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Are we confident that our light is bright
Vol. 46 September 21, 2021 Number 36
BAPTISM DOESN’T DO ANY GOOD
Allen Webster
You’ve heard it. And discussed it. Perhaps even argued about it until you ran
out of words and patience. But, you know, they may be on to something. Baptism does
not do any good—in some cases.
For centuries, unbelievers and denominationalists have argued against the
necessity and efficacy of baptism. Many see it as a useless ritual or a superstitious
relic from a dark past. Others divorce it from any saving power.
Of course, baptism is a part of the Great Commission. It is explicitly stated in
the accounts of Matthew (28:19) and Mark (16:16), and implicit in Luke’s account
(24:46-37; cf. Acts 2:38). One cannot read the Great Commission or the conversion
accounts in Acts and come to any other conclusion.
When Peter preached the first Gospel sermon in Acts 2, he preached the death,
burial and resurrection of Christ (2:22-35). In response to the preaching of the Gospel,
the audience asked, “What shall we do?” (2:37). What was Peter’s response? Let’s
first note what it wasn’t. Peter did not say to them:
“Accept Jesus as your personal savior” . . .
“Ask Jesus to come into your heart” . . .
“Pray the sinner’s prayer” . . .
“You can’t do anything because that would be earning salvation” ...
“You obviously believe what I have preached, and thus you are now saved
based solely upon faith alone.”
On the other hand, some seem to see baptism as a “cure all.” To them, baptism is a
magic action through which one passes which immunizes him against any danger of
future spiritual disease. The truth lies somewhere in between.
Baptism does not do any good if it is not preceded by
correct understanding. “And many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were
baptized” (Acts 18:8b). Scriptural baptism requires that one hear and understand that
Jesus, the Son of God, died for all (John 3:16; 8:24) and that all sinners must obey
Him in order to be saved (Hebrews 5:8-9). It is possible to be immersed without
understanding the reasons for it. For instance, many babies are “baptized,” but do not
have a correct understanding, so their “baptism” does no good.
Baptism does not do any good if it is not preceded by proper faith. “He
that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be
damned” (Mark 16:16). One must believe that Jesus is Divine before his baptism is
scriptural. Further, one must believe that he is lost without baptism for it to be
scriptural (cf. 1 Peter 3:21). If a person does not believe he needs to be baptized and
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ELDERS
Mike Childers ............. 397-6453
Dennis Hallmark......... 255-5557
Mark Hitt .................... 322-0917
Bobby Lindley ............ 260-9193
DEACONS
Wade Bryan ................ 419-5552
William Harris ............ 416-8149
Ricky Lindsey............. 255-8136
Jeff Mansel.................. 871-0357
Jimmy Spearman ........ 840-8957
Michael Wilson........... 891-0891
MINISTERS
Barry Kennedy....(931)787-7108
Alex Blackwelder (731)879-9196
SECRETARY
Renee Childers
Office.......................... 842-6116
Fax .............................. 842-7091
E-MAIL
eastmaincoc38804@gmail.com
WEB PAGE
eastmaincoc.com
SUNDAY SERVICES
Worship........................9:00 a.m.
Bible class..................10:15 a.m.
Worship......................11:15 a.m.
Singing or Devotional
Last Sunday of the Month
MID-WEEK
SERVICES
Wednesday Classes......7:00 p.m.
1606 East Main Street
P. O. Box 1761
Tupelo, Mississippi 38802
“Thou shalt observe to do all that they inform thee”
(Deut. 17:10)
2. --article continued from page 2—
will be lost if he is not baptized, then his faith in
God’s plan is lacking. In the Bible, only sinners are
told to be baptized (Acts 2:36-38; 22:16), and one
who is baptized just to please parents, spouses, in-
laws, or friends has not been scripturally baptized.
Baptism does not do any good if it is not
preceded by true repentance. “Then Peter said unto
them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the
name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye
shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38).
A person who is unwilling to change his lifestyle
(repent) might as well not be baptized, because it
would not do him any good. If one does not intend to
quit drinking, cursing, smoking, committing adultery,
or lying, why be baptized? It just makes a mockery of
a sacred practice.
Baptism does not do any good if it is not
preceded by a biblical confession. “And as they
went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and
the eunuch said, See, here is water, what doth hinder
me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest
with all thine heart thou mayest. And he answered and
said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God”
(Acts 8:36-37). Most religious people in our world do
not make this confession at their baptism. Many say
something like, “I believe that God for Christ's sake
has forgiven my sins.” Where is this found in the
Bible? It is not! God said that He forgives sins at
baptism (Acts 22:16), not before. If one does not make
a scriptural confession prior to baptism, he has not
been scripturally baptized.
Baptism does not do any good if it is not an
immersion. “Therefore we are buried with him by
baptism into death . . .” (Romans 6:4). Many advocate
that one can be baptized by sprinkling, pouring, OR
immersion. The Bible does not give such options but
calls bap-tism a “burial” (Colossians 2:12) and shows
that it requires going down into the water (Acts 8:38).
The word baptism literally means “to dip, plunge, or
submerge.” If one was not immersed, then his
“baptism” did not do any good.
Baptism does not do any good if it is not
followed by faithful Christian living. “Then they
that gladly received his word were baptized: and the
same day there were added unto them about three
thousand souls. And they continued steadfastly in the
apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of
bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:41-42). Occasionally, a
person is baptized and never darkens the building’s
door again. Some come for a time but then fall away.
Others may continue to attend services, but their lives
mirror the world instead of the image of Christ (cf.
Romans 12:1-2). In each of these cases, baptism did
not really do any good because ultimately (without
repentance) they will be lost.
There is a record of some who were baptized
incorrectly in God’s book (Acts 19:1-6). They were told
to be baptized again—correctly. Why not do so if you
need to? Eternity awaits your decision. Baptism will do
you good!
Ladies’ Day
The Forest Hill congregation
in Memphis is hosting a ladies’
day this Saturday, Sept. 25 from
9:00-11:30 a.m. with Melissa
Cain speaking on the topic
“Draw Me Nearer.” RSVP to
office@foresthillcofc.org.
Sympathy
Our sympathy is extended to Ken Pearson in the
loss of his aunt, June Pearson Franks, on Sept. 17. She
was also a cousin to at least 25 members here at East
Main. Funeral services will be held Sept. 22 in
Kosciusko.
Barry Kennedy’s niece, Taylor Ely, lost her
newborn son shortly after giving birth on Saturday in
AL.
Our condolences to Tammy Minor and Stephanie
Baldwyn in the loss of their cousin, Pat Stone, on
Sept. 17. Funeral services were held Sept. 20 in
Fulton.
Maggie Minor’s good friend, Lindsey Cockrell,
lost her father, Christopher, on Sept. 16 from post
covid pneumonia.
Bridal Shower
A bridal shower will be held in
honor of Logan Lyle, bride elect of
Reed Mallard, on Sunday, Oct. 3 “come
& go” from 2:00-3:30 p.m. in the
multipurpose room. Logan & Reed are
registered at Belk, Reed’s, and Bed, Bath & Beyond.
Thank You Note
Dear church family,
Thank you for your concern while I was recovering
from surgery. I appreciate the texts, cards and offers
of food. Most of all thank you for your prayers.
In Christian love,
Kathryn McKee
3. Daily Bible Reading
September 22 .................................................Haggai
September 23 ...................................... Zechariah 1-2
September 24 ...................................... Zechariah 3-4
September 25 ...................................... Zechariah 5-6
September 26 ...................................... Zechariah 7-8
September 27 .................................... Zechariah 9-11
September 28 .................................. Zechariah 12-14
Birthdays &
Anniversaries
Birthdays: Maggie Simineau (Sept. 22),
Derik Rushing (Sept. 23), Tate Malone
(Sept. 24), Betty Beard (Sept. 26), Billie
McNutt (Sept. 26). Anniversaries: None this week.
Our Sick
James Simmons hopes to come home from The
Meadows Friday. Gail Geno fell Friday and broke her
shoulder. She’s home in a great deal of pain. Twinette
Wallace is suffering from Trigeminal Neuralgia and is
awaiting her appointment with the neurologist Nov. 2.
She is also dealing with a twisted colon. Christine
Wilson is home recovering from sinus surgery.
Maggie Simineau continues at home with a broken
arm. Barry Kennedy’s dad, Larry, has been having
problems with A-fib. Willie Topp’s brother-in-law,
Willie Bob Gates, continues in NMMC with Covid,
but he is off the ventilator for now. Scarlett Wyatt, a
young girl at the Crossville congregation, has scarlet
fever and her family has requested our prayers.
On-Going Illnesses
Mary Lou Walden, Evelyn Thompson, Steve Kelly,
Bettye Davis, Frankie Estes, Shirley Lyons, Caroline
Willis, Carol Hood, Bill Goff, Donny Dulaney, Adam
McCurley, James Goddard, Mitch Maclean, Mary
Starz, Sheba Tuggers, Steve Higginbotham, Shauna
McMickin, Stella Pittman, April & Olivia Pounders
Nursing Homes
Nancy Haywood, Randy Attaway, Shirley
McCarthy, Bob McClure, Brenda Dawson
EMYG News
Hello family,
I hope you’re doing well and having a good
week. Last Sunday was so much fun at the
Davis’ house. Thank you Davis’ again for
hosting. This Wednesday, we will have
another Brain Freeze and Friday, we will have
another T.G.I.F. so please plan on attending
those. At the Davis’ Sunday, Will spoke on
friendships and he did really well. In keeping
with that thought, I have found the ABC’s of
having a Friendship that I’d like to share in
hopes of bringing you some encouragement.
Remember, God loves you and so do I. Alex
4. Men to Serve Sunday, Sept. 26, 2021 a.m.
Announcements................................Michael Wilson
Bible Reading........................................Aaron Willis
Opening Prayer .................................... Greg Hughes
Lord’s Supper
Eddie Simmons
Lead Singing..............................................Mark Hitt
Closing Prayer................................... Terry Kingsley
Ushers ........................Larry Bates & Mark Gilliland
Please meet in the library by 8:45 a.m.
Sunday 11:15 a.m. service
Opening Prayer .........................................Tim Davis
Closing Prayer.....................................Jake Kennedy
Lead Singing.................................Alex Blackwelder
Wednesday, September 29, 2021
Opening Prayer ................................. Stuart Childers
Lead Singing...............................Bobby Joe Lindley
The elders kindly request that men leading in public
worship wear the best dress clothes they have.
Contact the Ricky Lindsey (255-8136) if unable to serve.
Attendance & Contribution
Mid-Week, 9-15-21 .................................................... 191
Sunday 1st
Worship, 9-19-21 .................................... 148*
Sunday Bible Class..................................................... 162
Sunday 2nd
Worship.................................................... 112
Contribution (budget $7,900) ................................ $8,554
*This does not include the livestreamed views.
Pantry item........................................... Peanut butter
