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I. His Last Command, Our First Concern Once upon a time, you know, back when the earth was flat, I was a youth pastor at a church in Philadelphia that had as its motto, His Last Command, Our First Concern. By His Last Command they meant the words of Jesus Great Commission in Matthew Chapter 28. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, Jesus said. Go therefore 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 every-thing I have commanded you. I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Our mission—the mission Jesus has given his followers to pursue to the end of the age—is to make disciples; To bring the people of this earth into the same relationship with Jesus that we have with Jesus. We are to do that, Jesus says, in two main ways. We are to baptize them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; and then We are to teach them to do everything Jesus has taught us to do. Make disciples by baptizing and by teaching—that is our mission. Now let me ask you a question: Is that how you understand your mission on earth? Or, might you be tempted to rephrase it? Now I don’t mean, rephrase it in some worldly or less than Christian way. Like I exist on this earth to make people happy or to raise a good family Or to die with the most toys, because then I win. No, I mean, ‘Is this the way you would summarize the process of making Disciples, of helping people become devoted followers of Jesus?’ In particular, would you give baptism such a central role? Wouldn’t you be tempted to put the Great Commission more like this? Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, bringing them to faith in me And then teaching them to do everything I have taught you. Wouldn’t you be tempted to put a little bit less emphasis on the act of Baptism, Maybe leave the word out all together? If you would, just remember that the first disciples of Jesus would not. For example, on the Day of Pentecost, when the Spirit of God came down in power, Peter stood up and preached the gospel to the gathering crowd. He proclaimed Jesus, crucified on the cross, as the resurrected King of Creation, Coming again to rule and reign as God’s Messiah. And pierced to the heart by what they heard, the people cried out, What must we do to be saved—saved from the coming judgment of God? Peter responded—Acts chapter 2, verse 38—Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins; and you will receive the Holy Spirit. Some 3000 people were baptized on that day; and the church came into being. Later, in Acts chapter 10, Peter is preaching to someone else, a Roman Centurion named Cornelius, and to his family gathered in the house. This is a big deal in the book of Acts because it is the first time the gospel is being proclaimed to uncircumcised Gentiles. While Peter is preaching, apparently, as the people are believing what he says, the Spirit of God descends on them as in the day of Pentecost. Peter’s first words in response were these: Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? This was the pattern everywhere the early disciples went. Every time someone decided to become a follower of Jesus they were baptized— Usually right then, right there. Because, to be a disciple was to be baptized; and to be baptized was to be a disciple; & to be a baptized disciple was to have received the Holy Spirit. The idea of believing in Jesus and becoming his disciple without being baptized was simply unthinkable. It would not have been allowed; no one would have wanted to do it. Why was that? Because Baptism was commanded by the resurrected King Jesus as the act which sealed the entrance of every disciple into the Christian life. II. An Analogy In that day Baptism was viewed a lot like we view marriage today. Christian marriage, as we understand it, has three dimensions. There is the private, inward dimension; then there is a public, outward dimension; Finally, there is a mysterious, divine dimension. To be married is to make a deep, inward commitment to love and to cherish another person, and remain devoted to that person as long as you both shall live. It is also to enter into a very private and personal union, Involving a sexual intimacy shared with no other. These are the private, inward dimensions of marriage. But no one is married by making a private commitment and experiencing a private sexual union. That’s called living together. In every denomination of the Christian Church throughout history—Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox alike—marriage has required a public commitment A public ceremony of some sort in which vows are made in the presence of God and human witnesses. Parents are involved. Families gather. Gifts are exchanged. Legal documents are drawn up, or promises made that have the force of law. It is only when the private and the public commitment both occur, the public celebration and the private consummation—that someone is married. When they are married, Jesus says, they are joined together, mysteriously, by God They become one in the union and communion of Christian marriage. What God has joined together, Jesus declares, let no one put asunder. As with Marriage so it is with Baptism, at least in the biblical record. Becoming a disciple of Jesus—being married, if you will, to Jesus— and being baptized are meant to go hand in hand, hand in glove. Baptism is the outward, visible expression—the glove—of an inward & invisible commitment to Jesus Christ—the hand. It is the outward, visible expression of an inward and invisible union— between Jesus and his new disciple. III. Don’t You Know? That union is what Paul teaches us about in Romans 6. Don’t you know, he says, 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 in order that, Just as Christ was raised from the dead…we too may live a new life. Paul begins with the words, Do you not know? I think immediately of Isaiah chapter 40. Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Paul is appealing in this passage to what should be common knowledge among the followers of Jesus—from the beginning of their Christian life. But is it? Do you know, have you heard, has it been declared to you from the beginning—that when you were baptized you were baptized into Christ Jesus? That’s the phrase Paul uses here; and it’s a rather odd one. The word, ‘baptizo’ in Greek literally means to immerse, or dip. So, a literal rendering would be to immerse or dip into Jesus. But that’s obviously not what Paul is saying; or not quite what he’s saying. So what is Paul saying we should know? Well, look what he writes in the very next phrase. To be baptized into Jesus is to be baptized into his death. It is to be buried with Jesus—verse 4; and by implication, to be raised with Jesus to live a whole new life. Apparently, Paul is picturing in his mind’s eye the act of baptism. He seems to be saying that when we go down into the water we are Being baptized into Jesus death, we’re being buried with Jesus. Can you picture it? And when we come up out of the water we are rising with Jesus. Now obviously—or at least it is obvious to me—the act of baptism itself does not cause us to die with Jesus or to rise with Jesus. It’s just going down into some water. But baptism is the outward, visible sign of something that is happening— Or has happened—inside of us. Not only that, baptism is the outward sign of something that has happened, Not just inside of us, but in the mind and reality of God. What’s happened is that we have been united—joined—with Jesus. We have been united with Jesus in such a way that we actually participate in his death and his resurrection—and receive its benefits. It’s like David, fighting Goliath. One man faced the enemy that day long ago. One man defeated the enemy. But in the victory of that one man on that one day, the whole nation participated. His victory was their victory; just as his defeat would have been their defeat. Jesus is our victor over sin and death; only his victory was through death and resurrection. He died to sin, once for all, Paul says in verse 10. One man at one time had all the sins of the world placed upon him— And he died for them He paid the penalty for our sins. His death became our death. And his resurrection became our life. On the cross Jesus took our place—suffering the penalty for our sin. And in his resurrection Jesus defeated the power of sin and death over us. He rose victorious from the grave, never to die again. The penalty for sin was paid—once, for all; and the power of death overcome— once for all. But someone might say, Wait a minute; wait a minute. I don’t remember dying with Jesus. I don’t remember being there on the cross. I certainly don’t remember rising with Jesus from the dead. So what do you mean I have been united with him in his death & resurrection? Well, do you remember your baptism? Your baptism is your declaration, your public declaration before God and these witnesses, that you really believe that Jesus died for your sins and that he rose from the dead, victor over sin and death. Your baptism is your public declaration that your really believe that his death was your death and his resurrection will be your resurrection—because that is what God says. Your baptism is your public declaration that your really believe that your sins are now washed away and you will rise, you will rise with Jesus to live forever and ever, amen.. Verse 5: If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. Verse 8: Now if we died with Christ (and we did, according to Paul) we believe that we will also live with him (and we will, according to the promise of God). But you knew that, didn’t you? You have heard that, haven’t you—from the beginning. You know that your baptism is the outward, visible sign of your salvation from the penalty of sin and your participation in Jesus death & resurrection. You knew that, I dare say, before you ever entered this room today. Good for you. But did you also know that your baptism was more than that? Do you also know, have you also heard, has it also been told to you from the beginning—that your baptism is not just the sign that Jesus has paid the penalty for you sin, but also that Jesus has gained the victory over the power of sin in your life? IV. Baptism as the Sign of our Victory over the Power of Sin As it turns out your victory in Jesus over the power of sin is the main message of Romans chapter 6? For the first 5 chapters Paul has been making one point over and over again. It is this: No one is declared righteous before God apart from Jesus. No one will be saved from the judgment to come apart from Jesus. We are guilty. We have all sinned and fall short of the glory of God. But praised be to God, Jesus has paid the price for our sin. He has shed his blood as the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. We are saved—we are made right with God—not by anything we can do— But solely by God’s grace received through faith in the finished work of Jesus. That’s the message of Romans chapter 1-5. The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. That message of salvation by grace through faith raises a question in the minds of some; an objection, of sorts. I might as well keep on sinning, they say. Because God will forgive me if I trust in Jesus death and resurrection on the cross. Or as Voltaire so presumptuously put it, God will forgive; that is his business. To which Paul responds in Romans 6:2, “May it never be!” You see, this is the question with which Romans chapter six begins. What shall we say? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase— Or abound, or be magnified, or be relied on? That’s when Paul says—verse 3—Don’t you know, have you not heard, has it not been declared to you from the beginning—that you baptized into Jesus death. We were buried with Jesus into his death so we could rise with Jesus to live a new life. Look very carefully at Romans 6, verse 6. For we know that the old self was crucified with Jesus so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. Do you know that? Paul says we know it. We know that the old self was crucified on the cross with Jesus. Well, who is this “old self”? And what does Paul mean when he says, “it was crucified with Jesus…so that we should no longer be slaves to sin”? For Paul, becoming a Christian is nothing short of becoming a whole new person. Being “born again” is the way Jesus use to put it. The difference between before and after—before new birth and after new birth— is like the difference between being dead and being alive. Paul calls the before, The Old Self; the after is The New Self, or the New Man The Old Self, Paul insists, is a Slave to Sin. Because the Old Self is cut off from God. The Old Self is Man turned in upon himself, living for himself and by himself, without the power of God’s Spirit. That Kind of Man is a man who becomes enslaved to his own desires and his own needs and his own distorted way of looking at the world. But, when we put our faith in Jesus God puts that old sinful self on the cross. We are crucified with Christ, Paul says. Then God creates a New Self, a self that comes to life by His Spirit. A self that is born again from above, alive to God. Paul uses rather strong language in this verse about what happens on the cross.. He says, the body of sin is done away with. Another translation, which I prefer, is the body of sin is rendered powerless. Now this, if it’s true, is a transforming truth. But do you understand it? Do you understand that the power of sin—which we experience in our bodies— has been rendered powerless by the cross & resurrection of Jesus Christ. Before Christ we could not help but be led by the power of our sinful desires. But now—since we have died with Christ and been raised with Him— Since our Old Self has been crucified and buried with Christ— And a New Self—a born again self—has come into being— We no longer are slaves to our sinful desires. We can live for God and we must live for God—by the power of His Spirit. But there is a problem, isn’t there; I mean, if we’re honest. The problem is that it doesn’t always feel like that—does it? We still feel the pull—in our bodies—our mind and our emotions— To sin. We still feel the pull of our sinful, selfish desires. Our minds still thinks in sinful ways; Our will still moves in selfish directions; our body still pulls us away from God. If we’re honest we feel divided. We want to love and live for God—because the Spirit is within us. We want to know him and obey him and be filled with his love, joy & peace. But we find something within us that wants something else— That wants to take life in our own hands and do what it wants to do— No matter what God says. Paul knows this about us. He know there is a tension—at times a deep tension— between the New Man and those old thoughts and desires— which, of course, are reinforced by the world all around us. So Paul says, in verse 11 of Romans 6. Become daily what you are in Jesus. That’s my paraphrase. What Paul actually says is: Count yourselves, reckon yourselves, know and believe that you are dead to sin, but alive to God. Know and believe that something supernaturally has happened in your life. You have been born again. You have become a new creation. The Old Self has been crucified & you have risen to live a whole new life. So act like. Become in experience what God has made you to be. Do it by giving your bodies to God. Step out in faith and do what God has said you now can do. Live—alive to Him—because His Spirit is within you— If your baptism is telling the truth— the truth about what you believe &the truth about what God has done. So here is a rule, a guide, for life; I recommend that you say it over and over again. Remember your baptism. Remember your baptism. Remember you baptism and live its meaning. Reject the thoughts and desires of the Old Man who lived in sin. Put them away—push them away—crucify them. Put on the New Man, the new Woman, that God has made and is making of you. Or, let me put it in the language of Jesus to his disciples. If anyone wants to follow—want to be my disciples— Let him deny himself— that is, deny the thoughts and desires of his Old Self— Let him take up his cross— The instrument by which he dies to that Old Self— Let him follow me. That is what it means to be a Christian—to live the meaning of your baptism. V. Back to the Wedding Analogy When I perform a wedding I am aware of two audiences and two purposes. The first and most important audience is obviously, the man and the woman standing before me. My primary purpose is to invite them to declare their vows before God and these witnesses—and in the name of God to pronounce them husband and wife. But there is another audience present—and another purpose: The people gathered as witnesses. Some of them are not yet married—and as I speak they are learning what marriage means. There are some present who have been married for years— and as I speak they are being reminded of what they heard at the beginning. Think about it—those of you who have been married for years and have recently attended a wedding. Isn’t the service a reminder of the vows you made on your own special day? Isn’t the message a reminder of what your marriage is suppose to be— And is called by God to be? Isn’t the love so obviously displayed between bride and groom that day a reminder of the love you once felt—and should be living every day of your life? As with Marriage, so it is with Baptism today. As you hear the testimonies to faith spoken this afternoon, It is your opportunity to remember your testimony of faith. As you watch those being baptized walk down into the water, it is your opportunity to remember you own decision to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back. As they go down into the water—buried with Jesus—it is your opportunity to thank God that your sins have been washed away—never to remembered again. As they go into the water and rise again remember—please remember—that you have died, not just to the penalty, but to the power of sin in your life today. Then get up from the grass when it is all over and day by day, hour byhour, moment by moment, remember you baptism. Remember that your Old Self has been crucified with Christ In order that the power of sin might be rendered powerless— And you might live alive to God by the power of His Spirit. All authority in heaven and on earth has been give to me, Jesus said. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, Baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and Teaching them to do everything I have commanded you. And Lo—I am with you (in the person of my Spirit) always, even to the end of the age. |
