THE BAPTISM AND TEMPTATION
AT last th' appointed hour has come;
Christ bows 'neath Jordan's swelling wave;
The mighty Baptist leads him forth
Triumphant from that watery grave.
And from the heaven, serene and blue,
While wondering souls with awe are stirred,
A dove-like form appears in view,
Th' Eternal Father's voice is heard:
' 'Lo, this is my beloved Son —
The Prince of Peace, th' Anointed One! "
O holy hour! O sacred spot!
And yet, and yet, they knew him not.
And now the Spirit leads him far
From busy haunts of life away,
Where gloomy shades of darkness are,
'Mong fierce and angry beasts of prey ;
The Holy Spirit bids him go
To wrestle with the wily foe.
There, in that wilderness alone,
With fainting form and pallid face,
Grievous temptations fierce and strong
He suffers, for our fallen race.
But with the Spirit's mighty sword
The prince of hell is put to flight;
The strength of the Eternal Word
Has conquered in Jehovah's might.
O tempted heart! when sorely tried
Amid life's desert, drear and broad,
When hope and strength and courage fail,
Look up, and put thy trust in Grod.
He will not fail thee; he who bore
Temptations fierce and long for thee,
Who in the wilderness prevailed.
Will give thee strength and victory.
Description of Illustration: baptismal font, shell, Baptism, Christening, sponsors, priest, minister of the Gospel, loving parents, acolytes, altar servers, altar robes
Have a question about the illustration? Just type it in the comment box and I'll get back to you as soon as possible. I only publish content that is closely related to the subject folks.
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| scripture, "So in Christ Jesus, you are all children of God through faith." Galatians 3:26 |
Description of Comic: a parade of elderly sponsors in various degree of old age, a nanny carries a crying baby at the front of the line, sponsors for a Christening, baby dedication, Baptism, black and white illustration
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| scripture, "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6 |
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| scripture, "For this child I prayed and the Lord has granted the desires of my heart." 1 Samuel 1:27 |
THE NEW LIFE
Life's crisis has been passed,
And I have come at last
Into the Promised Land of Peace and Rest;
The crisis hour is o'er
And now forevermore
I'm dwelling in God's blessing and God's best.
It came, I know not how,
But this I know, that now
My life has found a new and nobler plane;
Something has passed away,
Something has come to stay,
And I can never be the same again.
The change is not in me,
Rather, it seems that He
Has come Himself to live His life in mine;
And as I stepped aside
And took Him to abide,
He came and filled me with His life divine.
I came to Jordan's flood,
And as with Him I stood,
The Heavenly Dove upon my spirit came;
Just how I cannot tell,
But this I know full well
That life henceforth can never mean the same.
And yet it brings no strain,
But hand, and heart, and brain
Move on with all the old simplicity;
I do not have to try
For it is no more I
But Christ who thinks, and lives, and moves in me.
The testing hours have come,
In flesh, and heart, and home,
But He was near my every load to share.
New tasks have called me on,
New victories have been won,
But through the cloud and sunshine He was there.
No more I doubt or fear,
The way shines bright and clear,
And One who ne'er can fail is leading on;
He will not let me stray
But lead me all the way
Until the fight is fought, the crown is won.
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| "In those days John the Baptist came to the Judean Wilderness and began preaching. His message was, "Repent, of your sins and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near." Matthew 3:1,2 and "Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from it's place, unless you repent." Revelation 2:5 |
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| Scripture on second clip art is "Listen! It's the voice of someone shouting. "Clear the way through the wilderness for the LORD! Make a straight highway through the wastland for our God! Isaiah 40:3 |
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| The eternal flame in lavender for pastel or white church web pages. It looks nice on the sidebar folks. |
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| "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 |
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| "See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven." Matthew 18:10 |
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| "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well." Psalm 139: 13-14 |
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| Tiny sized Baptism title |
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| Shells are often used to symbolize both baptism and confirmation. For those of you who do not know what a confirmation is - it is a profession of faith that Orthodox Christians make in order to make public/testify to an agreement (a covenant) their parents once made with God on the occasion of their infant's baptism. So Orthodox Christians do make individual, public professions of faith just as Protestants do, but they do it in a different order. During confirmation young people also display baptismal banners and decorate their churches with doves representing the Holy Spirit. This celebration also signifies the end of their formal training or schooling in the doctrines of their faith. |
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| Shell reflected in water. |
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| The above scripture from Galatians is frequently selected for a Baptism |
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| Pale blue shell reflected in water. |