Baptized Like Jesus
Like Jesus • Sermon • Submitted
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· 5 viewsAll committed of followers of Christ should be baptized just like Jesus was baptized.
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UNIFIED VERSE:
“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!”
PRAY
VIDEO
In addition to Jesus, there are three sets of people mentioned in the Gospel of Mark; (1) the disciples, (2) the crowds and (3) the religious leaders. None of these groups understood Jesus. We know this because in the end, the disciples abandoned Jesus, the crowds mocked Him, and the religious leader arrest and crucify Him. The only one, according to Mark, who completely understood Jesus was the Roman centurion who, following Jesus’s death, cried out “Truly this man was God’s Son” (Mark 15:39).
I believe the narrators in the video are spot on when they say that Mark wants the reader to wrestle with the question of whether or not Jesus is the promised Messiah. How we answer that question determines everything about our relationship with Him and, in-turn, it determines the very make up of Monaghan Baptist Church. That’s because we treat the church the same way we treat our relationship with Jesus.
If we are truly committed followers of Jesus, then we will do whatever it takes to become more like Him.
READ Mark 1:1-11
Scholars believe that Mark is writing this book from Rome and his audience was Roman Christians and Roman non-Christians. This means his target audience was Gentile, but there were some Jews who would’ve heard or read the letter too.
Unlike the other Gospels, Mark does not open his account of Jesus’s life with a genealogy, or birth narrative about God’s Son arriving on the earth. Instead, Mark opens his account with the words “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ.” We are familiar with the word “gospel.” We know it describes “the good news.” So, for example, the Gospel of Mark is “The story of the good news about God’s Salvation through Jesus of Nazareth.” In the opening verse of this testimony, Mark is making it clear that his point for writing this book is to announce the greatest and most exciting news possible! The good news of God’s Salvation through His Son Jesus Christ.
In verses 2-8, Mark defines John the Baptist’s God ordained role in the story of God’s Salvation through Jesus Christ. First, He does this by describing John the Baptist as the fulfillment of a prophecy about a special messenger laying the foundation for the coming Messiah.
In the Prophecy that Mark quotes, God says, “Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’” Underline the word “prepare.” Notice that the prophecy uses the term twice. In both instances, it means to “make ready.”
In Mark 1:4, John the Baptist is that messenger who is preparing the people for the coming of the Messiah. Luke records that John the Baptist’s father, Zechariah prophesied about his son, “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of God . . .” (Luke 1:76-78a, ESV).
The 18th century theologian and pastor, John Gill, says, “the work of this messenger was no other, than to declare that the long expected Messiah was born; that he would quickly make his public appearance in Israel; that the kingdom of heaven, or the kingdom of the Messiah, was at hand . . .” -John Gill
Mark goes on to tells us that people from Jerusalem and Judea were going into the wilderness to the Jordan River to hear John’s message about their need for repentance and forgiveness of sin. Those who believed his message were immediately baptized.
Not only was John calling on the people to repent and seek forgiveness for their sins, but He was fulfilling the prophecies by preparing the people for the coming Messiah.
“After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:7-8, ESV).
Then we come to our verses for today, verses 9-11.
Mark is not specific as to how long John the Baptist was in the wilderness preparing the way for Jesus, when Jesus came to be baptized. We believe that Jesus was about 30 years old when this occured. We also know from all four gospel accounts that Jesus placed a great amount of importance on baptism. That is seen in the fact that baptism is the start of Jesus’s earthly ministry and He ended His earthly ministry with the Great Commission, which commands us to go and baptize people of all nations in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Christian baptism is one of two ordinances or sacraments that Jesus Christ instituted into the life of the Church. The other is Communion.
As Christians, we believe that baptism is a testimony of action for new believers. In other words, Baptism is an outward sign of an inner change.
There are two things we see in the baptism of Jesus that defines how it helps us become more like Him.
I. Biblical Baptism Requires Repentance (1:4-5)
I. Biblical Baptism Requires Repentance (1:4-5)
Now, before we go any further we need to address one question. Why was Jesus baptized?
We are about to talk about Jesus’s baptism, but it’s important to understand that Jesus did not require repentance before He was baptized. He was perfect. He’d never sinned. John the Baptist even recognized this fact. In Matthew’s recording of Jesus’s baptism he writes, “Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying ‘I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?’ But Jesus answered him, ‘Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness’” (Matthew 3:13-17, ESV). Unfortunately, our time together won’t allow us to dig deep into this question. But I want to quickly offer you two reasons why I believe Jesus was baptized:
1. Obedience
Notice Jesus’s response to John the Baptist’s statement that Jesus needed to baptize him and not the other way around. Jesus says, ‘Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” The term “righteousness” in the Greek refers to a person’s ability to live in accordance to God’s law. So, in being baptized Jesus is symbolizing His commitment to following or obeying God’s law.
2. It also symbolized the beginning of His earthly ministry. He is saying to God, “Here I am and I am wiling to be, go, and do whatever you command me to do.” But the entire scene is tied up into Jesus being obedient.
I believe that’s why the heaven open and the Holy Spirit descends on Christ in the form of a dove and God the Father says, “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.”
Never forget, Jesus’s entire life was commited to pleasing the Father.
Now, baptism, as we’ll see later also signifies our commitment to obeying Christ but, as we’ll see later it signifies more than just our commitment.
Mark says in verse 4 that John the Baptist was “in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” The word repentance, as Mark uses it here, is literal and means “to change one’s mind regarding God.” By New Testament times, the Jews equated repentance with returning to God.
Billy Sunday was an evangelists in the early 1900s. Before surrendering his life to the ministry, he was an ex-baseball player. He utilized his athleticism in his sermons to illustrate different points he was trying to make. Some times he would even do acrobatics on stage. To illustrate repentance, Billy Sunday would begin walking across the stage and He would say, “I’m going this way. I’m going my own way, my own mind, and my own will.” And then he wold say, “I repent!” And he would do a back flip and head in the other direction. His point was that when we repent from our sins it means we are turning around and going in a completely new direction. No longer will we do what we want to do, no longer will we do what the world expects us to do, no longer will we allow our sinful natures determine our course in life. Instead, we are going to follow Christ wherever He leads, and do whatever He says. That’s repentance and it’s required before a person can be baptized.
Yes, John the Baptist preached repentance and so did Jesus. Look down at Mark 1:14. It says, “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel’” (Mark 1:14-15, ESV).
Luke records Jesus saying to a crowd of people, “I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3, ESV).
On the day of Pentecost, Peter told the thousands in attendance, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38, ESV).
Repentance is a must before any of us should consider baptism. If you are baptized without repentance then all you are doing is getting wet.
As we think about repentance, here’s what we must understand. True repentance requires:
Conviction of Sin: The Bible teaches that one of the works of God’s Holy Spirit is convicting us of our sins.
Jesus says in John 16:8 that when the Holy Spirit comes, “he will convict the world concerning sin . . .” (John 16:8a, ESV).
Author and theologian, C.S. Lewis often talked about mankind having a moral standard. He argues that within every man, woman, and child, there is the ability to know the difference between right and wrong. For example, it’s understood through out history that it is terribly wrong to torture a child for fun. I would venture to say that more than 95% of today’s culture would agree with that statement. We also know that it is morally wrong to murder someone. Most parents don’t have to teach their children that killing another human being is wrong. Even those who torture a child or kill someone know that what they’re doing is wrong.
But there is a difference in being a moral person and a follower of Jesus Christ and that’s where the work of the Holy Spirit comes into play. Yes, a majority of the people on planet earth agree that torturing a child or killing another human being is morally wrong. But, what about taking God’s name in vein, disobeying our parents, worshipping creation instead of the creator, sexual immoral sins like committing adultery, watching pornography, sex before marriage, etc.? God, through the work of the Holy Spirit, says, “Hey, anything you do in disobedience to me is a sin and unless you repent from it, you will not spend eternity with me!” Whether it’s the things I listed above or not believing in Him or that Jesus is His Son, anything we do in disobedience is sin. And it’s the work or role of the Holy Spirit to inform us of those facts and it’s on us to make the decision to change.
And it goes beyond just the things that we do. We are a selfish and entitled people who are inherently sinners. But we don’t recognize that within us until the Holy Spirit convicts us.
Pastor Adrian Rogers said, “Nobody is going to repent until first of all they are convicted of their sin. That’s what the Holy Spirit of God does who convicts you of your sin—not just that you’ve done wrong, but that you are wrong.” —Adrian Rogers
2. Confession of Sin: Mark tells us in verse 5 that “all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins” (Mark 1:5, ESV).
When the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sins and we realize the enormity of what Christ did for us on the cross as He paved the way for our salvation, then in our conviction we are going to confess our sins. Our guilt will be so overwhelming that we will fall to our knees and beg God for His mercy and His grace.
Solomon reminds us in Proverbs 28:13, “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy” (Proverbs 28:13, ESV).
And God’s most beautiful characteristic is that whenever we are convicted of our sins and brought to the point of confessing our sins to Him, He forgives us. He forgives us! Don’t take that lightly. He forgives us!
John says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9, ESV).
David writes in Psalm 32:5, “I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sin” (Psalm 32:5, ESV).
How great and wonderful it is to know that when we confess our sins to the Lord, He forgives us.
II. Design for Biblical Baptism (9-10)
II. Design for Biblical Baptism (9-10)
Biblical Baptism requires a person being immersed or submerged into the waters. We know that when Jesus was baptized, He was submerged under the waters of the river Jordan. Mark says in the first part of verse 10, “And when he came up out of the water . . .” Common sense tells us that for someone to come up out of the water, they had to first go under the water. Therefore, Jesus was fully submerged under the water. Another reason we know that Jesus was fully submerged is because in the Greek, the word baptize, literally means “immerse.” So, the first part of God’s design for baptism is full submersion.
The second part of the Biblical design for baptism is what it symbolizes. Recall earlier when I told you that we believe baptism indicates to the world that an inner change has occured in someone’s heart. The Holy Spirit convicted them of their sins and they recognized their need for God’s salvation so they confessed their sins to God and He forgave them. That is the inner change that has taken place. And now, it’s time for the individual to proclaim to the world that they belong to God the Father. It’s the outer announcement of the inward change.
Baptism Symbolizes Sacrifice
Baptism Symbolizes Sacrifice
Baptism symbolizes the sacrifice Jesus made to save us from our sins. Baptist also symbolizes that we are willing to join Him by sacrificing the purpose we have for our lives by submitting ourselves to Christ’s Lordship.
Turn with me to Romans 6. In this portion of Paul’s letter to Roman Christians, he is explaining how Christians are no longer permitted to live a life of sinful choices. Let’s read verses 3-5 together.
He says:
“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his” (Romans 6:3-5, ESV).
Pay close attention to the way Paul ties together the symbolism of our baptism with the death of Jesus. We are “baptized into Christ Jesus” and “baptized into his death.” “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death . . .”
Here’s the point, as we lay back and begin entering into the baptismal waters, it symbolizes our sacrificing of this earthly life for the life God intends us to live. The King James Version of the Bible is a great translation of Romans 6:5. It says, “For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death . . .” (Romans 6:5a, KJV). To be “planted” means to be united as one. It symbolizes our commitment to please the Father, just as Jesus’s willingness to sacrifice Himself on the cross was also to please the Father. Therefore, together as one, our desire and Jesus’s desire is one and the same, pleasing the Father.
Baptism Symbolizes Resurrection
Baptism Symbolizes Resurrection
Look again at what Paul says in Romans 6:4-5. In verse 4 he says, “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4, ESV). And quoting again from the King James Version, notice how the second part of Romans 6:5 says, “we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection” (Romans 6:5, KJV). We believe that once the person is submerged in the baptismal waters, it symbolizes the death and burial of the old lifestyle. We also believe that as the person comes up out of the water, it symbolizes the new disciple of Christ rising out of the grave.
Paul says it best in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV).
Baptism symbolizes the passing away of our old ways and the beginning of a new life that is sold out and fully committed to living for Jesus Christ.
Baptism Symbolizes Salvation
Baptism Symbolizes Salvation
If baptism symbolizes the sacrifice of our old self and our old ways of living and if it symbolizes the resurrection of the person as a new creation, then it also symbolizes salvation.
Now, I must be clear, baptism doesn’t save us. We do not have to be baptized to be saved. Jesus’s death and resurrection was sufficient enough to cover all sins with or without us being baptized. This means that when we profess our faith in Jesus Christ as God’s Son, then we are saved.
In Acts 16 we read about Paul and Silas sharing the Good News about Jesus with a Philippian guard, in verses 30-31, they tell him what he must do to be saved. In verse 31, they say, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved . . .” (Acts 16:31, ESV).
Paul tells the Romans, “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9, ESV).
So as Baptists we believe a confession of faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord comes first, followed by baptism.
“Faith precedes baptism and is operative in baptism. So we are justified at the very first act of genuine saving faith in Christ, and then baptism follows, and preferably would follow soon, as an outward expression of that inward reality.” —John Piper
Baptism signals to the world that we have accepted the free gift of salvation from the Lord Jesus.
I read about a little boy who accepted Christ during Children’s church one Sunday morning. The boy had not been to church much, so he didn’t know a lot of our terminology. And so the Children’s Director said to this little boy, “Now, you go over there and tell the pastor you’ve been saved, and you want to get baptized.” And so he went over and told the pastor, “I’ve been saved, and I need to get advertised.” “I’ve been saved, and I need to get advertised.” When we accept Christ and are baptized like Jesus, we are advertising to the world the salvation we have because of Him and our commitment to become more like Him.