This month, we are looking at the incarnation of Jesus Christ, when the Son of God became flesh for our salvation. The word "incarnation" means "being made flesh." Jesus became a human being. He had lived as a spirit being in heaven in wonderful glory, but he decided to come to earth and live as a regular guy.

He was born as a baby, he learned to walk and talk just like everybody else did. He learned how to be a carpenter, and he went to church, and he walked on the roads and he got dirty and tired and thirsty just like everybody else. He could have lived like a king in glory if he wanted to, but he didn't. He became an ordinary person. That is the incarnation.

Today, I want to talk about why Jesus became a human being, and I want to talk about the other side of the incarnation, the opposite of incarnation, the way that we respond to the incarnation. I'll get to that a little later.

I want to start by looking at the purpose of the incarnation, and I will do that in Hebrews, chapter 2. Let's start in verse 9. We are breaking into a thought there, but it takes a while to explain the previous verses and we don't lose too much if we just start in verse 9:

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor...

So he's talking here about Jesus, who started out as the Son of God, far above all angels and other powers. But for his earthly life, he was made lower than the angels. Now he is crowned with glory and power again, but while he was a human, he was lower than the angels, just like we are.

Why is he now crowned with glory and honor? Verse 9 tells us it was because he suffered death. He was honored in heaven because he was willing to die — and because his death had a purpose.

Verse 9 tells us that ...by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. Or as Paul would say, he died for us. He died in our place. He is our representative in death, and that, of course, leads to our salvation. It's like Jesus looked down from heaven and wanted to save us, and the only way he could do it is to become a human and die for us, and he said, Yes, I will be a human. I will be like them. They suffer and die, so I will suffer and die. The path that they take, I will take,

And the result is, that since he joined us on our journey, we will join him in his journey. He was resurrected from death, and if we are with Christ, then we will be resurrected from death, too. The paths have linked up, because Jesus came down to be one of us. He followed us into weakness so that we could follow him into glory, because he is not only our representative in death, he is also our representative in resurrection. He became like we are, so that we could become like he is.

Verse 10: In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. So God's plan is to bring many sons to glory. His plan involves many children — many people — being given glory. Now, we are less than angels, but we have been made for glory and honor. That's the great salvation that Jesus offers us, and he has shown the way by going there himself. If we want that kind of salvation, we have to follow the leader that God has given us.

But the author's point here is that this kind of glory does not come cheap — the Savior had to suffer. When we face suffering, we need to remember that Jesus suffered as part of the process by which he was made perfect.

He was already perfect in one sense, of course: he had never sinned. He was morally perfect, but he was not yet a perfectly complete Savior. For his role as our Savior, he had to suffer, and when he did, he became the author of our salvation.

He is the pioneer. He shows the way for humanity to go from below angels, to above angels. That's the great salvation we do not want to neglect. We are following in the footsteps of Jesus. We need to keep our eyes on him, to follow him. He didn't need to be saved, but he made himself a pattern for our salvation, because he became a human who traveled the path that we need to go.

Verse 11: Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers. Jesus is the one who makes people holy, and Jesus became part of the human family. He joined himself to us, so that we are united. We are all of one, and Jesus calls us brothers and sisters, on the same level. He's not ashamed to call us his family. He's not afraid to be seen with us. Now, we aren't perfect, and Jesus might have reason to avoid us, you know, but he is not ashamed. He is willing to say, Yes, those are my people. I love those people. I want to spend forever with those people.

And then Hebrews quotes an Old Testament psalm about this — it's a quote from Psalm 22, which was a widely used messianic psalm. Several verses of it are quoted in the New Testament, and Christians knew that this psalm applied to Jesus, and the author of Hebrews is quoting a verse from the psalm and says, this is about Jesus, so think about the implications of this:

Psalm 22, verse 22: The speaker is Jesus, talking to God: "I will declare your name to my brothers; in the presence of the congregation I will sing your praises." Jesus is praising God in the presence of his brothers - that's you and me. The messiah has brothers and sisters, people like him, and he became part of the congregation, part of the group, as people sang praises to God. As a human being, Jesus sang praises to God along with us. He worshipped God along with us. The point here is that Jesus became one of us, put himself on the same level as us, so that we could be saved, so that we could follow him into glory.

And then there's a quote from Isaiah 8:17: "I will put my trust in him." Even the Messiah had to put his trust in God. He needed God, and he had to rely on God, and God was faithful to him.

That's good, but it seems like the main reason that the author quotes this is for the next verse, Isaiah 8:18, which again says that we are in the same family as Christ. Again he says, "Here am I, and the children God has given me." The imagery has changed from brothers to children, but the point is still the same: Christ is a human, just as we are. His example is relevant to us — the way in which he was saved through suffering and death, and into glory and honor, is the same way that we are saved. If we have faith in him, Jesus Christ takes us the same route that he himself went. If we are with him now, we will be with him in glory.

Verse 14: Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death -- that is, the devil -- So Jesus became a human, so his death could be effective for us. The devil of death can no longer keep us captive: death has been conquered. That's because of the incarnation, it is because Jesus became a human and joined himself to us. He identified with us, and said, "People like that, I'm one of them. That's who I am. If they die, I will die." And by doing that, he destroyed the power of death not only for himself, but also for us, because He was willing to say, We are in this together. I'm with you.

By becoming a human, he gave himself to us. Not just in death, but also in resurrection. He is giving us his glory, because he was willing to accept our suffering and death. He is identifying himself with us, joining himself to us, so that his salvation becomes our salvation, just because we are joined together, because He has done the joining. He joined us in the human race, so we could join him in eternal salvation.

We will all die, but we do not need to be afraid of death. Verse 15: and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. Through Jesus, we can be freed from the fear of death. Death still strikes us, and death is still an enemy, but it cannot do us any permanent damage. Jesus has shown the way; he gives us courage in the face of death.

Verse 16: For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. No, Jesus is not in the business of saving angels, and he is not like an angel. He is in a totally different category. He was above the angels, then for a little while lower than the angels, but now he is crowned with glory and honor, and the point is that he is doing this for the salvation of us human beings.

For this reason, verse 17 says, he had to be made like his brothers in every way... He had to be like us, so he became a human. He lived the way we did. He experienced our story. He was not ashamed to be one of us.

Now, the next part of verse 17 tells us one more reason that Jesus became a human being: , in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.

18 Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Because Jesus has been where we are, he knows how to help us. He is our high priest who can help us in times of trial. Most likely, the readers were being tempted. They were facing suffering. They were afraid of death, and the author is saying, That's OK. Jesus has been there. He can help. On the other side of death is tremendous glory. Jesus is not just a heavenly being — he was made flesh so that he could suffer and die for us, so that he could pave the way for our exaltation into glory. We are his family, and he will bring us through. That is because he made himself one of us.

An illustration of this can be seen in Matthew 3, verses 13-15. This was before Jesus began his ministry, and John the Baptist was preaching repentance and forgiveness, and baptizing people in the Jordan River. And verse 13, Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" Wait a minute, he said. I am baptizing people who repent of their sins, and you don't have any. You don't need to repent, so why should you be baptized?

And 15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Jesus said, it is proper for me to be baptized because my whole purpose in living is to identify with human beings, to be like they are, because that is who I am. So I will be baptized just like a sinner, because that is who I am representing, and by doing this, we will be fulfilling all righteousness. I will identify with them, so they can join me in salvation.

OK, now we are ready to look at the other side of incarnation. In the incarnation, Jesus became a human being. He identified himself with us, joined himself to humanity, gave himself to us. Now, on the other side, the question is, How do we identify with him? How do we give ourselves to him? How do we join ourselves to him, so that his salvation becomes our salvation?

First, we need faith. We are to trust in him, trust in what he did for our salvation. Our salvation does not come from things that we do, but from what he did for us. We are saved by grace, not by our works. When we admit that our good deeds can't save us, then we trust in Christ for our salvation. We say, His death paid for my sins, that's why I can be saved.

When we do that, we are identifying ourselves with him. We say, the sins he paid for on the cross, those included mine. He is my Savior, because he died for me. And just he as gave himself for us, I now give myself to him. He will take care of me — I can trust him to do that. This is how faith joined us to Jesus Christ. This is how his death counts for ours, and how his salvation is applied to us, as well. We are saved by grace, by God's gift, through faith, through our trust in Christ our Savior.

But there is another way in which we express our faith and show our connection to Jesus Christ, and that is in baptism.

You see, in the New Testament, faith and baptism are linked together. People who believed in Jesus were baptized. You go through the story of Acts, and you see that when people accepted Jesus as the Messiah, they were baptized. When we read the letters of Paul, we read that all the believers had been baptized. That is the way the church operated, because that is the command Jesus left with the church. It's part of the Great Commission: Go into all the world, making disciples, teaching them, and baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is a command for the church to baptize those who believe.

Now, why is that? Jesus wasn't big on rituals, on going through procedures just to be religious. If he commanded this ceremony, there must have been a good reason for it. And part of his example is that he was baptized even though he didn't have any sins that needed to be forgiven. If he felt it necessary to be baptized, it must be pretty important.

John baptized people as a sign of repentance and forgiveness, and the early church continued this understanding. Baptism is a ceremony that pictures our sins being washed away. It pictures us totally forgiven, totally cleansed by Christ.

But there is more to baptism than that. For one thing, it pictures the gospel, and it teaches in picture-language the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ. That's a good reason to keep the ceremony as part of the church today. But in picturing the gospel, it also pictures our connection with Christ, and that it why I call it the other side of the incarnation.

You see, in the incarnation, Jesus identified himself with us, made himself one of us, gave himself to us — and in baptism, we identify ourselves with Christ, we picture that we are one of his people, and we give ourselves to him. In baptism, we say that we are not ashamed to be called his brothers. We are not ashamed to call him our Savior. We are not ashamed to be seen with him. Baptism shows that we have joined Christ in his journey of salvation.

Now, to see that, let's turn to Romans chapter 6. There you can see that I'm not making this up. The apostle Paul wrote about the meaning of baptism. Let's start in Romans 6, verse 3:

Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? It seems that Paul had already taught them this meaning of baptism, and all he had to do here was to remind the people of it. And the assumption seems to be here that everybody in the church had been baptized into Christ Jesus, and that pictured being baptized into his death.

In other words, baptism says that Jesus' death counts for us. It says that he died for me. His death counts for me, so that my sins are paid, and I therefore have eternal life. Baptism is saying that we share in the benefits of Jesus' death. Baptism pictures us joining Jesus in his journey, a journey that leads us to our salvation and eternal life with Jesus. Baptism shows that we are connected to him.

Verse 4: We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death ... Paul is saying here that baptism pictures our burial. That is why we baptize by immersion, by putting a person completely under water. That symbolizes not just death, but also a burial, being covered over. Jesus' death covers all our sins.

Notice again that Paul says that baptism connects us to Christ. We are with him in death, and with him in burial, and the good news is that we will continue to be with him even in eternal life, because we are with him. Baptism expresses that. We are with him.

Notice the rest of verse 4: in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. Our old life, with all its sins, is gone, dead and buried. A new person comes up from the water, just as Jesus was raised out of his grave. And we live in a new way, our life is dedicated to Christ, given to him.

Verse 5: If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. Yes, if we are united with Christ in the symbolism of baptism, then we will also be united with him in the resurrection. We are picturing and symbolizing a truth of salvation here — that just as Jesus joined humanity in his incarnation, we join Jesus in the realities pictured by baptism.

He was made flesh for the purpose of dying for us. We die, so he became flesh so that he could die. We sin, and he wanted to die for our sins, so he accepted the role of a sinner, dying a shameful death on a cross, or as Paul says in another place, he became sin for us, and he became a curse for us, so that we would not have to suffer the curse that comes with sin. He did it for us, by becoming one of us.

And he invites us to be united with him, in baptism. And the good news is that if we are united with him in baptism, then his death counts as ours, and his burial counts as ours, and his resurrection will also count for our. As it says in verse 8, Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We have been connected.

Now, this needs to be done only once. We don't get baptized every week, or every time we sin and need to be forgiven. No, we need to be joined to Christ only once, and once is enough. We are connected, and Christ assures us that we have eternal life and will be with him in the resurrection.

However, that doesn't mean that everything called 'baptism' is really a baptism. The crucial question is, did the baptism picture your faith in Christ? Did you have faith in Christ at the time you were baptized? If so, you are joined with Christ. You have been baptized into his death, into his burial, and you can be sure that you will also live with him in the resurrection.

But if you have never been baptized, or you had some ceremony without trusting in Christ, then I urge you, first, to trust in Christ for your salvation, and second, be baptized as an expression of your faith in Christ and being joined to him in death, burial, and eternal life. Just as he was willing to join us in a very physical way, we should be willing to join him in a physical ceremony.

You see, Jesus could have stayed in heaven and said, Look folks, I am God. I know everything, so I know what it's like to be human. Take my word for it. I can be your High Priest without actually being a human first. There's no need for me to bother being a baby, and suffering and dying. Just accept me as a spiritual Messiah. A spiritual reality is all that you need.

But Jesus didn't do that. No, he stepped down from his place of glory and majesty, and he came down and lived like us. He got dirty like us, and he got thirsty like us, and he died like us, all to give us hope. And it comes from living in a physical world. We cannot pretend that only "spiritual" things are important. Jesus commanded physical things, too, including baptism.

In the incarnation, Jesus said, This is who I am, a human being, and these are my people. In baptism, we say, This is who I am — I'm a Christian, and Jesus is my Savior, and my life is joined to him, in death for all my sins, and eternal life with Christ my Lord.

Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ, when Christ gave himself to us. This Christmas season, give Jesus a gift — the gift of faith and obedience. Give yourself to him, and he will give you eternal life.

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WHAT IS THE MEANING OF BAPTISM?

The Greek word "baptizo" means "to dip" or "to wash." Baptism is significant to believers for several reasons. First, water baptism is an external symbol of an internal washing and renewal that occurs when one believes in Christ. "He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5).

Secondly, baptism is symbolic of one's union by faith with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. It personifies the believer's own death to sin and resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ. In other words, baptism identifies us with Jesus Christ and His atoning work on Calvary according to Romans 6:3-5, "Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ were baptized into His death? We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."

Finally, baptism by water is a public confession of one's new life in Christ. It is a visible sign of our obedience to God's Word. Baptism declares a believer's identification with Christ-in His death by going down into the water, in His burial by going under the water, in His resurrection life by coming up out of the water.

WHY BE BAPTIZED?

There are several biblical reasons to support believer's baptism. The Lord Jesus gave His disciples this clear command that needs to be considered, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..." (Matthew 28:19). Not only did Jesus command His followers to baptize believers, but He modeled it Himself and set an example for us to follow. In Mark 1:9-11 it says, "Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan."

Because a Christian is a follower of Christ, he should also follow Christ in baptism. The early New Testament church serves as a model for us. At Pentecost, the 3,000 people who believed and were converted followed the Lord in baptism (Acts 2:41). This continued to be the pattern followed by the early believers, "Many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptized" (Acts 18:8).

Secondly, baptism is of great significance to a believer, because it personifies a dying to self and being raised to newness of life in Christ Jesus. "Having been buried with Him in baptism and raised with Him through your faith in the power of God who raised Him from the dead. When you were dead in your sins…God made you alive with Christ... " (Colossians 2:12,13). Finally, baptism reveals one's loyalty and obedience to Christ and His Word.

WHO SHOULD BE BAPTIZED?

The Scriptures teach that baptism follows conversion and is associated with believing in Jesus Christ. The people who heard Peter's Pentecost sermon asked, "Brothers, what shall we do?" (Acts 2:37). He answered, "Repent and be baptized..." (verse 38). The response: "Those who accepted his message were baptized ... " (verse 41). Similarly, those who heard Philip preach "the good news of the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ" believed and then were baptized (Acts 8:12,13). Therefore, it is essential that one be a believer in Christ to be eligible for baptism. This is why the term "believer's baptism" was initiated.

Candidates for membership who have made a personal commitment of their life to Christ and who have been baptized in a former church, do not need to be re-baptized unless they desire to do so.

WHEN ARE WE TO BE BAPTIZED?

Although there is no set rule as to timing, the Scriptures do reveal it is related with a salvation experience. In Acts 8, when Philip told the Eunuch about Jesus Christ, he said, "'Look, here is water, why shouldn't I be baptized?' Philip said, 'If you believe with all your heart you may.' He said, 'I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.' Philip baptized him" (verses 36-38). The example from this passage indicates that once a person has trusted Christ as Savior, there is no reason for a delay in being baptized.

HOW ARE WE TO BE BAPTIZED?

We at NewLife Fellowship have traditionally practiced baptism by immersion. In addition, as a church family we also practice infant or child dedication for those who may request.
We believe that baptism is important as a public testimony of the believer's identification with Jesus Christ and with His Body, the Church, since one cannot be united to the Head without being united with the Body. Also, it demonstrates the believer's act of obedience and submission to God's will in his life. Therefore, baptism is a normal initiatory ordinance into the visible body and fellowship of believers. "Those who accepted His message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day" (Acts 2:41).

Not only is the believer's transition from the old life to the new life made public in baptism, but the transition from union with the world to that of the community of believers is proclaimed as well. In the ordinance of baptism, the believer takes his stand as a follower of Jesus Christ. This is foundational in our understanding of who we are as believers here at Lake Avenue Church, as pictured in our statement of who we are and what we do:

"We are followers of Jesus Christ, ministers together, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and guided by God's Word. We are committed to honoring God through worship, personal lifestyle, caring for one another, equipping one another for ministry, and communicating God's love to the world."

If interested, please give pastor Bermie a call at (626) 345-9134 (office) (626) 590-4985 (cell)