Hebrews 6:1-3

Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the core teachings of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.

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The Five Baptisms

 

As we discussed in the first class, the New Testament was written in Greek. The Greek word for baptize is baptidzo. The root word bapto means to dip, to sink, plunge, immerse, submerge, and cover entirely with an element. Every time God’s word mentions baptism it’s used as a burial—to be rid of something and for something new to take it’s place. God’s Word teaches us that there are five baptisms for believers: The baptism of John the Baptist (repentance), the baptism into Christ, water baptism, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of fire. Since this class focuses on water baptism, we will briefly touch on the other four baptisms strictly for contextual purposes.

 

John the Baptist’s message of repentance was that people must repent of not just 99% of their sins and sinful ways, but ALL of them. This is the baptism of repentance—to fully dip, sink, plunge, immerse, submerge, cover entirely, or bury all sins in the precious blood of Christ. This is the first step a new believer takes.

 

Luke 3:2-6  —  While Annas and Caiaphas were high priests, the word of God came to John the son of Zacharias in the wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, saying: “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight. Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill brought low; The crooked places shall be made straight and the rough ways smooth; And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’”

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The baptism into Christ is when a person accepts salvation, and the Holy Spirit awakens the person’s lifeless spirit that was dead from sin. The Holy Spirit baptizes the new believer “into Christ” and “into His body”, the church. This is essential to salvation and the second baptism for the new believer.

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Romans 6:4  —  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.

 

Colossians 2:12  —  Having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.

 

1 Corinthians 12:13, 27  —  For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.

 

Galatians 3:27  —  For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

 

2 Corinthians 5:17  —  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

 

The third baptism is water baptism. This is the outward expression or demonstration of an inward transformation. It is when the believer publicly declares to all people, the demons and evil forces, to Satan, the angels, all of Heaven and earth that Jesus Christ is your Lord and savior. The believer is symbolically declaring that they were buried with Christ and arose just as He did into newness of life as a new creature. Being baptized in water is an act of obedience to God.

 

Matthew 28:19  —  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

 

1 Peter 3:21  —  Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ

 

1 Peter 3:21  —  This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son.

 

We will fully discuss the Baptism of the Holy Spirit in the next class.

 

The baptism of fire is when the believer is refined by God. The believer was a POW in Satan’s camp before accepting Christ, now they are on the front lines. They didn’t get shot at by the evil forces when they were no threat to them, but now they are marked by the enemy for their righteous deeds and potential conversion of more sons and daughters of God. But it is important to remember what Jesus said in Luke 10:19 “Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.” The new believe doesn’t know what they truly believe and what edges need to be smoothed. During this time, the believer will begin to see the impurities bubble up that were vailed deep down, and God brings them into the open to be exposed and dealt with. Refinement is for the believer’s benefit and allows to them to build the character needed to fulfill their ultimate purpose in His kingdom.

 

Luke 3:16  —  John answered them all, saying, “I baptize you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.

 

Zechariah 13:9  —  And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I say, ‘They are my people’; and they will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’”

 

Mark 10:38-39  —  Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized

 

Luke 12:50  —  I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!

 

1 Peter 1:6-7  —  In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

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Water Baptism by Immersion

 

The Greek translation of baptism is never to sprinkle or to pour. There is  no example in any Greek literature through the ages to suggest that the word has lost its original meaning. There’s no instance where it means a partial application of water by sprinkling or pouring, only to submerge or immerse. The passages in the New Testament speak of immersion by baptizing “in the Jordan” and “in the river Jordan”.

 

Matthew 3:6  —  And they were baptized in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.

 

Mark 1:10  —  And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

 

Acts 8:38-39  —  And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing.

John 3:23  —  John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized

 

Jesus went down into the river and “came up out of the water”. Phillip and the eunuch “went down both into the water” and came “up out of the water”. John baptized in a specific place because it had “plentiful water” and was sufficient for immersion.

 

Since Jesus taught and was baptized by immersion, and the practice of early church was immersion, no modern church or teaching has the right to change or modify the New Testament commands or to change the Greek meaning of baptidzo.

 

All arguments that suggest that immersion is impractical, dangerous to specific health conditions, indecent, and inconvenient are dangerous and contradictory to God’s Word. God doesn’t bless other modes of baptism simply because we think there might be a better way. God’s way is the only way and anything short is disobedience. Some use scriptures from Isaiah 52, Ezekiel 29, and Hebrews 10 to suggest sprinkling is a means of baptism. The problem is none of these are referring to water. The passage in Isaiah refers to the leaping for joy and rejoicing when the nations come to know Christ. The passages in Ezekiel and Hebrews are referring to the sprinkling of Christ’s blood. There is never any mention of sprinkling water in the New Testament.

 

There is also no support for infant-baptism in any of the Scriptures. No where can you find a command for infants to be baptized until they become responsible free-moral agents and turn to God and have their sins remitted as in the case for adults. There’s no Scripture that even implies such a practice. Salvation is a very personal experience, and children must become old enough to accept it before they can publicly declare before God and others that they accept Christ’s lordship. Children until becoming accountable, even if their parents are saved or unsaved, will be taken to Heaven if they die.

 

Matthew 18:1-10; 19:14  —  At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world for temptations to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the one by whom the temptation comes! And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire. See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”

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God’s word demands faith and repentance as necessary before baptism and no child can do this until they are old enough to understand sin and what must be done to receive salvation. Infant baptism became prominent when churches began to teach baptism and other physical practices were necessary to save the soul and remit sins.

 

Baptism is an outward symbol of the inward spiritual work of cleansing the soul from sin by faith in the blood of Jesus Christ. If we argue that baptism was necessary for salvation, then honestly ask yourself why it was necessary that Jesus be baptized? Why were the sins of Cornelius and his house, Paul, and others remitted without and before their baptism in water? How did those in the Old Testament days, those in the days that Christ was on earth, the thief of the cross, and many others have to be baptized to receive salvation? How could the disciples of John whose sins were remitted have the same sins remitted again by the disciples of Christ when they were rebaptized? Did John violate God’s law by baptizing Christ to remit the sins he had not committed? Don’t be deceived as there are many who teach this, but there is no Scripture to support it.

 

 

Going forward

 

Anytime Jesus called for people to follow Him, He did so publicly. It’s vitally important that we outwardly express and testify to the salvation we have experienced. God has set you right with Him, opening you up to a close and intimate relationship with Him. Everything in your life must show others that He is Lord and Master of your life. Your works in life will express whom you serve. No matter how hard you try, you cannot fake good spiritual fruit. The first step to living in obedience to God after salvation is to be baptized in water and to declare to the world that you serve Jesus Christ!

 

As you continually learn to live a holy life, God’s Word tells us that the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of the people around us so they will hear the life words we speak to them. We willingly abandon our responsibility as redeemed man if we don’t carry out this incredibly important work.

 

2 Corinthians 10:4 says, “For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.” The deeper we study and the more time we spend building our relationship with Him, the more that flame will spread in our spirits until it can no longer be contained inside us. This is when the power to witness by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit is manifested. Jesus said in John 7:38, “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” You will become a wildfire of wisdom and discipling those around you will come naturally.

 

The mission of Convergent City Church, along with the worldwide Body of Christ, is to equip our people for the spreading of this knowledge, which has the power to rip the chains of sin and death off the people around us and igniting that same flame in them!