Worksheet
• Remembering is an important aspect of the life of the Christian.
• An ordinance is a commandment of Christ.
• Jesus gave two ordinances for observation: Water Baptism and The Lord’s Supper (communion).
• Baptism and communion are and can be powerful means by which individuals and communities encounter Jesus Christ, the one and only true means of grace.
WATER BAPTISM
• Jesus established water baptism as an ordinance in the Great Commission (Mt. 28:19).
• Jesus set an example of this when He submitted to baptism by John the Baptist (Mt. 3:13-17).
• Peter reconfirmed the ordinance of baptism in his sermon on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:38-41).
• Throughout the book of Acts, the apostles observed the ordinance of baptism, baptizing new converts (Acts 8:12; 36-38; 9:18; 10:47-48; 16:15, 33; 18:8; 19:5-6; 22:16).
• What takes place when a person is baptized? Romans 6:4 tells us that water baptism is symbolic of being buried with Christ in His death and raised with Christ as we walk in newness.
• The spiritual significance is also taught in the epistles (Ro. 6:3; 1 Cor. 10:2; Gal. 3:27).
THE LORD’S SUPPER
• In Luke 22:19-23, Jesus commands the disciples to participate in communion. He said, “Do this in remembrance of me.”
• The Lord’s Supper is practiced as a remembrance of Christ’s atoning death, a regular practice that serves as a point of examination, renewal, and binding together as one body.
• We remember the broken body and shed blood of Christ as the sacrifice only Christ could make. We “remember” the sacredness of this meal through self-examination, repentance, and reflection. Jesus established these two ordinances until He returned. Both are visible expressions of inward realities, and both can be powerful means by which individuals and communities encounter Jesus Christ.
• Key Elements of Communion:
1. Celebration of triumph and blessing (Jn. 12:31, Col. 2:14-15).
2. Declaration of Jesus’ atoning death (1 Cor. 11:27-28).
3. Remembrance of God’s deliverance (1 Cor. 11:27-28).
4. Examination of our heart (1 Cor. 11:27-34).
5. Communion with God and one another (1 Cor. 10:16-17).
Both Water Baptism and The Lord’s Supper are symbolic yet holy. Something happens in the heart of the believer when they are baptized and choose to participate in communion.
ARTICLE IX: WATER BAPTISM(white)
We believe that water baptism in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, according to the command of our Lord, is a blessed outward sign of an inward work; a beautiful and solemn emblem reminding us that even as our Lord died upon the cross of Calvary so we reckon ourselves now dead indeed unto sin, and the old nature nailed to the tree with Him; and that even as he was taken down from the tree and buried, so we are buried with Him by baptism unto death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we should walk in newness of life.1 (Matt. 28:19; Acts 2:37, 38; Gal. 3:27, 28; Rom. 6:4, Col. 2:12; 1 Pet. 3:20,21; Acts 22:16; Acts 2:41, Matt. 28:19,20)
ARTICLE IX: THE LORD’S SUPPER (white)
We believe in observing the Lord’s supper by the sacred use of the broken bread, a precious type of the Bread of Life, Jesus Christ, whose body was broken for us; and by the juice of the vine, a blessed type which should ever remind the participant of the shed blood of the Savior who is the true vine of which His children are the branches; that this ordinance is a glorious rainbow that spans the gulf of years between Calvary and the coming of the Lord when in the Father’s kingdom, He will partake anew with His children; and that the serving and receiving of this blessed sacrament should be ever preceded by the most solemn heart-searching, self- examination, forgiveness and love toward all men, that none partake unworthily and drink condemnation to his own soul. (1 Cor. 11:26; 11:28; 2 Cor. 13:5)”
Instructions: Highlight or underline critical words, then write you own sentence or two.
Questions and Scripture
Explain the importance of “remembering” in the life of the Christian. How does the ordinances of water baptism and the Lord’s Supper aid in that practice?
Discuss your understanding of what takes place in the life of a believer when he or she is water-baptized (Ro. 6:4; Mt. 28:19).
Discuss the importance of a Christian regularly participating in the Lord’s Supper.
What was your baptism experience like?