Just in Time! Baptism Services, Sermons, and Prayers
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It shows us the depth of our brokenness, and the even greater depths of God's grace. We dive in head first this Sunday, as Jonah's flight away from God raises the question for us: What happens when God's command contradicts our own deepest desires? The disciples have asked Jesus to teach them to pray.
In the center of Luke The moral of the story? If a grouchy father will stubbornly get up at midnight and give his neighbor who without shame requests bread for his guest, then imagine what our heavenly Father will do for his children who come to him in need. This Sunday, we're continuing our 3-week series on parables of Jesus. Paul and his family are members at Tremont Temple Baptist Church and he has served churches in Cambridge and Arlington.
He'll share with us about how to overcome worry in our lives, especially related to our finances. The minister will make the sign of the cross on the forehead of the child using the water. Baptism is a wonderful time to say thank you to God for the gift of a child. You are welcome of course to attend any of our services held each Sunday; 7. We are pleased that you have decided to give your child the benefit of being welcomed into the church family, now please take the effort to bring them along to church throughout these early years so that they can have the Christian start that they deserve. Can I know the Almighty God who created me?
He'll share with us about how to overcome worry in our lives, especially related to our finances. Forgiveness is one of those things that might sound easy on the surface, but it can be incredibly difficult deep down. If we're honest, sometimes it seems like forgiveness isn't working even though God's word says it's supposed to.
Ed Keazirian, one of Pastor Josh and Whitney's beloved seminary professors, will explore this topic of forgiveness in Jesus' Parable of the Unjust Servant.
Did you know that Jesus talks more about money in the Gospels than he does about heaven and hell? Our finances are intimately personal and extremely powerful.
1 Corinthians 12:13
This Sunday is Stewardship Sunday, which is the annual day we intentionally explore the topic of our finances. Our hope is that we all would "excel in this grace of giving" together. This week, we'll observe how the early church valued and leveraged fellowship with one another--another simple rhythm that is powerfully able to bring life-change. This Sunday is Vision Sunday! It was years ago this month that representatives from dozens of churches all over Boston gathered to celebrate and affirm us as "a regular Baptist church. We know our mission is to invite Boston and beyond into a life-changing relationship with Christ and his church.
But the question we'll explore on Sunday is: How do we accomplish this big mission? What is our practical strategy? We will be pleased to spend time with you. We look forward to welcoming you and your family to celebrate this important occasion. With you we will thank God for the birth of your baby, name the child with its Christian name and welcome a new member into the Christian family of the Church. Of course if you are an adult who was not baptised as a child then we hope that baptism may be something which you would like to consider for yourself.
You will not be placed in any embarrassing situations, we will not make you feel guilty about coming to church, but we do encourage you to start thinking of this as your church. The information here will give you answers to some of the questions which you may have; please contact one of the ministry team if you have further questions and they will be pleased to talk with you.
A chance for all the family to get together, celebrate and thank God for the new life which he has given. After his death and resurrection Jesus commanded his followers to make new disciples and baptise them too. This has been done ever since by Christians throughout the world. Jesus told his disciples to baptise people who wanted to become Christians and join the church.
The Bible tells us that whole households were being baptised and of course soon parents wanted their children to be baptised too. Baptism is not like an insurance policy which you take out to make sure that your baby goes to heaven; God loves your child just as much now as after the baptism service. However it does make sense to give your child the very best start in life and what could be better than to encourage them from the very earliest days to be open to God and to know of His love for them.
Some churches do not baptise children until they are old enough to understand everything for themselves. However we do make all kinds of decisions on behalf of our children including schools and medical treatment as we do our best to encourage them in the best way for their lives. We are pleased that you have decided to give your child the benefit of being welcomed into the church family, now please take the effort to bring them along to church throughout these early years so that they can have the Christian start that they deserve.
In the baptism service we also pray that one day they will want as adults to stand up for themselves to confirm the baptism vows which have been made on their behalf: If you would like a chance to think more about the Christian faith then you may like to ask about confirmation. Baptisms take place in the main Sunday Morning Service at church, because part of the service is the welcoming of the child by the congregation.
Usually the baptism occurs in the Family Service at 9. In certain circumstances it may be possible to arrange another service in the month, however although we welcome children to all our services we find that Family Services are best for baptisms. Parents and Godparents will be asked to stand up and declare their own Christian faith. It is important to make sure that you can make these promises and only you can truthfully know that. If you have any difficulty we will discuss the promises with you. Baptism is a very important occasion and not to be undertaken lightly.
Parents and godparents are invited to gather around the font, one family at a time. Please bring this order of service with you. The minister says to the parents and godparents: You have brought this child to baptism. There are then three questions about the way you intend to live your life. Parents and Godparents make the promises for themselves and also for the child. They apply to their own lives and on behalf of the children for whom they will be responsible. This is the faith of the Church.
What to Expect at the Baptism Service
This is our faith. These will be the Christian names for the child for the rest of its life. The minister takes the child and says: Water is a sign of cleansing and also an important sign of life. Water symbolises how we are all washed clean by God and forgiven and accepted by Him. As we cannot live without water so this sign reminds us that we also need the cleansing and renewing presence of God in our lives. The minister will make the sign of the cross on the forehead of the child using the water.
This is a sign to remind us of how Christ died for each one of us on the cross. The baptism in the Holy Spirit is an empowering for service that takes place in the life of the Christian Acts 1: In it we are immersed in the Spirit's life and power. To illustrate, if we drank water from a glass, then the water would be inside us.
However, if we went to the beach and stepped into the ocean, then we would be in the water.
We receive, as it were, a drink of the Holy Spirit when we are saved, but when we are baptized in the Spirit, it is as if that initial drink becomes an ocean that completely surrounds us. Just as the indwelling Spirit that Christians receive when they are saved reproduces the life of Jesus, so the outpoured, or baptizing, Spirit reproduces the ministry of Jesus, including miracles and healings. We need a power beyond ourselves for service and ministry in Christ's Kingdom. When Jesus gave the Great Commission Matthew Therefore, He had a special gift in store for them: It was His plan to give them the same power that He had -- the power of the Spirit of God.
So, immediately after giving them the Great Commission, Jesus commanded his disciples not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father promised, "which," He said, "you heard of from Me; for John baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now" Acts 1: The disciples waited in Jerusalem as Jesus had commanded, and one day when they were all together, "suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent, rushing winds, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance" Acts 2: Then Peter explained to the crowd that gathered that they were seeing the working of God's Spirit and told them about Jesus. The Christian church began that day with the disciples and the three thousand people who joined them as a result of the day's events. We can undertake making disciples of all nations with some degree of success without the baptism in the Holy Spirit, but when we do, we are undertaking a supernatural task with limited power.
It is God's will -- it is His commandment -- that we be baptized, or filled with the Holy Spirit: The knowledge and reality of the empowering Spirit enables us to reproduce the works of Jesus. It can take place at the moment you confess faith in Christ, as in the case of the first Gentile convert, Cornelius Acts Is There Anything To Fear? Some people fear that if they ask for the baptism in the Holy Spirit, what they experience won't be the authentic working of the Spirit.
But once they do ask for it, they are always glad they did. God doesn't cause us to do anything we don't want to, and all His gifts are good and perfect James 1: Jesus said, "Now suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish; he will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will be? Or if he is asked for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?
Bible Verses About Baptism
The baptism in the Holy Spirit is an even better gift than any material gift you could receive, and God wants you to have it because He loves you and wants the very best for you. The Bible says that a wise man counts the cost before he begins to build a tower Luke This beautiful experience of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is a free gift, but you must be willing to submit fully to God to receive it.
Jesus will respond to a totally yielded vessel.