- How do I
become a Christian?
- Where can I find
out more about Jesus?
- Why don't Baptists Christen children
?
-
Can you tell me more about
Baptists?
- Who's who in your church?
- What is membership about?
- How old do you have to be for baptism?
- Can I be baptised again if I have been
Christened?
To become a Christian you need to
repent and accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. Jesus said "repent and believe the good news".
Repent means changing your mind
- turning away from the all the wrong and sinful things in your life and turning
to God's ways. You will need to examine how you live now and ask God to forgive
you for all that is wrong in your life. Then ask him to save you and set you
free.
To believe you have to have
faith. Faith requires action and decision. It is not just a feeling. You have to decide
for yourself to believe. It's like pulling a rip cord - only you can do it. If
you do it now, the Lord will come into your life. He wont question you or
investigate your past. He will accept you just as you are because He already
loves you. The Bible makes it
clear "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved". One
believing call to Jesus asking for forgiveness means the way to salvation is
open to you.
Jesus said "Whoever comes to me I
will never drive away". You can make a new beginning by praying this prayer,
or a similar prayer in your own words
Dear
Heavenly Father
I
respond to Your invitation and come to You in the name of Your Son, Jesus
Christ.
I come
with all my sins, heartaches and addictions.
I turn
away from evil and turn to You, Lord Jesus.
I put my
faith in you alone. You are the Son of the Living God
I
believe with my heart what I now confess with my mouth: You are my Saviour, my
Lord and my God.
Thank
you for having accepted me as Your child.
I open
myself for Your Holy Spirit and will follow You all the days of my life.
I
believe You and receive You.
I ask it
in the name of Jesus
Amen
If you have
prayed this prayer, then tell someone about it. Also tell someone in a
local church where you will find people filled with God's love who will welcome
you and care for you. They will help you to know more about Jesus.
The best way is by talking to people
who already know Him. If you live locally just contact us and we'll let you know
about our next Discovery Group. Another
way is from reading about Him in the Bible. Don't be put off by childhood
memories of old fashioned language. There are now many excellent modern
translations of the Bible suitable for different age groups. The Good News Bible
is a good version to start with, whatever your age. The Youth Bible has helpful
sections for young people facing problems and questions growing up. The pew
bible at Albany Park Baptist Church is the New International Version . The word
Bible means library, so don't start by trying to read it from cover to cover -
start with one of the gospels, like Mark or John. All Christian bookshops sell
notes to help you to think more about what you are reading.
You can also learn by talking to
people who know Jesus. At Albany Park we use both preaching and mid week
groups to help us study the Bible, understand Jesus better and discover more about Him.
We also run discipleship classes for those considering baptism or church
membership. But if you want to explore a little more before
taking that step, may we commend the
introducing Jesus or
reJesus web sites.
Baptists believe that baptism is only
for believers and therefore should follow faith, i.e. it is for those who have personally
accepted Jesus as Lord and Saviour. We believe that only you can take that
decision and that it is not a decision that anyone else can take on your
behalf. This is in line with scriptural teaching .
"Repent and be baptised, every
one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And
you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Acts2
v38)
"Therefore go and make
disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28 v19)
"Whoever believes and
is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned".
(Mark 16v16)
We naturally want to thank God for the
gift of a child. We do this in a service of dedication. In this, parents dedicate
themselves to the Christian upbringing of the child, the church family promises
to support the parents in that task. We give thanks and seek God's blessing on
the child.
"Whoever welcomes one of these
little children in my name welcomes me" (Mark 9v37)
"And He took the children in His
arms, put His hands on them and blessed them" (Mark
10v16).
Take a look at the
Baptist Union website where you will find
"Who'd be a Baptist?"
Like all Baptist churches, Albany Park
Baptist Church is self governing so the Church Meeting is the decision making
body in the church. The Church Meeting decides who to appoint to various
positions, how money should be spent, what activities to run, etc.
Our Minister (also called Pastor) is
Rev Neil Abbott. To support
him in the pastoral
and administrative tasks of the church, the Members elect Deacons. The
Minister and Deacons together form what is called the Diaconate, who are
effectively servants of the church. The Church Secretary and Treasurer are
elected by the members from amongst the Deacons.
All members have responsibilities, some
seen and some unseen. Some run our regular activities; others help
behind the scenes in practical things like maintaining premises; and others help by visiting and helping the sick
and housebound. Our housebound members are important too. They are our prayer
warriors.
Baptists believe that when we are
received by Jesus we should also be received into His body, which is the church. The
church is not a building, but a gathering of His people who meet together
for worship, teaching, fellowship and mutual support. Our youngest member is 22
(but we have had members as young as 14)
and our oldest is 105 years old. Christians apply for membership and are
interviewed by two visitors appointed by the church. If the church is satisfied
that the applicant has a genuine faith and is living a life worthy of their
Christian calling, they will be accepted into membership. As a member, they will
be expected to accept certain responsibilities.
Baptists do not set an age for baptism.
The important qualification is that you are old enough to have made a personal
decision to follow Jesus. At Albany Park we have baptised people as young as 11
and as old as 80.
Because Baptists do not accept infant
Baptism or Christening as true Baptism, then there is normally no objection to
the Baptism of a believer who has been Christened. Believer's Baptism is a sign
of obedience to Christ's command to "Believe and be Baptised. Once
baptised as a believer, you cannot be baptised again.
AP Webmaster
Copyright © 2003 Albany Park
Baptist Church. All rights reserved.
Revised: 16/02/04.
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