Title The Meaning of Baptism (2010. 7. 25)
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Subject: The Meaning of Baptism
Text: Romans 6:3-4
I think today is not the Sunday that God is most pleased with. Matthew 18:12-13 says, “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them is lost, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountain and go looking for the lost sheep? If they find it, they will rejoice over it more than the ninety-nine that have not gone astray.” It is said that when a lost sheep comes back, He is more pleased than the ninety-nine sheep that have not gone astray. There is a song of praise that sings the heart of God who finds and rejoices in lost souls.
The name of Jesus is spreading all over the earth
Lost soul Jesus name Hearing His name, I come back
Jesus will sing for joy When lost souls return
Jesus will dance for joy When the lost soul returns
The name of Jesus is proclaimed in all the earth
The kingdom of God is coming among the nations
May God sing for joy, when the nations return to you.
May God dance with joy when the nations return to you.
God established Hyomin Church here and allowed us to preach the gospel of life. Many souls became children of God by hearing the gospel and returning to God, confessing God as their Father and Jesus as their Savior. Today is the day that the saints, who have become children of God, are baptized as a witness.
There are two holy rites performed in the church: the liturgy of the Lord's Supper and baptism. These two rites are called sacraments, or holy rites. This is because the two ceremonies were instituted by Jesus Himself and commanded to be observed and performed until the end of the world. What is Baptism?
一. Baptism means washing.
Baptism is baptism and refers to immersion in water. Jesus himself was baptized and baptized in the Jordan River. Just as you wash your dirty body and clothes in water to become clean, baptism means repenting of your dirty heart and actions and washing with the blood of Jesus on the cross. In Acts 22:16 it is written, “Call on the name of the Lord and be baptized and wash away your sins.” The washing away of sins symbolizes repentance. Regarding this, Matthew 3:11 says, “I baptize you with water for repentance…”
二. Baptism means the death of the old man.
If a person is submerged in water, they die in less than 3 minutes. In this way, baptism refers to the death of the old man. Regarding this, verses 3-4 says, “Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into death? Therefore, by being baptized into death, we were with him He was buried, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also may walk in new life.” “We were buried with him through baptism into death. …” Thus baptism signifies death. This death does not mean the death of the body, but the severance of the old man, that is, the evil life that has been lived by committing sins. Therefore, verse 6 says, “Our old self was crucified with Jesus so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we should no longer be enslaved to sin.”
Therefore, just as baptism kills and destroys the old deeds of living a life of debauchery, baptism is the ceremony of swearing in front of God and people of the promise to cut off what is to be cut off, throw away what is to be thrown away, and live as a new person. Killing an old man is not easy. It's hard. Pain will follow. We can understand it when we consider the image of Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. There was physical pain. There were a lot of people who laughed and mocked. There were spit-outs and scornful crowds. There was also the loneliness of being left alone after all the close followers had left. But later, God gave the glory of the resurrection. He made the knee of all people to be the king of kings who made Jesus kneel.
So are we. There may be people who laugh at you and scorn you. Old friends may leave. Sometimes it can be embarrassing.
When a believer at a certain company meets the pastor and says, “Pastor! It is hard to believe in Jesus.” “Why?” “I eat at the company cafeteria every lunch hour with several employees, and one egg comes out every day. After praying, someone takes the egg. Then they say, ‘The egg turned into a chick and ran away while you were praying.’ So the next day, I prayed while holding the egg, and he said, ‘You didn’t pray, you just thought of the egg, right?’” He said.
That's right. In this way, there are times when we become the object of ridicule because of our religious life. Not only that, but you may experience a lot of pain in changing your favorite habit. Alcohol and tobacco habits are the same.
In addition, there were many extreme situations in which people even had to give up their lives during the Japanese colonial rule and the Korean War. At that time, the baptismal question and answer was not asking about common sense in the Bible as it is now, but “If the Japanese police arrest you for believing in Jesus, will you believe in Jesus until the end?” It is said that this was a word. Those who answered “yes” to this question were baptized. At the time of 6.25, “Will the Communist Party keep their faith until the end even if they point a gun at their chest?” Those who answered “yes” to this word were baptized.
This is the story of a missionary who studied the life of the indigenous Fijians of New Zealand. There is a rock called Killing Stone in the middle of Aboriginal village. This rock has a similar role to that of the Korean guillotine. This Killing Stone is said to be one of the most terrifying methods of execution as a killing rock. It is said that he tied a guilty man to this large rock and crushed his head to death so that the blood could not be wiped away. By showing this horrendous sight, it was in place of a warning against sin. However, when the missionaries who came here evangelized people so that they believed in Jesus and baptized them, they gave it to them in front of this killing rock. He made them see blood on the rock and said, “Come on, this is how the old people die.” He reminded me of the meaning of baptism deeply in my heart.
In the same way, baptism is the death of the old man with Jesus Christ and life as a new man. Just as there was the glory of resurrection after the death of Jesus on the cross, if you kill the old person and live as a new person, God will come near and honor him. God can be with me only when my old self is dead. This is because the old man is a life enmity with God. This is like growing the trunk of a goyam tree, cutting a good persimmon tree branch, and then folding it. A good persimmon tree cannot be grafted without leaving the stalk of the hiatus tree intact.
three. Baptism means new birth.
Verse 4 says, “We were buried with him through baptism into death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life.” It refers to baptism, “so that we may walk in a new name.” Baptism is the death of a man of sin and a birth of a man of righteousness. It means that the old person of unbelief dies and is reborn as a person of faith. It means that a disobedient person dies and is reborn as an obedient person. It means that the proud old man dies and is reborn as a humble man. It means that the old person of hatred dies and is reborn as a person of love.
Baptism is the beginning of faith, not the completion of faith. If baptism is compared to a person, it is like a newborn baby. New born life grows. Growing up, but how you grow is important. It should grow upright and straight. Children of God who have grown up rightly become the virtue of the church. Children of God who have grown up rightly become the light of the world and the salt of the world. Children of God who have grown up properly will receive blessings from God and enjoy them.
Wouldn't it be great if all people born into this world were brought up right? However, there are delinquent youths, which are becoming a social problem. I don't know how many times there are believers who have not grown up properly, adversely affecting the church and society and obscuring the glory of God. Therefore, while serving God, your faith must grow with the right attitude.
The food of the soul for faith growth is the Bible, the Word of God. And the sermons and church education that teach the Bible. There are also harmful foods in the food that can harm your health. We don't know how many people become fanatics or heretics due to this wrong religious education, causing great harm to their families and society. Therefore, in order to grow in the right faith, you must receive the right religious education. We must be on guard against indiscriminate participation in religious gatherings or indiscriminate religious education because it is mysterious.
Let me finish my speech.
Regarding baptism, 1 Peter 3:21 says, “Water now saves you through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is baptism, not the removal of impurities from the body, but an appeal to God of a good conscience. “The sign of salvation for you is baptism.” Baptism is the sign of salvation. Baptism does not mean that we must be baptized to be saved, but because we believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior and confess with our mouths, the children of God whose salvation has been confirmed.
I hope that those who will be baptized today will grow in their faith like people of God. And for those who have already been baptized, please reexamine your faith to see if you are living like a baptized person.
God is glorified through those who live like God's people. God is with those who live like God's people and bless them. I hope you become a blessed saint.