The original podcast for today had a lot of empty space, hopefully I didn’t waste your time.  Here is the version with audio that works!  Thanks for your patience.

 

Good Day Passionate Youth Reaching Out, today is Monday May 2, 2016.  My name is Grant and this is Start Up, helping you start your day with an upward focus.

Today’s scripture is Matthew 3:7–12 (HCSB), the main character here is John the Baptist.

7 When he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to the place of his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Therefore produce fruit consistent with repentance. 9 And don’t presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God is able to raise up children for Abraham from these stones! 10 Even now the ax is ready to strike the root of the trees! Therefore, every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but the One who is coming after me is more powerful than I. I am not worthy to remove His sandals. He Himself will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing shovel is in His hand, and He will clear His threshing floor and gather His wheat into the barn. But the chaff He will burn up with fire that never goes out.”

This week’s scriptures all focus on the theme of Baptism.  Why were the people travelling to the wilderness to be baptized by John the Baptist?  It was because they desperately wanted to be forgiven of their sins.  To be baptized means to be dunked in water.  People wanted to be baptized by John so that they could be made clean from the wrong in their life.  The repented of their wrong and then they were baptized.

This pointed to Jesus Christ, who would be baptized, or dunked metaphorically in the wave of our sins on the cross, so that we could be made clean. He became sin for us, so that through jesus we could be made right with God.  Baptism doesn’t make you clean, instead it shows that through Jesus, you have been made clean of the wrong in your life, and through Jesus you are made right with God.

This week’s challenge is a big one, and so its going to be the same each day.  If you haven’t been baptized yet, I challenge you to be baptized.  It is something that Jesus asks all of his followers to do, and it will put you on record as being identified with Jesus Christ.  Our church is holding a Baptism service on June 5, its a great time to obey Jesus in being baptized.

This Friday is the first youth event of the year that the Grade 6 students are invited to attend.  SO all students in Grades 6-10 are invited to come a night of Games themed around Hungry Hungry Hippos.  The event is at Hawkwood Baptist Church from 7 – 9:30.  We will also be doing a Bible study on purity.

If you want to find out more about our youth group, you can find us online at hbcyouth.ca.  We are also on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, just search for Hawkwood Youth.

https://www.facebook.com/HawkwoodYouthPYRO/

https://twitter.com/HawkwoodYouth

https://www.instagram.com/hawkwoodyouth/