gospel

Baptism, My Son, and the Power of the Gospel

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This Sunday (Father’s Day) at Wilkesboro Baptist Church, I’ll be preaching this sermon “What We Believe about Baptism and Why it Matters.” This sermon is a part of a larger series addressing important doctrines for our church. Baptism is a vital part of the Christian life.

  • As Baptists, we don’t believe baptism saves you. We believe Jesus saves you and baptism is an outward picture of an inward change (Romans 6).
  • As Baptists, we hold to believer’s baptism. We understand Scriptures to teach that baptism follows conversion as an act of obedience to Jesus, a public profession of faith in Jesus, and identification with a local church.

Since I’m preaching on the subject of baptism, we will celebrate baptism. One of my absolute favorite things to do in ministry is participate in baptism. This Sunday will be exceedingly special as I get the privilege of baptizing my oldest son, Will. After months of discussions and questions, Will trusted Jesus to be his Lord and Savior several weeks ago! Now, he’s ready to announce his faith publicly with baptism. I can’t tell you how thrilled and excited I am as a father and pastor that I get to baptize my son. I’m also very excited for the others that I’ll get to baptize on Sunday.

But even with the excitement that will permeate our church and the families of those being baptized on Sunday, I’m burdened by recent statistics concerning my own denomination—the Southern Baptist Convention. A recent Baptist Press article revealed a decline in baptisms and membership across our denomination. I’m positive the factors in declining membership and baptisms are complex. In some places, theological errors diminish the church’s outreach. In some places, evangelistic apathy hinders the church’s witness. In some places, cultural capitulation mitigates the church’s influence.

The solutions to every challenge faced by our churches and congregations are certainly not simple or easy.But one thing is biblically clear and amazingly simple—“the gospel is the power of God unto salvation” (Romans 1:16).

If we want to see people come to faith in Jesus, we must preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If we want our churches to baptize new members, we must preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If we want our denomination to grow and expand, we must preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

If you are reading this, and you are in ministry, let me ask you to make a commitment. Preach and teach the gospel of Jesus Christ regularly and clearly.

If you are reading this, and you are a church member, let me ask you to make a commitment. Learn to share the gospel and tell others about Jesus. Invite them to a Bible-believing, gospel-preaching church.

If you are reading this, let me ask you to make a commitment. Pray for lost people. Show them love by praying for them, inviting them to church, and sharing the gospel with them. They are all around us, and if they are going to become followers of Jesus, they need to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. It IS God’s power unto salvation. That’s God’s simple solution to the problem of lostness and sin in our world. It has worked for two thousand years. I’m confident God’s solution will not fail. Let us not fail by neglecting to join God in his gospel mission.

8 Prayers You Can Pray for Your Mission Teams

Originally published at Lifeway’s Pastor’s Today Blog

If your church is like ours, then you have mission trips planned for this summer. We have teams going to West Virginia, Vermont, Honduras, and Kenya. As a missions pastor, I’ve witnessed the power of God on numerous mission trips. There can be no doubt that prayer is the primary ingredient for spiritually successful mission trips. Here are some prayers I’ve learned to pray for our mission teams.

  1. Pray that the mission team will not let the platform take the place of the mission. In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus commissioned us to make disciples. That’s our mission. Oftentimes, compassion ministry, construction, or other need-based ministries are the “platforms” that give opportunity for mission trips. But success in meeting these needs is not our “mission.” Our mission is disciple-making (evangelism, teaching, baptizing) connected to a local church. It is easy to let the need (platform) become the focus. Pray that your mission teams will not forget the “mission” in lieu of meeting the need.
  2. Pray for the spiritual preparation and development of the mission team.There’s a reason Paul’s prayer for spiritual boldness in proclaiming the gospel (Ephesians 6:19) followed his treatment of Christian armor and spiritual warfare. Mission trips are not for the spiritually weak—they require recognition of the spiritual war we are facing. Pray that your teams will be spiritually prepared for the work and war they are sure to face.
  3. Pray for the flexibility of the mission team. Sometimes our mission plans require revision and flexibility. Acts 16:6-10 records Paul’s prevention by the Holy Spirit of going into Asia and the Macedonian call. Mission teams must learn to trust God’s plan, not their own and be spiritually discerning. Pray that your teams will be flexible in their planning and discern what God wants to accomplish on the mission trip.
  4. Pray for the financial support of the mission team. When Jesus sent out his witnesses, he told them to trust the provision offered in the villages for their wages and sustenance (Matthew 10:9-10; Luke 10:4-8). International mission trips cost money. And I believe in a God who owns everything. Pray that God would meet the financial obligations of each team member and mission trip.
  5. Pray for the health, safety, and travel of the mission team. Traveling to mission destinations and encountering new bacteria (internationally) can drastically affect the health and strength of mission team participants. Getting sick is just a normal part of international travel. However there is precedent for praying for the health and safety of mission teams in in travel. Acts 27 records the storm at sea and shipwreck of Paul and his captors. Yet Paul prayed, and God protected all on the ship (Acts 27:24). Pray that your teams will experience safe travel and health protection while on the mission trip.
  6. Pray for the spiritual wisdom and loving service of the mission team. One of Paul’s prayers for the Ephesian church was that they would grow in spiritual wisdom and depth of love (Ephesians 3:14-20). Mission team members need an abundance of wisdom and love, and God desires to provide it. Pray that your team members will be abundantly wise and discerning as well as filled with love for those whom they will serve and share with.
  7. Pray for the Spirit to open blinded eyes and that unbelievers would see Christ in all of his glory. Satan blinds the eyes of unbelievers to the truth of the gospel and the glory of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4-6). It is the Holy Spirit’s role to convict and bring to light the truth and power of the gospel (John 16:8-11). Pray that the Holy Spirit would go ahead of your mission teams and prepare the hearts of the lost to respond to Christ and that the Spirit would draw unbelievers to Christ through the preaching of the gospel.
  8. Pray for the spiritual development, strength, and growth of the partner churches and missions that your teams will work with. Paul encouraged, commended, challenged, and prayed for the churches, elders and leaders of the Ephesian church before he finally parted ways with them. (Acts 20:17-38). Mission teams are only a part of God’s ongoing work in the world. Churches, organizations, pastors, and believers across the globe will continue God’s work far longer than a mission team serves on a mission trip. Pray for the partner churches, pastors, and organizations to have strength, growth, and success in fulfilling God’s disciple-making mission in their context.