Related Message

Baptism Baptism
Draw a line in the water

Throughout our lives there are ceremonies that mark important occasions, draw lines in the sand of our lives and divide our histories into "before" and "after": graduation, weddings, and others, including baptism. Baptism is an ancient Christian ritual from before the days of Jesus that has been used to symbolize the start of a person's new life with God. Join us as we celebrate with several people who have chosen to mark off their new life with Jesus in the ceremony of baptism and take a moment to reconsider where you are with Jesus Christ, in your life of faith, hope and love.

 

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Baptism has been a contested practice from the very beginning of the church. In Troubled Waters, Ben Witherington rethinks the theology of baptism and does so in constant conversation with the classic theological positions and central New Testament texts. He offers pastoral guidance and correctives for both infant and believer's baptismal practices so that the fuller goals for Christian baptism will be achieved in the lives of all disciples. His focus on "spirit baptism" and on the internal work of God that truly affects salvation provides an important lever by means of which to put "water baptism" back into proper perspective.

Meet the Bible is a day-by-day book of biblically inspired meditations. "Fresh" is a word that the authors often use to describe this innovative blend of Scripture and devotionals. While traditional devotionals often lack the substance that can be found in Scripture, daily reading Bibles are often too dense and time-consuming for the average reader. Using brief but direct excerpts from Scripture, the authors guide readers to the Bible's key passages, themes, and events. Each day gets one to two pages of text and closes with a contemplation, such as "When you experience success, whom do you tend to credit, yourself or God?"