Open back to John chapter 1. As you can see, we're going to
observe the Lord's table tonight, which is a holy, holy and special
thing. And I am thankful that it just so
happened that on the first Sunday of this month, the time that
I planned on having this table, we come to this verse where John
is talking about baptism. The Lord gave us two ordinances
to keep. The Lord's table and baptism. And they go hand in hand. They
go hand in hand. They both are symbols of His
death and they're symbols of our life in Him. That's why we
observe them. We observe these to remember
His death and our life in Him till He comes. Our text says
in John 1 verse 24, They which were sent were of the Pharisees. And they asked him and said unto
him, why baptizes thou then? That is the line that caused
me to think on these things. Why baptizes thou then? Why are
you baptizing people? If thou be not that Christ, nor
Elias, neither that prophet, why are you baptizing? John answered
them saying, I baptize with water. A lot of people baptize with
water. A lot of churches baptize with
water. He said, but there standeth one among you whom you know not.
He it is who coming after me is preferred before me whose
shoe latchets I'm not worthy to unloose. These things were
done in Bethabara, beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing. Baptism
and the Lord's Table go hand in hand. Turn with me to Matthew
chapter 20. Our title and our subject is
Believer's Baptism. Matthew chapter 20 and look at
verse 20. Then came to him the mother of
Zebedee's children with her sons, worshiping him and desiring a
certain thing of him. And he said unto her, what wilt
thou? She saith unto him, grant that
these my two sons may sit the one on thy right hand and the
other on the left hand in thy kingdom. But Jesus answered and
said, You know not what you ask. Now watch this. Are you able
to drink of the cup that I shall drink of? And we observed the Lord's table
because of the cup that he drank of. And to be baptized with the
baptism that I am baptized with? And they said unto him, We are
able. And he said unto them, you shall
drink indeed of my cup. You'll be a partaker with me
of my suffering and be baptized with the baptism that I'm baptized
with. But to sit on my right hand and
on my left is not mine to give, but it shall be given unto them
for whom it is prepared of my father. So baptism and the Lord's
table, they go hand in hand. Now don't turn back to our text,
but they asked John, why baptizes thou then? If you're not the
Christ, and if you're not Elias, and if you're not that prophet,
why are you baptizing? And let's ask this question this
way. Why should a person be baptized? Why should a person be baptized?
The first reason is the Lord commanded it. Turn with me to
Matthew 28. Matthew 28, look at verse 19. Our Lord said, Go ye therefore
and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe
all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I'm with
you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. The Lord
commanded it. Go ye therefore, teach all nations,
baptizing them. Now, religion tries to get people
baptized. That's not why, that's not the
purpose of this message. Not to get anybody baptized,
not with water. But the commandment of the Lord
is to his preachers, go ye therefore and teach all nations, spread
the word, baptizing. So the Lord commanded it, that's
all the reason we need. If the Lord commanded it, that's
reason enough, isn't it? The second reason is the Lord
Himself was baptized. Go with me over to Matthew chapter
3. Matthew chapter 3 and look at
verse 13. Then cometh Jesus from Galilee
to Jordan unto John to be baptized of him. But John forbade him,
saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou unto
me? And Jesus answering said unto
him, Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill
all righteousness. Then he suffered him, And Jesus,
when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water,
and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit
of God descending like a dove and lighting upon him. And lo,
a voice from heaven saying, this is my beloved Son, in whom I'm
well pleased. Our Lord taught us and led us
by example. By example, the Lord was sinless
and he was baptized. He was obedient to the word of
God. The commandment was be baptized
and he fulfilled all the law. He was baptized himself. The
third reason a person is baptized is to confess him. specifically. Not I want to be
saved. Not I've decided to give my heart
to Jesus. It's to confess Him. Go with
me to Acts chapter 2. Acts chapter 2 and look at verse
37. Now when they heard this, they
were pricked in their heart and said unto Peter and to the rest
of the apostles, men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter
said unto them, repent and be baptized. Every one of you in
the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you
shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. That's what Peter
told him. Repent. And be baptized. True believers baptism is repentance. Repentance from religion. It's
repentance from the name of myself and everything about me, and
it's repentance into the name of Jesus Christ. That's what
true baptism is. I renounce everything that I
thought. I renounce everything that I
was. I renounce everything that I
am. And I confess Jesus Christ. He's now my everything. That's
why a person is baptized. That's the reason a person is
baptized. Now, what is believer's baptism? Baptism and the Lord's table,
they're vitally joined. So what is believer's baptism?
I want you to go to Mark chapter one. Mark chapter one and look at
verse four. It says, John did baptize in
the wilderness and preach the baptism of repentance for the
remission of sins. It's a baptism of repentance. Now, I don't, you know, I don't
want this to be Too technical, I don't want this to be, it's
not like a college class. But repentance means a change
of mind. That's the definition, that's
what it means. It means a change of mind. It's a change of mind
about God. That's the first thing it is.
That's what repentance is. When John went and the Lord went
and said, repent, what that means is, Well, we're dead. We can't do anything. But what
that means is change your mind. Have a change of mind about who
God is. You think you know who God is,
but you don't. It's a change of mind about man. You think you know who man is,
but you don't. Man's not what you thought he
was. It's a change of mind about salvation. You know, we're not
saved like I thought we were. I see that now it's a change
of mind. Repentance. We're born into sin
and we actually love sin. We really do. Man by nature loves
sin. That's why you gravitate to it.
You do. I think it's amazing how I would
always prefer French fries over an apple. Always. They're bad. And that's what
I gravitate to. We love sin by nature. It's a
change of mind about sin. That's what repentance is. You
know, my flesh loves sin, but I hate sin by God's grace. Not because anything I decided
to do, not any decision I made. I hate sin. And when I say that,
I mean I hate what I am. I hate every fiber of what makes
up me. I hate it. I hate it. I have a change of mind. Repentance. When a person goes
under the water in baptism, what they're saying is, I am dead
to the way I thought was right. I'm dead to that. I have a change
of mind. Proverbs 14, 12 says, there is
a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are
the ways of death. I thought I had it all figured
out. I still think I have it all figured out. And every time
I come back to reality and come back to myself, it's not right.
It's just not right. It's a baptism of repentance.
All right, Mark chapter 1 verse 4 says, John did baptize in the
wilderness and preach the baptism of repentance for. And right there, I have a center
margin and it says unto. That's what the word for means,
unto. John did baptize in the wilderness
and preach the baptism of repentance unto the remission of sin. And
there went out unto him all the land of Judea and they of Jerusalem
and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing
their sins. Believers baptism is a confession
of sin. That's what it is. It's a baptism
of repentance. And it's a confession of sin. It's saying, I am a sinner right
now. When I go down, I'm saying, I
deserve to die in my sins. This is what I deserve. I admit
it. It's a confession of sins. But with this new change of mind,
I now realize that Christ took my sin. This is what baptism
is. I deserve to die, but Christ
took my sin and he died for me. I realize that in his death,
I have remission for my sins. That's what baptism is saying. I deserve it, but I died in him. Now Mark chapter 1 verse 4 says,
John did baptize in the wilderness and preach the baptism of repentance
for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all
the land of Judea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized
of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. And John
was clothed with camel's hair, and with a girdle of skin about
his loins, and he did eat locust and wild honey, and preached,
saying, There cometh one mightier than I after me, the lachent
of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I
indeed have baptized you with water, but he shall baptize you
with the Holy Ghost. What is believer's baptism? It's
a baptism of water, just water. There's nothing special about
the water. It comes out of the tap. It's a baptism of water
confessing the one true baptism of the Holy Ghost. This is important to know. I
think this is extremely important to know. There is only one true
baptism. And it's the baptism of the Holy
Ghost. It doesn't have anything to do with water. It's the baptism
of the Holy Ghost. Go with me to Acts chapter 8. Acts chapter eight. Now I'm going
to read this story. It's verses nine to 21. It's
a few verses. Maybe the Lord will allow us
to enter into this story. Verse nine says, there was a
certain man called Simon. This is not Peter. This is a
different man called Simon, which before time in the same
city used sorcery. He was a magician and bewitched
the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great
one. He tricked the people to whom
they all gave heed from the least to the greatest, saying, This
man is the great power of God. And to him they had regard, because
that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries. But when
they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom
of God in the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men
and women. Then Simon, this man, himself
believed also. And when he was baptized, he
continued with Philip and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs
which were done. Now, when the apostles, which
were at Jerusalem, heard that Samaria had received the word
of God, they sent unto them Peter and John. They heard that Samaria
was listening to the gospel and they weren't rejecting it. All
right, verse 15 says, they sent Peter and John who, when they
were come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy
Ghost. For as yet, he was fallen upon
none of them. Only they were baptized in the
name of the Lord Jesus. Oh, that's interesting, isn't
it? Verse 17, then laid they their
hands on them and they received the Holy Ghost. And when this
man Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the
Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, saying, Give me also
this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands he may receive the
Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto him, Thy
money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift
of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part
nor lot in this matter, for thy heart is not right in the sight
of God. He was baptized and believed. That's what God wrote down. Verse
13, Simon himself believed also and he was baptized. We can go swimming all we want
to. In every church. In the name of the Lord Jesus.
Somebody can raise his hand and say, I baptize you in the name
of the Father, and the Son, and the Spirit. We can get in every
pool. But it does not mean we're saved. It does not mean that. Baptism
in water doesn't save anybody. No, if we ever get a baptistry
here, it's not going to save anybody. Not one person. Many people are immersed in baptism,
in water, who have never received the one true baptism, the gift
of the Holy Ghost, the Spirit of God. What that means is baptism
is of the Lord. That's what it means. Now the
Lord showed us what true baptism is right here in Acts chapter
8. Look at verse 26. We're going to read another story.
It's going to take just a second. But this is true baptism. Not a false profession like this
man Simon made. It says in verse 26, the angel
of the Lord spoke unto Philip. It starts with the Spirit of
God. saying, Arise and go toward the
south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza,
which is desert. And he arose and went, and behold,
a man of Ethiopia, and eunuch of great authority under Candace,
queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure
and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, was returning and
sitting in his chariot, reading Isaiah the prophet. Then the
Spirit said unto Philip, go near and join thyself to this chariot.
The Spirit of God is doing all this, commanding all of this,
ordering all of this. Verse 30, and Philip ran thither
to him and heard him read the prophet Isaiah and said, understandest
thou what thou readest? And he said, how can I? Except some man should guide
me. And he desired Philip that he
would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which
he read was this. He was led as a sheep to the
slaughter. And like a lamb dumb before his
shearer, so opened he not his mouth. In his humiliation, His
judgment was taken away, and who shall declare his generation?
For his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered
Philip and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet
this, of himself or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth
and began at the same scripture, and he preached unto him Jesus.
And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water.
And the eunuch said, See, here is water. What doth hinder me
to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest
with all thy heart, thou mayest. If you believe with all your
heart, you may. If you believe in this man, And
if you love this man with all your heart, and if you know I'm
a sinner with all my heart, and he's my only hope with all my
heart, then you may. Verse 37, and he answered and
said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God. And he commanded
the chariot to stand still, and they went down both into the
water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. That baptism was an open confession
of the work that that spirit had been doing since verse 26. True baptism has nothing to do
with water. Nothing to do with water. It's
baptism of the Holy Spirit. Just like true circumcision has
nothing to do with the flesh, it's of the heart. Now, just
listen to this. We know this scripture. It's
Mark 16, 16. It says, he that believeth and is baptized shall
be saved. Now, what is believing God? What's that called? It's called
faith. Faith is believing God. Where
does it come from? It comes from God. It doesn't
start here. It has nothing to do with me.
It's of God. It's a gift of God. What is true
baptism? It's a baptism of the Holy Ghost. It's a gift of God. It has nothing
to do with me. It has nothing to do with the
things that I do. So Mark 16 is saying, he that
receives the gift of God to him, that's faith, believe. And he
that receives the work of God in him, the Holy Spirit, the
Holy Ghost shall be saved. He that believes and is baptized
shall be saved. It's all of God, all of it. Now, once the Lord God gives
this understanding, this change of mind, many people will say,
I was baptized before with water, but I did not believe. I didn't have the gift of the
Holy Ghost. I did not believe that I was
a total sinner. I didn't believe that. I did
not believe that salvation was totally of Jesus Christ. I didn't believe that. I did
not believe that it had nothing to do with me. I didn't believe
that. But I do now. I do now. I do now. I believe
I'm a sinner. That's what I believe. Head to
toe, I'm a sinner. I believe it's His death and
only His death that paid the debt of my sins. I believe that.
I believe when He arose, I rose with Him. My life is in Him. I live in Him. And I told you
just a minute ago, the purpose of this is not to get anybody
baptized. That's what religion does. Not
with water. Nobody needs to get down into
the pool just to ease their conscience. Nobody. It doesn't do anything.
There's no hope of salvation in a pool of water. If it's not
a baptism of the Holy Ghost, we're just going swimming. That's
all we're doing. The purpose of this is only to
tell what God has said in his word about baptism. That's it. But I will say this. To any true
sinner who's never made a profession, I will say this. If you love
him with all your heart, If you love him with all your heart,
Philip said, if you believe with all your heart, if you confess
him with all your heart, what doth hinder you? I want to close with this last
question. It will lead us into the partaking
of the table. Here's this last question. Who
should partake of the Lord's table? In just a minute, we're
going to pass out some bread and we're going to pass out some
wine and I'm going to sit down and eat. I don't want to know who partakes
at all. This is between an individual
and the Lord. Each person and the Lord. Who
should partake of the Lord's table? I'll show you what the
Word says. Go with me to Acts 2. Acts 2,
look at verse 41. Then they that gladly received
His word were baptized. And the same day there were added
unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly
in the apostles' doctrine, and fellowship, and in breaking of
bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul. And many wonders and signs were
done by the apostles. And all that believed were together
and had all things common. And sold their possessions and
goods and parted them to all men as every man had need. And
they continuing daily with one accord in the temple and breaking
bread from house to house did eat their meat with gladness
and singleness of heart, praising God and having favor with all
the people, and the Lord added to the church daily, such as
should be saved. Who should partake of the Lord's
table? This scripture says it's those who gladly receive the
word, have been baptized in true believers baptism, Those who
continue steadfastly in doctrine, in fellowship, in breaking of
bread, in prayer. Those who fear God, have all
things common, don't see themselves above anyone else, we're all
under Christ. And those who believe they were
totally saved by grace. Those who believe it's not of
themselves, but it's the Lord who adds such as should be saved. That's who should partake of
this table. That's who should confess Him, confess His body,
He lived for me, and His blood, He died for me. His life and
His death. All right, Brother Tony's gonna
come pass out the bread.