Chinese Baptist Church of New Orleans 新奥尔良华人浸信会 - 紐奧良華人浸信會
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
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Baptism Testimony: February 2009 Testimony of the Newly Baptized
February 15, 2009
Forgiveness of Sins David Zhutang
Faith in God Kathy Zhou
Child of God Di Xie
Guiding Angel Judy Wang
Happy Day Jennifer Tu
 Luke 3:6: “And all mankind will see the Lord’s salvation.”
Matthew 3:6: "Confessing their sins, they were baptized.”
Good day to you all! My name is David Zhutang, a fellow Christian in this blessed house of God. Being baptized will be an important event for me, mainly because of the clearing of my sins. The sins I have committed are mild, and others harsh.
Promising something I know that cannot be kept is one example of the sin. Also sometimes I forget to pray to the Lord everyday, and forget about him. That proves me to be somewhat of a not focused spiritual human being, forgetting the glory of the Lord. The baptizing will help me remember these things, and avoid as many sins as possible. The life of the old man will be forgotten, the life of the new man remembered!
Sometimes I am doubtful that Jesus created so many miracles, and I hope that after the baptizing all doubt will be washed away. The baptizing will also help me to not worship idols, but remember that there is only one god and it is he that I will worship.
I am thankful to the pastors and priests that have taught me this, and that baptizing will not be just another small event in which you promise a duty or action but never do it. Looking forward to this event, I hope that you all will accept me as another member of this blessed house of God.
 Jordan River
My name is Kathy Zhou, I'm fourteen years old in the eighth grade. I'm willing to give my whole life to Jesus Christ who is my savior and Lord. I'm baptized to testify that I am one of God's children, and I am part of God's family now. I'm grateful to recive the Holy Spirit into my heart, and my sins have been washed away from my life because I believe Jesus died on the cross for our sins. I pray Jesus to protect me and rescure me from temptations everyday. I am thankful for God to listen to my prayer and to be with us at all times. I know God is always answering our prayer when every time we pray. And also thankful for my friends, teachers,and my parents to be there with me, when I needed help. I won't be afraid when God is with me because I know I would never be alone. I believe in God by faith because I have faith in God.
 Sea of Galilee
Child of God
by Di Xie
Before I had lived in the truth, I was a boy who only wanted to fulfill my imperfect self. Sure, I heard the name of Jesus Christ in church, but other than on Sundays, the Name had no meaning to me. Sure, some friends had advised my parents to go to church, but the only reason I went to church was because my parents gave me no choice but to go. Going to church became more and more like an errand, ritual, and ceremony. Many people said that I was blessed for knowing many Bible facts, but I still felt an incurable emptiness in my life. (There are several examples of emptiness in the Book of Ecclesiastes.)
However, it was not until when I lived in Metairie that I started to hunt for an answer to this emptiness problem. One day, I started to doubt whether I had really been saved. I examined my life, and noticed something: I was an angel during Sundays, but like a disciple of the Devil on other days.
When I had a large amount of free time, I would start reading the Bible, but only because I had nothing else to do. It was during last winter break that I had the most leisure time, but thanks to the grace of the Lord, I started to spend almost every day to read the Bible for at least ten minutes. One passage had inspired me: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16 – 17). Now I understood why many leaders in many churches wanted to shove the Bible down my throat. My purpose of believing in Jesus Christ was also inspired by Ephesians 2:8: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. I figured out that sacrificing my preferences for Him would be hard, but it was the least I could ever offer Him. He went from the highest being ever, to one of the lowest, just for us.
Ever since I have trusted in Jesus Christ, everything that I work for has a purpose. Although the presence of sin is still living amongst me, it doesn’t have any power over me because I have put on the “Armor of God” described in Ephesians 6:10-18. I understand fully that I have done countless wrongdoings, and that I would not have the courage to stand here in front of you today if it weren’t for God’s grace. The hymn “Because He Lives” says that I don’t have to be afraid.
From the time I seriously followed Jesus, I have been noticing that I don’t get into serious, dangerous arguments with people, particularly my parents, anymore. I clearly have more of the traits that, in Galatians 5, the Spirit wants. Also, I produce less of the bad fruits. I know that many people will oppose me because of my faith in Christ, but in the end, it is my relationship with Christ that really matters. I would also like to thank the Father for letting me come to Christ. I used to do everything for myself, but now I am a child of God. I used to have a great fear of physical death, but through Christ that powerless fear is extinguished. I used to sin without feeling guilty, but now thanks to the Spirit, I feel guilt. Everything that seems good now will eventually be gone or become boring, but there is always something new that I can learn from Jesus. My fellowship in Christ has finally been restored after all these wasted years. I laugh at the old fool I had been when I didn’t have Christ. It is through His hope that I could be saved. It is through His faith that I have believed, and it is through love that he will never abandon me. My old self has died, and this new self is speaking to you now!
 Zion Gate, Jerusalem
Guiding Angel
by Judy Wang
My name is Judy Wang. I am the daughter of Kejing Song and Guoshun Wang. And I am also a child of God. In a way, this testimony is like a commencement address. However, instead of “graduating” from a life without Christ, I am beginning a life of following Christ.
My life before knowing Jesus was probably like the lives of all of the youth in this church. My parents were Christians, and they went to church every Sunday. And obviously, I would go with them. Before moving to Louisiana, I lived in Iowa. There was a small Christian church downtown and we would be there every Sunday. Going to church every Sunday was bearable, I can’t say I absolutely loved it, but I did enjoy it. I would gladly sing the songs and do the activities that the teachers made us do even though I didn’t quite know what it was all for. After I moved to Louisiana, it was pretty much the same. I knew the rules and mechanics of Christianity, but I didn't understand them.
Everything was pretty much the same, until about 2 months ago. My salvation wasn't anything dramatic or exciting. It was actually a bit strange. I came to know Jesus Christ and got saved from sin by a book. It was a library book about an inch thick. Its title was Angel. Every single page of that book seemed to repeat the same idea. Love is patient, kind, and just. Love is everlasting. Love will never forsake you. I don't know exactly how it happened, but at that moment God came flooding into my heart and mind. Thoughts came into my head about salvation and living for Jesus. The strange thing is, I could never have created those thoughts. The words that came to me weren't mine.
God is a merciful God. He is a loving God. He is the shoulder I can lean on. And he will never leave me nor forsake me. Today, I live without fear. I live knowing that Jesus will take care of everything. I live knowing that my only purpose in life is to glorify and make God known. I'm still fighting my doubts about God, but I'm learning every day to depend and trust in him a little more. I am God's child. Psalms 116:1-2, “I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.”
 Nazareth
Happy Day
by Jennifer Tu
Jesus really did wash our sins away. Jesus is God’s one and only Son. God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are perfect, and even though we sin, God loves everyone. Many of you know all this already. As for me, all this information has beendrilled into me ever since I was a baby. But actually, I didn’t really understand God’s love until very recently.
Before I truly became a Christian, I knew about Jesus, but I never took what He did to heart. I learned that He fed the five thousand, walked on water, turned water into wine, cured the sick, and raised the dead. Most amazingly of all, He gave up His life for us! But what did all this mean to me? Once a week, I’d be filled with all this truth, but on Monday through Saturday, my heart would be empty. At school, all I’d think about were my friends and my grades. At home, piano and my parents.
Perhaps last year, I began to wonder if there was more to being a Christian. Dr. Pinckard would always say that our faith was too “sugar-coated.” Jesus isn’t a fantasy; He’s the way, the truth, and the life. He was flesh and blood – he was flogged, was nailed to a cross, and accepted all of our sins. In becoming more informed, the “ABC’s” to Christianity began to be more to me than a variant of the alphabet. Number one, Admit. Everyone is a sinner, but that’s all the more amazing when God in all His perfection accepts me through Jesus’s blood. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) I repent for my sins; I want to please God because He loves me and I love him. Number two, Believe. Have complete trust and confidence in something that cannot be seen. What is better to put your faith in than the eternal Savior and Lord? And finally, Confess. Tell not only God in prayer but also everyone, in public, of His Son Jesus Christ. “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with our heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.” (Romans 10:9-10) So that’s what I want to say right now: Jesus is Lord.
Happy Day! Life isn’t pink ponies and rainbows all of a sudden, but in a way, it’s better. I know my purpose in life: to love God and love others. Everyone goes through hardships, but with God always with you, life is worth the living, and may the glory be to God. If anyone is ready to be saved, do as Acts 22:16 says, “And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.”
 Garden Tomb, Jerusalem
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