From the Bible: Palm Sunday, Luke 19:29-40

The following Bible passage is taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible. This passage tells of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem.

When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, [Jesus] sent two of the disciples, saying, "Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, "Why are you untying it?" just say this, " 'The Lord needs it.' " So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owner asked them, "Why are you untying the colt?" They said, "The Lord needs it." Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwning their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying,

"Blessed is the king

who comes in the name of

the Lord!

Peace in heaven,

and glory in the highest heaven!"

Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, order your disciples to stop." He answered, "I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out."  

Baptism: Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

If you accept our invitation and come worship with us at ECBC tomorrow on Palm Sunday, you will witness one of the most significant public services we undertake together as a congregation of Baptist believers. As Baptists, we believe in "full immersion baptism at an age of consent." Let's unpack that. Full immersion baptism means the person baptized is completely submerged in water. The pastor lowers the individual baptized down into the water (tilting them from a standing position backward until the believer's body is completely submerged). As soon as the believer is submerged, she or he is raised up again. By age of consent we mean that the believer must be old enough to make her or his own decision that he or she believes in Jesus Christ and wants to follow Jesus more closely by dedicating her or his life to Jesus.

The baptism is a public service performed before the congregation. We do this for two reasons (at least): 1. the individual being baptized declares her or his faith publically by having the baptism performed before the gathered community of believers and 2. the congregation witnessing the baptism agrees to help this new, close follower of Jesus Christ on the journey through life, helping to answer questions, offer guidance, and offer assistance along life's often rocky road.

Why do we do this, you ask? That is an excellent question. We are baptized because Jesus was baptized. We wish to follow Jesus as closely as humanly possible. Through baptism we follow in a service Jesus took part in. As it states in Matthew 3:13-17: Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him , saying "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so now: for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased."

Jesus was baptized, God approved, and we follow His example.

There is symbolism here as well. The water (ordinary tap water by the way, nothing mystical about that or specially imbued with grace) is symbolic of the transition from our old lives to our new lives. When we are lowered backward into the water, it is symbolic of our death and burial in our old lives; when we are raised up, it is symbolic of our resurrection into new life in Christ. As the apostle Paul states in Romans 6: 3-4: Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of God, so we too might walk in newness of life.

One note of etiquette if you haven't been with us before: as you can see, baptism is a very significant ceremony full of joy and meaning. We ask you to refrain from making comments during the baptism and we insist on electronic devices being silenced or turned off during this service. That said, we hope you will come and share in our joy as two believers in Jesus Christ offer up their lives into service with Him.

J.B. Snyder

Two Tombs

"It was the day of days, the most wonderful I have ever lived through"

"For the moment - an eternity it must have seemed to the others standing by - I was struck dumb with amazement. When Lord Carnarvon, unable to stand the suspense any longer, inquired anxiously, "Can you see anything?", it was all I could do to get out the words, "Yes, wonderful things"

British archaeologist Howard Carter describes the disovery of the tomb of Pharoah Tutankhamun of Egypt

The Valley of The Kings was the last resting place for the powerful rulers of ancient Egypt. Here, attended by great ceremony, were placed the earthly remains of the pharoahs along with their accumulated wealth. British archaeologist Howard Carter had spent seven long years in this area searching for the tomb of the boy king Tutankhamun, which he hoped to locate in an undisturbed condition. He was accompanied by his partner, Lord Carnarvon, who was paying for the many expenses incurred in Carter's quest. That they finally located the tomb in relatively pristine condition in an area that was a well known haunt of grave robbers, and just when Carnavon's vast wealth was about to give out, is somewhat miraculous.

Howard Carter's quotes upon finding the tomb of King Tut have many parallels with the story of Jesus that is told in the four gospels. The life of Christ was one of great highs and deep lows, of a crowd that hailed Him with hosannas as He entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and shouted for His crucifixion a brief five days later. It was truly a life filled with wonderful things.

His birth in a manger, the homage paid by kings from the East, the adoration of the shepherds - wonderful things.

A dove descending from heaven, His resistance of temptation in the wilderness, water changed to wine at a wedding feast - wonderful things.

Healing of the blind, the lame, the leprous - wonderful things.

Feeding five thousand, the raising of a friend from death - wonderful things.

The meal in the upper room that fed souls as well as bodies, resolution in the dark of night - wonderful things.

A journey of agony to a skull-shaped hill, words of love for His mother, words of forgiveness and inclusion for a repentant sinner - wonderful things.

An empty tomb in a quiet garden – the most wonderful thing of all!

And so we come full circle -- two tombs stand before us. King Tutankhamun's - filled with gold, diamonds, rubies. The tomb of Christ - empty save for a shroud and head cloth rolled and placed in the place where He lay.

Two tombs. Which holds the greatest riches?

The inspirational material written above was penned by Andrew Henry, a member of the ECBC congregation who regularly puts his God given talents for observation, writing, and poetry to work in the service of God.

Speaker: Carlos Peralta Speaks of Cuban Mission Trip

Carlos Peralta will introduce his topic during the worship service on April 18, but his main presentation will be during a luncheon following the service. He will be delivering a PowerPoint presentation and sharing his experiences teaching a course at the Baptist Seminary in Santiago, and preaching and teaching at a conference in La Habana to which 500 Cuban pastors were invited. Everyone is invited to come and enjoy what is sure to be an engaging and enlightening presentation.

Celebrate: Our Missionary Sue Hegarty's Birthday!!

Everyone is invited to celebrate Sue Hegarty’s birthday all day on April 8 at Max & Erma’s Restaurant in Downingtown. Turn in the coupon handed out in church to your server and 15% of your total bill will be sent to ECBC for Sue’s support. The coupon is good for lunch or dinner. Please share the coupons with your family, friends, and neighbors. Enjoy a good time of fellowship over a meal and help to raise funds for our missionary in Cuba.

Celebrate: Eat Chick-Fil-A & Support the Nursery School!

LET’S HELP OUR NURSERY SCHOOL

They are having a Fund Raiser

Wednesday APRIL 7

From 5:30 to 8:00 Drive Thru or Dine In

at the

Chick-Fil-A Ashbridge Square

845 E. Lancaster in Downingtown

All proceeds (10%) that night go to the Exton Nursery School

See Ya There!!!

Worship: Upcoming Easter Services

Everyone is welcome. Please come and worship with us. We’d love to see you.


March 28: Palm Sunday with a baptism and special music from the ECBC bell choir.


April 1: Maundy Thursday Service, 7:30 PM at the church.


April 2: Good Friday noon to 6:00 PM, open communion with our interim pastor all afternoon accompanied by meditation and music. All who believe in Jesus Christ are welcome to partake in communion with us.


April 4: Easter Sunrise Service, 7:30 AM at Miller Park in Exton. This is always a beautiful and meaningful service. We hope to see you there.


April 4: Easter Service at 11:00 AM with special music from the ECBC bell choir.

Regularly Scheduled Events

Here are regularly scheduled events, taking place at Exton Community Baptist Church, in which you might be interested. We are always looking for new points of view and new talent!

Women's Bible Study: 11 AM. Second and Fourth Thursdays of the month

Women's Project Group: 12:30 PM. Second Thursdays of the month

Choir Rehearsal: 7:00 PM. Love to sing?

Book Review: Wednesdays at 6:30 PM. This group is just finishing up The Shack (we recommend you read this when you have a chance) and are starting Where Is God When It Hurts by Phillip Yancey. If you are struggling with grief or loss, this may be a group you want to meet with. We’ll keep a seat for you.

International Outreach: ECBC Sends Relief Kits to Haiti

In mid-January 2010 ECBC answered the call of American Baptist Women’s Ministries for hygiene and baby kits for earthquake relief to Haiti. These kits were collected for and delivered to Church World Services (you can go to their site if you wish to become directly involved). The lists of kit components were distributed to all interested parties and on Valentine's Day participating members of ECBC gathered for a “Potluck Packing Party.” In short order, 40 members of the congregation packed 57 hygiene kits and 11 baby kits. The Holy Spirit moved others to continued participation and another box has been filled, bringing our total kit count to near 100. It is wonderful to see what people can accomplish when the Holy Spirit moves them. We do things like this because as Christians we are called by Jesus to help all of God's children around the world. In fact, you can rest assured that wherever people are suffering, Jesus is calling Christians to action. In future endeavors, it is our hope to include interested members of the Exton community in our effort to aid others around the globe. We'd love to have you join us.

International Outreach: Susan Hegarty, Missionary to Cuba

Exton Community Baptist Church is proud of the mission work our own Sue Hegarty has undertaken in Cuba. Sue directs the Eastern Cuba Baptist Convention's editorial group. She trains writers and pastors to produceChristian education materials for 278 churches and their missions. She also serves on teh Baptist Theological Seminary faculty. Sue is married to Cuban pastor Ramon Rodriguez and is active in her local church.

Here in the USA, Sue's good work is supported by the Missionary Partnership Network (MPN). If you wish to participate in this group's support of Sue's endeavors in Cuba, please contact Beverlee Everett at beverlee28@earthlink.net

If you would like to give a financial gift in support of Sue's ministry directly, please make your check payable to International Ministries and write "Sue Hegarty Support" on the memo line. Then mail it to the following address:


Susan Hegarty
c/o International Ministries
PO Box 851
Valley Forge, PA 19482-0851

There is also a fund-raising event coming up in April: Central Union Churches, please be on the lookout for details of the early April fund-raiser for Sue’s ministry at the Max & Erma’s Restaurant in the Exton/Downingtown area.

This is just one of the many ways Exton Community Baptist Church participates in the Great Commission given to us by Jesus Christ. We invite you to join us in bringing the Good News of God's love and Christ's salvation for all to the world.

(Of course the easiest way to partner with Sue Hegarty in her work is to stop by ECBC and pick up the form shown on the left.)

Under Construction

Exton Community Baptist Church is dedicated to outreach into our community, our nation, and around the world. To help us communicate, we are constructing this blog site. Please be patient with us as we carefully build the site so that it may best serve you.

God bless you.