Here we are again. Brayden, y'all already have heard of what happened with Brayden and I guess it was maybe two weeks ago or can't remember Brayden when we talked, but he wanted to talk. He had already, his parents knew about it. He wanted to talk with me and He clearly understood the gospel and understood this message that Brother Charles just preached, that there was nothing he could do to save himself, and he believed that Jesus had paid for his sins. And as a result of that, he wanted to be baptized. And so, I mean, he had a very good testimony, such that you would feel like you were standing in the way of what God had done if you didn't baptize Him. So, thus, here we are. I wanted to share, I was thinking, we always share some Scripture before we baptize. And in the Gospel of John, And John 3, you know, is the most famous of verses, John 3.16, which is obviously a statement of the gospel and a call to faith. And it's very fitting, the second half of John 3, it has baptism going on. because that's the order, right? Faith and then baptism. The first thing God commands us to do in the gospel is obey the gospel by faith. And then the second thing is to be baptized. Real life doesn't always get that order right, but that's in theory what's laid out. So I was reading this section from verses 22 to 36, And you have John the Baptist who's there and he's baptizing. And what this text shows us is not that he was baptizing, but why he was baptizing. And there are two reasons. The first is because there was enough water there. So we have enough water right here to do it. We could do it in the lake. We did that once. It was pretty slippery. We nearly all fell down. And we came up looking like the swamp thing. I think we came out of it. But one reason we're here is we have enough water. And that's why we are not led to sprinkle, but immerse. That text is one reason. But then he goes on to give another reason. John was baptizing because the baptism was not about John. Which is amazing if you think about it, because as men, as fallen men, as sinners, we somehow can manage to get anything turned around on us, pointing attention on us. Even baptism can somehow become a means of boasting and directing attention toward us. And so John was constantly saying, I'm not the Christ. I'm not the prophet Charles mentioned from Deuteronomy 18. I'm a voice. And he was constantly saying, look away from me, behold the Lamb. And so he says things like he just contrasts himself with Christ. He is from above. I'm from the earth. Whoever believes on him has eternal life. Whoever does not, believe on him, will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. So the second reason, other than there being water here, we want the reasons that we're baptizing to be the same reasons that John the Baptist baptized. So one, there's enough water. Two, we would like to somehow not make this about us, but make it about Jesus. And the only way we can do that is if we bear in mind that we're told in the Bible that God relates to humanity by means of a covenant. A covenant with Adam, sometimes called the covenant of works. Because if Adam would obey, he would inherit eternal life, but he didn't. And all whom he represents get everything that Adam got. So what he did with that tree was charged, the word he was using, or reckoned, to all whom he represented. And then God makes a second covenant, sometimes called a covenant of grace, with Christ and all whom He represents. He's the second man, the last Adam. And the way that helps us here is Paul says in Romans 7, 4, that of every Christian, you were made to die to the law. And he says, through the body of Christ. Or he says in 2 Corinthians 5, that having concluded this, what he was just preaching, that one died for all, their substitution. Well, then he draws another conclusion, therefore all died. That's representation. That's having a federal head. What happens to him happens to us. Like if you are on a team and your quarterback scores a touchdown, you win the Super Bowl, you get to hold the trophy, you get to wear the memorabilia, the hat, the shirt, everything because you're union with him. The death and the burial and the resurrection of Jesus is presented to us in the New Testament as the work of a representative, not the work of an individual. And that means that when you're baptized, what we're hoping to do is not say that there's anything magical here. We're hoping to not become a priest, as was just mentioning, and turn something beautiful ugly by men trying to boast somehow. So there's nothing we could do. As we sing, nothing could wash away my sins. Peter says, baptism saves me, says, but not the not not not the water, not the removal of dirt from the flesh. So baptism is depicted as a means of death. This will help you get it in your mind. Jesus talked about his death. He said, I have a baptism to undergo. The water flooded the earth once. It was a means of death. So water, you would get it, Braden, if we kind of had a pop gun or something and we pretended and I shot you and then you went, and you fell over, you know, because a gun is a means of death. So what we're trying to do is by going down, what Braden is trying to do is this is God's symbol of his faith, that he's saying that the death of Jesus, I'm putting both my hands on that death. And this is the way, like a ring, like you don't have to have a ring. It's not in the Bible, but it's the means by which that idea is expressed. And this is the God-sanctioned means the God commanded means by which faith is expressed. And so when he goes down, what he's hoping that you would see is that he is trusting in the death of Christ. And so when he goes down, this is the statement that Jesus was crucified so that Braden and his sins could be crucified with him. And if we held it for a moment, you would get the idea of burial. That Jesus was buried so that Braden and his sins could be buried with him. And then when he comes up, the statement is Jesus was raised from the dead so that Braden and not his sins could be raised from the dead with him. So, with that being said, Brayden, we're going to baptize you. You can get ready. You want to do both? Okay. Brayden, because we've had this conversation and you clearly understand the gospel, you've heard the gospel, and you've put your faith in Christ to save you, We want to baptize you as our brother in Christ. OK, in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit. And Braden's family is here, of course, his grandparents are here. I know they're. full of joy at this, and so I thought it would be fitting to ask Brother Sammy to pray for us before we go eat and pray for Braden. And we thank you for that propitiation. Now, Lord, may we move in your position to rule and to reign with you in your kingdom for your glory and your honor. And this, indeed, is my prayer for my dear little brother, for Braden, that you would use him for your glory and for your honor. Any man having put his hand to the plow is not fit for the kingdom of God. I pray that he would wake up every morning and say, Lord, help me to seek you to seek your kingdom with all of my heart and all of these things shall be added unto me. For it's in Jesus name we pray it. Amen. Amen.