REACHING PEOPLE WITH THE LOVE OF CHRIST!

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. II Chronicles 7:14

    Why Should I go to Church?

For Christians, going to church is the gathering together of a family, or as the apostle Paul described it, uniting the members of a body (Romans 12:4-5). In the joy of a family you will experience:

1.Fellowship. Regular church attendance allows a Christian to become part of a church family-a community of brothers and sisters in Christ who share true concern for one another.

    2. Corporate Worship. David cried out in Psalm 34:3, "Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!" Even Christ, in the darkest hours of His life, asked three of his closest friends to "watch and pray" with Him. Jesus promised: For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them." Matthew 18:20

3. Personal Growth. Contact with other Christians is vital to a Christian's spiritual growth. Meeting regularly with other Christians is an opportunity to be encouraged in your daily walk with Christ. The Bible says, "I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord."

4. Ministry. Paul tells us that God gave "pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of the ministry, for building up the body of Christ (Eph. 4:11-12). Attending church allows us to receive the instruction of trained pastors and teachers.

Christians have a responsibility to minister to other members of the body of Christ. "Therefore encourage one another and build one another up...(1 Thess 5:11).

Christian Baptism

Jesus said that his followers are to be "baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19) The word baptism in the Greek is "baptizo" meaning to plunge or to dip. To be baptized then is to be immersed in water.

* Baptism then is an act of Obedience in following the command of Christ.

* Baptism is the one thing we can do as Jesus did.

* Baptism is a picture on the outside of what has taken place on the inside. It is an open declaration of our willingness and commitment to follow Jesus.

* Baptism is a picture of the gospel-the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

* Baptism is a declaration that we have received Christ in our life, that we have been saved and have committed ourselves to live our life for Christ.

* Christian baptism has always been an identifying mark of Christians since the time of Christ.

1. There must be a right relationship. We must have a right relationship with Jesus Christ as his/her own personal Lord and Savior.

2. There must be a right candidate. A decisive decision to follow Christ.

3. There must be the right mode. The Bible says, "Jesus went down into the water, and came up out of the water", when He was baptized. Jesus was baptized by immersion and so also should we.

4. There must be the right authority. Jesus gave the great commission and the authority to the local New Testament church.

5. There must be the right motive. When we are baptized we are identifying with Christ in His death and His resurrection. When we go down into the water we picture His death, when we come up out of the water we picture His resurrection.