April 19, 2026; Sunday Evening Worship

Order of Service

• Call to Worship — Psalm 134
• Hymn — Come, Bless the Lord (Psalm 134, #134)
• Prayer of Invocation
• Heidelberg Catechism — Lord's Day 49, Question 124 (Third Petition of the Lord's Prayer)
• Hymn — To the Hills I Lift My Eyes (#121B)
• Pastoral Prayer
• Scripture Reading — Acts 2:37–39
• Sermon
• Hymn — Baptized into Your Name, Most Holy (#193)
• Benediction

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Sermon Title: The Kindness of God in Baptism

Scripture: Acts 2:37–39

I. See God's Kindness in What Baptism Is as a Means of Grace

A. Baptism arises from Peter's Pentecost sermon in which he holds forth Christ crucified and risen, demonstrated from the Old Testament

• The crowd is "cut to the heart" and asks, "Brothers, what shall we do?" (Acts 2:37)
• Peter calls them to repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38)

B. Repentance flows from or together with faith in Christ

1. The Shorter Catechism defines repentance as a saving grace whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, turns from sin unto God
2. True repentance and faith take hold of Christ — "I find you lovely; I will have no more of my sin"

C. Baptism is a sign and seal of the covenant of grace

1. As a sign, the outward washing with water points to the inward cleansing of the heart by faith in Christ — sin defiles; what every sinner needs is the washing of regeneration by the Holy Spirit
2. As a seal, baptism is a pledge, a marker — like a wedding ring — that the baptized person belongs to Christ
3. Baptism signifies and seals remission of sins in Christ's blood, regeneration by his Spirit, adoption, and resurrection unto everlasting life — union with Christ in his death and resurrection

II. See God's Kindness in Who Baptism Is For as a Means of Grace

A. All Christians agree: a person coming to saving faith who has never been baptized should be baptized upon profession of faith (Acts 2:38)

B. Peter extends the promise further: "For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off" (Acts 2:39)

1. Peter's Jewish audience would have heard covenant language echoing Genesis 17:7 — the promise to Abraham and his offspring throughout their generations
2. In Genesis 17:9–13, God commands circumcision as the covenant sign for Abraham and all male offspring — a sign of the cutting off of sinful flesh, pointing ahead to Christ
3. Circumcision was given to the adult believer Abraham and to his offspring (including Isaac, not yet born); God has always dealt with his people generationally

C. The covenant sign has changed in form but not in principle

1. Christ shed his blood; now the promise comes with water washing, not a bloody cut — God promised in Ezekiel 36 to sprinkle clean water and give a new heart
2. Paul confirms in Colossians 2:11–12 that both circumcision and baptism point to the same spiritual reality: Christ's death dealing with sin and his resurrection bringing new life
3. The sign is no longer limited to male children; it is now placed on every child of a believer, including gentiles grafted in

D. The children of believers are members of the covenant community

1. They are called holy simply by being the child of a believing parent (1 Corinthians 7)
2. Paul addresses children directly in Ephesians 6 and Colossians 3 as members of the covenant community, calling them to obedience and faith
3. The burden falls on those who would exclude covenant children from the sign to show that God has changed his ways of dealing with his people across the Testaments
4. Isaiah confirms the principle: the offspring of the blessed of the Lord are included with them (Isaiah 65:23)

III. See God's Kindness in How Baptism Is Useful as a Means of Grace

A. Baptism functions as a seal — it authenticates and confirms God's saving work

1. Paul's language of seal comes from Romans 4:11: Abraham received circumcision as a seal of the righteousness he had by faith while still uncircumcised
2. The seal was not given in response to Abraham's faith but to confirm what God had already done — declaring him righteous ahead of time in Christ
3. The seal remained in his body all his days, like a birthmark, impressing upon him his identity before God

B. For every believer, baptism seals the promises of God personally

1. Jason Hopoulos: "Baptism seals the promises of God to us… my baptism helps me grasp not just that Christ died for sinners generally, but that he died for me"
2. William Perkins: baptism serves as a certificate to assure the baptized of the forgiveness of sins and of eternal salvation
3. When tempted to sin, the waters of baptism remind the believer of the costly price Christ paid; when tempted to despair, they seal the love of God who adopted us as sons and daughters

C. Application to covenant children baptized in infancy

1. One-time baptism stays with the believer; looking back to it, the believer sees grace given when they had nothing good in themselves to bring
2. Covenant children baptized as infants are to look to those waters when they come to faith — the grace of Christ on display, God's kindness sealed upon them before they could understand it
3. The call is to improve upon baptism by striving to live holy lives in accordance with the grace given in Christ