Baptism of Life-Change

The first few months of our Saturday SEEP (Saccanville Evangelical English Program) class, I had to make sure that every class had enough English to keep everyone coming for English.  Eventually, the Bible did one of the things the Bible does...drew the students in.

I am overjoyed now to realize that the students are coming for the Bible, and so we don't DO grammar studies any more, English worksheets, pronoun quizzes.

This morning, for over two hours, we studied the Bible in both languages, literally verse for verse, and talked about what it meant...NOT necessarily in English, but to each of us.

And the content was SO good.

Their homework was to read and study Luke 3:1-18, which the Message appropriately calls "A Baptism of Life-Change."

Today's challenge was to go through this with them, and then to work through Jesus's baptism, as well.

Have you read this stuff lately???  GOOD STUFF!  (Luke 3:1-18, Matthew 3:1-17).

For 25 men and women, 24 of whom are at the crossroads or just the beginning of a relationship with Jesus, John the Baptist struck at their (OUR) very cores.

John's in the desert, and he receives a message from God.  He goes everywhere preaching this message.  The theme of the message that God gave him was: A Baptism of Life-Change, Leading to Forgiveness of Sins.


Hundreds of years earlier, Isaiah spoke about John and about his cousin Jesus!  "A voice calling in the wilderness will say, Prepare the way for the Lord!  Rough ways will be made smooth, and ALL people will SEE God's Salvation."


So, lots of people came to the desert to hear John.  Why?  Because it was the popular thing to do - That means, everybody was doing it.


"They were que-rous?"  Jackie asked several times until I finally realized he was saying CURIOUS.

Yeah! They were curious!  So everyone was coming to hear him preach because they were curious.


You know, just like here, if a man and his woman are fighting in the yard, and start screaming, what happens?


Yeah!  Everyone runs out of their yards and crowds around them.  Why? Because they want to help them?  NO!  Because they are curious, they want to see what's happening! Everyone is doing it!


SO, everyone is coming to hear John, but John, he KNOWS their intention.  Intention.  That means, he knows what the motive, the purpose in their hearts, was.  Just like God knows the intention of our hearts today!


SO, when he saw many people coming for the wrong reason, he was so angry.

So, John called them a "family of snakes and asked them some difficult questions.


I swear I could hear the "crazy, wilderness man" just literally yelling at us at this point.


What do you think you're doing coming here?  Do you really think God is going to be happy because you come to hear me preach, even though you continue to sin?  Do you really think God cares what clothes you put on, how many times you go to church, whether you wear more than 2 earrings, paint your toenails, what your country believes or says or does?   It's your LIFE that must change, not your appearance.  


Don't think you're an exception because Abraham is 'your father!'  Who your family is doesn't matter!  The religion of your country or family doesn't matter!  What matters, what is important, what counts is YOUR LIFE.  Is it green, growing, blossoming, producing, rooted and growing in Christ?  Because if it is brown and withered and dead and crunchy, if it's dead...it goes on the fire.


OUCH.  I'm not sure I would have had the gut John does to say all this to my class so frankly.  "Thank you, Lord, for John's message!" I prayed silently as it silenced ALL of us and made us each think about our own lives, our own excuses, our own choice: green or dead.  life or fire.

So the crowd says, "Wow.  What in the world are we supposed to do?"


And John tells them:  if you have two shirts, give one away.  Same with your food.  Don't take more than you are required.  Be just. Be fair. Be content.  God will be happy with life change, not appearance change!  Leave your sin, and don't continue in it.


The people were more and more interested, and thought, "hmmm, maybe this is the Messiah?"


But John told them, "no!  I just use water.  I'm not even worthy to take off the flip-flop of the one who is coming, the Powerful one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire."


HE has the rake to clean.  He'll gather all the good, sweet sugar cane and put it in His depot, and all the bark stripped off that is good for nothing will be gathered up and burned, JUST like we do here, all the time!   


The baptism of Jesus following this had everyone's hands up, and I am SO THANKFUL that visiting professor and friend John joined me this morning to articulate some of the answers.

"If Jesus was more powerful than John, and Jesus wanted John to baptize him, should the pastor of the church be baptized by the people in the church, and not the other way around?"

"What about the way many people here are baptized over and over again?  Is that good?"

"What does it MEAN to be baptized by the spirit and fire?  How is that different than being baptized with water?"

"How many kinds of baptism are ok?"

"If Jesus was already Holy, why did he need to be baptized at all?"

"If baptism was so important, why didn't Jesus baptize people?"

As I thought through the answer to these and more questions, I felt so EXCITED, renew excited, by the life changing truth of this Gospel I call My Foundation.  Excited by the faith I call mine.

We don't GET baptized to become holy, do we?  God doesn't miraculously dump water on our heads one day when He decides we're ready.  The water baptism isn't God "making" us something.  That is OUR choice.  Baptism: to SHOW everyone around us that Jesus changed our hearts!  John was baptizing, the disciples baptized, pastors baptize, churches.  But Jesus?  He does the part of baptism that NO one else can...the life change!  HE changes our hearts, making us WANT to show others that He did just that.

Jesus changes our heart. His spirit, the baptism of the His Spirit, helps us to become holy, and baptism shows people that.

What a cool moment that must have been, to have the heavens open, the Spirit descending, the voice of God proclaiming "THIS IS MY SON."

And all people shall SEE salvation.


Without diving too deeply into different Haitian church doctrines, baptism in Haiti, denominationalism, etc., we were able to talk about the point.  (and to think there are people that think nobody needs Seminary training, or that it is not needed in a place like Haiti!  Man alive, was I thankful this morning for the professors and men and women who are at Emmaus studying baptism... communion... marriage... tithing... doctrine... theology to Biblically and correctly ANSWER the many questions of their churches, communities, witchdoctors, etc.!!! )

For homework this week everyone is working on some major Biblical translation projects, and I was excited to see how excited they were to work through Luke this week.

I've never taught or shared anything more exciting, practical, heart-hitting or life-changing in my life...and this morning, I was SO thankful that first my parents, and then SO many more people and classes and studies and churches and the Lord gave me the opportunity to know and study and choose and BECOME these truths.  Knowing Him, and having something worthwhile to GIVE are the joys of my life.

Like John, I can't change anyone's hearts.  Can't make anyone holy.  But I can preach His kingdom, share boldly what He has done in MY heart, and can introduce them to the One Who Can.

We can.

Thank you for your continued prayers and patience as I keep talking too much about this SEEP class!