The Need for Christian Baptism

Friends,

*I have been away from the writing keyboard for a while…time to get back into the saddle with a really important topic.

One of the points of discussion that arose with the 5th grade class that I taught this past Wednesday at camp was, why did Jesus need to be baptized by John the Baptist?  I believe that there are some important reasons for this, one -- Jesus' baptism by John was the beginning of Jesus' ministry.  Mark 1:1 starts out: "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" and then Mark starts telling us about Jesus' baptism by John. Obviously, for some reason, Jesus' ministry began with His baptism.  Here are some things to note -- at this point in Jewish history, water baptism served one of three purposes. First, there was the baptism of repentance. This was what John the Baptist was preaching.  Of course Jesus didn't need to repent, because He hadn't sinned.  The second kind of baptism was for people who desired to convert to Judaism.  It was a baptism of conversion.  If you were a Gentile who wanted to convert to Judaism, they baptized you in water. Once again, Jesus had no need to convert to Judaism. He already was one. He had been born a Jew.  So baptism in those days could be for repentance or conversion... and Jesus did not need to be baptized for those reasons. So, for what other reason would a person be baptized in water back then?  The only other people who experienced baptism - in the Jewish faith in that day were priests. The Law dictated that especially the High Priest was to "be washed with water." And the Temple had pools set aside for just that purpose. Jesus did fulfill this role, as He is our Great High Priest.  But, there are other important reasons for Jesus’ baptism – one, it sets a good example for those who were going to follow Him.  He had no sin, but his disciples did, and we do, as well.  And as one friend has pointed out, “it fulfills all righteousness.”  We need to see in Jesus’ action, an example of obedience. Likewise, we need to be obedient to the Father, a response in faith. Finally, after His baptism, the Father anointed Jesus with the Holy Spirit as it descended on Him in form of a dove. And the Father put His mark of approval on Jesus by loudly declaring: "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:17)  This signifies something for us as well, as we will discuss…the Holy Spirit comes upon us at our baptism and He helps us in our spiritual walk, ministry.

Jesus’ experience helps us to understand what Paul has to say as it relates to baptism with a certain group of disciples.  In Acts 19:1-7, Paul providentially connects with several disciples at the city of Ephesus. Just as Priscilla and Aquila apparently had discussed Christian baptism with Apollos (Acts 18:24-26), so Paul does here with these men. He asks them if they received the Holy Spirit when they believed, that is, were converted, baptized. Paul apparently already expects them to have the Spirit...and would this not be consistent with Acts 2:38-39 and every other Christian baptism in Acts?  But, these believers have received the baptism of John only, and as we discussed, this was “for repentance.” The message concerning baptism is clear here and Paul baptizes them; they receive Christian baptism -- a water and Spirit birth (see Jesus and Nicodemus, John 3:1-8). Paul goes on to give these disciples a special, exceptional dispensation of power from the Spirit for this time. But, the point is this -- these disciples still had the same conversion experience that every Christian has in coming to the Lord. (See 1 Corinthians 12:13).

It is interesting that the baptism of John was not sufficient for them, but why would it be? It was administered by John the Baptist under the Old Law. Christian baptism involves not only repentance, as did John's baptism, but also the receiving of the indwelling Holy Spirit. This is primarily what separates the two baptisms. It is awfully difficult to live according to the fruit of the Spirit or experience the gifts of the Spirit if we don't really acknowledge, understand, or trust the source.  I have known many Christians who talk about Acts 2:38, as Peter says "...be baptized for the remission of your sins..." and this is it. But, is it? Is the part concerning the Holy Spirit just an oversight? Is it assumed? Or, is it intentionally omitted? (Is it really even understood?)  Some believers may have received the baptism of John -- at least in language, hopefully not intent. Why take the chance? Is the power of Christian baptism not sufficient for us? It should be so. We need to consider it as Peter shares it right from the text -- there is nothing to lose, but everything to understand and gain as it relates to the Christian walk. I will say this, I wouldn't have an opportunity to walk upright, blameless or spiritually for the Lord without the help of His Spirit to guide me along the way. He is our guide -- not in an arbitrary, controlling sense -- but quietly, indirectly.  We are not robots, but free moral agents with freedom of choice. The Spirit uses the Word to teach us and help us (Ephesians 6:17), and helps us in our prayers (Romans 8:27). He also is our seal so that when the Lord comes again, He will identify those who are His by whether they have His Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14, etc.). There certainly had to be a wonderful transformation for Apollos and the Ephesian disciples as they would continue to grow in knowledge, wisdom and experience with and in the Lord…as it should be for all of us.

As I continue in my own study of this important subject, questions arise. This is a subject where it is easy to propagate answers, but I think we are better off not to be dogmatic (and I certainly used to be)…rather, we should be students, learners. There are indeed so many things that happen when we come to the point of baptism -- many that we do not have the maturity to understand at that point, (including "forgiveness of sins" and "receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit" -- both part of the "formula" described in Acts 2:38-39...and this, not to mention "repentance" and "confession"). At times, some have treated baptism as some sort of “an end of the road” after a disciple has been "taught" everything that he should know. For these, baptism has been a law to fulfill the requirements of certain passages...which is not much different than what we see regarding Old Testament theology and practice. There must be more to it than this. We need to consider Apollos. As much as he already knew about "the Scriptures" and about God, he was surely in for a spiritual rebirth and for a totally new experience when he received Christian baptism (cf. Acts 18).

I believe baptism is much closer to the beginning of our journey. It is truly a spiritual event in every way. La Gard Smith calls it "the believers wedding ceremony" -- a fitting description, I believe. How much can we know at baptism? (How much does a baby know at birth?) We barely understand the elementary things, but certainly not the deep things of God; these are revealed over time by the Holy Spirit. And how do we qualify or quantify His work? We cannot...it is discerned and appropriated by faith. This is a significant part of what comprises the heart of the new covenant. We do grow in our understanding of critical principles as we walk with the Lord. Consider the disciples as they became the apostles sent out with the mission of Jesus (Acts 1-2). The Spirit came and illuminated their minds and their eyes were opened to the experiences they had had with Jesus. He does the same for us as our Helper (John 14-16), if we are open and willing to study as we walk with Christ over the course of our lives.

In many circles of the fellowship I belong to, baptism has been one of the "most legalized" events, experiences, etc. in modern Christian practice.  It is easy to see why it is such, given a lot of people’s propensity to need book, chapter, and verse to explain everything about our faith and practices.  But, if the Holy Spirit is involved in it...then it is a spiritual event...and it no longer becomes something that we can “pigeon hole” as "this is precisely how it is supposed to be,” or “this is exactly what happens every single time." It certainly wasn't that way in the early church, as we discern from Paul's experiences in Acts 8, Acts 10. I respect that there are certain elements involved in it, and a number of Scriptures (some that we have discussed) that indicate what these are...but, at the end of the day, the most important "element" is what the Holy Spirit is doing through the blood of Jesus in the life of believer...however that is to be for each individual.  God’s blessings be with you as you continue on your journey of understanding the Lord’s will and this important subject.

Blessings, Don

Keeping the Resurrection Real

Friends,

Rodney Buchanan shares this story -- I read a recent magazine article about a pastor and his encounter with some unbelievers while having breakfast. Here is how he tells the story: “My wife and I were vacationing in Estes Park, Colorado, and had breakfast in a coffee shop. It was empty except for four men at another table. One was mocking Christianity, and in particular, the Resurrection of Christ. He went on and on about what a stupid teaching that was. I could feel the Lord asking me: ‘Are you going to let this go unchallenged?’ However I was thinking, But I don’t even know these guys. He’s bigger than me. He’s got cowboy boots on and looks tough. I was agitated and frightened about doing anything. But I knew I had to stand for Jesus. Finally, I told Susan to pray. I took my last drink of water and went over and challenged him. With probably a squeaky voice, I said, ‘I’ve been listening to you, and you don’t know what you’re talking about.’ I did my best to give him a flying rundown of the proofs for the resurrection. He was speechless, and I was half dead. I must have shaken for an hour after that. But I had to take a stand. We cannot remain anonymous in our faith forever. God has a way of flushing us out of our quiet little places, and when He does we must be ready to speak for him.” I admire this pastor’s courage and his determination to be a witness, regardless of how difficult it was. A lot of Christians would have just sat there in fear or fumed, thinking about how terrible the things were that these men were saying. I realize that I have the opportunity of looking back with hindsight on the situation, but it seems to me that he missed the most important and impressive proof of the resurrection — his own life. I wonder if it would not have been more effective to walk over to the men at the table and say something like this: “You know, I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation, and found it very interesting. If you don’t mind, I would like to pay for all of your breakfasts. The reason I want to do this is that, because of the resurrection, Jesus Christ has changed my life and lives in me, and wants to communicate his tremendous love for you.” Rational arguments do not change people…changed lives do. Changed lives change the lives of others, and thereby change the world. 

I want to take a closer look at resurrection applied, now that we are about a month removed from Easter.  Resurrection does not mean a whole lot to us unless we are living like “resurrection” people who one day will be resurrected. And this brings us to Pauls’ explanation concerning the importance of the resurrection for us. (1 Corinthians 15:1-23) Paul is addressing the Corinthian church, and there are some there who have some misunderstandings concerning Jesus’ resurrection.  Paul seeks to correct these issues.  Paul shares that one of the greatest proofs of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ were His many post-resurrection appearances.  15:6 says that Jesus appears to more than 500 people!  So, there are many people that could testify to the trustworthiness of the Resurrection of Jesus. The reality of His appearance is that a transformation in Jesus’ followers takes place. This is evidence of the reality of the resurrection.  Lee Strobel writes, “Nobody willingly dies for something that they know is false.”(Case for Easter, p.88). But they know that the Resurrection is true, so they are willing their lives because of their belief in the resurrection of Jesus.  And the reality of the resurrection’s transforming power doesn’t stop with the eyewitnesses, but ultimately affects thousands of people.

So the question is, “Why should Christ’s resurrection be important to me?”  As we have seen, the Resurrection proves that Jesus is God and not an imposter. Paul opens the letter to the Romans (1:1-4) and reveals that the Resurrection proves Jesus to be the Son of God and brings us face to face with the fact that He is who He claims to be -- God. The founder of every other religion has found a way to die and stayed dead. Jesus rose again. This is important to us because it forces us to make a decision about our lives. Since Christ is who He claimed to be, how will you respond to Him? We need to come to understand that the Resurrection makes your salvation possible. Without the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, every person is still dead in their sins. If Christ did not rise, then you are still dead in your sins and your Christian faith is worthless and anyone you’ve known who died a believer is just as lost as an unbeliever. But, faith in Christ is not in vain. “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” (Romans 4:25)  It is important to you, because Jesus’ being alive means the way to God has been “paved” by Jesus and you can be made right with Him and have relationship with Him this morning.

One final, important matter to consider is that the Resurrection makes your resurrection possible.  You and I are spirit and body -- we are spiritual and physical. Our resurrection is only made possible by the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Stanley Horton points out, “Christ’s resurrection and ours are part of one and the same plan of God.” (Horton, Stanley. I & II Corinthians. p. 150)  Christ’s resurrection guarantees our own “spiritual,” bodily resurrection. The Bible refers to Him as being the ‘first fruits,’ which guarantees the whole harvest, of which you and I are a part if we are in Christ. In other words, since He was raised first, we know we will be raised. (vv. 20-23)  Paul says, “We ourselves, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved.” (Romans 8:23)  This ‘first fruits of the Spirit’ spoken of in Romans 8:23 is elsewhere referred to as a deposit or guarantee, in Ephesians 1:14, 2 Corinthians 1:22 and 2 Corinthians 5:5.  The Spirit’s indwelling is a guarantee that much more is on the way. We have the down payment of the Spirit, but are awaiting the full transaction that will come to fruition when our bodies are resurrected and we live forever with Him. When will our resurrection take place? The passage says “When he comes”…whenever that is to be. When we receive “resurrected” spiritual bodies at Jesus’ second coming, our current bodies will be transformed.  They will be bodies completely perfect and dominated by the Spirit rather than the sinful nature. We are awaiting the day our bodies are completely made new and free of the weight of sin and be entirely spiritual. “For in this hope we were saved” indeed…resurrection is our hope.  When Christ returns we will see Him and we will be transformed -- what a blessed hope indeed!

Unlike the beliefs of the Greek philosophers who thought the body was evil and something we should want to be released from, God made our bodies as part of who we are and they complete us. Right now our bodies are affected by sin and they die, but God has a plan to resurrect our bodies to perfection. So now, just look at yourself. Take a minute. Do you feel too fat? Too thin? Got hurting knees or allergies? Losing your hair? Whatever problems and imperfections you have are temporary and will one day be changed in the twinkling of an eye…if you are in Christ.  That is our hope. It is the completion for us of “the extreme body makeover”…a heavenly body for eternal living. While you may be as broken as Humpty Dumpty because of sin that is not fixable by anyone in the world, the tomb is genuinely empty and Jesus is definitely alive.  What He did on the cross paid for your sins and you’ve been given an opportunity to not only be fixed, but to become a new creation and to have fellowship with God. This is the joy of living in the Resurrection. God can fix you spiritually and you can have the hope that He will one day complete your redemption by redeeming your body to be something like Jesus’ body!  

Blessings, Don

Known by the Scars

Friends,

While flipping through the channels on the television one time, I happened upon a rerun of Everybody Loves Raymond.  I have not watched this show all that many times, but I stopped for a moment because I heard one of the characters mention God and the Bible.  Knowing that most sitcoms disparage God, Christianity and the Bible, I was, nonetheless, stuck with curiosity as to what would be said.  There was some predictable poking of fun at matters concerning the Faith, but I had to take pause concerning a serious question that was raised.  The question – “what is the meaning of life?”  They were looking half-heartedly at the Bible for answers, (with the irony being…the Bible really does have the answer to this question).  One of the characters came up with the agreed upon answer that – “the meaning is in the pursuit itself.”  This is rather vague…although, it is true in a sense.  But what is that pursuit?  Glorify God and keep His commands.  Yet, this is only half of it, because there is not only the pursuit, there is also the discovery!  Jesus Christ, the Son of God is Savior and Lord!  This is where purpose and discovery meet with eternal destination.  Pretty important stuff they were talking about…and they didn’t realize the half of it.  And this is why I am here to tell all of it…the whole story.  This is really part two of John’s resurrection story, following Mary Magdalene, Peter and John at the empty tomb.

Following Jesus’ resurrection, the news that Jesus is alive begins to spread among His followers…at first with hesitation, but then with enthusiasm. (John 20:19-29)  Even the disciples do not believe the first reports, but whenever people are confronted with the reality of the resurrection, their lives are transformed.  The Lord turns the fear of the disciples into courage.  How so?  First…He comes to them.  We do not know where these men were, but Jesus finds them…and it is amazing how it happens.  In His resurrection body, Jesus is able to just appear among them without ever opening a door. Yet, He has a solid body which can be touched, as we will see.  What we realize is that Jesus’ spiritual body is not limited. And it causes us to realize -- you could never really play “hide and seek” with Jesus. :-)

It is somewhat amazing that these men are actually afraid.  The women reported to them that Jesus was alive and the two Emmaus disciples likely added to their witness.  Jesus’ first word to them is the traditional greeting – shalom, (peace).  He could rebuke them for their unfaithfulness and cowardice, but He doesn’t.  He reassures them – He shows them His wounded hands and side, giving them the opportunity to discover that He is indeed their Master and not some sort of phantom.  The wounds mean more than identification – they are also evidence that the price of salvation has been paid and that man truly can have peace with God.  When Jesus sees that the disciples’ fear has now turned to joy, He commissions them (v.21)…this being His dedication of His disciples to the task of world evangelism (Matthew 28).  It must have given these men great joy to realize that, despite their many failures, Jesus still entrusts them with His words and His work.  Finally, Jesus enables them through His Holy Spirit, giving them a portion of power (v.22) in order that they should continue to grow in wisdom to be able to witness with power.

Now we come to the big question?  Why is Thomas (called Didymus – twin) not with the other disciples when they are together?  What we know is that Thomas is a man of courage (John 11:16), and is spiritually-minded, asking questions of Jesus (14:5).  Still, there seems to be this underlying “pessimism” to Thomas.  Many call him “doubting Thomas.”  Perhaps, this is too harsh of a designation…since he is looking for assurances.  Jesus does rebuke him, but it is not for doubt, as we call it, but unbelief.  Doubt is often an intellectual problem – we want to believe, but faith is overwhelmed by problems and questions.  Unbelief is a moral problem of the will – we simply refuse to believe. So, it is important to separate the two.  And this raises another question…what is it that Thomas does not believe?  Apparently, the reports of the other Christians that Jesus is alive. And this may be why Thomas had not been with the other disciples.  He reasons like a man – “seeing is believing.”  On the one hand we can admire Thomas for wanting personal experience.  On the other hand, we must fault him for laying conditions for the Lord to meet!  The other ten disciples had told Thomas that they had seen the Lord’s hands and side (v.20), so Thomas makes this his test.  Thomas’ own words help us to understand the difference between doubt and unbelief.  Doubt says, “I cannot believe”…there are too many problems.  Unbelief says “I will not believe unless you give me evidence.”  After one week, Jesus deals with Thomas and his unbelief.  The grace of our Lord is amazing, if you consider – he stoops to our level of experience to lift us up!  He grants Thomas’ request.  There is no record that Thomas accepts the Lord’s invite to touch Him, but his response seems to indicate such.  When the time comes to prove his faith, Thomas steps up.  Jesus’ next words are, literally, “stop becoming faithless, but become a believer.”  Jesus has seen a dangerous process at work in Thomas’ heart and He wants to put a stop to it.

One day, a group of agnostics asked a Christian scientist this question: "As a person rooted in science, how can you believe that God will raise the dead from the dust?"  Working quickly, the scientist mixed a few handfuls of sand with the smallest of iron shavings. Then he challenged the unbelievers, saying, "Before I answer your question, let me ask one of my own: Which of you can take this pile and separate the particles into two groups?"  Taken off guard, the unbelievers didn't really think their answer through.  This is what the Christian scientist did -- he took a high-powered magnet and held it over the mixed pile. In a second, the filings "jumped" from the desktop onto the magnet.  Turning to the unbelievers he then challenged them with this thought: "If the Creator establishes the laws which give such powers to a magnet, how can you believe He does not have greater powers Himself? I believe if the unseen power of the magnet can pull iron shavings out of the dirt; my God can use His almighty power to call forth bodies which have turned to dust."

How many disciples were in the room when Jesus first arrived?  That is right, ten.  Judas did not make it. Number eleven, Thomas, nearly did not make it.  I am thankful that he did not choose to continue on in his unbelief and have the same fate as Judas…and as so many others who live in this world choose.  We have every spiritual opportunity in Christ, just as did Thomas, to make the right decision about Jesus.  This is why Jesus says at the conclusion – “blessed are those who have believed without seeing.”  The Lord has a personal interest in each and every one of us.  In every way, He wants to strengthen our faith and include us in the blessings He has for us!  Thomas’ unbelief represents the “scientific approach” to life – I need proof.  It may be where some are today, but as with Thomas…it doesn’t work.  Only faith works…belief and assurance concerning what our Lord Jesus Christ has done for us.  We must understand that we are saved by the grace of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, and our obedient faith response to Him.  He is the basis for all peace; He died for all people – rich and poor, black and white, male and female, old and young, Jew and Gentile.  He rose from the dead victorious over Satan, sin and death for all time – and now He lives for us…and in us through His Spirit.  God has given us a most precious gift – our souls.  How can we not trust Him who made us, saves us, and knows us better that we know ourselves…with or souls?  In this we fulfill the pursuit…we have the discovery, and our lives have meaning!

Blessings, Don