Last fall while on a weekend getaway, my wife and I went with family to visit a new church.
When we entered the service, we quickly realized it wasn’t your typical service, but rather a baptism-focused service sprinkled with a few worship songs.
I was disappointed. I wanted to hear the Word preached!
I sighed and settled in for the service, resolving to worship the Lord even through disappointment.
During the next ninety minutes, God changed my heart. I heard over a dozen powerful testimonies from a variety of people:
- There was a woman who suffered the death of her fiancé, but Christ consoled her through His church and she came to saving faith.
- I heard how God saved a former drug addict and ex-prisoner and gave him new life in Christ with a new hope and new self-control.
- I heard the story of a father who had been religious but lost his whole life who finally to Christ in tearful repentance. And not only did I hear his story, but also the stories of two of his daughters who were baptized with him.
My flesh went from angry, to jealous—why hasn’t our ministry baptized so many?—to worshipful as I beheld the grace of God evidenced in these precious stories.
When we went to eat after the service, we talked of the amazing grace of God as shown in the lives of the baptized. My brother-in-law’s father said, “They were the preaching this morning.”
I’m thankful God didn’t let my short-sightedness steal this chance to see such visible demonstrations of grace. What an amazing God we have!
Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! Psalm 118:29
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It sounds to me that all of these people who gave their testimony were not only baptized with water but they also experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Thanks for sharing your experience, Kevin.
I think that many people in the church today, especially in America don’t understand the meaning of Grace, which is why I wrote about this important subject at http://www.jesus4evers.com/?p=5654.