Baptism

Pastor Bill Bush · Sep 22, 2025

Baptism is not a checklist item that earns God's favor but a first act of public obedience that flows from God's personal, covenantal love — a love that is secure, fierce, and unstoppable. Like a wedding ring, baptism is a moment that is meant to become a movement: an ongoing, daily declaration that we belong to Jesus. Understanding the depth of God's love — sealed on the heart, fierce enough to protect us from every rival, and powerful enough to conquer death itself — is what compels believers to live assured, give their fullest, and remain unshakable no matter what the world brings.

Pastor Bill Bush · Apr 15, 2024

Pastor Bill uses Matthew 3 — the baptism of Jesus — to argue that baptism is not a means of earning God's love but an act of humble commitment and identification that flows from it. Just as Jesus' baptism was His humble, public declaration of mission and identification with humanity, our baptism is our first step of trusting God: declaring we are sinners saved by grace, committing to follow Jesus as Lord, and publicly identifying with His death, burial, and resurrection. The sermon presses the question: if you call Jesus Lord, are you actually living like He is?