Baptisms

 By Arthur J Licursi

 

Col. 2:12-13 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. 13And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened (made alive) together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

Romans 6:4 Therefore 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.

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.

 

The supposed need for water Baptism and the mode of water baptism is a ground upon which churches have often been divided. This conflict and confusion occurs when we don’t divide the Scripture (2Tim 2:15) dispensationally. There are several kinds of baptisms seen in the Bible, yet, Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles in “the dispensation of the grace of God (Eph 3:2), says there is only “one baptism” (Eph 4:5) for members of “the body of Christ”. Unlike the commission of the twelve Apostles, he was not sent not to baptize (1Cor 1:17. There were “ceremonial washings” under the OT law for Israel long before John the Baptist. This paper explores the purpose of the three main baptisms seen in what is commonly called the New Testament. We explore the meaning and purpose of each and to whom they apply. We must also see, what is “the medium” into which one is baptized, and who it is that is “the baptizer” in each case – these baptisms differ?

 

1) The Baptism of Jews, In Water …”Unto Repentance”
John the Baptist proclaimed that the Messianic “Kingdom of Heaven” was now “at hand”. Matthew 3:1-2 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, [2] And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

 

John also said in Matthew 3:11a I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: John’s baptism in water was unto repentance and for Israel only; they who had killed the prophets and rejected God. The Jews were well acquainted with ceremonial washings from the experience of Israel in the OT. This baptism unto repentance would indicate that Jew’s open heart to receive the long promised Messiah – Jesus.

 

Jesus of Nazareth offered baptismal salvation to the Jews spoken by Mark 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. If a Jew believed he certainly would be baptized, as a token of his belief, and thereby he was saved.

 

What did the Jew repent of and what did he believe? Israel had as a nation rejected God and killed the prophets. This repentance was a returning to God. This readied them to receive the long promised Messianic Kingdom for Abraham’s seed as an everlasting inheritance.

 

Let’s now reaffirm who this baptism unto repentance was for, and under what dispensation it occurs. This baptism was only for the lost sheep of the house of Israel and it occurs under the dispensation of the law. Jesus clearly told the disciples to go only to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel”, and baptize just as John had, with water unto repentance… so the nation of Israel could receive the Kingdom on earth.

Matthew 10:5-6 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

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

Matthew 5:17-18 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. [18] For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.

 

Thus we see that the disciples were to, baptize in water unto repentance and teach “all that Jesus commanded” – even keeping the Jewish law. This then is not of the Pauline “grace dispensation”, in which we live today. The grace dispensation came only after it was revealed to Paul by revelation of Jesus Christ some (9) nine years after the cross (Eph 3:1-5). Until that time God was still holding the kingdom offer open to the Israel. Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you (Israel): but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.  The door was closing and the Pauline mystery gospel went to the Gentiles. The door was finally shut tight in Acts 28:28.

 

With National repentance, Israel could have received the Messianic Kingdom on earth, which was long promised to Abraham and his seed. Of course we know, only a “little flock” of Jews received the baptism of repentance. Luke 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

 

Rather than the nation of Israel repenting, they crucified the Messiah – so Israel is currently set aside during the dispensation of the grace of God “until the time of the Gentiles be fulfilled” (Rom 11:25). Today, Israel still awaits the Messianic Kingdom and it will be fulfilled after the Tribulation, in the Millennium – after the dispensation of the grace of God is concluded with the Rapture of the body of Christ.

 

2) The Baptism In the Spirit…for Proclamation of the Messianic Kingdom Gospel

Jesus was the Baptizer with the Spirit for to empower the Apostles in the service of proclaiming the offer of Messianic Kingdom. This occurred on the day of Pentecost (a Jewish Holy Day), 50 days following Passover and Christ’s crucifixion. We see two kinds of baptism here in this verse. 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:  From Pentecost until Paul’s commission with the grace Gospel in Acts 9, the other 12 Apostles had miraculous “signs following” as the substantive evidential signs to give credence to their proclamation of the Messianic Kingdom, as they continued to baptize the Jews “unto repentance”. These sign gifts have ceased as signs (1Cor 13:8b). God in His mercy will still heal and deliver us as we trust Him as He sees fit – but no longer as a sign following the Apostles of the early period of the Acts of the Apostles; they are now long “asleep”.

 

3) The Baptism Without Water… into the Body of Christ

1 Cor. 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles (now without distinction Gal 3:28), whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

Christians, who are all of “the body of Christ” in this day of the dispensation of the grace of God, have no such Scriptural “rite” as water baptism. The “one baptism” Christians have is quite different; it is waterless. Paul writes of the one baptism to the believers at Ephesus. Ephes. 4:4-6 There is …, one baptism… This one baptism for today has replaced the water ceremonies of the former dispensation.

 

The Apostle Paul, who is the only Apostle writing of the “the body of Christ”, tells us the one baptism for Christians is to be baptized (engulfed) by the Spirit into the body of Christ. Paul further writes that a believer who baptized into Christ body is to be placed into His death, and become partaker of Christ’s resurrection life as the believer’s new life (Gal 2:20). Thus, this is not a ritual rite in the physical, but an actual happening that occurred the moment of regeneration, “in spirit”.

 

Comparing 3 Baptisms:

  1. The baptism unto repentance is upon the believing “lost sheep of the house of Israel” – “the little flock” (Luk 12:32). It was in water, carried out by John the Baptist and the Jewish disciples and Apostles.
  2. The baptism with the Spirit is upon believing Jews, without water and given by Jesus – who said this. Luke 24:49 And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued (enduo, clothed) with power from on high. Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. This baptism was with power and signs to proclaim the Messianic Kingdom being offered to Israel.
  3. Our grace dispensation baptism is into the body of Christ, of which Paul speaks; it is dry. This baptism is of our positioning “in Christ”, carried out by the Spirit. It is the core basis of our victory over sin, and of our new life as we identify with Christ death and life as our death and new life. It is only made effective … “by faith in the operation of God” (Col 2:12). Christ is now our identity as we have “put on Christ”. Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized (placed) into Christ have put on (enduo, sunk into as a garment) Christ.

 

An example demonstrating the matter of a “dry baptism” is this. 1 Cor. 10:2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the (Red) sea;  This is Israel’s experience of the overwhelming influence of God’s presence signified by the pillar of fire by night and cloud by day that covered the Ark that was with them in their travels in the wilderness. “Baptism” comes from the word Greek “bapto”, meaning to be whelmed, engulfed, or swallowed up. We know what it means to be “overwhelmed”.

 

We believers of the grace dispensation have been put into and engulfed by “the body of Christ”, by the Spirit; we have been swallowed up of His life and His death (2Cor 5:4). This is the only baptism for we who are of “the dispensation of the grace of God” (Eph 3:2). Any other baptism today would be an unnecessary ritual of the organized church, not of God. It is okay to baptize in water but at most it is symbolic that we have been placed into Christ’s body, his death and His life, as of the moment of our regeneration. Many Christians today neglect the real operation of baptism. Instead, they pay attention to the kind of water used or to the method of placing people in water.

 

Genuine baptism involves being placed into the body of Christ. What did Jesus do with His physical body? He offered it as a sacrifice for us on the cross; this was an operation in which we, as our old man, and Christ were buried, terminated with Him. We died with Christ. The One who carries out the operation is the Spirit. This operation involves the exercise of faith. Read Rom 6:4 noting that we have been buried together “with Him” in baptism. To be buried in baptism is to put off the body of the flesh, to disrobe or strip it off. This burial and termination is of the old man; through being engulfed by, or swallowed up, by the body of Christ. This is the real circumcision that has cut off our old man who had become sinful “flesh”. In Christ we died and are made alive; by His indwelling spirit He makes this real and effectual for us in our lives.

 

We must also look with emphasis at the 2nd half of Rom 6:4, “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.” We may note here that in Christ we have also been raised together to “walk in newness of life”. In baptism there is the burial aspect, which is the termination of our old self called “flesh”, and the raising aspect, which is the germination we enjoy by Christ’s life in our spirit. In the raising aspect we are made alive in Christ, having received His resurrection life at regeneration (1John 4:13). Thus the cross is our place of both termination and germination, as we are “in Christ”.

Paul points out that this is through the “faith of the operation of God”. Faith is not of our self; it is the gift of God (Eph. 2:8). The more we turn our heart to God, who indwells our spirit, the more faith we have. The Lord is the author and the perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:12). The more we abide in Him, the more we are infused with Him as our faith. It is through this living faith in the operation of the living God that we experience the resurrection life, signified by the raising aspect of baptism. There is the need for the exercise of faith to realize that an operation has taken place, to terminate the old being of the one who was regenerated and simultaneously baptized into the body of Christ. We must have faith in the operation of God, who raised Christ from among the dead.

We must realize that even as a new believer we have already been placed into God’s divine operation that has terminated him and buried him “in Christ”. It is by faith that he may have the reality of the termination and burial of the old man, the self-loving self, the flesh, the old natural (psuchikos, soul) life, and now also Christ is our new indwelling life. It is the operation of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus within us that will make these matters real in our life, more and more, as we endeavor to walk with the Lord according to the indwelling Spirit. God is working in us (Philippians 2:13)

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