Good morning everyone. [Applause] My name is Matis and I'm the teaching pastor here at Boon Ferry. If you're new, you're very welcome. We're excited to have you. And I get to wait all year to say this, so I don't want to wait any longer. He is risen. He is. Let's say it one more time. He is risen. He is. I don't think there's any better Sunday than Easter. It's just absolutely wonderful. I'm going to give you just a couple really short announcements as always, especially on a Sunday like
this. If you're new, if you'd like a little bit more information about Boon Fairy, feel God drawing you to become part of Boon Fairy, those welcome cards are for you. you can go um fill those out, give us whatever information you're comfortable with and especially if it's for your first time, you can hand them to the connection table after the service and we'll give you um a little
gift that's worth having. Um we also use them for our prayer ministry and that's the second thing that I want to mention. If you have a prayer request, you could write them down on that. Um we have uh 24-hour prayer time coming up on May 2nd and 3rd. I think there may have been a typo in the past saying March 2nd. So, if you show up on March 2nd or 3rd of 2026, God's not going to be mad about that. And if you are, you can take that
into prayer, but we won't be there. So, um this is May 2nd starting at 5:00 p.m. and we will end on the next day at 5:00 p.m. And the way that works, um you can actually even use your phones right now, scan that QR code, which will take you to where you can sign up. You can also go on our website and sign up. And if you get our e- bulletins that you can also sign up through that in the welcome card then you'll get a click uh for the
sign up as well. We um we meet both in person in right here in the um in the prayer room but you can also join on zoom. Um so uh it's it's a wonderful thing that we can worship in spirit and truth anywhere now. It doesn't have to be in Jerusalem. It can be anywhere. And so I don't really believe that in terms of God hearing you or you praying to God that there's any difference being on Zoom or in person. It is encouraging when you come in person and the fellowship that we have together face to
face is important. But um what I'm saying is you could sign up for 1 hour or you could sign up for an hour and then zoom. Some of you may not um sleep well and maybe you wake up intermittently anyway. Maybe that night's a night where you just jump in on Zoom and pray with us for a time. So really looking for that 24 hours of of prayer. And actually that is my last announcement. So I'm going to pray and I'm going to then get right into the
first chapter of John. We're going to John 1 and John 3 and some other scriptures today if you wanted to turn there. Let me pray. Lord, I have a very simple and singular prayer today. I pray that you would save uh those who need to be saved that are here. Um that you would help those who need to recommmit in their faith and let go of some things that are stopping them from really following you in a way that bears fruit. That you would help them to recommmit.
Uh Lord, the reason we pray is we don't have any control over salvation. Your son says it's like the wind and we don't know where it comes from or where it goes. And that's the way your spirit is too. And so when we pray, we're recognizing that we don't have control, but we're asking you for that salvation all the same. I pray these things in
Jesus name. Amen. Let's start by just reading the very beginning of the Gospel of John because it says a couple things that are everything it says is really important, profound, but there's something in there that connects directly to the main message of the sermon today. And this is John 1:1. In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him and without him was not anything made that was made.
In him was life and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to bear witness about the light that all might believe through him. He was not the light but came to bear witness about the light. The true light which gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world and the world was made through him. Yet the
world did not know him. He came to his own and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we have seen his glory, the glory as of the Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. I want to stop there and I want to pick up just a couple things that are
necessary to believe about Jesus. What we're going to be talking about today is what has to happen for you to gain eternal life. Um, it's good to hear and be reminded of if you already believe. Uh, we're going to be talking about the concept of being born again. You've probably heard that before. People call themselves born again Christians, but what does that mean? And if you were wanting to become born again, what would that mean? And we'll go to that passage
in a moment. But the first thing that I want to be pointing out here is that it said of this son of God whom we know in the Gospel of John to be Jesus Christ. That he was in the beginning. He's given the title the name word there. He is the word of God. But he was with God, but he also was God. And he hasn't stopped being God. And all things were made through for and by him. And in him is both life and light. And that light, even though there's so much darkness in
the world, it cannot be overcome. But coming down all the way to verse 12, I want to point out something that it says that I don't believe gets talked about enough. It says, "But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God." Did you know that you had to you have to be given the right to become a child of God? That God gives people that right. And it also says who were born
not of blood. So it's not uh a normal natural birth that happens that causes you to have that right to become a child of God. Also it's not the will of the flesh. So it's it's not wi human beings have a sinful nature. And scripture talks about how whether you believe or not you already know that because you'll do things that you're convicted of as wrong. And you can't just get rid of the guilt. No matter how much you suppress it, repress it or try to explain it
away. It's there. And so that will is not capable of giving itself the right to become a child of God or believing and says even nor of the will of man but of God. And so it's it's God's choice. It's God's will. And that's a really important thing to understand about being born again, which is according to Jesus necessary for you to either even enter the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God. And when when Jesus says that, that means gaining salvation, gaining eternal life. So, let's go to
John chapter 3. Uh because at this point, there's a Pharisee. And if you if you've heard about Pharisees, you know they're legalistic. They're hypocrites, we'll use it as a term to put somebody down or when someone is being too rule-based, we'll say, "Oh, that's kind of Phariseaic." Or when just someone's just being a hypocrite. Um why were they hypocrites? Well, they had all these rules, but they didn't even follow those
rules themselves. Besides, they were saying that all these rules would be the kind of things that you could follow and then they would make you right with God. But according to the writers of scripture, in particular Jesus and Paul, but all of the writers of scripture, even from the Old Testament, you're not made right with God by following the rules. In fact, those rules are there to point out just how sinful we are and how
we can't follow them. how although we see that those rules are good like you shouldn't lie, you shouldn't steal, you shouldn't cheat, you shouldn't murder and yet we still have those kinds of inclinations and sometimes even those actions occur. But there's one Pharisee, his name is Nicodemus and he sees something about Jesus and he wants to come to him and I'm going to read verse one here. Now this is chapter 3 of John. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
The Jews had this Sanhedrin uh which you might think of it similar to our Supreme Court but there were 70 of them and there were no checks and balances on them. They're the elders, they're the priests and there was primarily controlled by the Pharisees, although there were also another group of religious leaders called the Sadducees that were part of that. And it wasn't just a religious leadership, but it was to some degree a political leadership
that Rome had given some authority. And so there's both political sway, religious sway, societal sway, social sway, very high position. All right? And he risks something terrible by even speaking to Jesus. Let's see what he says here. This man, verse two, came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher from God. No one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him." How do we know he was risking a lot? Well, he came by
night. Came by night. He did not want to
be known for having gone to Jesus. The Pharisees were murderously opposed to Jesus as we know and he could have lost not just his standing but his position almost certainly would have been ousted from the Sanhedrin would have been mocked uh would have lost all social favor with people because this leadership group has a lot I don't know if you've noticed how in America too it's kind of like the majority rules if enough people believe something then something else even if it's true goes
out of fashion and then you become society pressured to believe that and if you don't you get marginalized to sort of a radical fringe crazy kind of person. And you see it swinging back the other way too. So like all of a sudden rad what sounded like radical cringe crazy ideas then come be more centered because all of a sudden everyone's starting to believe them. Uh we saw this happen recently in our nation. And so it's it's no different back then. He has takes a huge risk in trying to find out
more from Jesus. And it is a risk for you as well. It is a risk for you as well to try to find out more about Jesus. And you know that risk for some of you it feels like a risk risk just to come to church. Although I assure you that the risk in watching the show Care Bears and coming to Boon's Fairy is almost exactly the same. There's no real risk. It's a bunch of softies here that
love you. Um and and no real danger. But there's a spiritual thing I'm talking about where what are they going to say or are they going to call me a sinner or if I go to church? or my friends going to think I'm one of those Bible believing crazies. There is a risk to your reputation. There could even be a
risk to your job. There's a risk socially, a risk reputationally and for you even a risk emotionally because if you've been experiencing guilt in your life over something that you've done um and you've been pushing that down, coming to church tends to bring that to the surface and maybe don't want it to bring to bring be brought to the surface and maybe it's painful. So there is a certain amount of fear there. And a question I'd like to be asking you is here. Do you still have a desire to risk
something to know Jesus? Have you risked something by even coming? Nicodemus was risking a lot. Okay. So let's let's continue to see what he asks here. Jesus answered him, "Truly I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." So Nicodemus had recognized something about Jesus. I know that God has to be with you because you couldn't possibly be doing these signs. Couldn't be doing these signs if he wasn't with you. Maybe you've seen some
signs. Maybe you have never actually believed. You've always kind of thought, well, religion is the opiate of the masses. Well, if you haven't ever heard that phrase, uh it's it's from Karl Marx. And surprise, he was not born again. And he believed that if you were to the people that believe the gospel or the people that believe religious things, it's like a drug for them that helps them escape from all the pain and sorrow and difficulty. And we don't need
it. We just need to do something. And that's really where the idea of socialism came from. What we should do about it. Um but you have to ask yourself a question. And do you like Nicodemus wants to listen want to listen to Jesus and what he has to say or some elite philosopher? You know, Nicodemus had elite philosoph philosophers of his time as well. And as one of the ruling class, he would have had access to all of the most brilliant minds. No one's saying that Karl Marx is not brilliant.
The question is when it comes to spiritual things, should you listen to him or should you listen to Jesus Christ? And if like Nicodemus, you're finding yourself drawn to listen to Jesus Christ, he has something to say. And the very first thing he says to Nicodemus is, "Truly I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. You're blind to it. It's not available for you to be seen."
And how would you become born again? We already talked about it's not born of blood like just being born of a woman, you know? Um, everyone is, but that's not what it's about. And it's not about the will of the flesh. There's nothing in you that has this power to will yourself to become born again. And it's it's also not the will of man. So, no one can will it for you, but it comes from God. And he gives you the right.
And Nicodemus is bewildered. Culturally, you've heard, even if you haven't been around church circles, you've heard the idea that like, I'm a born again Christian. People will say it today. It's even a modern term. I'm born again. But you might have no idea what it means. Nicodemus had never heard this. It wasn't like a cultural saying. It wasn't like something well go this is uh I know what that means, you know, and I have all these ideas associated with it.
It's the first time he's hearing it. And Nicodemus said verse four, how can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born? And he's not being sarcastic. He's bewildered. He's kind of dumbfounded like how he's taking Jesus seriously. So seriously like I mean I don't how there's no category of it for him. And Jesus answered truly I say to you unless one is born of water and the spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of
God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you must be born again. The wind blows where it wishes and you hear it sound, but you do not where it go where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the spirit. So it's you might be thinking, well, we know more about the wind than they did back then. And that is to some
degree true. Um, for example, we actually know where the strongest wind gusts happen on a most regular basis. And that's uh uh George V. Coast in Antarctica. Do you know that? You guys want to hear one more uh interesting fact about wind? No. That is my kind of humor by the way. And one one way you can know is I asked him to say that. Um yeah, actually I have an image for you of how powerful wind is. I'm assuming this is a hurricane even though uh the internet said it was a tornado, I
think. But if we've got that image, uh we can put that image up. This is what wind can do. You just look up hurricane wind damage or you know straw through trees, forks through trees. There are so many images of how powerful wind is and you can't even see it, you know. And honestly, I'm not sure how much more we know about wind these days. I will see a weather event happening and go to my weather app and the weather on the weather app is different in real time. Not even
predictively wrong. But it's not even raining even though it's raining outside. So, uh I wonder sometimes if we're only 50/50 predicting the wind, why would we even do it? But what Jesus is really talking about here is he's comparing the Holy Spirit to the wind. You can't see the Holy Spirit either. You can't control the Holy Spirit. And you don't know when he's going to cause somebody to be born again. You don't
know when that's going to happen. And you know, you don't know that because the people that you want to be saved most as Christians, you pray for. You pray for them to be saved. And what are you praying? You're praying that God would intervene in their life. You've probably talked to them about the gospel and maybe they've rejected it. No, I'm not a sinner. No, I don't need
forgiveness. So maybe you haven't been harping on that because it just kind of blows up and yet you come to pray for them because you know God is in control of that. That's what we do when we pray. It's it's like the the human mind and heart and soul just knowing I can't control this, but I want that to happen. And so, you pray for it. You pray for that person. But it is not the opiate of the masses. God's already told you it's not something that you can just like cause yourself to
see. He does say that being saved is a function of hearing God's word preached. So you hear this, but you know how many people hear God's word preached and don't come to be saved, who don't become tr who reject it. So what's really the difference between that those who then reject it and those not are the ones who accepted it? Are they weak because they needed something? That's not what scripture is saying. Scripture is saying and Jesus is saying is that yeah, you don't know
where it comes from, where it goes. You don't know when the Holy Spirit's going to act in that way, but it's a function of the Holy Spirit to be born again. And notice Nicodemus doesn't say can these things be. He says in verse n, Nicodemus said to him, how can these things be? He wants he's still wanting to understand how what does this mean? How can you be born again? And Jesus answer uh seems at
first flesh kind of strange. Uh you would think that if somebody's asking then then you would you would immediately tell them because they're ready for it. But here's what he says. Verse 10. And Jesus answered him, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?" Right? So at that time they didn't have the Bible we have today. They had the Old Testament and they didn't call it the Old Testament. They
just called it scripture, Torah. So if Jesus is saying that as a teacher in Israel, as a ruler, you ought to know what I'm actually talking about about being born again, then it must be able to be found in scripture. And at least by now, it's found in probably one of the most or the most famous Old Testament scriptures you can find. So let's go there. This is Ezekiel 36 26. Let's actually start in verse 25. Ezekiel
36:25. I will sprinkle clean water on you and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness and from all your idols I will cleanse you and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you. and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart uh from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. So the concept of becoming new, becoming a new creation in a sense, being born again, it's already
there. He should have already understood this metaphor that Jesus is using for something truly transforming, changing, remarkable that has to happen if you're even going to become a child of God in the first place. And it's a significant thing that someone who considers themselves a teacher of the law didn't really have any clue what Jesus was was talking to about. And he could have I think most Pharisees would have been pretty offended by having been called out like
that. Um but Nicodemus is still listening. And I'll I'll if I remember to give you evidence of whether Nicodemus actually took this to heart. Um if I don't it's in chapter 19 of John so you can look at it for yourself. But here's what Jesus says. Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and bear witness to what we have seen, but
you do not receive our testimony. If you have told, if I've told you of earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you of heavenly things, you might think, well, being told about this, being born again from the spirit, that's a heavenly thing. And in a way, it is. But Jesus is calling that an earthly thing. How much greater are the things of heaven going to be if the things that are earthly are by Jesus defined as being born again by the
spirit? No one has ascended. Verse 13, no one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the son of man. I don't know if you've ever thought about this, but anybody who's ever preached the gospel, including me, is not someone who can say, "We came from heaven. We have a heavenly purpose. We have a heavenly commission. We're preaching things of both earth and heaven. But I didn't come from heaven.
I've never seen heaven. I don't know what it looks like other than by faith in what Christians uh teaching says, the Bible says about it ultimately. But Jesus has actually been there. That's where he was from the beginning. That's where he descended from. He is the man from heaven. And so he doesn't teach these things by faith like I do. I I don't even know what Jesus looks like. I know what his character is like. I don't even tend to imagine what he looked like because I know someday I'll see
him. But Jesus knows exactly what God the Father looks like. And he knows what the Holy Spirit looks like. I'm not saying imagine what the Holy Spirit looks like, but it is unimaginable. Shows up as a dove at Jesus' own baptism, but I'm not sure that he always looks like a dove. We don't know. What do you imagine? Even these things are beyond our imagination. And Jesus has seen them by sight. And so he preaches heaven by sight. That's a who should you believe?
There is no other witness who has seen heaven with his own eyes who can be totally trusted. There's no other man from heaven who came from heaven and will eventually go back, you know, in his ascension after resurrection. So again, I I want to ask you, is that wind blowing for you today? Are you maybe not suddenly maybe you've been slowly drawn seemingly like Nicodemus and you just want to know more, but maybe things are just suddenly making sense. Like you know they're true and you can't unknow
it. That's happened to me before where I just, well, I know that's true now. I can't unknow it. It becomes, this sounds like nonsense, but it becomes truer than gravity. And I'm not jumping off buildings anytime soon, but I believe it like as a founding reality and it's been revealed to me. I didn't understand it at first and then all of a sudden I understand it. If that's happening to you, you can be certain that the Holy Spirit is drawing you that God wants to give you the right
to become a child of God. So listen in and ask your questions. How can this how can these things be? And Jesus actually gives the answer in verse 14 and 15, but it's it's going to take more investigation of scripture. You think he just make it so easy, but what he points out, if you want to know about spiritual things, even earthly spiritual things, you need to look to
the word of God. And as Moses lifted up the servant serpent in the wilderness, so must the son of man be lifted up that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. Have you have I I know many of you have, but some of you may have never even heard of the passage that Jesus is referencing. This is in Numbers, and I've got it up on the screen, too, but if you want to turn there, this is Numbers chapter 21. In my Bible, it's
titled the bronze serpent. This is certainly what Jesus was referring to. I'll start in verse four. Do we have it up already? Yeah. From Mount Hor, they set out by the way of the Red Sea to go around the land of Eden. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, "Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the wilderness, for there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless
food." And then the Lord said, "Fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died." And the people came to Moses and said, "We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord that he may take away these serpents from us." So Moses prayed for the people, and the Lord said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole. And whoever is bitten when he sees it shall live." So Moses made a
bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. That's what that's about. Again, like comparing the spirit to the wind, he is comparing himself to what? the serpent on a stick. It seems very strange really. I thought we were supposed to think of Satan as the serpent. Well, I want to show you and let's just go to uh 2 Corinthians 5:21. If you want to turn there, you can. I have it up as
usual. Here's what Paul says. And the hymn in this case is Jesus. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. God made him the snake. So what that story is about is that our sin has lethal poisonous consequences. And again it's not something you have the control to get yourself out of because it comes from your very fleshly nature. and it will just populate more sin. Even if you feel like in your own power
you've conquered a sin. And besides, even if, and by the way, you can only hear what I'm about to say and believe it if God is drawing you. Even if you did everything really well, there's something wrong in you that would want to then point back to your own glory rather than to God's glory. And so even good acts done with that kind of self- glorifying content, even the best things you've ever done, God will call filthy rags because it's only him that's to be
glorified. And none of us could even ever be close to leaving leading a sin sinless life. And yet it said of Jesus, he knew no sin and yet he would made him
to be sin. So now when you look at Jesus Christ and you know you're experiencing the poisonous effects of sin, if you have that guilt and you know that like the consequence of that is condemnation, death forever, not eternal life, if you know that, if you're experiencing that, then then all you have to do according to Jesus, is to believe on this man that came from heaven, who's dying for your sin, who's even been made to be sin, who knew knew no sin and God had to crush him for it.
He had to make him suffer. He had to have Jesus be punished in yourstead. If you if you believe that, you are saved. You might think, well, some just choose to believe that. But you've seen what the word says. It's God who gives the right. It's the spirit. You don't
even know when he's going to act. I have prayed and the elders have prayed and the prayer team has prayed and I know there are many in our Bible studies that have been praying for if you're hearing this and are not yet saved that you would hear it and believe and have eternal life. Let's go back to John chapter 3 and finish out. Did you know we're in the chapter of John that has most certainly the most famous verse in it? And we're getting
there. It's a big claim to say it's the most famous verse, but you're all going to agree when you hear it. Let's continue. Let's start over in verse 14. Though, and Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so m as Moses lifted that serpent up, so must the son of man be lifted up that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. There's no
life apart from the cross. But this this double meaning, John does it multiple times where being lifted up means both being lifted up in the cross, but also ascending into heaven. So, you never separate the crucifixion from the resurrection. There would be no hope if Jesus wasn't resurrected. And that's why we have such joy when we're saying he is risen. But verse 16 says this, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only son that whoever believes in him should
not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send the son into the world to condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only son of God. If there's something moving in you to believe that, if you find yourself wanting to believe that, if you if the greatest thing that in your mind could be is just getting a brand new fresh
start, you're born again. Do you know what 2 Corinthians 5:17 says? You can probably get there faster than I can s Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, this new has come. I see neighbors in my neighborhood and all over to Alton who have more than 99% of the world, boats, cars, nice houses, and there's this forloren and lost and sometimes a bitter look in their eyes.
When enough sin piles up in your life, and when enough sin of others against you piles up in your life, bitterness, it just it it like little black tentacles just start to destroy everything. You're no longer thankful. You don't feel grateful. You're just angry and bitter. And and maybe you don't want to be bitter anymore. And maybe you just don't want to feel that guilt anymore. And maybe you're hearing this for the first time with ears that
believe. And to that, I want to show you from Romans 10 that being saved is not complicated. It's not about the rules. It's not about, well, I don't even know the Bible. I got to know the whole Bible. It's like a couple sentences worth of content. You want to hear it? Verse eight. But what does it say? The word is near you. It's definitely near you right now. I see some of you holding the Bible, but he's talking about the spiritual word in your mouth and in your
heart. That is the word of faith that we proclaim. Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. That's all it takes. All those years of trying to do better and then failing again. And maybe you failed in a way that you've lost some relationships. Maybe you failed in a way that relationships are really
broken. It happens in marriage. I I see the faces of some married couples driving and they both just look like they're walking dead. So un no joy, no smile. The eyes are just downcast. So even when you stay married together, things can be so broken that you're not experiencing any joy. And did you know you could just be made brand new, born again, being given the right to become a child of God, and there's nothing you can do to earn it. And there is just one thing you have to
believe. I want to read it again. Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. It's April 20th or 20th, 2025. Remember the day if today was the day that you've believed because it's the day of your salvation. And I'm going to pray a prayer that everyone in the room, whether you already believe, whether you need to recommmit in your faith, or whether this is the day of your
salvation, can pray again. It's not unfaithful to pray it. God knows what you're doing. And it will be a very simple prayer, and you'll know exactly where I got it from. Just read the verse. And it's not a magical prayer. It's it's God knows if you actually believe. Can't say the words not believe and have it happen. But if you actually believe, and by the way, do you want to know how? If you desire to believe, he's moving in your heart. You can be sure. I can't cause it. I don't even know when
it's going to happen, when not. I ask God. I give him the control. And I hope the Holy Spirit is moving in you. So, I'm going to ask you to close your eyes and just repeat after me. And I'll try to keep them in short sentences, but if you say this with sincerity and honesty before God, you are saved and you've become been given the right to be a child of God and you have eternal life. Let's pray. Lord God, I admit that I've sinned. I repent and I ask for your forgiveness.
I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord Jesus. And I believe in my heart that God raised him from the dead. God raised him from the dead. I'm not going to ask for a show of hands. You can open your eyes. But if you prayed that prayer for the first time or if you prayed that prayer and have not yet been baptized, the very next step is that you'd be baptized. And it does not have to be at Boon's Fairy. But we do our baptisms and it it won't
seem like it's going to be very long. We do them in August, the second week of August in this case, at our pig roast. When you walk out the door today, you'll see the baptismal. doesn't matter what kind of weather it is because that's a hot tub. So, we we warm it up and we get in there and and you be baptized and you don't it's not baptism that saves. In fact, why would you baptis baptize someone who's not yet a child of God?
So, we baptize simply as a profession of an inward reality that's now being professed outwardly and it's a matter of obedience and blessing to do so. And so I would love to know, the elders would love to know and we feel a sense of responsibility to know if this day is the day of your salvation. What a glorious thing that would be. Let me pray. Father, I'm so thankful that you gave me the right to become one of your children. I don't know why except I know
it's for your glory. And I believe and I know it's true. I pray it'd be the very same for the people in this room that they would receive you and that even if today was not the day of commitment that a seed will be planted that the enemy cannot take away and that doesn't get scorched by the cares of this world. Thank you for resurrecting your son and Jesus. Thank you for the agony you endured for our sin.
We want to worship now as new creations filled with your spirit offering you praise that delights you, glorifies you, and witnesses to you. And we cannot wait to do it in Jesus name. Amen.