Person Wey Want Follow Jesus Need to Baptize
“Baptism . . . dey save una now.”—1 PET. 3:21.
1, 2. (a) Wetin papa and mama fit dey think when their pikin tell dem sey e want baptize? (b) Why dem dey ask people wey want baptize if dem don give Jehovah their life? (Check the first picture.)
MARIA papa and mama dey look as their pikin wey dey nine years stand up. Maria dey among people wey want baptize. E use clear voice take answer the two question wey the brother wey dey give the talk ask. After that one, e come baptize.
2 Maria papa and mama happy well well sey their pikin don give Jehovah im life and baptize. But before Maria baptize, im mama don dey ask imself sey: ‘Maria no too small to baptize? E really know sey baptism na serious matter? Or make we tell am to wait?’ Many papa and mama still dey ask theirself this kind question when their pikin talk sey e want baptize. (Eccl. 5:5) Why? Because dem know sey na serious matter for person wey want follow Jesus to give im life to Jehovah and baptize. E no get any other matter wey serious pass this one.—Check the box “You Don Give Jehovah Your Life?”
3, 4. (a) How apostle Peter take help us know why Christian suppose baptize? (b) Why baptism be like the ark wey Noah build?
3 When apostle Peter dey talk about baptism, e come talk about the ark wey Noah build. E sey: “E just be like baptism wey dey save una now.” (Read 1 Peter 3:20, 21.) The ark wey Noah build show people sey e dey use all im mind do wetin God talk. Noah do the work wey God give am, e no play with am at all. Noah really do wetin show sey e get faith, and na this one make Jehovah save im and im family when the heavy rain fall. But wetin concern the ark wey Noah build with baptism?
4 The ark wey Noah build show people the faith wey e get. Na so e still be when person baptize. E dey show sey e don already give Jehovah im life. We know sey na the faith wey e get for Jesus sacrifice and im resurrection, na im make am ready to baptize. Like Noah, people wey give their life to Jehovah dey do everything wey Jehovah sey make dem do. Jehovah save Noah when the heavy rain destroy people that time. Na so e go still be for our time. When Jehovah go destroy bad people, e go save people wey baptize and wey no leave am. (Mark 13:10; Rev. 7:9, 10) So na serious thing e be for person to give Jehovah im life and baptize. If person dey shift baptism go front anyhow, e dey play with im chance to get life wey no go end.
5. Wetin we go talk about for this topic?
5 As we don know sey baptism na serious matter, e get three question wey we go talk about: (1) Wetin Bible talk about baptism? (2) Wetin person need to do before e baptize? (3) When we dey study our pikin or another Bible student, why e good make we remember how baptism serious reach?
PEOPLE WEY BAPTIZE FOR BIBLE
6, 7. (a) The baptism wey John do, wetin e mean? (b) Which special baptism John do?
6 Na John the Baptist do the first baptism wey Bible talk about. (Matt. 3:1-6) Why people go meet John the Baptist make e baptize dem? Na to show sey dem don stop to do the bad things wey Moses Law sey make dem no do. But e get one baptism wey John do wey dey special. The person no baptize to show sey e don comot hand from sin. This person na Jesus, and na special thing for John to baptize God Son. (Matt. 3:13-17) Jesus no ever sin, so e no need to repent. (1 Pet. 2:22) So why e come baptize? E baptize to show sey e want use im life do wetin God want.—Heb. 10:7.
7 After Jesus start to dey preach, im disciples come dey baptize people. (John 3:22; 4:1, 2) This people still baptize to show sey dem don comot hand from the bad things wey Moses Law sey make dem no do. But after Jesus die and God resurrect am, the meaning of baptism come change.
8. (a) After God resurrect Jesus, wetin e tell the people wey dey follow am? (b) Why e good make person wey want follow Jesus baptize?
8 For 33 C.E., after Jehovah resurrect Jesus, e appear to more than 500 people wey gather together. Dem be men and women, but e be like sey children even dey among dem. Maybe na this people Jesus tell sey: “Make una go make people my disciple for the whole world. Take the Father, Son and holy spirit, name dey baptize dem, dey teach dem to do everything wey I don command una.” (Matt. 28:19, 20; 1 Cor. 15:6) So e be like sey na plenty people Jesus tell to go make other people im disciple. And e still talk sey anybody wey ready to follow am must baptize. (Matt. 11:29, 30) This one mean sey, for person to serve God for the correct way, e need to believe sey Jehovah dey use Jesus do wetin e get for mind. After this one, the person fit baptize. Na this kind baptism correct for God eye. Bible show sey the new people wey start to follow Jesus know sey e good make dem baptize. And dem no waste time before dem baptize.—Acts 2:41; 9:18; 16:14, 15, 32, 33.
NO WASTE TIME
9, 10. Wetin we fit learn from the baptism of the Ethiopia man and apostle Paul?
9 Read Acts 8:35, 36. Make we talk about the example of the Ethiopia man wey dey follow Jew people worship God. The man go worship God for Jerusalem. When e dey come back, Jehovah angel send Philip make e go preach to am. Philip tell the man “the good news about Jesus.” Wetin the man come do? E no waste time, e come baptize. This one show sey the man really value wetin e learn, and e ready to do wetin God want.
10 The second person wey we go talk about na Saul. E first dey suffer people wey dey follow Jesus. Im na Jew, and all Jew people promise to serve God. But Jehovah later stop to dey use Jew people because of wetin dem do. But Saul believe sey Jehovah still dey use Jew people. Na this one make am suffer people wey dey follow Jesus. But one day, Jesus talk to am from heaven. Wetin Saul come do? E allow Ananias help am. Ananias na person wey dey follow Jesus. Bible tell us sey Saul come baptize. (Acts 9:17, 18; Gal. 1:14) Saul name later change to apostle Paul. But you see wetin e do? As e see sey na Jesus be the person wey God dey use do wetin e get for mind, e no waste time before e baptize.—Read Acts 22:12-16.
11. (a) Wetin dey make Bible student talk sey e want baptize? (b) How body dey do us when we see person wey want baptize?
11 Plenty young people and old people wey dey study Bible still dey do the same thing. Dem get faith and dem value wetin dem learn from Bible. Na this one make dem ready to give Jehovah their life and baptize. One special part for our assembly and convention na the talk for people wey want baptize. When person believe wetin e dey learn from Bible, dey follow am, and want baptize, all of us dey happy well well. Mouth no fit talk how belle dey sweet papa and mama if their pikin dey among people wey want baptize. For 2017 service year, e pass 284,000 people wey baptize. (Acts 13:48) This people know sey if dem want follow Jesus, dem need to baptize. But wetin dem do before dem fit baptize?
12. Wetin person need to do before e fit baptize?
12 Before person baptize, e need to learn the truth about God. E go know wetin God get for mind for us and for this earth. And e go still know wetin God don do to save us. (1 Tim. 2:3-6) E need to get faith. Na this faith go help am obey God law, and stop to do the things wey e no like. (Acts 3:19) What if person talk sey e don give Jehovah im life but e continue to do bad things? For Jehovah eye, this person never give am im life. (1 Cor. 6:9, 10) Person wey want give Jehovah im life, still need to do other things. E go dey do wetin good for God eye, dey go meeting, dey preach, and dey teach people about Jehovah. Jesus talk sey people wey want be im disciple go dey do this preaching work. (Acts 1:8) Na only when person do all this things, e go fit promise Jehovah for prayer to use im life serve am. After this one, the person fit baptize to show people sey e don really give Jehovah im life.
HELP YOUR BIBLE STUDENT PUT BAPTISM FOR MIND
When you dey teach your Bible student, you dey always remember to talk why e good for person to baptize? (Check paragraph 13)
13. Why e good sey make we get baptism for mind when we dey teach our children and other Bible student?
13 We need to help our children and other Bible student do all the things wey we don talk about. Get am for mind sey, person wey want follow Jesus need to baptize. If we get this one for mind, we go dey always remember to tell dem sey e good make person give Jehovah im life and baptize. We really want help our children and other Bible student to do wetin dem suppose do to fit baptize.
14. Why e no good make we force person baptize?
14 E no good make we force our children or any other person to baptize. Jehovah no dey force people to serve am. (1 John 4:8) Instead, when we dey teach dem, e good make we help dem see why dem suppose love Jehovah from their heart. If the person really like wetin e dey learn and ready to do everything wey Christian suppose do, e go want baptize.—2 Cor. 5:14, 15.
15, 16. (a) E get age wey person suppose reach before e baptize? Explain. (b) If person don baptize for another religion, why e need to baptize again as Jehovah Witness?
15 E no get age wey person suppose reach before e baptize. Everybody no be the same. Some people dey quick learn and change their life, but other people fit dey slow. Many people baptize when dem dey young, and dem continue to serve Jehovah well. For some people, na when dem don old dem learn about Jehovah and dem come baptize. Some of dem don even pass 100 years before dem know Jehovah!
16 E get one old woman wey don baptize for different different religion. This woman ask the sister wey dey study with am if e need to baptize again. The sister come show am some Bible verse wey answer the question. When the woman learn wetin Bible talk, e no tey, e come baptize. Even though sey the woman don nearly reach 80 years, e still baptize. Wetin we learn from this story? Baptism wey correct for God eye na the one wey person do after e don learn the truth about Jehovah. So even if person don first baptize for another religion, e need to baptize again as Jehovah Witness.—Read Acts 19:3-5.
17. For the day wey person want baptize, wetin e good for am to dey think about?
17 Person dey happy well well the day when e baptize. But na still day when person suppose think well well about wetin e mean for am to give God im life and baptize. E no easy for person to do everything wey e suppose do as Christian. Na this one make Bible sey people wey dey follow Jesus “no go live for theirself again, but for the person wey die for dem, wey don come back to life.”—2 Cor. 5:15; Matt. 16:24.
18. Which question we go answer for the next topic?
18 We don learn for this topic sey baptism na serious matter. Na this one make Maria mama dey ask imself those question wey we talk about for the beginning of this topic. If you be papa or mama, you fit dey ask yourself sey: ‘My pikin don really ready to baptize? My pikin don really know Jehovah reach to give am im life? My pikin need to go school and get work before e baptize? What if my pikin do wetin bad well well for Jehovah eye after e baptize?’ We go answer this question for the next topic. And we go still talk about how papa and mama suppose see baptism.