“Proclaiming Our Faith Through Baptism”
Acts 8:26-40
Sermon Series: “The Gospel, Volume 2”
Introduction: It is crucial for us to understand the relationship between faith and baptism and have them both in their proper place.
Main Idea: We meet Jesus through faith and outwardly express that faith through baptism.
1. God is looking for you if you are not a Christian (and sending you if you are a Christian) [v. 26-31]. What a beautiful thought! God is actively looking for us. Jesus came to seek and save that which was lost (Luke 19:10). We are incapable of seeking God on our own (Romans 3:11), but God, through His Holy Spirit, draws us to Himself. John 6:37 says, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.” This is happening in your life. There are not accidents with God. You are here today by divine appointment.
2. Being religious is not sufficient, but it is only through Jesus that a person can have a relationship with God (v. 27-35). If you are not a Christian, it is great that you are seeking and that is a sign that God is working in your life. However, church attendance and Bible reading will not save you. They are means and not the end. They are part of the process that God uses to bring you to Jesus, who actually justifies you, instead of these things.
3. We respond to Jesus by personally trusting Him (v. 36-37) [see also Ephesians 2:8-9, John 3:16, John 6:29).
4. We get baptized when we trust Jesus in order to outwardly express our faith (v. 38). At True Life, we believe in believer’s baptism by immersion in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as a symbolic act, which is the means by which a Christian publicly and unashamedly bears witness to his faith in and commitment to Jesus Christ.
