BAPTISM

ACTS 26:1-23

There are a few names mentioned in this chapter that we should get familiar with before we go on.

King Agrippa was known in history as King Herod Agrippa II.  His kingdom was small, but he had considerable influence among the Jews, because he had the responsibility for the care of the temple, and the authority to appoint the high priest.

Bernice was his sister, and she accompanied him on this trip to Caesarea.

Festus was the governor of Judea at the time.  Much like Pontius Pilate was the governor of Judea at the time of the death of Jesus.  Pilate was the 5^th governor of Judea, now Festus was the 12^th governor of Judea.

The Pharisees were a religious and political group in New Testament times that were known for insisting that the Law of God be observed.

Gentile was a term used by Jewish people to refer to anyone who was not a part of the Jewish race.

And then there is Paul, originally known as Saul of Tarsus, a persecutor of Christians.  He became an apostle of Jesus Christ, a missionary of the early church, and the most influential interpreter of Christ’s message and teaching.  Henry H. Halley, author of Halley’s Bible Handbook, says of Paul: Next to Jesus, the greatest man of all the Ages!  He altered the course of history.

And here, in Acts 26, Paul has an opportunity to share his amazing story, or testimony, with the king and his sister, with the governor and his staff, and with the leading citizens of Caesarea.  Quite an audience!

Paul had been kept a prisoner in Caesarea for two years following some unjust charges by the Jewish leaders.  Shortly after Festus’s appointment as Roman governor, Agrippa arrived to pay his respects.  Festus discussed Paul’s case with Agrippa because of his expertise in matters relating to Jewish religion and customs.  Agrippa then expressed a desire to hear Paul himself, so Festus arranged for a hearing the next day.

Let’s look a little closer at the events of this chapter.

Notice the very first verse says that the king gave Paul permission to speak.  For the Christian, it’s important to always be willing to share a testimony about our Lord.  But, sometimes, it may not be the right time, or the right place, or the right situation to share a testimony.  But when we’re given permission to speak, or we are asked about it, then we need to be ready and willing.

Paul was very courteous.  He warmly expressed his pleasure in presenting his case.  Though he was being held unjustly in chains, he revealed no resentment for this injustice, and made no complaint.  Paul was a happy man – happy because he had a relationship with the Lord Jesus.  The circumstances didn’t matter.  He realized that circumstances come and go.  He was glad for the opportunity of speaking a word of testimony for his Lord and Master before such distinguished people – even though he’d been a prisoner for two years for doing nothing wrong!  God can take any situation and turn it into something good – something that will bring Himself glory.  He loves to turn our weakness into strength.  I love that about God!  Paul was in chains, but he got to do the very thing that he loves the most – tell others about the Lord Jesus.  We can learn from Paul’s example: To be thankful for the circumstance God has put us in, and then to try to honour Him through it, rather than what we are usually inclined to do: complain, grumble, be miserable, say how unfair life is, and then complain some more.

In his testimony, Paul gives the before, the during, and the after of his conversion.  This is the Biblical model that we can use when sharing our testimony.  Paul tells of his life before he was saved –his strict upbringing in the Jewish faith, his affiliation with the Pharisees, he tells of his life as one who opposed the name of Jesus, as one who persecuted Christians and had them put in prison, and even allowing them to be put to death.  And then one day, on one of his persecuting journeys to the city of Damascus, he met Jesus.  There was an incredibly bright light that blinded Paul for three days – interestingly enough, it didn’t blind the other men that were with Paul.  And he heard the voice of Jesus, and he was obedient to the voice of Jesus – he did exactly what the Lord had told him to do, and notice, Paul even calls Him “Lord,” showing that he acknowledged who Jesus really is.  Paul realized that this Jesus, whom he was persecuting, was actually risen from the dead and alive; and Paul also realized how difficult and dangerous it really is to resist God.  Jesus gave Paul a commission.  He said he was appointing Paul as a servant and a witness of the Lord Jesus – To turn men from darkness to light, to turn men from Satan to God, and to show them forgiveness is available through Jesus Christ.  So then Paul tells of how he was obedient to this commission.

He said he has preached to people that they should repent and turn to God and prove their repentance by their deeds.  And as we mentioned earlier, despite his chains, Paul was a happy man.  Despite his circumstances, he had joy in his life.

Now, for those of us who have turned to Jesus for the forgiveness of sins, each one of our stories will probably be different, but really they are the same.  We were all living in sin… We may not have been going door to door persecuting and imprisoning Christians, but were still living in sin.  Romans 3:23 says “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”  That means everyone; all humans have the sinful nature that was passed on to us ever since Adam sinned.  Some sins may be more dramatic than others, some more obvious than others, some with greater consequences than others, but all sin is unrighteousness.  When I was younger, before I became a Christian, I was a regular churchgoer, I thought I was a pretty good person, but I was still sinful.

Our conversion may not be as dramatic as Paul, but we do need to have that moment in our lives, like Paul, when we realize that we are sinful and that our sins are separating us from God, and the only way it can be fixed is by repenting and believing in the Lord Jesus.  For me, it was Jan. 24, 1983.   I remember it because that was the day God changed my life.  And we’re not guaranteed we’re going to have nice easy, cushy lives once we become a Christian.  But like Paul, we can still be happy and content and filled with joy… because we now have Jesus in our lives.  Jesus said in John 16:33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.  In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  (Jesus says) I have overcome the world.”

What is this Christian life like after we get saved?  Well, Jesus said to Paul that he was going to be a servant and a witness.  And then Paul said in verse 20 that people should prove their repentance by their deeds.  So, we don’t just become a Christian and then sit around waiting to be taken to heaven.  It’s a wonderful, exciting life, full of service to God and to other people, telling other about Him, doing good stuff, working hard, enduring disappointments and hardships, while still being able to have joy in our lives.  Living in appreciation to God as one who’s been forgiven.

Now, back in Acts 9, where the conversion of Paul takes place, we are told that after Paul repented and was filled with the Holy Spirit, that he got baptized.  Now, why did he get baptized?

Let’s look at the Why?  What?  How?  and Who?  of baptism…

WHY?

Well, Jesus said in Matthew 28, in speaking to His disciples, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing 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.”

So, why do we get baptized?  Well, there are a number of reasons, but the first one is an obvious one – we get baptized because Jesus commands it.  It’s not really an option.  He said after you make a disciple, you baptize them, and you teach them to be obedient to Him.  Throughout the book of Acts in the NT, we see those who accepted the gospel message submitting to baptism.  The Christian is called to give public testimony that we belong to Jesus and one way we do this is through baptism.  It is a public declaration of our faith in Christ and belief in His Word.

We get baptized to identify with the teaching and the person of Jesus Christ.  John the Baptist’s message was “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near.”  People were repenting of their sins, confessing their sins, and submitting to John’s baptism to show that they identified with and believed this message.  People were repenting.  To repent means to have a change of mind about sin – it means to turn around.  Repentance demands a change of lifestyle.  The people changed the way they thought about sin and they changed their lifestyles, and they were baptized to show it.

Jesus Himself was baptized to fulfill all obedience to God.  He did not need to repent but was willing to identify Himself with John’s message of repentance.  Jesus had no sin but was willing to identify with the sin of the people and through His baptism pointed to His death on the cross as a substitute for our sins.  The Bible says Jesus was baptized to fulfill all righteousness – He did it because He knew it was the right thing to do.

Baptism is a picture of our death and resurrection with Christ.  Romans 6 tells us that by God’s power and His work of grace, we are united with Christ in His death on the cross, and in His resurrection from the dead.  God sees us as one with Christ.  Christ’s death on the cross for sin is our death for sin.  Christ’s burial in the grave is our burial in the grave.  Christ’s resurrection from the dead is our resurrection from the dead.  Christ’s righteousness is our righteousness.

Speaking of the resurrection, that’s something that we don’t ever want to take for granted.  This past Wednesday, at our home Bible Study, we were discussing in Matthew 9, where Jesus healed the woman who had been bleeding for 12 years, and He also brought Jairus’ daughter back from the dead.  One of our students, who isn’t as familiar with the Scriptures, stated that Jesus was able to heal back then, but how can He heal our lives today if He died on the cross?  Well, the answer is, that yes He died on the cross, but a few days later He rose from the dead, and came back to life, and is alive today!   Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies.”  And He says, “Because I live, you also shall live.”  Because Jesus came back to life, we too can have eternal life if we believe in Him.  So, yes, how can a dead man offer eternal life?  Well, he can’t.  But one who was dead, and then conquered death by coming back to life – He can.  Let’s never forget the resurrection of Jesus – the most important event in the history of our universe.  Without it, we would be without hope.

Going under the water in baptism is a picture of our death, and burial in the grave with Christ, where we die to sin.  Coming out of the water is a picture of our resurrection with Christ, where we are alive unto God.  We then give ourselves in obedience to Him.

WHAT ? / HOW ?

What exactly is baptism?  It is a ceremony by which a person is immersed into water, or dunked – that’s it!

The Greek word “bapto” means to “dip into.”  It was used for dyeing, when you immerse something in a dye.  You have to completely immerse something in order to change its colour.  It’s the word “immerse.”

The word “baptizo” is an intensified form of bapto.  Used many times in the NT, it means to immerse completely.  It’s the Greek word for “drowning.”  That shows you how complete the dipping is.  It’s the word to submerse or immerse.  The noun form of this word is always used in the NT to refer to a Christian being fully immersed in water.  It’s a ceremony where a person believes the gospel and then is immersed in water.  We never find a person being sprinkled or having water poured on them – some religions do that today, but it’s not real, Biblical baptism.  It always refers to a person being fully put under the water.  Whenever you read in the NT about baptism, immersion is the only possible meaning.

Matthew 3:6 – John the Baptist, they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River.

Matthew 3:16 – After Jesus was baptized, He went up out of the water.  Jesus went down into the water, came up out of the water.  He was immersed in the water.

John 3:23 – John the Baptist picked a place where the water was deep.  There was enough water there to get people under it.

Mark 1:5 – All the people were being baptized in the Jordan River.

Acts 8 – The Ethiopian eunuch said to Philip, “Look, lots of water, why can’t I be baptized here?”   They went down, and Philip immersed him.

So that is what baptism means, and that is how it’s done.  Baptism is a ceremony where a person is immersed into water.

Baptism has great spiritual significance.  And this significance can only be depicted in immersion.

WHO?

Who should get baptized?  Well, anyone who has repented of their sins and confessed Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour.  Throughout the NT and especially in the Book of Acts, this fact is proved over and over again.

Acts 2:38 – “Repent and be baptized.”

Acts 2:41 – “Those who accepted his message were baptized.”

Acts 8:13 – Simon himself believed and was baptized.”

Acts 18:8 – Those who heard him believed and were baptized.”

Repentance and faith in Jesus must always precede baptism.  One must be fully conscious and fully aware of what they are doing.  Of course, this would rule out any form of infant baptism – because what does an infant know about sin and repenting?  I was baptized, well sprinkled, as a baby, but I don’t even remember it, so of course, it didn’t really mean anything to me.  In fact, it wasn’t really baptism, because I wasn’t immersed.  Jesus Himself was about 30 years old when He was baptized.

So, if baptism is so important, and it’s a sign of obedience to the Lord, why aren’t more people baptized?  Well, Bible teacher John MacArthur says that the failure to be baptized and to take baptism seriously is at the root of many problems in peoples’ lives and in the church in general.  It allows the church to fill up with people who are unfaithful to the simplest commands of the Lord and of His Word – and that’s serious.  I mean baptism is a simple thing to do.  It’s not difficult like trying to change an addictive habit, or trying to make a difficult relationship right again.  You just have to go under the water for a couple of seconds and say a few words why you are doing it.  If we’re not obedient in the simple commands, how are we going to react to the Lord’s more difficult commands?

Of course, a person who is not a believer should not be baptized.  You need to become a believer first.  You must realize that what the Bible says is true, that everyone is a sinner.  The book of Romans tells us that the consequences of sin is that we will experience the wrath of God, and Isaiah says the consequences of sin is separation from God – both in this life, and in the life to come.  Eternal separation from God will be an awful state.  Our sins do separate us from God; God realized that, so he sent Jesus to die on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins.  When we realize that we are sinful and we can’t do anything on our own to remedy that, then we need to repent, just like people were doing in Jesus’ day, and just like people have done down through the centuries since.  Faith in Jesus, and then living a life of obedience to Him, is what will bring us into a right relationship with God.

Another thing is pride.  Don’t let pride get in the way.  Don’t think like I used to, that I am good enough on my own, or my good deeds will outweigh my bad, or God will forgive me anyway when it’s all over.  Let me tell you something about pride – not that I have mastered it, I just know about it.  The other day I was reading in Hosea 13.  God was stating His anger against the nation of Israel through the prophet Hosea.  He said, “When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.”  That was about 2,700 years ago, but aren’t we still like that today?  When things are going well, when we are satisfied, we tend to forget about God.  We put ourselves on the throne of our lives, rather than giving God His rightful place.  We must not forget about God, or else He will forget about us.  I think that is the great sin of our nation as a whole, we have forgotten about God.

A few weeks ago, during one of our home Bible studies, we were looking at the passage where Jesus healed a man of leprosy.  But before Jesus healed him of his leprosy, He forgave his sins.  And my question to the group was, why would Jesus do that?  Well, one of our international student friends, Kenji, put some thought into it, and said, “I think Jesus realized that sin is the most important thing.”  I said, “I think you’re right.”  Jesus is more concerned with our spiritual healing and with our spiritual life than He is with the physical.  When you think about it, even if we are healed of something physical, we will still eventually die one day – that is reality.  Sin is the most important thing – we must deal with our sin.

When we realize we are sinful, when we repent of our sins, and realize that Jesus died so that our sins could be forgiven, then we begin a new life in the family of God.  The kind of life that the apostle Paul talked about in Acts 26, loving and serving God, being full of joy regardless of what happens, because we know our eternal destiny is secure.

For those of you who believe, but have not been baptized – what are you waiting for?  Why not take the step of obedience, like Dorothy and Pat are doing today?

Jesus said, “Go and make disciples, and baptize them.”