I hope you had a great Thanksgiving holiday, if you mark such celebrations. My family, all 12 of us, and a neighbor of Gabe and Jess, gathered this year for a feast that included more food than could fit on our large island and table, not even making room for desserts that sat in the garage fridge until the right time. Gabe smoked a turkey to delectable perfection. We had, and have, much to be thankful for, and in, as mentioned last week.
We also celebrated the baptism of #3 grandguy Shiloh Barnabas Jordan. It had been a while since we had a baptism in our little fellowship. With that in mind I thought I would share a few notes on this Christian tradition that Jesus gave us an example of and commandment about.
INSTRUCTIONS ABOUT WASHINGS
Why do we wash? ….. We need to be cleansed.
[Exodus 30:19-21 NASB95] 19 “Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet from it; 20 when they enter the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, so that they will not die; or when they approach the altar to minister, by offering up in smoke a fire [sacrifice] to the LORD. 21 “So they shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they will not die; and it shall be a perpetual statute for them, for Aaron and his descendants throughout their generations.”
[Leviticus 16:15-16 NASB95] 15 “Then he shall slaughter the goat of the sin offering which is for the people, and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. 16 “He shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the impurities of the sons of Israel and because of their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and thus he shall do for the tent of meeting which abides with them in the midst of their impurities.
In laying a foundation for understanding baptisms we need to emphasize that our God is Holy. And, He desires for us to be Holy.
Leviticus 11:25-44(25-43 outline laws concerning insects and crawling things, showing just how impossible it is for us to be pure and holy) [Leviticus 11:44 NASB95] 44 ‘For I am the LORD your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. And you shall not make yourselves unclean with any of the swarming things that swarm on the earth.
We discover our need of cleansing from sin as the Holy Spirit draws us to conviction and repentance by revealing God’s redeeming love to us in Jesus.
[Romans 4:2 NASB95] 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.
Good works or religious effort cannot make us righteous or give us right standing before Him.
What cleanses us?
[1John 1:7 NASB95] 7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
[Ephesians 1:7 NASB95] 7 In Him (Jesus) we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His (God’s) grace
[1Peter 1:17-19 NASB95] 17 If you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your stay [on earth;] 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, [the blood] of Christ.
In terms of cleansing to set us in fellowship with God, or to set us apart for service to Him, only one thing with suffice: The Blood of Jesus
[Hebrews 13:12 NASB95] 12 Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate
Sanctify is a big theological term. It just means to set apart and cleanse for service
[Hebrews 10:29 NASB95] 29 How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?
The context of this scripture is a judgement, however it once again shows us that we can only be sanctified by the blood of Jesus. Service and good works, religious activity, do not cleanse or sanctify. We are sanctified by His blood, and in Him, set apart for service in His purposes.
On a daily basis the cleansing work of sanctification is on-going and continues for the believer. A vessel set apart for service is cleansed on an on-going basis for use and after each use. In the believer, the Holy Spirit in us uses the word of God to do this ongoing work.
[1Thessalonians 5:23-24 NASB95]23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.
You are saved and sanctified at salvation. It is complete in the Spirit, but God through the Holy Spirit continues this ongoing sanctification process in the realm of your soul (mind, will, and emotions). Man, being created in His image, is triune (Body/Soul/ Spirit) even as God is triune (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). At salvation, the work is totally complete in the spirit – that part of us that communes, communicates, and lives in and with God. The sanctification is on-going in our soul (mind, will and emotions) as the Holy spirit is renewing our minds though the word of God. In our body, this physical temple in which we have our being, we are still decaying, but it too will one day be perfected.
[2Thessalonians 2:13 NASB95] 13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.
This scripture makes it clear the believer has been chosen by God for salvation, but a part of that is the sanctification process which is the on-going work of the Holy Spirit using our faith in the truth (the Word of God/ Jesus.)
What is truth?:
[2 Samuel 7:28 NASB95] 28 “Now, O Lord GOD, You are God, and Your words are truth,
and You have promised this good thing to Your servant.
[John 14:6 NASB95] 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one
comes to the Father but through Me.
[John 8:31-32, 36 NASB95] 31 So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him,
“If you continue in My word, [then] you are truly disciples of
Mine; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make
you free.” … 36 “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free
indeed.
[John 17:17 NASB95] 17 “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.
His word has sanctifying power and effect
[John 15:3 NASB95] 3 “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.
Hearing the word of truth and obeying it has a purifying effect.
[1Peter 1:22 NASB95] 22 Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart,
The church Peter wrote to heard the truth and obeyed it. The conscience was purified by the Spirit using the truth and applying the word.
[1Corinthians 6:11 NASB95] 11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
Paul speaking here of the sanctifying work of the Spirit
[Acts 15:7-9 NASB95] 7 After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brethren, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe. 8 “And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; 9 and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith.
Peter here, again, giving evidence of the Holy Spirit doing sanctifying work through the agent of the word/truth.
[Ephesians 5:25-27 NASB95] 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
Paul contextually addresses love in marriage, but also makes reference here to how the Word/truth is used in the process of sanctification as well.
Now, it has been established that the cleansing purpose of washing is accomplished once and for all by the blood of Jesus alone. Redemption, Salvation, and Sanctification in the Spirit are all a matter of the heart responding to God’s goodness, and the fullness of His love in Jesus, revealed by the Holy Spirit within. In the Kingdom of God, we generally find that what God works into us, results in something being worked out of us as well.
Example: 1) Conviction (His revealing by the Spirit His great love and our falling short of His glory) results in our repentance. 2) Faith (It comes from Hearing Him -Romans 10:1 7) and obedience to what He has spoken results in our seeing the fulfillment of His plan and purpose for us.
[Acts 2:38 NASB95] 38 Peter [said] to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
New believers having received Jesus were instructed in Peter’s preaching to Repent and be baptized.
In Acts 8 Philip comes across an Ethiopian eunuch reading Isaiah and shares the gospel with him. After he comes to faith by hearing, He is baptized.
[Acts 8:35-38 NASB95] 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him. 36 As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, “Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 37 [And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”] 38 And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him.
These two incidents show us that when God reveals to us the newness of life there is in Christ Jesus, it draws out of us a desire to be released from the flesh, even if it means death. We desire to die to self that we might live through the resurrected Jesus. The next natural step is water baptism.
Water baptism is to follow conversion, not produce it. That also is the example of these two scriptures. It will not save you. It will not make you any more a child of God than you already are.
Christian water baptism is simply an outward act of obedience by which a believer in the Lord Jesus professes and fulfills the inward righteousness he already enjoys in his heart through faith in Christ atoning death and His life giving resurrection. It is an outward profession of what inwardly has been done in the heart. It represents the laying down of our life to find it in Jesus and live in Him.
Why be baptized?
1) It is what Jesus taught and commanded as a part of being His disciple
.
[Matthew 28:18-20 NASB95] 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
2) In obedience to fulfill all righteousness
[Matthew 3:13-15 NASB95] 13 Then Jesus arrived from Galilee at the Jordan [coming] to John, to be baptized by him. 14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” 15 But Jesus answering said to him, “Permit [it] at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he permitted Him.
Jesus had no need of baptism for cleansing. His attitude was to be obedient to the Father and it was symbolically His washing anointing by the Spirit as High Priest and being set apart for ministry.
3) Public confession – for you. And perhaps more importantly for God. At Jesus’ baptism God proclaimed from heaven “This is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.” AS you declare publicly your desire to die to self and live for Him as His son, He declares you to be His own beloved.
[Matthew 3:16-17 NASB95] 16 After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove [and] lighting on Him, 17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”
4) Baptism gives us a relatable experience of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. We must lay ourselves back in the hands of someone else (the Father in Jesus case, represented by the one doing the baptism for us) to be put to death, die, be buried, and risen again trusting their hand to raise us up.
[Romans 6:3-8 NASB95] 3 Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have become united with [Him] in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be [in the likeness] of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with [Him,] in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him
5) We proclaim leaving the old ways and the world (Egypt) and moving into a new way of living (the Kingdom,under His LORDship).
[1Corinthians 10:1-2 NASB95] 1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea; 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
Paul, here, is alluding to Israel being baptized in crossing the red sea, where they had to trust their God and deliverer and savior Moses. They were leaving Egypt (which represents the World and the only way of life they knew, enslaved) to move into obedience following their savior to a new promised land and way of life (free from the bondage of Sin, released into His loving Lordship).
See this deliverance in Exodus 14 – the trusting of a Savior.
[Colossians 1:13-14 NASB95] 13 For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
6) Standing with a clear conscience in Christ.
[1Peter 3:18-21 NASB95] 18 For Christ also died for sins once for all, [the] just for [the] unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; 19 in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits [now] in prison, 20 who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through [the] water. 21 Corresponding to that, (Noah and the ark)baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh—, but an appeal to God for a good conscience–through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Noah believed God walking uprightly before Him and obeying what He spoke to Him. Even the seeming foolishness of building a boat for a flood, when it had never rained before. Noah found favor and grace with God and that (hearing Him – being obedient to what was spoken/revealed to him by God {the outworking of faith}) became the means of salvation to him. The water didn’t save him or cleanse him. It in fact was the element of judgment. The ark (a type of Christ) saved him. He rode out/came through judgement in the ark (just as we do so in Christ Jesus). And his being in the ark was the result of his faith which came from hearing and his obedience to what God spoke and revealed. The water, representing judgement, was used as a regenerative/sanctifying tool to bring him through death to resurrection life. Just like the word of God, which can bring righteous judgement, or be a regenerative and sanctifying tool in Christ by the Spirit.
What are the conditions for baptism?
1)Repent and Believe.
Mark 1:15 NASB95] 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
REPENT: Repentance is more than feeling sorry about sin or wrong. Repentance requires change with the help of the Holy Spirit. There should be a determination to, by His grace, and empowered by the Holy Spirit, to live the Christian life as a follower, disciple , of Jesus without turning back.
BELIEVE: This is not simply mental assent to the historical fact of Jesus and His existence, but a full trust in His work at death, burial and in His resurrection for salvation. And in understanding the fullness of God’s love manifest in Jesus, a commitment to live under His Lordship. Confess that Jesus is LORD, the Son of God, The Christ, and the only hope for man for right standing before God.
In what name am I to be baptized?
The Name of Jesus
[Acts 19:5 NASB95] 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
The Name of the Father and he Son and the Holy Spirit
[Matthew 28:19] 19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
Lord Jesus Christ – Lord: speaks of Kingship and Divine nature as ruler of all (Father)
Jesus: speaks of his Sonship and literally means savior (Son)
Christ: literally means anointed one reveals his empowerment (Spirit)
As in most cases the specific words don’t matter much; the heart does. But, to satisfy those that would debate the issue, or be cantankerous in legalism, in doing baptisms covering all the bases I generally say ” I baptize you in that name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
[Galatians3:27 NASB95] 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
By Whom May we be baptized and Where?…
Acts 9 shows us that any disciple may baptize you. The apostle Paul was ministered to by certain disciple named Ananias at Damascus who baptized him shortly after his conversion to Christ
[Act 9:17-19 NASB95] 17 So Ananias departed and entered the house, and after laying his hands on him said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road by which you were coming, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 And immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he regained his sight, and he got up and was baptized; 19 and he took food and was strengthened. Now for several days he was with the disciples who were at Damascus,
As for where?
As we saw in Acts 8 previously with Phillip and the Ethiopian eunuch. Anyplace there is water deep enough is a good place.
These are some basics concerning washings and water baptism for the believer. It is not a “have to do”; It is a “get to do”, and it is always a joy to celebrate with a believer making a public profession of faith identifying with being crucified, buried, and resurrected to new life with, and in, Jesus. I hope these scriptures and notes are helpful in your decision and understanding regarding baptism. But more than that, in making a decision, or helping others to make a decision, to follow Jesus living under His Lordship by and through His death, burial, and resurrection. Feel free to share them with others who may have questions regarding baptism for believers.