Baptisms April 20th (Easter Sunday)
WHY GET BAPTISED?
Baptism is a unique opportunity to tell others about your faith in Jesus. We’d love to help you experience baptism for yourself and allow God to use your faith story to impact other people. Matthew, an eyewitness to the life of Jesus, recorded these words Jesus spoke to his closest followers after he was raised from the dead, shortly before he ascended into heaven. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18–20) These were some of the last recorded words Jesus spoke before he returned to heaven. He told his disciples to spread the word about him to people everywhere, to baptise them, and to teach them how to follow him.Jesus was essentially telling them to share his message with others—and when people came to believe in him, they should be baptised in God’s name. So, if Jesus instructed his disciples to baptise future followers, we must first answer the question, “What does it mean to be baptised?”
1. Baptism is a public declaration of a new association.
It’s a way of saying, I’m going public with who I’m identifying with. When we are baptised, we are associating with the message and the person of Jesus Christ. Shortly before he began his public ministry, Jesus was baptised by his cousin John. You may have heard him referred to as John the Baptist. John taught that people should repent and surrender their lives to God. As a symbol for those who believed in this message, they were baptised in a river. One day, Jesus went to be baptised by John. When John saw him approaching, he proclaimed to his followers, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). When Jesus was baptised, he was associating himself with the message John had been declaring.
2. Baptism is a personal declaration of a new association.
It’s a declaration someone makes of a decision they’ve made to follow Jesus. Perhaps the most famous verse in Scripture is: For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
We summarise this verse with the following eight words as a way to describe what trusting in Jesus is all about:
• God loved.
• God gave.
WHY GET BAPTISED
• We believe.
• We receive.
Salvation was initiated by God because of his great love for us. When we trust in Jesus’s death and resurrection, we receive the gift of new life in Jesus and the promise of eternal life with him. This is what it means to be saved. When we are baptised, we are declaring our new association as a follower of Jesus.
3. Baptism is not a condition of salvation; it’s evidence of salvation.
We believe that a person is saved and then baptised. Baptism is evidence of a person’s individual decision to become a follower of Jesus. Baptism does not make our salvation official. It’s a way of displaying an earlier decision to follow Jesus. Have you been baptised since your decision to follow Jesus? If you haven’t been baptised, what’s holding you back? We’d love to help you take the next step. Don’t spend another season of your life being a Jesus follower, but not following his instruction about baptism. You’ll find that while your baptism is personal, it impacts more people than just you. Chances are, there’s someone whose faith will be impacted when you go public with your faith.
JOIN THE TECH TEAM – NO EXPERIENCE NEEDED!
Are you looking for a way to serve and be part of something bigger on Sundays? We’re building our **Tech Team**, and we need **YOU**!
No experience? No problem! We’ll train you. If you’re willing to learn, we’ll equip you with everything you need.
Opportunities to serve include:
🎛 **Sound** – Help mix audio for a great worship experience.
🖥 **Words** – Run slides and lyrics to keep the service flowing.
📷 **Cameras** – Capture the service for in-person and online viewers.
📡 **Streaming** – Help bring the message beyond the building.
Whether you’re tech-savvy or just curious, there’s a place for you! If you’re interested in joining the team or learning more, let us know—we’d love to connect with you.