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Post by Toby Benoit on Sept 24, 2007 3:44:58 GMT 12.75
Today's was a superb sermon, Pastor! Good luck today!
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Post by raingauge on Sept 24, 2007 4:17:18 GMT 12.75
Yes, a very good sermon, you'll do just fine today. Around here, a lot of people have decided they have a secret password (Jesus) that will get them to heaven, doesn't matter how they live. Maybe a little Arkansas Preaching would help them find the Light.... Good luck today, even though I believe you have the skills to get the message across.
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Sept 24, 2007 10:12:42 GMT 12.75
Thanks to all who offered up prayers on my behalf today. I am now an ordained minister of the Gospel. It wasn't as bad as I was afraid it would be. I didn't miss but 2 questions, but I was so nervous I was sweating like I had run several miles. Now, all I have to do is register my ordination at the county courthouse and I will be able to preform marriages. HEAR THAT TOBY??? Again, thanks to you all. Knowing that people are praying for you makes a big difference. May the Lord bless you all. Bro. Freddie Hill
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Post by Mars on Sept 24, 2007 12:06:13 GMT 12.75
Congratulations!!!
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Post by Paws on Sept 24, 2007 12:46:43 GMT 12.75
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Post by Toby Benoit on Sept 24, 2007 12:59:47 GMT 12.75
Wonderful news Brother! ;D I'm very happy for you and yessiree, I'm listening! Can you do a Catholic service? ;D ;D ;D
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Sept 24, 2007 13:47:43 GMT 12.75
Wonderful news Brother! ;D I'm very happy for you and yessiree, I'm listening! Can you do a Catholic service? ;D ;D ;D I ain't ever tried, but I bet I could do a respectable BAPTIST wedding. Complete with asking you if you will OBEY her ;D ;D
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Post by Paws on Sept 24, 2007 22:59:32 GMT 12.75
Pastor if you would do him a Catholic service I'll help out; the part where he tells me his confession!
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Sept 24, 2007 23:13:24 GMT 12.75
Pastor if you would do him a Catholic service I'll help out; the part where he tells me his confession! I don't want to know his confession. I'm afraid it might scare me too bad seeing as he is such a reprobate ;D
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Post by Paws on Sept 24, 2007 23:44:20 GMT 12.75
"Reprobate" Probably a good thing he don't know what that means!
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Post by Kirbyhill on Sept 25, 2007 3:23:03 GMT 12.75
Congrats to a fellow Arky!!
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Post by Paws on Sept 25, 2007 3:50:07 GMT 12.75
Now wait a minute Pastor ain't no alchy! Well maybe he does like his beer; but ain't no alchy!
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Post by Toby Benoit on Sept 25, 2007 11:05:18 GMT 12.75
Nope he ain't, he just smells that way. Of course he's the only preacher I ever seen tote a flask of Holy Water in his coat pocket. ;D ;D ;D
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Post by Paws on Sept 26, 2007 2:17:30 GMT 12.75
LOL! Now, I lthought Baptists didn't sprinkle! LOL!
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Post by Mars on Sept 26, 2007 2:38:07 GMT 12.75
You should see the refill jug he keeps under his desk.
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Sept 30, 2007 20:15:15 GMT 12.75
Matthew 3:13-17 (King James Version)
13. Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14. But John forbade Him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15. And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now; for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness. Then he suffered Him. 16. And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water; and, lo, the heavens were opened unto Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him. 17. And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
We have been looking the last few weeks at the ministry of John the Baptist. We have seen his personal attire, his diet, his manner of living, but most importantly, we have seen his message, which was very simple and direct. We have also seen that John's job was to be the herald, or forerunner, of the King, which is Jesus. Today, we will look at another reason John was placed upon this Earth at this time.
If you will remember, when we left John, he was baptizing on the river Jordan. While we are not exactly sure, tradition says that this place was called Bethabara (meaning house of crossing). Some have also called it "Bethany beyond the Jordan". Now, I don't hold much store with tradition. Tradition and a quarter might get you a cup of coffee, if you can find it that cheap. While we are not exactly sure where John was at on the Jordan, we are reasonably sure it was just north of the Dead Sea, which would place it about 18 miles or so from Jerusalem.
In verse 13 we see that Jesus came from Galilee to John to be baptized by him. Now, Nazareth was in the province of Galilee, about 20 miles from the southern shore of the Sea of Galilee. As the crow flies, Nazareth was about 65 miles or so from where tradition says John was baptizing. But, Jesus' journey was further than that. He had to go around the wilderness, possibly along the Jordan river. If I had to guess, I'd say His journey was closer to 80 miles than 65 just because of the route He had to take. We are not sure how long it took Jesus to travel from Nazareth to where John was. There are several factors that have to be factored in to travel in those days. Bandits were very bad so people traveled in groups for protection. And a group could only travel as fast as it's slowest member. Did Jesus travel with a group at this time? We don't know. Food was also a factor. Most people carried just a 2 days ration of food, so a person traveling had to figure where they would stay and get more provisions. Greetings were also a long drawn out affair, so when you met someone on the road, you had to stop and visit a while. These are just a few of the factors involved in traveling at that time. So, while we don't know how long it took Jesus to travel these miles, it had to be a major undertaking to travel so far in those days. I said all of that to say this. No matter what it took, Jesus was willing to do the Father's will. It didn't matter how far it was, how dangerous it was, Jesus did what the Father wanted Him to do. We gripe and complain about how hard it is for us to serve the Lord in a day when we have modern conveniences. Folks, Jesus WALKED probably close to 80 MILES to fulfill the will of the Father. And we gripe and complain about having to drive a short distance to worship the Lord. We should be ashamed!
In verse 14 and 15 we see John being submissive unto the King. The word hindered carries the meaning of trying to change someone's mind. In other words, John didn't really want to baptize Jesus and tried to talk Him out of it. John didn't see any need for Jesus to be baptized, so he tried to change His mind. Folks, I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt, that John knew Jesus was the Son of God, and that there was no need for Him to show repentance through baptism, because He didn't need to repent. Jesus lived a perfect life, so there was no need for repentance. But we see in verse 15 that Jesus wanted John to baptize Him. The word "suffer" carries the meaning of to permit. Jesus gave John permission to baptize Him. But why? If Jesus didn't need to be baptized, why was He wanting to, seeing that there was no need to show the world that He had repented? We find the answer in the latter part of verse 15. It was to fulfill all righteousness. The word "righteousness" means the character or quality of being right or just in the eyes of God. So in other words, it was the right thing to do for John to baptize Jesus. It was the will of God the Father for His Son the be baptized, and Jesus, being an obedient Son, fulfilled the Father's will. Folks, Jesus painted us a picture here of being an obedient child. He did what the Father wanted. If we don't follow the will of the Father how can we be obedient? Jesus was not showing the world that baptism is necessary for salvation, but instead is teaching us about obeying. Do you obey the will of the Father? Not just in baptism, but in every aspect of your life? Jesus set the example for us. Are we following His example?
As we look now at verse 16, the first thing I would like you to notice is that Jesus came up straightway out of the water. The word straightway carries the meaning of directly. In our manner of speaking today, we would say as soon as. So, we would say that as soon as Jesus came up out of the water. Notice though what Jesus did. He came up! How can someone come up from something if they didn't go down? Jesus was immersed! Why is this important? Folks, this verse tells me that there is only one way for scriptural baptism and that is through immersion. Jesus wasn't sprinkled, but instead went fully into the water and then came up out of the water. There are some that may say that times change though and now other methods are acceptable. That is a lie straight from Satan himself! The Word of God never changes, just each persons understanding as they grow and mature in the Lord. I see things now in the Scripture, as I grow in the Lord, that I never saw before. The Word didn't change. My understanding of the Scripture changed. Folks, I'll say it again. Total immersion is the only Scriptural baptism. But why total immersion? Look at it this way. Baptism is a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord. When you bury someone, do you just sprinkle them with dirt? Do you leave a arm or leg out of the grave? NO! You bury them completely. And since baptism is a picture of Jesus' burial, there has to be total immersion. There is no substitute.
Now I would like us to look at the latter part of verse 16 and verse 17. In these we see something that has been hinted at throughout the Old Testament but is actually seen for the first time. It is the Triune aspect of God, or as most people call it, the Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit, was all present at the same time. Jesus, God the Son, came up out of the water. God the Spirit descended like a dove, and the voice was God the Father. But why was it necessary for the Trinity to all be there at the same time? Brethren, I believe that they were all there at same time to give affirmation to the start of Jesus' personal ministry. We have no record of Jesus preaching before this, and remember, He is about 30 years old at this time. It is my belief that they were all there to witness and testify that this was indeed the Son of God.
In the latter part of verse 17 notice that God says that this is His beloved Son and that He is well pleased. Folks, this tells me that God was pleased with the actions of His Son. Jesus was obedient unto the Father, and God was pleased. Could God say that about us today? Does your actions please God? For your actions to please God, first you have to be a child of God. There is only one way to do that, and that is to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour. Have you accepted Jesus as your Saviour? If not, I urge you to do so today.
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Post by Toby Benoit on Oct 1, 2007 6:55:26 GMT 12.75
Okay, I been thinking on something for the last few days and you just bumped it back to the front of my head again and reminded me to ask.
"And since baptism is a picture of Jesus' burial"
Jesus wasn't buried. He was entombed and there's a big difference between the two. So, does the anaology still hold up as immersion being representative of His burial when he wasn't buried at all?
Thanks for the help and the preaching!
Also...after John baptised Jesus, didn't he turn around and baptise John right back? He asked him to, "I have need to be baptised of thee..." It doesn't say whether John was ever baptised...does it?
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Post by Bro. Freddie on Oct 1, 2007 8:16:15 GMT 12.75
Sure Jesus was entombed, which was the mode of burial at that time. But the picture is still there. Could a person have been entombed partially? Remember, they rolled big rocks in front of the entrance toeal them. To be entombed, the dead had to be completely inside, hence buried. Another way to look at it is where the tomb was. A tomb, by defination, is a grave, but where is the tomb? It was usually a cave or cut out of the rock. After they sealed the tomb, it was a burial just as effective as being in a casket 6 foot under.
We have no record of Jesus ever baptizing anyone. John's baptism was special, because John was the herald. John was the only one who was ever given this office and was filled with the Holy Ghost from his mothers womb. See Luke 1:15.
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Post by Toby Benoit on Oct 1, 2007 10:14:13 GMT 12.75
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Post by Paws on Oct 1, 2007 23:28:15 GMT 12.75
Didn't JOhn say that Jesus was coming to baptise in the Holy Spirit?
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