God's Design - The Church & Baptism

As Jesus gives ordinances (Baptism & Lord's Supper) to the church, He provides us with visible words that reveal the believer's oneness with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection (baptism) and working out of that oneness with Christ through ongoing fellowship with Him for strength and life (Lord's Supper).

Through baptism, repentant sinners are given a way to make a public profession of faith in Christ, while at the same time explaining the gospel of Christ (death, burial, & resurrection). While baptism communicates the gospel and our union with Christ, it also communicates our union with the church (the body of Christ).

1 Corinthians 12:12-13 reads For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were baptized into one body - Jews or Greeks, slaves or free - and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

This union together as the body, under the headship of Jesus, brings so many blessings and responsibilities to us as members of the body:

encouragement, help, rebuke, correction, love, support, discipline, community, strength, accountability...

This Sunday we will look to the Scriptures as we seek to understand baptism:

What is baptism? Why do we baptize? What does baptism do?

The following passages will be helpful as you prayerfully prepare for our time together this Sunday:

Matthew 3 Luke 12:50 Romans 6:1-5