about babtism

[babysteps]

Matthew 28:19-20 and Mark 16:15-16



Go into all the world

Preach the Good News to all creation

Make disciples of all nations

Baptize them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.

NOTE
Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.
Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

Go into all the world and Preach the Good News to all creation and

All who are appointed for eternal life will believe (Acts 13:48)

Make disciples of them and Baptize them and Teach them to obey everything Jesus commanded.



Baptism was introduced by John the Baptist

It was a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin

Referred to as John’s Baptism

As recorded in

*Mark 1:4-5 (NIV)

4 And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
RIVER


And John said in

*Matt 3:11 (NIV)

11 "I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.



Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist

As recorded in

*Matt 3:13-17 (NIV)



13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" 15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. 16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."



Think about what Jesus said to John in verse 15

"Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." ----- HMMMM ----- to fulfill all righteousness.



? Baptism to fulfill all righteousness ?



Baptism is

For Repentance, Forgiveness and the receiving of the Holy Spirit

*Acts 2:37-41 (NIV)

Peter address the crowd on the day of Pentecost

When they heard the message they ask

"Brothers, what shall we do?"

38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off-- for all whom the Lord our God will call." 40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, "Save yourselves from this corrupt generation." 41 Those who accepted his message (who were appointed for eternal life) were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.



The Gift of the Holy Spirit, empowers us with Faith -- that is righteousness.



A righteousness that is by faith from first to last (Rom 1:17)

Nothing but Faith

And faith brings about obedience.

Obedience that comes from faith (Rom 1:5)



We can not please God without Faith

And

Any thing out side of Faith is sin!



The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit



Jesus prayed to the Father to

“Sanctify them by the truth;” (John 17:17)

And in (1 John 5:6) we are told that

“The Spirit is the truth.”



The Holy Spirit writes

May God himself, the God of peace,

sanctify you through and through.

In (1 Thess 5:23)

and adds in vs 24

The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.



And in

(2 Thess 2:13) He writes

from the beginning

God chose you to be saved

through the sanctifying work of the Spirit



And again the Holy Spirit writes in (1 Peter 1:1-2)

To God's elect, strangers in the world,

2 who have been chosen

according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,

through the sanctifying work of the Spirit,

for obedience to Jesus Christ



The Holy Spirit reveals God plan of Baptism

In more detail in

Romans Chapters 6, 7, and 8

And it would do you well to read all 3 chapters with baptism in mind

But more specific

*Rom 6:3-14, Rom 7:4-6, Rom 8:1-17 (NIV)

and He writes starting in 6:3

3 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him (in baptism) so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin-- 7 because anyone who has died (in baptism) has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, (in baptism) we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. (and through baptism we share this with Christ Jesus) 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. (in baptism) 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; (in baptism) and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace.



Old covenant ------ Baptism ------ New Covenant



From the Old Covenant, Law,

through Baptism

to the New Covenant, Grace



Rom 7:4-6

4 So, my brothers, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, (in baptism) that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were controlled by the sinful nature, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in our bodies, so that we bore fruit for death. 6 But now, (in baptism) by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.



Rom 8:1-17

8:1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, (Baptism) 2 because through (Baptism in) Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, 4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature according to the Spirit (because we died to the sinful nature through baptism and was raised to live in the Spirit)



5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; (in baptism) 7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so. 8 Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.



9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. (because we died to the sinful nature through baptism and was raised to live by the Spirit ) And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. (Baptism) 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you. (Baptism)



12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation-but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, (Baptism) 14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. (Baptism)



Jesus said,

"You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with.”in Mark 10:39

to fulfill all righteousness (Mat 3:15)



Babtism of the Holy Spirit

*Titus 3:4-7 (NIV)

4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, (Baptism) 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (Baptism)



*1 Cor 12:13 (NIV)

13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body-- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free-- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.



*Col 2:9-14 (NIV)

Baptism and Circumcision of the Holy Spirit

and Baptism of water



9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and you have been given fullness in Christ, (Baptism) who is the head over every power and authority. 11 In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. 13 When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, 14 having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.



Gal 3:26-27 (NIV)

26 You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus,

27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ

have clothed yourselves with Christ.







Some who have been baptized have not received the Holy Spirit.

Why??

There are two accounts that help us see into this

One is in Acts 8:12-17 and reads

12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

14 When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, 16 because the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them; they had simply been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 17 Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.



The other is found in

Paul’s comments to the twelve men in Ephesus

About John the Baptist’s baptism.

*Acts 19:2-6

and it reads

2 and asked them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" They answered, "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."

3 So Paul asked, "Then what baptism did you receive?" "John's baptism," they replied.

4 Paul said, "John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus." 5 On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.
SHALL WE GATHER AT THE RIVER YES WE SHALL GATHER AT THE RIVER :JesusPraying

[babysteps]

Here it is is a little long but i hopeing you like it ;D

[ldysly]

Most Excellent!! One of the happiest days of my life was the day I was baptised. Second happiest was when hubby was baptised ;D

[Keith]

babysteps said:

Here it is is a little long...

Yes, it is very long, so are you saying baptism is necessary for salvation Babysteps?

[babysteps]

Hi keifer I am not yet babtized and I made the decision a few months ago to recieve Jesus as my personal lord and savior and so now the time has come I wish to be babtized and so when i first begin Bible study a long time ago i begin with John and i like John and i read this one and John 3:5 Jesus 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.
John 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
John 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. As i understand when we invite Jesus into our heart to forgive me i am a sinner we recieve the spirit of jesus and there is many babtisms as i read there is one by holy spirit there is one by water and so i understand its not the water or who babtizez us that saves us it is the spirit of Jesus by his perfect sacrafice his blood that he shed that allows me a sinner to be forgiven and to learn to walk and be disciple of Jesus and so water babtism gives me a oppurtunity to make myself sealed in my decision to make Jesus my personal savior and so i think is nesesary for me to do it because i want to and i believe what Jesus say and that he is risen and so with the study about babtism which i not finished yet i am hopeing to be babtized and so i also read one that i dont understand all about it yet and so i dont know if is nesessary for me to be set apart i believe when i asked Jesus to come into my heart and make it his alone that thats my first understanding i do this months ago yet i dont understand if i must be babtized to get to be set apart i think so thats its part of the way but i have to study and this one i dont get all of it so i will have to look it up in my Bible and read and asked jesus to help me with it i will posted it so you can see what im talk about

[babysteps]

Have you ever asked youself if you will be assured a place in heaven??Who's In and Who's Out? - Membership in the Old Testament

There are a number of ways we could characterize the story of the Bible, but
one is to say that it is the story of God's wrath against his enemies and of
his love for his people. Given the starkness of that contrast, God makes a
clear line of distinction throughout this grand story between those who are
his people and those who are not. The Bible traces this kind of "membership"
from creation to consummation.

In the Garden of Eden, God's people lived in communion with him. After Adam
and Eve's rebellion, he dissolved their fellowship and expelled them from
the Garden. He established a perimeter around the Garden and charged an
angelic guard to keep the humans out. God excluded the sinner. While they
remained righteous, they were in. When they sinned, they were out.

God then appeared to Abraham in Genesis 12 with a gracious promise to create
from his descendents a new people that belonged to the Lord. He reaffirmed
this promise in chapter 17: "I will establish my covenant between me and you
and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting
covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you....and I will be
their God" (Gen. 17:7-8). A relationship would abide between Abraham's
descendants and the Lord that was distinct from his relationship with all
other human beings. There would be two kinds of people: those who are "God's
people" and those who are not.

In order to make this spiritual reality physically apparent, God gave
Abraham the sign of circumcision as a rite of initiation and inclusion-an
entryway to signify membership among God's people. So significant was this
marker that individuals from foreign nations could be included among God's
people upon circumcision (Genesis 17:27), and physical descendants of
Abraham could be cut off from God's people for refusing circumcision
(Genesis 17:14). There was a clear line of distinction: the circumcised were
in; all others were out.

The Levitical law further established and codified this line of distinction.
It set apart the sons of Israel from the rest of the world. God wanted his
people to be pure and holy, distinct in everything from their clothes, to
their food, to their worship. Those who kept the law were in; all others
were out.

Moses and then Joshua repeatedly told the nation of Israel to remain
separate and pure as they took possession of the land of Canaan. Just as
they were to live within the physical boundaries of the land, they were to
live within the spiritual boundaries of the Levitical law and holiness code.
Joshua warned,

Be very careful, therefore, to love the LORD your God. For if you turn back
and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make
marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, know
for certain that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations
before you, but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your
sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground
that the LORD your God has given you (Jos. 23:11-13).

Yet again and again the Israelites failed to maintain this distinction.
Beginning with the book of Judges, the Old Testament histories chronicle how
idolatry and intermarriage made the Israelites indistinguishable from their
neighbors. Relative to these neighbors, being an Israelite meant less and
less. By the time of Israel's exile, only a remnant remained faithful. Since
Israel lived and worshipped like a pagan nation, God sent them off to live
among the pagan nations. Since the spiritual borders had vanished, he did
away with the physical borders of the land. It was no longer clear who was
in and who was out.

The Shepherd's Sheep - Membership in the New Testament

When we turn to the New Testament, we find that God sent his Son to create a
new people for himself, the church. Now, both Jews and Gentiles, because of
Christ's work, are invited to be God's people through faith. Those who were
once not a people are now the people of God (1 Pet. 2:10). They were out;
now they are in.

Instead of physical circumcision or ethnicity, followers of Christ are
identified with the people of God through baptism (Acts 2:41). This baptism
symbolizes their identification with the crucified and risen Christ. As Paul
wrote,

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were
baptized into his death? 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 (Romans 6:3-4).

As a Baptist, I must point out that the coming of Christ and his finished
work on the cross created certain discontinuities between the Old Testament
and the New Testament people of God. Old Testament Israel was a mixed
community, comprised of both physical and spiritual descendants of Abraham
(Rom. 9:6-8). Yet the Lord promised through the prophet Jeremiah a new
covenant "not like the covenant that I made with their fathers," but a
covenant in which "all know me, from the least of them to the greatest"
(Jeremiah 31:31-34). The body of Christ is then comprised exclusively of
those who, by faith, have been united to him. In the words of the prophecy,
they all know the Lord.

This element of discontinuity from Old Testament to New will become
significant when we consider exactly who is in and who is out among the New
Testament people of God. For now, we should observe the continuity between
the people of God in both Testaments: God continues to make a distinction
between those on the inside and those on the outside. There are sheep, and
there are goats. There are those who have been baptized into Jesus, and
there is everyone else.

Jesus even compared the church to a sheep pen of which he is door (John
10:7). And a sheep pen has a fence. Jesus also said that he knows his sheep
and that his sheep know him (John 10:14).

This pattern of inclusion and exclusion is brought to a head at the
consummation of history. At the end of time, God will make a final and clear
separation. All mankind will clearly see on that solemn day who dwells among
God's people and who does not. The sheep will be separated from the goats
(Matt. 25:31-33). Those whose names are found written in the Lamb's book of
life will be ushered into glory, while those whose names are not written in
his book will be cast out (Rev. 21:27).

Conclusion

In our present day, we live in between the inauguration of Christ's kingdom
and its consummation. Because the powers of darkness continue to work, it is
not yet apparent to our eyes who belongs to the people of God and who does
not. Yet the practice of church membership helps to make that distinction
clearer. When a local church accepts a believer into membership by virtue of
his baptism and profession of faith, the church proclaims to the world,
"This person gives evidence of being a Christian. Consider him a part of
God's people." When an individual Christian joins a church, he proclaims to
the world, "This body of believers is the body of Christ, the people of
God."

The people of God are not called the people of God for their own sake. They
exist as the people of God to please and glorify God. In other words, the
distinction between them and the world is not simply ontological (though it
is not less than that), it is also ethical and teleological. Christ calls
the church to be salt and light in a dark and decaying world (Matt 5:13). He
tells Christians not to conform to the evil desires they had when they were
not God's people, but to be holy as God is holy (1 Pet. 1:14-16). And he has
saved the church so that it might display the eternal glory and wisdom of
God to the universe (Eph. 3:10). As such, a clear line of membership helps
to make these ethical and teleological goals a reality in the life of the
church. It marks out these people as a display of his mercy and kindness to
the surrounding world-all to his glory.

Throughout Scripture, we see a pattern of God making his people visibly
distinct from the world. When the local church practices meaningful church
membership, it simply participates in what God has been doing all along.

One day, the Lamb's book of life will be the only membership roll, and the
reading of that roll will be dreadful and awesome. Until that day, churches,
by keeping lists, show love for those on the inside and those on the outside
(cf. 1 Cor. 5:12-13). However imperfect these earthly lists might be, they
prepare everyone for the final reading of the list that bears no mistakes.

Mikey McKinley is the pastor of Guilford Baptist Church in Sterling, VA and
the 9Marks lead writer on the topic of membership.

August 2006

(c)9Marks

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explicitly approved by 9Marks.

if you read the story of christs crucifiction there was the thief that asked jesus to remember him and jesus tell him yes today you will be with me in paradise and so if i not babtized and the rapture was to happen today or tomorrow i hoped it no leave me behind because i not babtized yet? so anyway i understand a little more about it and so the question about who is in who is out? i think that if we seriously maked the decision then we will do all jesus asks and we have a his word to help us and so i already want to be babtized ans so mom say you study and be more understand for myself and so i do this and so i do understand more so i will go for babtism soon i want to this is my prayer that Jesus will be there in his spirit and know i am happy and i like that i am forgiven of sin and i want to go with Jesus when he returns and so i believe i should get to be babtized because i already know about the blood jesus shed for me was for all who accept his free gift and i accepted already it is good to learn some before just recieve and go this is one way that i understand from talk to already christians and i know i am not change my mind so i am not a false convert or decide this just to recieve everything good i do this because my sin seperate me and i know jesus make a plan and i believe in it and i not change my mind about my decision to ask Jesus and recieve what is makes others know i am a christian which means i follow jesus and his word

[Keith]

Hi Babysteps,

First, I rejoice with the angels in Heaven for your salvation! But you don't seem to be enjoying the fact that you ARE saved because you're depending on baptism to finish Jesus' work on the cross. Here's some points to ponder:

Jesus was without sin:

"...in him is no sin." (1 John 3:5 KJV)

Therefore He had no need of baptism. If we are in 'need' of baptism to cleanse our sin, His blood sacrifice on the cross was not sufficient for our cleansing of sin, which completely contradicts the following:

"...the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." (1 John 1:7 KJV)

Salvation is by faith only:

"To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins." ( Acts 10:43 KJV )

"But the Scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." ( Galatians 3:22 KJV )

You don't have to be baptized to be saved. The disciples baptized, but Jesus did not:

"(Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,)" ( John 4:2 KJV )

Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist said:

"I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost." ( Mark 1:8 KJV )

And the Holy Spirit indwells us when we become saved:

“What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?” ( 1 Corinthians 6:19 )

We are baptized with water only to identify ourselves with Christ's water baptism, never as a means of salvation:

"And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan." ( Mark 1:9 KJV )

"For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." ( Galatians 3:27 KJV )

Also, consider the story of Philip and the eunuch:

"And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him." ( Acts 8:36-38 )

Notice what Philip said, “If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest”. Faith has to come first before baptism is performed. Baptism is done by believers in Christ to publicly manifest their identification with Him, but is not a means of salvation.

Also, Peter stated the following:

"Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?" ( Acts 10:47 KJV )

The Holy Spirit is received by the believer at the moment of salvation, not at the moment of baptism. If salvation is not by faith only, then Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross was in vain.

So yes, you should be baptized after you are saved, but only as a witness to others of your salvation.

[babysteps]

well at this one calvary church they babtize in the ocean and so i did not want to go in the ocean i went to the beach when i first see florida i dint liked it and so i am not allowed to go in the water unless i have on my life jacket so i dont drowned im not allowed to walk by the canal either so i someday will learn to swim i go in the pool almost everyday is good for my muscle and i like can run and do more things i am better with cp and i go to school monday yahooee!

[babysteps]

only as a witness to other about salvation thats good because jesus trial is over and we might sometime go to witness a trial but salvation is not on trial that is weird

[Keith]

Yes, pool workouts are very good! There's a lot of places around that have low-arobic pool classess available...

[Keith]

babysteps said:

only as a witness to other about salvation thats good because jesus trial is over...

AMEN!

[Steve]

This is the first Bible study I wrote for CIC, three years ago. Hopefully it will help add a little to your understanding:

An Exegetical Analysis
Of Baptism

Baptism is an act that has Old Testament roots but New Testament fulfillment. The origin of baptism comes from the ceremonial bathing of the Old Testament. While in the desert with Moses, the priests had to bathe before they could put on the sacred garments or enter the sanctuary of the Ark. They had to be ritually clean before entering they presence of the Lord in the Most Holy Place,

He shall put on the holy linen tunic, and the linen undergarments shall be next to his body, and he shall be girded with the linen sash and attired with the linen turban (these are holy garments). Then he shall bathe his body in water and put them on.”
Leviticus 16:4

Later, while building his temple Solomon had a “sea” constructed for the priests to bathe; it was ten cubits in diameter and five cubits in depth (15 feet in diameter and 7.5 feet deep) and held approximately 17,500 gallons of water,

Also he made the cast metal sea, ten cubits from brim to brim, circular in form, and its height was five cubits and its circumference thirty cubits. Now figures like oxen were under it and all around it, ten cubits, entirely encircling the sea. The oxen were in two rows, cast in one piece. It stood on twelve oxen, three facing the north, three facing west, three facing south and three facing east; and the sea was set on top of them and all their hindquarters turned inwards. It was a handbreadth thick, and its brim was made like the brim of a cup, like a lily blossom; it could hold 3,000 baths. He also made ten basins in which to wash, and he set five on the right side and five on the left to rinse things for the burnt offering; but the sea was for the priests to wash in.
2 Chronicles 4:2-6

Obviously, this was not a simple shower stall, at seven and a half feet deep it is apparent that full immersion was intended. By the time of Herod’s Temple there were strict rules as to who could enter what part of the Temple. The outermost court of the Temple complex was the Court of the Gentiles. This is where the moneychangers and merchants conducted their business. Inside this court were three smaller courts only for Jews: the Court of Women, the Court of Israel (for the men) and, inside the Court of Israel was the Court of the Priests which surrounds the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. During the Feast of Tabernacles adult (non-priestly) men were allowed to enter the Court of the Priests but only after undergoing a ceremonial washing. This washing consisted of stepping into a pool of running water (the water had to be constantly running so it would be unused, i.e. clean) and submerging themselves. Again, this was for adults (over thirteen) only; children were not expected to have the maturity or awareness to understand where they were going. Only after this ritual bath were they allowed to enter the Court of the Priests.



One of the first acts we see in the New Testament is that of John the Baptist (Matt 3). John followed the Temple tradition of baptizing (from the Greek baptizo—to immerse, to submerge, to wash) in the running water of the River Jordan. After all, who can take a decent bath in dirty bath water? It is important to note that this takes place in the Gospel of Matthew, as Matthew was written particularly to the Jews and, knowing their own culture, would understand the significance of this. Even Jesus himself was baptized by John before He began His ministry. In this Jesus was following tradition; by being baptized He was making Himself a member of the priestly class. Jesus, of course, did not need to be cleansed of sin; rather, He was leading by example. He was showing us that all should be baptized,

But Jesus answering said to him, "Permit it (baptism) at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he permitted Him.
Matt 3:15

After Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are told baptism is symbolic of the death, burial and resurrection of Christ Jesus. Romans 6:3-4 tells us we are buried with Him in baptism and raised (like Him) in to new life,

Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? 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.
Romans 6:3-4

When we bury the dead we do not merely sprinkle dirt on them, we bury them fully. Following the analogy in Romans 6, when we are buried in baptism it should be by full submersion as we are burying the old, sinful person and a new life in Christ is raised,

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, 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; for he who has died is freed from sin.
Romans 6:5-7

As I said at the beginning, baptism began with ritual washing before you could enter the Holy Place of the Temple. Every time you entered you had to be purified first. After Jesus fulfilled the Law at the cross,

("Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.”
Matt 5:17)

...this repeated bathing is no more necessary than the repeated Old Testament sacrifices. As the only sacrifice needed was made at Calvary, the only cleansing needed is made at baptism. We are then able to enter the Holy Place given to us by Jesus—His everlasting presence; we enter the Temple when we rise from the water as new creations in Christ and never leave it.



Finally, here is a bit of exegesis on the side that is not in the Bible but fits the topic very well: in ancient Hebrew custom if someone wanted to keep something but did not feel like carrying it around they would bury it. If you were walking along one day and found something in the road it was yours to keep—finders, keepers. However, if you decided to dig a ditch and suddenly found something buried you left it alone, its burial signified that it belonged to someone else. It seems that this is what Christ does with us at baptism. By burying us at baptism He is showing His ownership of us—“Don’t touch these, Satan. They belong to Me!”



© Copyright 2003
All Scripture quoted from The New American Standard Bible
unless otherwise noted.

[snowrosies]

where do I find a fresh water river in florida which is surrounded by a ocean??? ;D

[Murph]

swimming pools and bath tubs...

There is a beautiful picture of soldiers being Baptised in a hole dug in the sand lined with a tarp. It was taken in the deserts of Iraq during Desert Storm. That is how they solved the problem of how to find water in a desert.

I always cry at Baptisms...they are so beautiful.

[Keith]

duck said:

There is a beautiful picture of soldiers being Baptised in a hole dug in the sand lined with a tarp.

[Murph]

That's the one, thanks for posting it...still brings a lump to my throat. We know that soldier went home either way.

[snowrosies]

well there is a swimming pool 50 feet from my froont door gee can i do that in a swimming pool i dont see why? not ;D ;D ;D

[snowrosies]

my ideal of babtism is a river however this is not the mountians here and so it is really supose to be a very special event and so i let emily choose and of course she wants it to be a river now what i do now thats it she can be babtized with these somehow it will be how its supose to be gee babtism is not supose to be complicated anyway she is set on river so not sure she will settle for swimming pool