Take the Plunge: Baptism

The story of God is really not as complicated as a lot of religious people make it sound. The story of God is this, that he loved the world so much, that he became one of us. He put on flesh, just like we put on clothes and came to the world to save us. He lived a sinless life, and gave his life as a payment, a ransom, for the sins of the world and everyone in it.

Jesus (God in the flesh) gave his life by allowing himself to be crucified on a cross in Jerusalem, which was a common form of punishment in that time. Three days after he died, he came back from the dead and shortly afterward met with his disciples. He gave them one last piece of information, one last instruction. You can imagine how very important this last instruction of Jesus would be to those men!

This was the instruction, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

These instructions to his disciples are the last recorded words we have of Jesus on the planet, so they’re pretty important to us as well.

Baptism… Hmmm… What is it? Where does the word come from? Well, the New Testament was written in Greek and the Greek word for “baptism” is “baptizo” which means literally to “to wash, immerse or plunge under.”

As far as we can tell from the Biblical text, baptism accomplishes several things. First, it gives us the opportunity to make a public declaration of our love relationship with Jesus Christ. (Matthew 10:32-33, Galatians 3:2-27) You know how people who love U.T. wear orange U.T. jerseys, and paint their faces orange, and paint “Volunteers Rock” and things like that on their vehicles? Heck, some people even paint their houses orange… well, baptism is a lot like that! It’s an outward symbol of an inward experience and commitment. Baptism is an event that should be shared with everyone you know! It’s a public declaration, it’s sayin’ it loud and proud that you believe and follow Jesus Christ!

Another thing that baptism does is that it allows us to connect with Jesus’ death and resurrection in a really extraordinary way. The symbolism alone is a profound experience. When you are submerged in water you connect with Jesus death. When you go under it symbolizes death, it’s an outward act that symbolizes a spiritual experience in which you “die” to your sinful nature. (Romans 6:3-7)

Now that doesn’t mean that the temptation to sin just magically leaves you. What it means is that those temptations don’t rule you anymore, because you buried that sinful part of your nature in a watery grave.

Not only do you connect with Jesus’ death, but baptism also connects you with Jesus resurrection. It connects you to life and the Lord of life! (Romans 6:4) Talk about an incredible experience! When you come up out of the water you connect with Jesus in a very real and a very supernatural way, in fact, God’s Spirit very literally comes into your heart and you are empowered to live a new life.

Baptism makes us different. All the sin, the guilt, the shame, the darkness… it’s all gone, washed away in a watery grave. When you are raised out of the water you are raised to new life, the Bible calls this “becoming a new creature.” Isn’t that incredible? Brand new life. The old is passed away and all things are brand new!

If you have never been baptized in Christian baptism and would like to be, or if you were baptized when you were young or maybe didn’t really understand what was really going on and would like to do it again on purpose… then this Sunday, join us at Emmaus Church Nashville and TAKE THE PLUNGE!

If you are interested in being baptized at the Emmaus Church, please email lead pastor Michael Reddish or visit us at the Emmaus Church… we’d love to connect with you!

“Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” -Matthew 10:32-33

“You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” -Galatians 3:26-27

“Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death…” -Romans 6:3-4a

“For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin- because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.” -Romans 6:6-7

“…just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” -Romans 6:4b