I want to leave us with this question. What is your response? We know what Alex's response is, but what's your response to this good news about Jesus?
[27:55] Will you believe in your own ability to deal with your own sin and death? Will you present your record to Jesus and go, right, I've done a good way of excusing everything so far in my life.
[28:09] I think I'll kind of excuse most things with God. Will you trust him with just your life, your record? Or will you present the record of Jesus as being perfect for you?
[28:25] Will you entrust yourself to Jesus who deals with death? Have you found a cure for death? The only cure for death is Jesus who rose again from the grave.
[28:37] Do you believe? And do you belong to the family of Jesus? We must answer that question, each one of us.
[28:51] Alex has responded with a big yes to all of those. I hope you do too. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for the good news of Jesus.
[29:08] Thank you that he died. Thank you that he rose again from the grave. We thank you for Alex's clear and sure testimony of his believing in Jesus, entrusting his whole life to him, and his trusting in the resurrection of Jesus that he will live with him forever.
[29:33] Please help us to understand what we have heard, and please help us if we are not yet believing in him, to believe in him, and if we are, that we would go on trusting in him all our lives.
[29:49] Amen. Before we do baptise Alex, we're going to sing one last song. When I was lost, you came and rescued me.
[30:01] Reach down. This is Jesus who came down to reach down to us so that we could belong to him. Look at those words there. You know all the things I've ever done, but Jesus' blood, that's a reference to his death, has cancelled everyone if we believe in him.
[30:18] Let's stand together. As we sing this song. song.
[30:50] When I was lost, you came and rescued me. Reached down into the pit and lifted me.
[31:04] Oh, Lord, such love, I was as far from you as I could be. You know all the things I've ever done, Jesus' blood has cancelled everyone.
[31:22] Oh, Lord, such grace to qualify me as your own. There is a new song in my mouth, there is a deep cry in my heart, a hymn of praise.
[31:42] to almighty God, hallelujah. And now I stand firm on this rock, my life is hidden now, with Christ in God, the old has gone, and the new has come, hallelujah.
[32:04] Your love has lifted me. me. Now I come into your family, for the Son of God has died for me.
[32:26] Oh, Lord, such peace I am as loved by you as I could be. In the full assurance of your love, now with every confidence we come.
[32:44] Oh, Lord, such joy to know that you delight in me. There is a new song in my mouth, there is a deep cry, in my heart, a hymn of praise to almighty God, hallelujah.
[33:11] And now I stand firm on this rock, my life is hidden now, with Christ in God, the old has gone, and the new has come, hallelujah.
[33:28] Your love has lifted me. Many are the wonders you have done, many other things that you have planned, beautiful the grace that you give to us, all that we don't deserve, all that we cannot earn, but it's a gift of love, your love has lifted me.
[33:52] love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, love, there is a new song in my mouth, there is a deep cry in my heart, a hymn of praise to almighty God, hallelujah.
[34:17] And now I stand firm on this rock, my life is hidden now, with Christ in God the old has gone, and the new has come, hallelujah, your love has lifted me.
[34:36] please do take your seats, I'm going to ask Alex to come up, and Rob, Rob, Rob isn't getting baptized, he's just the unpaid dunker.
[35:06] Is it cold? Yes, we want it to be memorable.
[35:22] We're going to come in and join you in just a minute, Alex, but just to let people know, well, if you can't see and you want to see, you can stand up at the back or gather around, that's fine.
[35:35] this water is just ordinary water, a little bit of hoss, just a teeny weeny bit. It's not going to change Alex's life, the water itself, I'm not going to pray over it, it's not magical in any shape or form, it is simply a symbol, a picture of Alex's belief, and his entrusting himself to Jesus, this death, this resurrection, and he has come to see that Jesus is the most important person in his life.
[36:07] So, Alex, I'm just going to ask you two questions and then we're going to jump in there and baptise you. So, here we go. Do you believe that Jesus died for you and rose again from the grave for you so that you might belong to Jesus now and for all eternity?
[36:29] Yes, I do. And do you promise with the help of the Holy Spirit to serve God in the family of Jesus, that is the church, and in the world, now and for so long as you live.
[36:43] Yes. Okay. Alex, on your confession that you trust the Lord Jesus Christ with all of your life, we now baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
[37:42] Well, we're going to continue the celebration and have tea and coffee and there'll be some food served from the hatch. Before we do, we're going to pray. And so let me just pray for us all right now. Let's pray together.
[37:57] Father God, we thank you so much for today. We thank you so much for the story of Alex, for his life. We thank you so much for his family. Thank you for his testimony that he follows you and loves you. We pray that you will strengthen him all of his days as he seeks to walk with you and to live for you. Thank you for the food and the drink that we're going to enjoy together. We thank you for your many gifts. In Jesus' name. Amen.
[38:52] Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you.
[39:29] Thank you.
[39:59] Thank you.
[40:29] Thank you. Thank you.