#Water baptism

[psalmonesermons]

Where Christians disagree

A worked example: Water Baptism

Sometimes it is difficult to understand the many disagreements between people who claim to be true Christian believers.

Christians do indeed disagree on a wide range of issues. Christians disagree about the right way to baptize someone – adult versus infant; about the way we interpret the Bible and what we mean when we say it is divinely inspired. Christians disagree about whether women can be clergy, on human sexuality issues pertaining to the life of the Church, and who is allowed to receive communion in their church. We disagree on such issues as capital punishment, divorce, abortion, immigration, and racism.

We will now take a look at one of the major areas of disagreement to see if we can find a way to understand the different approaches to Christian baptism.

The sacrament of Baptism

A sacrament is a ceremony through which Christians believe they receive God’s grace or are brought closer to God. Therefore, a sacrament is something that people can engage in with their senses but realizing that the sacrament has a deeper meaning too.

For Protestants, baptism, and the Eucharist (or communion) are sacraments.

All four gospels mention Jesus conducting both of these acts.

Many Christians believe that baptism is important because Jesus himself was baptised, and after his resurrection he told his disciples that they should be baptised too.

John 3:5 No one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.

John the Baptist was the first Israelite to use baptism to symbolise the forgiveness of sins. John baptised Jesus. Many Christians believe that baptising cleanses people from original sin[1].

Baptism is practised by all Christian denominations as it is seen as a command from God and a way of following Jesus’ example. However, the various denominations practise baptism in different ways.

Infant baptism

Some Christians believe baptism makes a Christian a member of God’s family. In many denominations babies are baptised, and this is known as infant baptism.

For Orthodox Christians, infant baptism involves total immersion. However, other denominations make the sign of the cross on the baby’s head using oil or sprinkle holy water on the forehead.

Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 28:19 were to "baptise in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit", so these words are often said during a baptism.

There are other elements to a baptism service in various denominations and might include promises made by godparents on behalf to the child to provide a Christian education and upbringing.

Believers’ baptism

Baptists and Pentecostals believe baptism should only occur once usually in adult life, as it is then that the individual can accept Christianity for themselves. This type of baptism is called believers’ baptism.

It is performed using total immersion, where the person being baptised walks down into a pool/body of water and is fully submerged three times (or just once) before walking out into their new life.

Some Christians prefer believers’ baptism because Jesus was baptised as an adult and because, as an adult, you are able to make decisions for yourself.

The person being baptized is brought up out of the water, which is a picture of their soul being raised from the dead to eternal life. Being brought up out of the water is also a forward-looking picture. It reminds us of God's promise to one day resurrect our physical bodies from the grave just like he did for Jesus.

Oneness Pentecostal and a few other churches baptize only in the name of Jesus Christ[2], citing Peter's preaching baptism in the name of Jesus as their authority.

Reasons for different approaches to water baptism [3]

In the last centuries of the Old Testament era, the Greek word “baptizo” did mean to “immerse.” By the time the New Testament was written that word described the application of water that included immersing, washing, and pouring. This illustrates how the etymology and initial usage of a word is one thing, but current usage is another matter. (Consider how the same thing is true regarding English words.)

It is clear from passages like Mark 7:3-4 and Luke 11:38 that the Greek word “baptizo” could mean the application of water in different ways. The context in which the word occurs will drive the meaning and interpretation.

In the Bible, God does not specify how to apply the water in Baptism. Baptism is the application of water in connection with God’s word (see Matthew 28:18-19 and Ephesians 5:25-26).

Where Christians disagree (in any area) we should remember one of John Wesley’s most famous quotes which gives us an approach to discussing the issue:

“In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in all things charity.” [4]

He is saying that in Christianity there is a core set of beliefs we can all agree on. These are the ‘pillars of the faith’ such as the deity of Christ, the virgin birth, and the physical resurrection of Jesus. These are the essentials and indeed usually produce unity between Christians. The mode of baptism, however, may be considered as non-essential.

Some things we will not agree on but let them be the nonessentials.

And in both, let us love one another.

Footnotes

[1] Original sin is an Augustinian Christian doctrine that says that everyone is born sinful. This means that they are born with a built-in urge to do bad things and to disobey God.

[2] Wikipedia reference; Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc". Archived from the original on 2013-01-17. Retrieved 2013-01-09.

[3] For reference see Greek word for “baptize” – WELS

[4] An aphorism variously attributed to St. Augustine of Hippo (354 – 430), John Wesley (1703 – 1791), and to a number of theologians in between them.

[corneliusbella]

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[bvthomas]

A comprehensive study on Water Baptism.

  A Jewish poet named Haim Nachman Bialik said, “He who reads the Bible in translation is like kissing your new bride through a veil.” The poet is right on target. I included his remark to alert the reader to the fact that we will be dissecting several Greek words and prepositions in this chapter to better comprehend and support what I am attempting to say. The reader should anticipate…

[the-big-picture-bible-blog]

Can one connect the ministry of John the Baptist to the Old Testament priesthood?

The following is a reaction to this post: https://thebigpicturelink.blogspot.com/2024/02/why-were-baptisms-required-for-israel.html POST REACTION: I don’t think you can connect the ministry of John the Baptist to the Old Testament priesthood. Only the priests needed to be washed, not every Israelite. And John the Baptist’s imagery had nothing to do whatsoever with priestly cleansing. Just read…

[superbdonutpoetry]

Who Wants to be a Berean?

Definitely not I. I do not want to be likened to lost people searching the scriptures in lieu of their salvation (pre-salvation). Rather I am a saved person, a Saint, who is instructed by God to be a workman, to study scripture in order to come unto the knowledge of the truth with respect to the mystery revealed to Paul (post salvation). The Bereans were unsaved Jews. Are you comfortable with…

[liliesofeden]

Saint Paul on Regeneration through Water Baptism

Romans 2:3-8

“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

For one who has died has been set free from sin.

Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.”

[graciousheaven]

Who Should Receive Water Baptism

     Christ instituted water baptism so that those whom the Father had predestined for adoption in eternity past, and for whom the Son died and who would be raised from spiritual death by the Holy Spirit, might identify with the Son in His death, burial, and resurrection. That is to say, water baptism must be administered to everyone who is brought from death to life by the Holy Spirit of grace and is led to repentance and faith in Christ, being justified “by the blood of His cross” (cf. Colossians 1:20). But today, more and more unregenerate people are being baptized with water, mainly because of the heresy of the Roman Catholic church and other denominations that teach that water baptism saves, but also as a result of the activity of false teachers whose hearts are trained in greed: they offer to the world a watered down version of the Gospel and a cheap Christianity that does not require a change of heart. They twist God's Word for their own evil purposes and preach a God who neither punishes sin nor hates the wicked. They make the Gospel palatable to those who love the darkness, thereby attracting to themselves huge crowds of carnal men and women. And as 2 Peter 2:19a says, “They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption.”

     Hell will be filled with people who received water baptism without being born of the Spirit, because they were told that water baptism was the means of salvation. The growing number of Roman Catholics, Lutherans, and many other so-called Christians whose faith is founded on the destructive heresies they have embraced is astonishing. Not to mention that many of them have already left this world with their sins unforgiven. The world today is full of people who received the sacrament of baptism when they were young adolescents or children, but who now deny the faith they once professed and blaspheme the Truth. Such apostasy is proof that water baptism does not regenerate. Otherwise, they would have continued in the faith. For He who grants the gift of faith preserves all those united to Him by such faith. It is impossible for Him to lose them. “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me I will never cast out”, says the Lord in John 6:37. V.39, “And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that I should lose nothing of all that He has given Me, but raise it up on the last day.” 

     The Lord cannot lose any of His sheep. He preserves His own to the end (cf. John 10:28-30). He who begins a good work in the  heart of sinful man brings it to completion (cf. Philippians 1:6). Such apostasy also shows that the new birth does not depend on human will, decision, or effort. Salvation is God’s sovereign work ((cf. Acts 2:47b). The natural man is both unwilling and unable to break the shackles that hold his soul captive. He is controlled by the flesh, and being double-blinded by Satan, he has no desire for the things of God – as the Lord says in John 3:6, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh.” Whoever receives water baptism and denies the faith afterward shows therefore that he has never been of the Truth. His wandering away betrays the hardness of his heart and his hostility toward God and testifies that he has not been born of God (cf. 1 John 2:19). 

     The Spirit of Truth abides in those He regenerates “and causes [them] to walk in [His] statutes and be careful to obey [His] rules” (Ezekiel 36:27). If you are regenerated by the Spirit of grace, as the Apostle Paul says in Philippians 1:6, “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” For all who are born again become “partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (1 Peter 1:4), and they no longer “walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1). The Lord Himself affirms this in John 10:27-29 when He says, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.”

     Given the fact that water baptism is administered by man, access to it is very easy, especially nowadays. With the rise of false teachings and the proliferation of false churches across the world, many people receive this form of baptism because they have been told that it saves. Moreover, even in churches that are faithful to the Word of God, when it comes to the baptism of new converts, time is often needed to help determine whether the profession of faith made by someone at their baptism was genuine. For the circumcision of the heart, which is the work of the Holy Spirit, is a personal and invisible experience. No man can read the intention of the thoughts of his neighbour’s heart. For instance, Simon the magician’s response to Phililip’s preaching in Acts 8 at it first seemed genuine to Philip and other Samaritans, and so Simon too was baptized with water along with those who genuinely believed. But it was only later that the true condition of Simon’s heart was disclosed as he sought to “obtain the gift of God with money” (v.20).

     This explains why someone can be a member of a local church and yet not of Christ, but is nothing more than a child of the devil. Receiving water baptism in order to be part of a local congregation, holding a vital role in a church, or devoting oneself to serving others, does not make a person a member of the body of Christ. There is no union with Christ without the circumcision of the heart by the Holy Spirit and His indwelling presence – as it is written, “Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him” (Romans 8:9b).

     Water baptism without a prior renewal of the head and heart carried out by the Holy Spirit avails nothing. We have as proof Simon the magician who, prior to the proclamation of the Gospel in Samaria by Philip, “had previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria, saying that he himself was somebody great. They all paid attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the power of God that is called Great.” And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic. But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed” (Acts 8:9-13). 

     Now when news reached Jerusalem that the people of Samaria had believed God’s Word, the Apostles sent Peter and John. Verse 15-17 reads, “When they arrived, they prayed for the believers that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For the Holy Spirit had not yet come down on any of them; they had only been baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.” V.18-19 tells us that, “Simon saw that the Spirit had been given to the believers when the Apostles placed their hands on them. So he offered money to Peter and John, and said, ‘Give this power to me too, so that anyone I place my hands on will receive the Holy Spirit.’” 

     It is obvious that this magician was not regenerated. Although he was baptised with water like the genuine believers, the intent of his heart did not change at all but remained wicked; he was still a slave to sin. He partook of the sacrament of baptism despite the fact that he was not born of the Spirit. And since water baptism does not regenerate, he could not bear any fruit consistent with repentance. His persistent inclination toward evil exposed his hypocrisy; it revealed the shallowness of his faith, a faith that was motivated by purely selfish reasons (cf. v.19). 

     The unfruitfulness of Simon the magician confirms what the Lord Jesus says in Matthew 7:18, “A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.” A contrast between Simon’s lack of spiritual fruit and the instantaneous yield of fruit by certain residents of Ephesus who, like Simon, were once firmly established in the arts of magic, but came to faith through Paul’s Spirit-empowered ministry, enables us to clearly understand this affirmation. Through signs and wonders and the preaching of the Word, the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified in Ephesus, “And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver” (Acts 19:18-19). 

     A heart that is the throne room of iniquity cannot bear good fruit. It takes the circumcision of the heart of man and its pruning by the Holy Spirit for man to bear the fruit of righteousness. A person’s true identity is known by their fruit. The kind of fruit Simon bore thus revealed to the Apostles that he was a bad tree, one that had not undergone divine circumcision and pruning by the Spirit of truth. And in response to his sinful request (cf. v.19), the Apostle Peter then said to him, “May you and your money go to hell, for thinking that you can buy God’s gift with money! You have no part or share in our work, because your heart is not right in God’s sight. Repent, then, of this evil plan of yours, and pray to the Lord that He will forgive you for thinking such a thing as this. For I see that you are full of bitter envy and are a prisoner of sin” (verse 20-23). 

     Anyone who receives water baptism without being regenerated by the Holy Spirit does so at his own peril. It should be noted, however, that given the fact that water baptism is a requirement for membership in many congregations, some carnal men whose hearts are trained in perversity go through water baptism to gain access to the sheep pen and the opportunity to move stealthily among the sheep, carrying out the deeds of their father the devil. In other words, water baptism has become a means through which some wolves conceal their identity and sneak into the church to cause dissensions and divisions among the sheep.

     The devil is a master of discord who likes to create strife among the children of God, and he does so through the agency of his own children. This explains why there is a growing number of carnal men and women who occupy the church pews or stand at the pulpit today. Like Simon the magician who received water baptism while he was still “in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity” (Acts 8:23), they partake of the sacrament of baptism purely for evil purposes. 

     However, their presence in the church does not escape the sovereignty of the Lord: He has predetermined it. Moreover, He does not desire to oust them now, but to leave them until the day of harvest, as He clearly explains to us through the Parable of the wheat and the tares. According to this parable, these individuals are tares sown among the wheat by their father the devil (cf. Matthew 13:25). In other passages of the Bible, these sons of disobedience are called thorn bushes, goats dressed in sheep clothing, ferocious wolves who desire to devour the sheep. But when the King of glory returns, He “will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into My barn” (v.30). Christ will cut down and throw into the fire every tree that does not bear good fruit (cf. Matthew 7:19); He will expose the hypocrisy of the goats and separate them from His sheep; He will put an end to the revelry and viciousness of the wolves and thrust them into the eternal hell of fire. The Great Shepherd knows His sheep: He chose them and bought them with His precious blood, and through His resurrection from the dead, they have “been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding Word of God” (1 Peter 1:23), being baptized by the Holy Spirit of love. 

[bea-lele-carmen]

[ufuomaee]

Why I Wish To Be Baptised In Water...Again...

In 2002, when I gave my life to God with tears and conviction never to turn away from Him again, I sought to belong to the Church. At that time, I was attending KICC, and I began their water baptism classes, so that I could be baptized. I completed the classes and participated in the water baptism ceremony, dressed in white and dunked in water. It meant everything to me. But not long after that,…

[bma1852]

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The most important contract.

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[fliegenengel]

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[blackhholes]

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[the-big-picture-bible-blog]

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[superbdonutpoetry]

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