November 14, 2011 by Lucas Gillman 3 comments

Posted in: Kirkplace Events

Written by Lucas Gillman

Photographs by Dom Carnaby (Drayk Photography) and Matt Fong

At Kirkplace we have begun to form our own traditions that reflect our great God and also our unique community. However, we are conscious to not let the meaning of our traditions blend into the background of our church history. We want to remind ourselves and each other why we do what we do.

Sunday 13th November marked the date of one of our Kirkplace traditions: Commitment Sunday.

Upon arriving at church, one was struck by a number of things. The salty scent of sizzling bacon. The bitter battering of freshly brewed coffee. The enthusiastic embrace of Con Pappas. But more noticeable than all these, was the low rumble of vibrant conversation. The foyer was full of life and energy, even at 9:00am on a Sunday morning. This vitality was no mere coincidence. Commitment Sunday has become an annual celebration for our congregation, as people renew their commitments to serving God and serving his people.

Before the bulk of Commitment Sunday commenced, it was fitting to sing together, finishing with a focus on glorifying God with the final lines of Hillsong United’s “Thank You”: To Your name we give all the glory. To your name we give all the praise. This would become a common refrain by those involved in the commitments to come.

Soon Pastor Steve called those that were formally becoming members of Kirkplace to the stage. And once they were up there, there wasn’t much stage left for Steve to call people to. The gathered mob confirmed their trust in Christ alone for salvation and made promises to serve faithfully and to pursue Christ-like character. Such a large number of people meant that the membership promises were all met with a resounding “I do”. The final promise made was an apt summary of how the new members can expect to keep these commitments: by prayerfully relying on God.

Pastor Steve’s sermon from Romans 5:1-8 not only revealed his proclivity for using interesting vocabulary, but also directed the congregation to the truth that God loved us first and we need to respond to His love. It was highly appropriate then that six people were about to respond to Christ’s love by being baptised in front of the congregation. First up to the baptismal bath was Calvin Smith. Ella Smith, at all of 5 years old, had the best explanation of why her baby brother was being baptised: “Because he belongs to Jesus”. Calvin was joined on stage by his parents and godparents who made promises that Calvin will grow up being taught about King Jesus and being prayed for regularly.

Rosemary Chen was the next to climb tentatively into the surprisingly warm pool. Joined by Youth Pastor Sam Mak, Rosemary explained why she had chosen to get baptised and the impact that Christ has had on her at school over the last year: "My baptism is a symbol of my trust in Jesus. It’s special because I get to share it!"

Joy was apparent in each individual getting baptised, and Re South was no exception. Boldly proclaiming the transforming power of the Gospel, Re shared her new outlook on her life in Christ: "I want to make it obvious that this is now my life. It’s not that I care if people know, it’s that I want them to know."

Next, Will Caswell made his way to the front, revealing that he had indeed chosen board shorts over speedos for the occasion. Will spoke of his baptism as a symbol of his obedience and submission to God’s will: "It’s my commitment to Christ [because] he has commanded [me] to do so".

Steve then welcomed Leanne Hung to the tub. Leanne has been at Kirkplace for the last three months and expressed how she has felt blessed by the encouragement of her brothers and sisters. Leanne explained how her baptism was particularly significant for her proclamation of Christ to those close to her: "It’s a physical display of commitment to Christ, particularly to my family who don’t know Jesus."

Finally Marty Kan levered himself over the lip of the pool to stand beside Steve. Despite a vigorous baptism resulting in a bumped head, Marty still explained the reason why he was being baptised before his brothers and sisters: "Jesus opened up my heart and helped me to call him my Lord".

Following each baptism, the congregation broke into rapturous applause. In part, this was celebrating with the person being baptised and encouraging them for the obedience that they were displaying, but much more than this, we were celebrating God’s goodness in bringing these people into His family and for showing them His love.

As the service drew to a close, the congregation joined together to worship God in song and used the opportunity to pledge their individual commitment to serving Christ at Kirkplace with their time, gifts and money. People dispersed back into the foyer and to the bathrooms (it was a long service) and resumed their excited conversations with each other over morning tea. It was a long morning, but one that clearly displayed God’s goodness to His people.

Whilst Commitment Sunday may be a day that initially appears to focus on people making commitments, what needs to be affirmed is that Commitment Sunday is not only about the commitment of new members to Kirkplace. It’s also not only about the commitment of God’s people to a life of service as they are baptised. Furthermore, it is not only about people committing their gifts to the service of the church. Whilst all of these things take place (and they’re all pretty exciting!), they’re not the big focus. Commitment Sunday is about God’s commitment to his people. His unending faithfulness. His overflowing love.

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