Baptism

Before Jesus’ ascension after He rose from the dead, He left His apostles with a command:

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: (Matthew 28:19)

On Mark’s writing concerning the commission, a promise was seen to be given:

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mark 16:15)

The apostles were to preach the gospel and baptize those who would believe the preaching. The ones being baptized will be saved from sin and will be added by the Lord to His church.

Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. (Acts 2:47)

We hear “baptism” almost every time in the religious world. Most religious bodies exercise what they choose to call baptism. However, the vast majority does not understand the action or purpose. It is very disappointing to see so much confusion and misunderstanding of this subject when an abundance of information is readily available. It is extremely important to understand both the action and the design of baptism. The action, purpose and design can not be changed without canceling its benefits. The baptism practiced by denominationalism is not the baptism the Lord commanded; thus, many are not receiving the blessings given by true baptism.

What is Baptism?

Webster defines baptism as: 1) to dip or immerse in water, to pour and sprinkle water upon, as a religious rite; to administer baptism to; 2) to cleanse, purify, initiate 3) to give a name to at baptism; to christen.

To define biblical word one does not go to Webster’s Dictionary, but one must try to go back to the language in which the New Testament was written. The New Testament was written in “Koine” Greek. While translating the New Testament from Greek to English, scholars did not translate “baptizo” but transliterated it (retaining the word but using characters of the English alphabet). In the original, the specific New Testament word for baptism is “baptism” from “bapto” meaning to dip. The verb “baptizo” means: 1) to dip repeatedly, to immerse, to submerge (of vessels sunk) 2) to cleanse by dipping or submerging, to wash, to make clean with water, to wash one’s self, bathe (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament).

The apostle Paul likens baptism to a burial:

Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:3-4)

Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. (Colossians 2:12)

We also note the example given to us when after Philip had taught the eunuch:

And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. (Acts 8:36-38)

We take note that “water” was the element in which the Eunuch was baptized. In this account we can come up with the conclusion that the baptism the Lord commanded to be preached and obeyed is a dipping, submerging, a burial in water. This eliminates “sprinkling” or “pouring” as baptism. Baptizo was never translated as sprinkling or pouring. Sprinkling is from “rhantizo” while pouring is from “cheo” which are not used for water baptism. We are not in open rebellion with the Lord; thus, we do not substitute sprinkling or pouring for baptism.

Baptism is a command from our Lord (Matthew 28:19). Not only is it a command but Peter also said that baptism saves us.

The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ: (1 Peter 3:21)

The gospel of Christ revealed that baptism is essential for our salvation:

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:15-16).

Bible Study at Lannig, Solana

We thank the Lord last July 25 for another wonderful and fruitful bible study at the humble home of the Antonio family at Lannig, Solana. The family requested a bible study in their home to show their thanksgiving to our Lord because brother Bong Antonio just passed the Civil Service Commission Examination; they also wanted to express their thanks for the continued blessings that were poured to them by our Lord. Friends and neighbors were also invited to attend the said bible study. Brother Greg Delos Reyes (preacher at Sampaguita Church of Christ) spoke first about "What Must One Do To Be Saved?" then brother Rody Gumpad preached about "The Original Church of Christ and the Modern Churches". The lessons were both very well proclaimed and were received by the listeners with gladness that resulted to two (2) souls that stepped forward during the singing of the invitation song. The two confessed Christ and were baptized into Christ the same day. They will regularly attend service at Cadaanan Church of Christ where brother Florendo Respicio regularly preaches.

Psalm 22

Introduction:

A. David, a type of Christ

DAVID	CHRIST
A man after God’s own heart (1 Sam. 13:14; Acts 13:22)	Jesus came to do God’s will (Jn. 6:38; Lk. 22:42)
A shepherd (1 Sam. 16:11)	Our great shepherd (Jn. 10:2, 11, 27-29)
Placed his life in danger for the sheep (1 Sam. 17:31-36, 49)	Laid down His life for His sheep (Jn. 10:11; Isa. 53:6; 2 Cor. 5:21; 1 Pet. 2:23-25)
King over God’s people (1 Sam. 13:14)	King over God’s people (Col. 1:13-14; Mt. 16:18-19)
Anointed by Samuel (1 Sam. 16:13)	Anointed with Holy Spirit (Mt. 3:16-17; Acts 10:38; Col. 1:13-14)
A conqueror (2 Sam. 3:18)	A conqueror (1 Cor. 15:25-26; Rev. 6:2)

B. 1 Pet. 1:11 - …testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.

I. The humiliation and suffering of Christ (vv. 1-21)

A. The cry of the sufferer (v.1; Mt. 27:46)

B. Sufferer comforts Himself (vv.3-5)

¨ You are holy

¨ Our fathers trusted in You; they trusted, and You delivered them…

C. Was despised and reproached by men (vv.6-8)

¨ Mt. 27:39, 43

D. His encouragement He found in God (vv. 9-10)

E. Christ’s sufferings enumerated (vv. 11-21)

¨ His enemies were fierce and ravenous… (vv. 12-13)

¨ His sufferings were intense (vv. 14-15)

¨ His hands and feet pierced by His enemies (vv. 16)

¨ He was stripped of His garment (v. 18) [compare John 19:24; Luke 23:34]

F. Christ trusted and prayed (v. 19)

G. Christ asks for deliverance and salvation (v. 20-21)

II. The exaltation of Christ (vv. 22-31)

A. His undertaking should be for the glory of God (vv. 22-25)

¨ Christ will have a church (v. 22)

¨ The gospel is to be preached (v. 22a – I will declare your name…)

B. For the salvation and joy of his people (vv. 26-29)

1. All humble gracious souls should have a full satisfaction and happiness in him (v. 26)

2. That the church of Christ, and with it the kingdom of God among men, should extend itself to all corners of the earth and should take in all sorts of people. (vv. 27-28)

3. That it will include ALL of different ranks (v. 29)

Conclusion

A. For the perpetuating of his own kingdom, (vv. 30-31)

¨ That there is an everlasting righteousness, which Jesus Christ has brought in (Rom. 1:16-17).

¨ That the work of our redemption by Christ is God's own doing (v.31; Ps 118:23)

Preaching at Dingras, Ilocos Norte

July 8, 2009: We left Caba, La Union 9:00 in the morning and traveled by land towards Dingras, Ilocos Norte; we thank the Lord for the safe trip and He let us arrived at Dingras 6:30 in the evening. There we met brother Jun Macusi (preacher at the congregation at Barangay Parado, Dingras, Ilocos Norte), his whole family, some fellow preachers, and the brethren and friends. It was already years since we last visited the place of our beloved brethren that is why we were very happy and excited to talk with them and encourage one another more. After a short dinner we immediately proceeded with the preaching of the gospel where brother Kurt Jones preached about "Fellowship" (1 John 1 :1-7) which was translated by brother Warner Macusi. The brethren were very thankful that God was able to open an opportunity for us to be with them even for a short period of time. The preaching encouraged them much and gave them more strength to continue in serving our God. The following morning we all parted with heavy hearts for we do not know when we will be seeing each other again but at the other part of our hearts we felt happiness for we were able to study the words of God together.

Preaching at Caba Church of Christ

After the preaching at Cypress Church of Christ we traveled right away towards Caba, La Union to be able to preach for our brethren there. It took us 2 hours to reach the place, we are very thankful to God that He saved us from our trip and gave us the opportunity to be with our brethren at Caba Church of Christ. The preacher at Caba Church of Christ is brother Carlos Domingo Jr. We took a short rest and spoke with the brethren at the place before we started the preaching of the gospel of Christ. Brethren Jay Gumpad, Jun Gumpad, Mark Daquioag, and Denver Domingo led some songs for us. Brother Warner Macusi led the opening prayer. I was requested to introduce brother Kurt Jones. Brother Kurt Jones preached about "Jerusalem Church: A Pattern" and brother Rody Gumpad tried to translate the lesson of brother Kurt sentence by sentence. We thank God and give all glory to Him for the success of the preaching of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. One (1) soul was baptized into Christ.

Preaching at Cypress Church of Christ

After we baptized the four (4) souls that desired to be baptized at Ambiong Church of Christ we immediately drove our way to Cypress Church of Christ at Cypress, Irisan for a bible study with the brethren. The preacher of the congregation is brother Mark Bayado. Brother Kurt Jones preached a lesson here about "The One Body" and afterwards brother Warner Macusi translated the lesson in Ilocano dialect for the brethren to understand more clearly. The result was four (4) souls who stepped forward, confessed Christ, and gave their deisre to be baptized into Christ.

Preaching at Ambiong Church of Christ

July 7, 2009: After a very good night rest we were able to wake up early in the morning ready to go and meet our brethren at Ambiong Church of Christ and preach to them the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. We arrived at Ambiong Church of Christ at around 9:00 in the morning and we were met with warm smiles and hugs from our brethren. The brethren here meets at the rented house of their of their preacher, brother Rosendo Gumpad. Without wasting time we started the bible study right away; we were welcomed by brother Rosendo Gumpad and the brethren, we sang songs of praise, brother Jay Gumpad led us the opening prayer. Before brother Kurt Jones was asked to stand and preach the brethren requested me to introduce to them our good brother Kurt. Brother Kurt Jones prepared a very encouraging lesson entitled "Jerusalem Church: A Pattern". The brethren and friends were very attentive and like a sponge they tried to absorb every bit of information that our brother Kurt preached. After brother Kurt, brother Rody Gumpad also preached a lesson about "Things That Hinder Salvation". He enumerated and discussed things that hinders us from being saved, some of the things enumerated were 1) spiritual blindness, 2) false teachers, and 3) love of the world. The result of the bible study was very encouraging for while we were singing the invitation song, four (4) souls stepped forward and confessed Christ. After the bible study we spoke with the brethren and continued to strengthen each others faith and urged each one to be always strong in serving our Lord; then we took the four (4) souls to a nearby swimming pool and there they were baptized into Christ by brother Kurt Jones.

Preaching at Baguio City Metropolitan Church of Christ

July 6, 2009: The group of brother Kurt Jones, Rody Gumpad, Warner Macusi, Jerome Forelo, Mark Daquioag, Jay Gumpad, Jun Gumpad, Tessie Gumpad, and Elvie Macusi left Tuguegarao City to travel to Baguio City for the preaching at Baguio City Metropolitan Church of Christ. I held the steering wheel at around 6:00 in the morning and we, with much thanks to God, were able to arrive safe at Baguio City around 1:30 in the afternoon. We immediately checked-in a hotel, had our short rest, and met the brethren at Baguio City Metropolitan Church of Christ 5:00 in the afternoon. The brethren are waiting for us with much excitement; we shared good news with one another and gave each other words of encouragement to continually serve our god. The hardworking preacher of this congregation is brother Burt Enostacion. Brother Kurt Jones delivered a very informative lesson about "The Kingdom - Church That Could Not Be Shaken". The preaching was a success and we were all very blessed from the words of God that we heard. We understood that Christ built His church for us to be added into it and for us to be able to go with Christ at His return (Ephesians 5:23), thus, we must continually do our very best in staying inside the kingdom by serving God acceptably with reverence and godly fear (Hebrews 12:28-29).

Sunday Worship at Matro Tuguegarao Church of Christ

We had our worship at Metro Tuguegarao church last July 5 and we have to good preachers with us who helped us in our worship for the Lord. Brother Warner Macusi of Dingras, Ilocos Norte taught in the bible study the lesson "Did You Receive the Holy Spirit When You Believed?" Brother Kurt Jones preached in the sermon with the topic "Lessons From Cain and Abel". Both lessons were very much prepared by our preachers and gave much information to us all. As a result of the preaching made by our two kind preachers, 1 precious soul was baptized into Christ.

Preacher and Preacher's Wife Lectures at Tuguegarao City

July 4th was a very fruitful day for preachers, preacher's wife, and Christians here at Tuguegarao City. We thank the lord that He opened a way for brother Kurt Jones to visit us and to preach to us wonderful lessons. The first lesson that he preached us was "Duties and Responsibilities of a Preacher". The second lesson was "God's Plan For the Family". And the third was "The Kind of Preaching God Expects". The lessons were all very encouraging and gave very good explanations on how preachers should act and understand how to fulfill our responsibilities as stewards of God. The lectures also discussed about the role of a preacher's beloved wife, not only in the family, in the successful and continued proclamation of the Gospel of Christ. The preachers and their wives were very much blessed with the said lectures and all are looking forward for another lecture in the near future for the said lecture not only strengthens the relationship of the preacher and his wife but also strengthens the bond between fellow preachers and Christians.