Concerning Baptism

Concerning Baptism

 

Among the methods of baptism that we commonly know, there are, broadly speaking, the following methods according to each denomination.

 

1) Immersion: the body is immersed in water.

2) Affusion: water is poured by hand upon the head.

3) Aspersion: water is sprinkled with the fingers.

 

In particular, as can be seen even from the name of the Baptist denomination, Baptists administer baptism by the method of "immersion." These days, it also seems that more and more churches, beyond denominational and sectarian boundaries, are giving baptism by immersion, according to the way Jesus received baptism through John the Baptist... However, in this chapter, I would like us to search the Scriptures together to see whether what we truly must receive is the "water baptism" mentioned above. If we come to understand through the Scriptures what baptism Jesus truly desired to receive, and had to receive, then it will also become clear what baptism we must receive.

 

Before we consider baptism, there is something we must first think about, and that is "circumcision."

 

In the Bible, all males among the people of Israel were required to be circumcised. This was the covenant God made with Abraham: throughout their generations, every male was to be circumcised on the eighth day after birth, and the uncircumcised male would be cut off from his people (Genesis 17:9-14). According to this law, Jesus also was circumcised on the eighth day after He was born (Luke 2:21). Nevertheless, most churches today do not compel men to be circumcised as Jesus was. Why is that? Is there some problem with practicing circumcision? Or has the church broken the covenant with God that was commanded to be kept throughout generations?... No, that is not so. God certainly commanded circumcision, and Jesus also was circumcised on the eighth day according to that covenant. Nevertheless, through Jesus and His disciples, circumcision of the flesh was no longer emphasized, because Jesus became a minister of the circumcision (Romans 15:8), and therefore circumcision made with hands was no longer the true circumcision. The people of Israel rather made circumcision of the flesh a boast in their flesh, and yet, as those who had been circumcised, they did not humbly hear and follow the words of Jesus (Galatians 6:11-13). They looked down on the uncircumcised, while regarding themselves as righteous people who had kept the covenant with God. But the Bible says that although they had received circumcision in the flesh, they had not received the circumcision that they truly needed in their hearts and ears (Acts 7:51). Thus, it became clear that circumcision of the flesh did not benefit the people of Israel at all, and that through the gospel the circumcision we must now receive is "the circumcision of Christ," that is, the putting off of the body of the sins of the flesh (Colossians 2:11). For this reason, the early church no longer practiced circumcision of the flesh (Romans 2:25-29). This does not mean that God’s word commanding circumcision has not been kept from the early church until today. Rather, because of Jesus, it has been made possible for us to keep it more perfectly as the spiritual "circumcision of Christ."...

 

Now let us consider "baptism." We must all seriously search the Scriptures to see whether the "water baptism" emphasized in today’s churches is perhaps following the same path as the circumcision of the flesh in former times. In fact, just as with circumcision, the Bible speaks both of "baptism with water" and of the "spiritual baptism of Christ." Yet the truly more important spiritual baptism of Christ has not been emphasized, while the outward and visible, fleshly water baptism has instead been emphasized. As a result, churches administer "water baptism," issue something called a "baptism certificate," which is not found in the Bible, and even recognize people as "baptized members" on that basis. Think about it. Scripture says that judgment belongs only to Jesus (1 Corinthians 4:5), so how can a church judge someone to be a baptized member or not a baptized member? No matter how good the intention may be, the church can never do what is not written in the Bible. This is because the church is not above the Bible, but the Bible is above the church (Ephesians 1:22; Jesus is the Head of the church).

 

Therefore, regardless of the method by which water baptism is performed according to each denomination, what is truly important for us is not "water baptism" itself, but receiving the "spiritual baptism of Christ" given by Jesus.

 

Through the passages written below, we can clearly know how the water baptism of John the Baptist differs from the baptism of Jesus.

 

Matthew 3:11 "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire."

 

John 1:33 "And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost."

 

Acts 1:5 "For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence."

 

Thus, the baptism that John the Baptist gave with water was "the baptism of repentance" (Mark 1:4, Luke 3:3, Acts 13:24, Acts 19:4), while the baptism of Jesus is "baptism with the Holy Ghost and with fire." The baptism of John the Baptist foreshadowed the baptism of Jesus that would come later, just as the law of the Old Testament is a shadow of the gospel of the New Testament (Hebrews 10:1). In other words, the law of the Old Testament is the shadow, and the gospel of the New Testament is the reality. Although John the Baptist is recorded in the Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus said that he belonged to the law of the Old Testament (Matthew 11:13). Therefore, in this sense, the baptism given by John the Baptist may also be called the baptism unto Moses (1 Corinthians 10:2).

 

As seen in the passages above, since the "water baptism" given by John the Baptist was "the baptism of repentance," Jesus, who had no sin at all (1 John 3:5), did not actually need to receive it. That is why John the Baptist tried to prevent Jesus when He came to be baptized by him, as written below.

 

Matthew 3:13-15 "13Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him."

 

Nevertheless, the reason Jesus received water baptism through John the Baptist was, as verse 15 says, to fulfill all righteousness. In other words, just as Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day after He was born, He did this in order to fulfill the law in His flesh. Since Jesus fulfilled the whole law in His flesh in this way, from that time onward we must receive not the water baptism of John the Baptist, but the baptism of Jesus, that is, the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

 

If the baptism we must receive were nothing more than "water baptism," the following words of Jesus would be difficult to understand.

 

Mark 10:38-40 "38But Jesus said unto them, Ye know not what ye ask: can ye drink of the cup that I drink of? and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? 39And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized..."

 

The words above were spoken by Jesus to two of His disciples before He entered Jerusalem. The important part is that Jesus asked the two disciples, "Can ye... be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" In fact, Jesus had already received water baptism from John the Baptist. Nevertheless, He did not say, the baptism that I "was" baptized with, but the baptism that I "am" baptized with (Luke 12:50: I have a baptism to be baptized with). In other words, He was saying that there was a baptism that He still had to receive in the future. What kind of baptism was this? This baptism was clearly different from the "water baptism" (immersion) He had previously received from John the Baptist. Because the two disciples who heard these words at that time did not understand this baptism, they confidently answered, "We can." But now we all know what this baptism was that Jesus spoke of. The baptism that Jesus said He would receive, that is, the baptism He was yet to receive, referred to His death on the cross and His resurrection on the third day. Jesus came to this earth to receive not the water baptism of John the Baptist, but this baptism. And this baptism is the very "spiritual baptism that we also must receive"!

 

If Jesus had received the water baptism of John the Baptist but had not received the truly important baptism of the cross, what benefit would the water baptism received from John have had for Jesus or for us? The same is true for us today. If we have received water baptism from a church and have received a baptism certificate, but the desires of our flesh, that is, the old man, have still not died with Jesus, what benefit would that water baptism and baptism certificate received from the church have for us? This is the same as the people of Israel in the past receiving circumcision of the flesh, yet not receiving the circumcision that they truly needed in their hearts and ears, that is, the circumcision of Christ. Therefore, the baptism that is truly important for us, the baptism we absolutely must receive, is not "water baptism," but the baptism that Jesus received — the "baptism of Christ," in which we die and live together with Jesus.

 

Galatians 2:20 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

 

When we look at the passage above, Paul says that he was crucified with Christ, even though Paul was not actually crucified with Jesus, for Paul was chosen after Jesus had risen. This would not be speaking of his physical body. It does not mean that his physical body was crucified with Jesus; rather, it means that his old desires before knowing Jesus were crucified with Jesus. And from then on, he was saying that he would live again by faith in Jesus. This is the baptism of Jesus that we must receive. Therefore, through the passage in Colossians 2 below, Scripture clearly defines what the baptism of Christ is.

 

Colossians 2:12 "Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead."

 

As the passage above says, baptism is dying with Jesus and living with Jesus. In other words, baptism means that the old man, the old desires we had before knowing the words of Jesus, dies, and that we live again as people of faith who believe the words of Jesus. This can also be called "being born again" (John 3:1-5).

 

John 3:1-5 "... 3Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. 4Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? 5Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."

 

Romans 6:1-12 "... 3Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 6Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7For he that is dead is freed from sin. 8Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord."

 

Now, through the passages above, we can clearly know that the true baptism we must receive is not water baptism received according to form and ceremony, but the death of our old man, our old desires, and living again by faith in the words of Jesus. In the end, "water baptism" is only a ceremony that shows us that we must die with Jesus and live with Jesus. If someone participates in this ceremony, yet in daily life is not born again through the words of Jesus and continues to live according to the old man, the old desires, then he may have participated well in the ceremony of baptism, but he has not yet received the truly important baptism of Jesus Christ. Therefore, in the passage from 1 Corinthians 1 below, the apostle Paul testified that giving water baptism is not what is important, but preaching the gospel of the cross is more important.

 

1 Corinthians 1:10-18 "10Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you... 13Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? 14I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius; 15Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name. 16And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other. 17For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. 18For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God."

 

Among the words above, the statement, "Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel," teaches us that what is now important is not to whom we belong, or how we received water baptism, but that the preaching of the cross becomes the power of God to us, so that our old man, our old desires, dies and we live again by the words of Jesus.

 

Therefore, the question that Jesus asked James and John, the sons of Zebedee, in Mark 10:38-40, "Can ye... be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?" is not a question that applied only to James and John at that time, but a question that applies equally to us today. Can we truly receive the baptism that Jesus received? This is not "water baptism." As we have seen above, to die with Jesus means to die to the desires of our own flesh (Galatians 5:24), to the old man (Ephesians 4:20-24), and to this world and the things of this world (1 John 2:15-17). And when we die with Jesus, God will also raise us up again, just as He raised Jesus!

 

2 Corinthians 4:14 "Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you."

 

2 Corinthians 13:4 "For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you."

 

Finally, baptism is received in the name of Jesus.

 

Matthew 19:26 says, "With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible." This is the meaning of the command to baptize in the name of Jesus. We cannot do it, but the name of Jesus makes it possible. Because the authority of the name of Jesus is great and strong, everything must bow before the name of Jesus (Philippians 2:9-10, Luke 10:17-19). This is why we must be baptized in the name of Jesus.

 

Matthew 28:19-20 "19Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."

 

In this passage, the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost is not three separate names of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, but one name only: "the name of the Lord Jesus Christ." This is because the name of the Father is Jesus (John 5:43, John 17:11), the name of the Son is Jesus (Matthew 1:21), and the name of the Holy Ghost is also Jesus (John 14:26) [see The Name of God, "Jesus"]. Therefore, the disciples of Jesus, who heard the command above directly, baptized only in one name, the name of "Jesus," as shown in the following passages.

 

Acts 2:38 "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."

 

Acts 10:48 "And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days."

 

Acts 19:5 "When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus."

 

According to the command Jesus gave in Matthew 28:19-20, all people must now be baptized "in the name of Jesus." Jesus gave this command to His disciples and to us because He desires all of us to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). In order for all of us to receive the life of resurrection, all of us must be born again in the name of Jesus, and therefore He commanded this. Now we must rightly discern this will of Jesus, and, as the apostle Paul said, "I die daily" (1 Corinthians 15:31), we also must die daily in the name of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may always be manifested in our body. Because the baptism of Jesus is the baptism of the Holy Ghost, the Holy Ghost, that is, the life of Jesus, will always be with those who receive the baptism of Jesus daily.

 

John 12:24 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit."

 

2 Corinthians 4:10-11 "10Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. 11For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh."

 

Amen.