1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:07,760
On an international scale, we have been watching an identity crisis, as we have seen the Soviet

2
00:00:07,760 --> 00:00:13,240
Union in the last couple of weeks literally come unraveled.

3
00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:20,840
And today, those who are in leadership in the Kremlin and in the republics of Russia

4
00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:24,320
are seeking desperately to come to a new identity.

5
00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:32,360
What does it mean now to be a member of the Soviet Union, a union that technically no

6
00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:34,720
longer exists?

7
00:00:34,720 --> 00:00:38,160
What does it mean to be a Russian?

8
00:00:38,160 --> 00:00:44,480
It is an international identity crisis.

9
00:00:44,480 --> 00:00:51,960
What we see on an international basis, we can also observe on a personal basis.

10
00:00:51,960 --> 00:01:01,020
For there are times as we pass through our lives when we come to crisis regarding identity.

11
00:01:01,020 --> 00:01:08,640
It does happen of course with teenagers as they come through those important years.

12
00:01:08,640 --> 00:01:14,240
It happens with college students who graduate from college with a degree in hand and find

13
00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:21,720
out that all of the rights and privileges that come with the degree somehow have evaporated

14
00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:29,560
and they stand at the end of the employment line wondering now what.

15
00:01:29,560 --> 00:01:35,840
It happens when couples get married, especially when couples get married later in life.

16
00:01:35,840 --> 00:01:42,480
Yesterday, it was a privilege to share at a marriage ceremony for a couple who are just

17
00:01:42,480 --> 00:01:48,080
around 40 years of age, living all of these lives, their lives alone.

18
00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:51,120
Now they come together as husband and wife.

19
00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:57,120
I have a hunch there's going to be an identity crisis in the next few months as they learn

20
00:01:57,120 --> 00:02:01,460
what it is to live in a new relationship.

21
00:02:01,460 --> 00:02:06,560
It happens in the loss of a spouse.

22
00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:14,800
Suddenly who am I and where do I fit in identity crisis?

23
00:02:14,800 --> 00:02:22,800
I believe that the only way to really find the answer to that question, who am I, and

24
00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:29,400
to the question, where do I belong, how do I fit, is to have a right understanding of

25
00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:35,060
God and our relationship to Him.

26
00:02:35,060 --> 00:02:41,160
If we have that understanding, it will help us in the time of our crisis.

27
00:02:41,160 --> 00:02:50,340
Who is my God and what is my relationship to Him?

28
00:02:50,340 --> 00:02:58,820
If I have some understanding regarding those issues, then the identity crisis will be hopefully

29
00:02:58,820 --> 00:03:01,880
a brief one.

30
00:03:01,880 --> 00:03:06,340
Last spring we looked at two important verses in the book of Jeremiah.

31
00:03:06,340 --> 00:03:12,920
I would invite you to look back there again with me at the book of Jeremiah, the ninth

32
00:03:12,920 --> 00:03:20,520
chapter, verses 23 and 24.

33
00:03:20,520 --> 00:03:28,840
Thus says the Lord, let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man

34
00:03:28,840 --> 00:03:31,300
boast of his might.

35
00:03:31,300 --> 00:03:35,360
Let not a rich man boast of his riches.

36
00:03:35,360 --> 00:03:42,200
If there are any values that our culture tends to boast in, it is those that are mentioned

37
00:03:42,200 --> 00:03:45,240
in the 23rd verse.

38
00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:52,200
Might, intellect, wealth.

39
00:03:52,200 --> 00:04:01,240
But God says, let not anyone boast in these things, but rather let him boast of this,

40
00:04:01,240 --> 00:04:08,680
that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who exercises loving kindness, justice,

41
00:04:08,680 --> 00:04:10,640
and righteousness on earth.

42
00:04:10,640 --> 00:04:14,780
For I delight in these things, declares the Lord.

43
00:04:14,780 --> 00:04:19,840
God says, here is my value system.

44
00:04:19,840 --> 00:04:26,840
My value system is not found in how smart you are, the position you have in life, the

45
00:04:26,840 --> 00:04:30,480
prestige that you think is yours.

46
00:04:30,480 --> 00:04:34,800
It is not found in your possessions.

47
00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:43,200
My value system, says God, is found in character qualities, loving kindness, righteousness,

48
00:04:43,200 --> 00:04:44,200
and justice.

49
00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:48,120
And he says, I exercise these on the earth.

50
00:04:48,120 --> 00:04:55,080
In these things I delight.

51
00:04:55,080 --> 00:05:01,240
God says, let him who boasts boast that he knows and understands me.

52
00:05:01,240 --> 00:05:05,600
To understand God means to have discernment.

53
00:05:05,600 --> 00:05:11,640
We can never fully discern a God who is infinite.

54
00:05:11,640 --> 00:05:16,600
But there is some sense in which we can discern and understand God, or God would not have

55
00:05:16,600 --> 00:05:22,120
said we could.

56
00:05:22,120 --> 00:05:25,200
God says that we can also know him.

57
00:05:25,200 --> 00:05:29,840
As we pointed out months ago, that word know is the same word for Adam knowing Eve, his

58
00:05:29,840 --> 00:05:33,960
wife, and she conceived with child.

59
00:05:33,960 --> 00:05:38,000
It is the most intimate kind of knowing.

60
00:05:38,000 --> 00:05:46,920
God says that you and I can know him in an intimate, deeply personal way.

61
00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:53,560
And when we know God that way, and when we understand God, then we can boast.

62
00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:58,860
If you and I are going to go through an identity crisis successfully, we had better have some

63
00:05:58,860 --> 00:06:03,640
understanding of God first of all.

64
00:06:03,640 --> 00:06:10,760
We'd better have some intimate acquaintance with the Holy One of heaven.

65
00:06:10,760 --> 00:06:18,800
And not only so, we need to have some understanding of what God has done for us.

66
00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:26,720
As we studied God last spring, we discovered that God is one who lives, he loves, he gives,

67
00:06:26,720 --> 00:06:33,360
he cleanses, he knows, he empowers, he endures.

68
00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:38,320
God promises, unites, judges, and God is here.

69
00:06:38,320 --> 00:06:44,080
And as we looked at those attributes, we came to the conclusion that God is both an infinite

70
00:06:44,080 --> 00:06:48,480
and a personal God who can be known.

71
00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:53,160
And he is a God who is the giver of good gifts to us.

72
00:06:53,160 --> 00:07:01,760
Through the summer we studied 13 of the gifts that God has given us in Jesus Christ.

73
00:07:01,760 --> 00:07:10,360
We talked about the gift of completeness, the gift of relationship, of acceptance, redemption,

74
00:07:10,360 --> 00:07:18,480
justification, sanctification, forgiveness, eternal life, assurance, deliverance, regeneration,

75
00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:20,480
and adoption.

76
00:07:20,480 --> 00:07:29,240
All of those wonderful gifts that the infinite personal God has given to us.

77
00:07:29,240 --> 00:07:38,880
The result of all of these good gifts which comprise salvation is a new identity, a new

78
00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:48,520
you, a new you in your deepest self.

79
00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:54,600
Because of who God is and what he has given to you in response to your faith in Jesus

80
00:07:54,600 --> 00:08:02,760
Christ, you are not merely remodeled, you are not merely renovated or rehabilitated.

81
00:08:02,760 --> 00:08:08,240
You are a brand new person.

82
00:08:08,240 --> 00:08:14,760
It is as if the old were passed away and you have become new.

83
00:08:14,760 --> 00:08:19,960
And isn't that exactly what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5 17?

84
00:08:19,960 --> 00:08:23,300
The new you is a new man or a new person.

85
00:08:23,300 --> 00:08:29,160
You are a new creation in Jesus Christ.

86
00:08:29,160 --> 00:08:30,160
So let me summarize.

87
00:08:30,160 --> 00:08:36,880
If you are a person who has understood your sinfulness before God and your need for a

88
00:08:36,880 --> 00:08:45,360
Savior, and if you have therefore placed your faith in Jesus Christ alone as your sin bearer

89
00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:55,840
and Savior, you have as a result of that become a profoundly fundamentally different person

90
00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:58,920
than you were before that.

91
00:08:58,920 --> 00:09:08,240
Physically, you are much the same, but spiritually you are entirely different.

92
00:09:08,240 --> 00:09:18,280
And the innermost part of you is beginning a dynamic process, excuse me, a change so

93
00:09:18,280 --> 00:09:24,880
that it will eventually touch your emotions, your mental capacities, and the volitional

94
00:09:24,880 --> 00:09:28,560
you.

95
00:09:28,560 --> 00:09:37,680
And eventually even your body itself will be affected by the change that has been started

96
00:09:37,680 --> 00:09:40,720
because of your salvation.

97
00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:46,760
God is at work in you today.

98
00:09:46,760 --> 00:09:54,200
You cooperate with God in this work, in this change by spiritual disciplines and by a positive

99
00:09:54,200 --> 00:09:58,960
response to God.

100
00:09:58,960 --> 00:10:06,080
The new you is identified and described in the New Testament with a number of different

101
00:10:06,080 --> 00:10:08,600
word pictures and names.

102
00:10:08,600 --> 00:10:14,320
And through this fall we want to study some of those so that we can understand the new

103
00:10:14,320 --> 00:10:22,640
you, who you are in Jesus Christ, whom God has made you to be.

104
00:10:22,640 --> 00:10:27,520
The first of the names that we're looking at is found in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, and

105
00:10:27,520 --> 00:10:30,960
I invite you to open your Bible there.

106
00:10:30,960 --> 00:10:42,640
1 Corinthians chapter 12.

107
00:10:42,640 --> 00:10:49,680
Verse 12 says, even as the body is one and yet has many members, sounds like my voice

108
00:10:49,680 --> 00:10:55,600
is going to give way to me this morning, and all the members of the body, though they are

109
00:10:55,600 --> 00:11:05,080
many, are one body, so also is Christ.

110
00:11:05,080 --> 00:11:10,780
For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether

111
00:11:10,780 --> 00:11:18,680
slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

112
00:11:18,680 --> 00:11:26,680
Here we see that the new you is described by God as if you were a limb or an organ in

113
00:11:26,680 --> 00:11:28,320
a physical body.

114
00:11:28,320 --> 00:11:32,320
Now think of that for a moment.

115
00:11:32,320 --> 00:11:43,440
God describes the new you as if you were a limb or some organ in a physical body.

116
00:11:43,440 --> 00:11:48,720
The difference of course is that this body He's talking about is a spiritual body and

117
00:11:48,720 --> 00:11:55,960
not a physical body, but it is nonetheless real.

118
00:11:55,960 --> 00:12:00,160
Because of our orientation in the natural world, we think of things spiritual as being

119
00:12:00,160 --> 00:12:04,360
fantasy, but that's not the case.

120
00:12:04,360 --> 00:12:11,440
A spiritual being is as real as we are, and the body of Jesus Christ is spiritual and

121
00:12:11,440 --> 00:12:15,240
it is real, at the same time it is not natural.

122
00:12:15,240 --> 00:12:18,040
It is supernatural.

123
00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:24,480
As we think about this truth that the new you is described as a member of the body,

124
00:12:24,480 --> 00:12:28,280
there are several truths that come to mind in the first place.

125
00:12:28,280 --> 00:12:36,700
The new you is an addition, an addition to the body.

126
00:12:36,700 --> 00:12:42,240
The body was begun, you see, long before you were on the earth.

127
00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:50,120
The body began on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came and for the first time

128
00:12:50,120 --> 00:13:01,400
congealed and indwelt and unified the disciples of the Lord Jesus as a body, a spiritual body.

129
00:13:01,400 --> 00:13:14,380
I'd like you to turn back to the book of Acts for a moment and look at the second chapter.

130
00:13:14,380 --> 00:13:20,520
We have here the account of the day of Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit.

131
00:13:20,520 --> 00:13:28,000
And He indwelt those who were Jesus' disciples and they were proclaiming Christ.

132
00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:33,240
Peter's sermon is recorded for us and the result of all of this is that there were many

133
00:13:33,240 --> 00:13:37,200
people, many Jews who were immediately saved.

134
00:13:37,200 --> 00:13:44,320
They believed what was being proclaimed and it says in verse 41, so then those who had

135
00:13:44,320 --> 00:13:57,480
received His word were baptized and there were added, added that day about 3,000 souls.

136
00:13:57,480 --> 00:14:01,040
Because they were added, added to what?

137
00:14:01,040 --> 00:14:09,240
To an entity, a body that had just begun as the Spirit of the Lord came.

138
00:14:09,240 --> 00:14:11,240
They were added to that number.

139
00:14:11,240 --> 00:14:17,140
And again in verse 47 it says that those who believed were praising God and having favor

140
00:14:17,140 --> 00:14:26,360
with all the people and the Lord was adding, adding to their number day by day those who

141
00:14:26,360 --> 00:14:27,760
were being saved.

142
00:14:27,760 --> 00:14:36,520
Now my point is this, that you as a new you were also added to the body by the work of

143
00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:39,160
God.

144
00:14:39,160 --> 00:14:48,280
In history much after the day of Pentecost, about 2,000 years later, but nonetheless very

145
00:14:48,280 --> 00:14:52,980
truly and really added to the body.

146
00:14:52,980 --> 00:14:57,720
You were made a member of the body.

147
00:14:57,720 --> 00:15:04,160
This addition to the body is a past addition.

148
00:15:04,160 --> 00:15:07,280
Past in the sense of your own lifetime.

149
00:15:07,280 --> 00:15:11,720
Again going back to 1 Corinthians chapter 12 you notice that the apostle says to these

150
00:15:11,720 --> 00:15:19,520
Corinthian believers, by one Spirit we were all baptized.

151
00:15:19,520 --> 00:15:24,840
The tense in the Greek here is a tense that's not in the English language.

152
00:15:24,840 --> 00:15:28,200
It's what's called the heiress tense.

153
00:15:28,200 --> 00:15:36,960
And in this context it means an event that happened once and for all in the past.

154
00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:44,000
The apostle is writing to these believers and he says you were once and for all in one

155
00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:46,320
act added to the body.

156
00:15:46,320 --> 00:15:49,360
What was he thinking about?

157
00:15:49,360 --> 00:15:51,700
When were these Corinthians added to the body?

158
00:15:51,700 --> 00:15:55,120
Were they there in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost?

159
00:15:55,120 --> 00:15:56,880
No.

160
00:15:56,880 --> 00:15:59,280
So when was it that they were added to the body?

161
00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:06,260
It was when the apostle first came to Corinth and preached the word of God to them.

162
00:16:06,260 --> 00:16:13,700
They were at that moment added to the body when they believed in the Lord Jesus Christ.

163
00:16:13,700 --> 00:16:22,760
This verb looks back to an historic defined moment of time, their salvation.

164
00:16:22,760 --> 00:16:26,320
And the same can be said of you.

165
00:16:26,320 --> 00:16:32,940
You were added to the body at that moment in time when you were regenerated by the Holy

166
00:16:32,940 --> 00:16:39,720
Spirit and placed your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and were saved.

167
00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:44,840
You were at that moment added to the body.

168
00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:50,840
The tense of this verb means that it is once for all, never to be repeated.

169
00:16:50,840 --> 00:16:58,160
One is added to the body never needing to be added again because one is added to the

170
00:16:58,160 --> 00:17:00,320
body once and for all.

171
00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:07,780
Well you say, well what about a Christian who goes out and lives carnally, who disobeys

172
00:17:07,780 --> 00:17:10,160
God, who lives in sin?

173
00:17:10,160 --> 00:17:16,160
Well need I remind you that the believers who received this letter of 1 Corinthians

174
00:17:16,160 --> 00:17:18,560
were somewhat people like that.

175
00:17:18,560 --> 00:17:25,220
There were some of them who were leading lives that were much like the unsaved in Corinth.

176
00:17:25,220 --> 00:17:29,960
And yet as Paul writes to this body of believers, even the carnal ones, he says you were all

177
00:17:29,960 --> 00:17:40,920
baptized by the Spirit.

178
00:17:40,920 --> 00:17:46,120
And so this adding to the body is true of all Christians.

179
00:17:46,120 --> 00:17:52,400
It's not just for a certain select group of spiritual ones or those who are walking especially

180
00:17:52,400 --> 00:17:56,160
close with God, but it is true of all believers.

181
00:17:56,160 --> 00:17:58,440
All have been added to the body.

182
00:17:58,440 --> 00:18:00,400
That's a past addition.

183
00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:06,000
But secondly, it is a permanent addition.

184
00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:08,040
How is this done, this adding to the body?

185
00:18:08,040 --> 00:18:20,000
Well he describes it as being baptized into one body by one Spirit, baptized.

186
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:27,520
This addition to the body was accomplished by the baptism in or with or of the Holy Spirit.

187
00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:33,840
The preposition that is there can be understood in a number of different ways.

188
00:18:33,840 --> 00:18:38,120
When you hear people talk about the baptism of the Holy Spirit or the baptism with the

189
00:18:38,120 --> 00:18:44,680
Holy Spirit or the baptism in the Holy Spirit, here is the text in the Bible that talks about

190
00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:48,180
that.

191
00:18:48,180 --> 00:18:52,760
And you will notice, may I point out, that it never says here that we're to seek it.

192
00:18:52,760 --> 00:18:59,240
It is something that happens to us at the moment of our salvation, as we've already

193
00:18:59,240 --> 00:19:00,720
said.

194
00:19:00,720 --> 00:19:05,760
But what is this baptism of the Holy Spirit?

195
00:19:05,760 --> 00:19:17,240
Well it's the work of the Holy Spirit placing us into the body of Jesus Christ, adding us

196
00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:19,360
to the body.

197
00:19:19,360 --> 00:19:24,380
It is the work of the Holy Spirit identifying us with Christ.

198
00:19:24,380 --> 00:19:29,360
It is the work of the Holy Spirit uniting us to Jesus Christ.

199
00:19:29,360 --> 00:19:31,940
All of those things mean the same thing.

200
00:19:31,940 --> 00:19:37,560
Being added to the body means being identified with Christ, united with Christ.

201
00:19:37,560 --> 00:19:47,080
The baptism of the Holy Spirit is our being placed into or identified with the body of

202
00:19:47,080 --> 00:19:50,080
Jesus Christ.

203
00:19:50,080 --> 00:19:53,760
This is not the first time that the Apostle Paul has mentioned baptism in the book of

204
00:19:53,760 --> 00:19:55,800
1 Corinthians.

205
00:19:55,800 --> 00:19:59,840
It might be useful for us to go back and look at the two other places that he talks about

206
00:19:59,840 --> 00:20:00,840
it.

207
00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:06,040
One of them is in the first chapter, so would you turn back there with me a moment?

208
00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:12,800
It may help us to come to some understanding of what he means in chapter 12 by the baptism

209
00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:14,280
by the one Spirit.

210
00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:23,800
In 1 Corinthians chapter 1 the Apostle is recounting his ministry among them.

211
00:20:23,800 --> 00:20:31,720
And he says in verse 11, I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe's people

212
00:20:31,720 --> 00:20:34,640
that there are quarrels among you.

213
00:20:34,640 --> 00:20:41,900
Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, and Paul is now telling them what he's heard.

214
00:20:41,900 --> 00:20:49,680
I am of Paul, I am of Apollos, I am of Cephas, I am of Christ.

215
00:20:49,680 --> 00:20:54,480
You see they were dividing among the teachers that they had had.

216
00:20:54,480 --> 00:20:58,240
Then there were these ones who seemed that Paul does not commend by the way who said

217
00:20:58,240 --> 00:21:08,760
I am of Christ, which must have been a statement claiming some super spiritual position.

218
00:21:08,760 --> 00:21:13,360
Paul condemns them with the others who were choosing upsides in the church.

219
00:21:13,360 --> 00:21:18,120
He says in verse 13, has Christ been divided?

220
00:21:18,120 --> 00:21:22,600
Paul was not crucified for you, was he?

221
00:21:22,600 --> 00:21:27,720
Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

222
00:21:27,720 --> 00:21:34,000
And so he goes back to his time with them and obviously here he's talking about water

223
00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:41,520
baptism, a ritual, an ordinance that had been accomplished and we'll see in a moment when

224
00:21:41,520 --> 00:21:42,520
he was there.

225
00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:47,360
So baptism here is water baptism.

226
00:21:47,360 --> 00:21:54,960
He says in verse 14, I thank God that I baptize none of you except Crespus and Gaius, that

227
00:21:54,960 --> 00:21:59,120
no man may say that you were baptized in my name.

228
00:21:59,120 --> 00:22:03,520
Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanus.

229
00:22:03,520 --> 00:22:07,160
Beyond that I do not know whether I baptized in the other.

230
00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:12,760
Christ did not send me to baptize, but he says to preach the gospel.

231
00:22:12,760 --> 00:22:16,440
Well, there are a number of things to say here.

232
00:22:16,440 --> 00:22:22,800
One is that Paul clearly differentiates between baptism and the gospel.

233
00:22:22,800 --> 00:22:28,560
And yet there are people today who are trying to put baptism with the gospel and saying

234
00:22:28,560 --> 00:22:34,000
that somehow you are saved by being baptized, that that's a part of the gospel.

235
00:22:34,000 --> 00:22:36,640
Paul argues against that here.

236
00:22:36,640 --> 00:22:43,040
He says Christ didn't send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel.

237
00:22:43,040 --> 00:22:49,240
But he did baptize some and he recounts them.

238
00:22:49,240 --> 00:22:56,160
By the way, if baptism had been crucial for salvation, as some still today are teaching,

239
00:22:56,160 --> 00:22:59,760
then it would seem strange that Paul would say, I don't remember all those people I

240
00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:00,760
baptized.

241
00:23:00,760 --> 00:23:05,360
I know I baptized these and these and I don't remember any others.

242
00:23:05,360 --> 00:23:09,540
If baptism were essential for salvation, Paul would certainly be able to say, I baptized

243
00:23:09,540 --> 00:23:11,200
every one of you.

244
00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:15,940
It would have been that important.

245
00:23:15,940 --> 00:23:19,960
But the main thing I want us to see here is that this is water baptism and that the apostle

246
00:23:19,960 --> 00:23:25,640
is saying that he baptized not in his own name, but in the name of Jesus Christ.

247
00:23:25,640 --> 00:23:34,800
Well, that literal baptism, that act of water baptism was an outward ceremony by which people

248
00:23:34,800 --> 00:23:44,160
were identified with Christ, the gospel message, and the people of God.

249
00:23:44,160 --> 00:23:48,900
And that's essentially what water baptism does today.

250
00:23:48,900 --> 00:24:01,480
Water baptism identifies us as believers with Jesus Christ's people and the gospel of Christ.

251
00:24:01,480 --> 00:24:05,360
Baptism is not unimportant.

252
00:24:05,360 --> 00:24:08,960
Paul is not saying here that it doesn't really make any difference if we're baptized, but

253
00:24:08,960 --> 00:24:15,000
he's saying when it comes to choosing sides, he's glad he didn't baptize too many of them,

254
00:24:15,000 --> 00:24:21,040
lest there would be those who would boast that they had been baptized by Paul.

255
00:24:21,040 --> 00:24:24,280
Those who believe in Jesus Christ ought to be baptized.

256
00:24:24,280 --> 00:24:31,240
To be baptized as an infant is not biblical baptism.

257
00:24:31,240 --> 00:24:36,080
However sincere parents may be in having a child baptized, it did accomplish absolutely

258
00:24:36,080 --> 00:24:43,080
nothing for the child, spiritually speaking.

259
00:24:43,080 --> 00:24:47,760
Baptism is an act that occurs after one has trusted Jesus Christ as Savior.

260
00:24:47,760 --> 00:24:54,560
And it might be good just to ask the question at this moment, have you been biblically baptized

261
00:24:54,560 --> 00:25:02,320
as one who has as a responsible individual trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior?

262
00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:08,800
Have you then been baptized as the apostle speaks here in the name of Jesus Christ to

263
00:25:08,800 --> 00:25:16,880
publicly identify with Christ, His body, and His gospel in the world?

264
00:25:16,880 --> 00:25:22,160
Water baptism is in 1 Corinthians chapter 1, but there's another occasion of baptism

265
00:25:22,160 --> 00:25:23,920
before we come to chapter 12.

266
00:25:23,920 --> 00:25:28,980
It's actually in chapter 10.

267
00:25:28,980 --> 00:25:35,920
And here again Paul uses this word which means to immerse or to dip literally, which tells

268
00:25:35,920 --> 00:25:40,220
us the mode of baptism in the early church.

269
00:25:40,220 --> 00:25:44,640
And history records that that's exactly how it was done.

270
00:25:44,640 --> 00:25:48,240
But now in chapter 10 he uses baptism in a slightly different way.

271
00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:55,140
He says in verse 1, I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all

272
00:25:55,140 --> 00:26:03,360
under the cloud and all passed through the sea and all were baptized into Moses in the

273
00:26:03,360 --> 00:26:06,520
cloud and in the sea.

274
00:26:06,520 --> 00:26:10,480
Well, were the people there immersed?

275
00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:22,120
Well, in an analogous way, a metaphorical way they were, he mentions the cloud overhead,

276
00:26:22,120 --> 00:26:28,360
that cloud being the cloud that God caused to be there to protect His people, symbolizing

277
00:26:28,360 --> 00:26:35,880
His presence, a cloud which is made up mostly of water.

278
00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:43,440
He mentions the sea on either side of them, the sea that had been split and through which

279
00:26:43,440 --> 00:26:45,600
they marched.

280
00:26:45,600 --> 00:26:50,800
And so you see in a certain sense, and that's the sense Paul means, they were enveloped

281
00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:54,480
in water.

282
00:26:54,480 --> 00:27:00,280
But the point that he's really making here is not so much the literal water, the immersion

283
00:27:00,280 --> 00:27:10,260
in water, as the fact that the people on this occasion were identified with Moses.

284
00:27:10,260 --> 00:27:20,920
At this moment God, as it were, baptized them into Moses or identified them with Moses so

285
00:27:20,920 --> 00:27:27,280
that Moses could go on from that experience to the top of Mount Sinai and there represent

286
00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,760
all of the nation.

287
00:27:30,760 --> 00:27:36,280
And there talk to God on their behalf and there receive from God on their behalf the

288
00:27:36,280 --> 00:27:39,640
covenant of the law.

289
00:27:39,640 --> 00:27:44,560
So this occasion was not only a mighty miracle of God, it had symbolic importance.

290
00:27:44,560 --> 00:27:47,760
They were baptized on that occasion.

291
00:27:47,760 --> 00:27:53,120
And again I say the importance is not so much the literal envelopment in water, though in

292
00:27:53,120 --> 00:27:56,560
a sense that happened there.

293
00:27:56,560 --> 00:28:00,240
The important thing here is the metaphorical meaning of baptism.

294
00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:05,400
They were united to Moses, identified with Moses, so that from that point on when God

295
00:28:05,400 --> 00:28:12,160
talked to Moses, He was talking to the whole nation.

296
00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:18,040
Now we come to chapter 12 where again we see the word baptize used.

297
00:28:18,040 --> 00:28:24,400
The very same word as in chapter 1 where it's clearly water baptism, the ritual of baptism

298
00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:26,440
is mentioned.

299
00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:34,600
The same word as baptism as in chapter 10 where you can see the water literally around

300
00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:42,920
them, but the important thing is the metaphorical meaning of baptism to identify with someone.

301
00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:49,040
Now as we come to chapter 13 or chapter 12 rather verse 13, it's very clear that there's

302
00:28:49,040 --> 00:28:54,320
no water literally involved here.

303
00:28:54,320 --> 00:29:01,160
He is talking about the Holy Spirit performing baptism.

304
00:29:01,160 --> 00:29:07,200
It is not in H2O that He's baptizing.

305
00:29:07,200 --> 00:29:15,160
It is into a spiritual entity, the body of Christ.

306
00:29:15,160 --> 00:29:19,680
He is placing believers into the body.

307
00:29:19,680 --> 00:29:26,240
He is identifying believers with the body of Jesus Christ.

308
00:29:26,240 --> 00:29:30,840
I think it is very profound and striking what He says in verse 12.

309
00:29:30,840 --> 00:29:35,960
He talks about the physical body being one with many members and then He says, so also

310
00:29:35,960 --> 00:29:40,600
is Christ.

311
00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:43,320
So is Christ.

312
00:29:43,320 --> 00:29:49,840
He is one, but He has many members.

313
00:29:49,840 --> 00:29:50,840
What do you mean Paul?

314
00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:59,360
Well He says the Holy Spirit by one Spirit you were united to, you were added to the

315
00:29:59,360 --> 00:30:06,440
body of Christ and that addition is a permanent addition.

316
00:30:06,440 --> 00:30:07,840
It is a permanent addition.

317
00:30:07,840 --> 00:30:11,720
The Holy Spirit does not unbaptize people.

318
00:30:11,720 --> 00:30:14,000
The Holy Spirit does not disconnect.

319
00:30:14,000 --> 00:30:16,400
He doesn't amputate.

320
00:30:16,400 --> 00:30:18,560
The Holy Spirit unites.

321
00:30:18,560 --> 00:30:26,240
He brings into, He identifies with, He unites us to Jesus Christ.

322
00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:29,480
Now let's back up a moment.

323
00:30:29,480 --> 00:30:32,920
We're talking this morning about your identity.

324
00:30:32,920 --> 00:30:36,520
We're talking about the new you if you have trusted Jesus Christ.

325
00:30:36,520 --> 00:30:43,920
We have said the new you is a member of the body of Jesus Christ.

326
00:30:43,920 --> 00:30:47,040
You were added to that body.

327
00:30:47,040 --> 00:30:48,440
It's a past addition.

328
00:30:48,440 --> 00:30:50,360
It happened at the moment you were saved.

329
00:30:50,360 --> 00:30:52,000
It doesn't occur later.

330
00:30:52,000 --> 00:30:53,000
It doesn't happen again.

331
00:30:53,000 --> 00:30:57,640
It's a once for all experience.

332
00:30:57,640 --> 00:30:59,360
It's not something that you sensed.

333
00:30:59,360 --> 00:31:06,800
It's not something you felt, but it happened to you in the past, at the moment of salvation.

334
00:31:06,800 --> 00:31:09,960
And it's also a permanent addition.

335
00:31:09,960 --> 00:31:14,920
It's the work of the Holy Spirit identifying you with the body of Christ.

336
00:31:14,920 --> 00:31:20,400
But He uses another sort of a picture of this same thing in verse 13 at the end.

337
00:31:20,400 --> 00:31:33,120
He says, we were all, notice we were, past again, we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

338
00:31:33,120 --> 00:31:37,480
Now in the earlier picture it's the Spirit placing us into something.

339
00:31:37,480 --> 00:31:44,120
Now it's the Spirit coming into us.

340
00:31:44,120 --> 00:31:49,040
By the baptism of the Holy Spirit we are placed into Christ.

341
00:31:49,040 --> 00:31:56,600
But at the same moment we, as it were, drank, we appropriated, we partook of, we received

342
00:31:56,600 --> 00:32:00,000
the Holy Spirit.

343
00:32:00,000 --> 00:32:06,080
The Holy Spirit indwelled us at that moment.

344
00:32:06,080 --> 00:32:10,640
The Lord Jesus said that the Spirit would be in us.

345
00:32:10,640 --> 00:32:20,160
Not only in us, but that He would flow out of us like a river of living water.

346
00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:27,160
A permanent addition to the body you are, because the Holy Spirit has placed you into

347
00:32:27,160 --> 00:32:29,640
the body and now indwells you.

348
00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:34,240
He resides in you to keep you in the body.

349
00:32:34,240 --> 00:32:38,520
His presence is your security.

350
00:32:38,520 --> 00:32:43,280
And then finally, your addition to the body is a purposed addition.

351
00:32:43,280 --> 00:32:52,080
In other words, it was not haphazard, it was not by chance you were added to the body because

352
00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:58,280
God long before He created the world chose you to be a part of the body.

353
00:32:58,280 --> 00:33:05,440
And now having accomplished that in your life, He has placed you into the body as He has

354
00:33:05,440 --> 00:33:06,980
purposed to do so.

355
00:33:06,980 --> 00:33:09,600
Look at verse 18.

356
00:33:09,600 --> 00:33:17,880
Now God has placed the members, that's you, the new you, each one of them in the body

357
00:33:17,880 --> 00:33:23,040
just as He desired.

358
00:33:23,040 --> 00:33:27,760
According to the gifts that God has given you and the calling of God in your life, He

359
00:33:27,760 --> 00:33:35,820
has purposely placed you into the body just where you are.

360
00:33:35,820 --> 00:33:38,680
The new you is an addition to the body.

361
00:33:38,680 --> 00:33:49,320
It's a past addition, it's a permanent addition, you are a purposed addition.

362
00:33:49,320 --> 00:33:54,200
You're not an accident.

363
00:33:54,200 --> 00:33:57,520
You are the choice of God.

364
00:33:57,520 --> 00:34:05,640
And God has placed you into the body of Jesus Christ with a purpose.

365
00:34:05,640 --> 00:34:11,680
I began by saying this morning that there is an identity crisis in the world and we

366
00:34:11,680 --> 00:34:17,060
all go through identity crises in our lives.

367
00:34:17,060 --> 00:34:24,040
We can only understand who we are and what our purpose is in the world if we know God

368
00:34:24,040 --> 00:34:30,680
and understand Him and know what our relationship to Him is.

369
00:34:30,680 --> 00:34:38,560
Our relationship is as if we were members of the body, and we are.

370
00:34:38,560 --> 00:34:43,760
That gives us our identity and our purpose likewise is found there.

371
00:34:43,760 --> 00:34:47,800
And we're going to talk more about that the next time that we come to this chapter

372
00:34:47,800 --> 00:34:49,720
in two weeks.

373
00:34:49,720 --> 00:34:57,020
I hope that you'll study with us as we think about being members of the body of Jesus Christ.

374
00:34:57,020 --> 00:34:59,680
You're not an accident.

375
00:34:59,680 --> 00:35:02,240
You are here for a reason.

376
00:35:02,240 --> 00:35:08,840
And God has gifted you and God will enable you to accomplish the full reason for your

377
00:35:08,840 --> 00:35:11,040
being in the body.

378
00:35:11,040 --> 00:35:15,720
The fact that we are members of the body of Christ means that we have an enormous responsibility

379
00:35:15,720 --> 00:35:18,700
to Christ.

380
00:35:18,700 --> 00:35:24,500
The privilege is tremendous, but so is the responsibility.

381
00:35:24,500 --> 00:35:33,240
For in this world we are the life of Christ, we are the extension of Jesus Christ.

382
00:35:33,240 --> 00:35:40,860
So as you go out this week and you live before other people, try to remember that.

383
00:35:40,860 --> 00:35:51,440
As you make decisions about your life, as you make choices about lifestyle, about how

384
00:35:51,440 --> 00:35:59,240
you're going to invest yourself and your resources, as you decide how you're going

385
00:35:59,240 --> 00:36:08,760
to treat others, remember who you are as the new you.

386
00:36:08,760 --> 00:36:15,400
Let's bow together.

387
00:36:15,400 --> 00:36:22,400
Jesus Christ has chosen you for Himself and by His Spirit He has called you to be a member

388
00:36:22,400 --> 00:36:29,320
of the body.

389
00:36:29,320 --> 00:36:40,560
Let's ask Him to enable us this week to live as the new people that we are in Christ.

390
00:36:40,560 --> 00:36:46,740
Ask Him to enable us to live according to our new identity.

391
00:36:46,740 --> 00:36:53,160
And if you're here without a personal relationship with God through faith in Christ, would you

392
00:36:53,160 --> 00:37:01,400
today place your faith in Him and in your heart trust in Him at this moment?

393
00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:05,840
Asking Him to cleanse you of your sin and to give you this special relationship with

394
00:37:05,840 --> 00:37:09,520
Him, He would love to do that.

395
00:37:09,520 --> 00:37:12,560
He desires to do that for you.

396
00:37:12,560 --> 00:37:14,980
And you too can be added to the body.

397
00:37:14,980 --> 00:37:18,320
You see the church is still growing.

398
00:37:18,320 --> 00:37:24,200
That's why we're here, to be a part of the growing body of Jesus Christ.

399
00:37:24,200 --> 00:37:30,920
You can be added to the body today by trusting the Savior.

400
00:37:30,920 --> 00:37:40,640
Father, I pray that all of us will be conscious of who we are in a growing, maturing sense.

401
00:37:40,640 --> 00:37:50,320
And may that understanding of who we are transform our lives in our motives, in our desires,

402
00:37:50,320 --> 00:37:55,240
in our choices, in our hope.

403
00:37:55,240 --> 00:38:02,760
And as we have studied today that we are members of the body of Jesus Christ, so may we walk

404
00:38:02,760 --> 00:38:09,920
this week understanding that privilege and carrying that responsibility well by the power

405
00:38:09,920 --> 00:38:15,600
of the Holy Spirit who lives within us.

406
00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:20,200
In Jesus' name I pray, amen.

407
00:38:20,200 --> 00:38:26,320
I'd like for us to sing a verse of a closing hymn before we go in our way.

408
00:38:26,320 --> 00:38:30,560
Jesus Christ died to redeem His body so that we might live for Him.

409
00:38:30,560 --> 00:38:35,920
And that's what the songwriter says in 439.

410
00:38:35,920 --> 00:38:39,760
I'll live for Him who died for me.

411
00:38:39,760 --> 00:38:44,200
And then truly does He say, how happy then my life shall be.

412
00:38:44,200 --> 00:38:50,400
It is when we live for ourselves that we're miserable people.

413
00:38:50,400 --> 00:38:55,560
When we recognize who we are and we live for the Christ who died for us, then we can know

414
00:38:55,560 --> 00:38:56,560
true joy.

415
00:38:56,560 --> 00:38:58,800
Let's stand and sing before we go.

416
00:38:58,800 --> 00:39:11,840
I'll live for Him who died for me.

417
00:39:11,840 --> 00:39:23,280
My life, my love, I give to Thee, Thou Lamb of God, who died for me.

418
00:39:23,280 --> 00:39:36,960
O may I ever, ever be Savior and my God.

419
00:39:36,960 --> 00:39:43,400
I'll live for Him who died for me.

420
00:39:43,400 --> 00:39:49,560
How happy then my life shall be.

421
00:39:49,560 --> 00:39:56,600
I'll live for Him who died for me.

422
00:39:56,600 --> 00:40:04,440
My Savior and my God.

423
00:40:04,440 --> 00:40:10,400
With the words of that determination on our hearts, that desire, that prayer that God

424
00:40:10,400 --> 00:40:16,460
would strengthen us to do so, let's go out rejoicing that we are who we are in Jesus

425
00:40:16,460 --> 00:40:17,460
Christ.

426
00:40:17,460 --> 00:40:18,460
God bless you.

427
00:40:18,460 --> 00:40:35,200
We're dismissed.