Is Baptism Necessary?

Sermon  •  Submitted
0 ratings
· 14 views

While not necessary for salvation (Eph. 2:8-9), the New Testament example of baptism shows evidence of salvation and a willingness to submit to the authority of Christ and His bride, the church. (In this case, the local church)

Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
View more →
Matthew 3:13–17 NKJV
Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him. When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

We Follow Jesus’ Example

Acts 8:26–40 NKJV
Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is desert. So he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship, was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.” So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. The place in the Scripture which he read was this: “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He opened not His mouth. In His humiliation His justice was taken away, And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.” So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to Caesarea.
Acts 16:25–34 NKJV
But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed. And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.” Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.” Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.
Acts

We Follow the Example of the New Testament

We Learn Truths from Baptism

Each person decides for themselves to be baptized.
Baptism is ALWAYS preceded by a life-changing faith in Christ.
New believers are baptized without hesitation. They are not ashamed.
Each one was immersed.
Baptism following conversion was the New Testament norm.
Acts 2:38 NKJV
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
A
You can also read about it in Acts
2:41; 8:12; 8:13; 8:16; 8:36; 8:38; 9:18; 10:47; 10:48; 11:16; 16:15; 16:33; 18:8; 19:3; 19:4; 19:5; 22:16

If I’m Hesitant About Baptism then…

You may not be saved.
Matthew 28:20 NKJV
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
You may not completely understand the Gospel and the need for baptism.
You may have been raised in a tradition that places an extra-biblical emphasis on baptism and need to learn more about what the Bible says.

I Learned Something New Today, I Need To...

Repent and trust Christ.
Stop trying to do things my way, and follow the New Testament and Christ’s example.
Make an appointment to talk to Bro. Toby (270-621-0354) and learn more.
I’ve made a profession of faith and have been baptized, but do not take my relationship with the Lord seriously. I need to go home, search the scriptures, and make certain my salvation.
Check my heart and life as a believer and see if I’m walking in holiness.
John 1:16 NKJV
And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.
1 John 1:6 NKJV
If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more