Preach the Word!

As i have been studying the book of Acts preparing for a series for my youth group, i have read and noticed some excellent things about the book. I would also like to recommend a book that should be on every expositor's shelf. The book is The Message of the New Testament by Mark Dever. The book is a series of sermons that Dever has preached at Capitol Hill Baptist in Washington D.C. The cool thing is that each sermon overviews an entire book of the New Testament. Although the highly-specific details of each passage are not and cannot all be elaborated, Dever does a wonderful job of giving one preparing to preach some very helpful insights, allowing them to clearly see the big picture of each book of the Bible before they study the small parts...and shouldn't this be our goal as Believers...showing the big picture before the small details? None of us were converted by studying the biblical details on the millennium, were we? And i know nobody who's life was transformed by performing a character study on Paul. We were saved by the Gospel...THE big picture of the Bible. It is God reaching out to us through His son Jesus. This IS the major doctrine of the Bible, for there is no other name under heaven in which we may be saved.

And speaking of the Gospel is what i found so fascinating. Dever mentions that in his sermon at Pentecost, Peter does not have to argue for the truth of the death and resurrection of Jesus. He states it as if it was known by all the non-believers in Jerusalem at that time. Peter says: "this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for Him to be held by it..." (2:23-24). Notice that Peter does not argue for the resurrection of the dead, as Paul had to in Athens and other places. It was taken as a fact! Dever says that the people there had either seen or heard from someone who had seen Christ risen, and therefore had no trouble listening to and believing what Peter was saying in his sermon.

Today, we do not have this freedom. In our pluralistic, authority and intention-questioning culture, we cannot proclaim the Gospel like Peter did because so many have no clue who Jesus is...or if they think they do, many are mistaken, making Jesus be who they want Him to be in their own minds. We must prove the Gospel by letting it speak for itself through the proclamation of the Word of God, then allow the Holy Spirit to draw those who hear to repentance (2 Tim. 2:25). We must not be silent...for this is exactly what Satan wants. He wants his preaching to be the only preaching heard in the world. No wonder Christ rebuked him with the Truth! May we do the same to those who teach lies, yet with gentleness and respect.

Screamin' Eagle Outfitters

Well, baptist history is finished for me, and Keri and I are off at camp with our wonderful new youth group having a blast and learning about Jesus. Check out our new blog in the sites of note section under CRYG.

Baptism- Part Deux

After some study on the subject of who can administer baptism, i have come to a few conclusions. After studying the biblical passages that refer to baptism, i have noticed that the Bible does not concern itself with the specific details of who did the baptizing as much as it did to relate the heart change of those who were baptized.

One could make the case that deacons are the ones who are supposed to baptize others. We see in Acts that Phillip was chosen as a deacon for the purpose of serving the saints in Jerusalem. But Phillip also baptized others as well as served the church, as seen in Acts 8:38. So maybe deacons are supposed to baptize others. But in 1 Timothy 3, (the most direct description of a deacon in the Bible), there is no mention of the task of baptizing other believers.
The same can be said for elders/overseers. There is no mandate for baptizing in Paul's descriptions of this office in 1 Tim 3 or Titus 1.

Since these passages offer no help on our study, our efforts must be directed toward the commands in scripture to baptize. The one that comes to my mind is the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19. Jesus' command is as follows: "Go therefore (on the basis of the authority that the Father had given Him) and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit..." As i was discussing this with Barley today, he brought to my attention the priesthood of believers. According to 1 Peter 2:9, Peter tells his scattered flock: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."

Isn't this what we as believers are called and challenged to do in the Great Commission? Yes! For Gospel proclamation is made up partly of how God has saved us, and then sent us (c/f Acts 22). We must note that the Great Commission was addressed to the 1 1 disciples, but we take it as a mandate for all Christians. I have never heard a sermon where the speaker said that the Great Commission was for the disciples or pastors only. Therefore, we must conclude that the command to baptize found in the same verse as the great commission applies to all true Believers...and i would hold as well that this applies to only those believers who are rightly baptized by immersion after they have professed faith in Christ. Questions? Comments? Cries of outrage?

Who want's a turn?

Soo...to start, sorry for the delay between posts. Who would have thought that summer classes, although short and to the point, would come with hours upon hours of extra reading and work?? Anyway, i have recently been pondering the subject of baptism for believers. And although i will dogmatically affirm based upon the Bible that baptism is for regenerate believers only, i do have a question on who it is that can administer the act of baptism. Is it reserved for ministers only, or can any baptized Believer biblically baptize another? Your thoughts and findings please...