- How would you define baptism?
- Mark 7:6-13
- What are some of the different ways Christian denominations baptise?
- I find baptism difficult to fully understand
- A history of NT baptism
- Who was the greatest man to live before Jesus was born?
- Matthew 11:11
- We will first look at John's baptism which I believe needs to be distinguished from other baptisms (Luke 7:29)
- Matthew 3:1-2
- Matthew 3:5-6
- Baptism is a transliteration not a translation
- Matthew 3:7-10
- John's baptism required prior confession and repentance
- Mark 1:4-5
- Their sins were being forgiven
- Did God forgive them because they repented or because they were also baptised?
- Matthew 3:11-12
- John's baptism required water
- Jesus would baptise with the Holy Spirit and Fire
- Are those 2 separate types of baptism or just one?
- I personally believe these are two different baptisms
- Acts 1:5
- Notice it does not mention the two going together
- Objection: Acts 2:3
- It does not say it was fire but rather like fire
- Not everything that includes fire from God is baptism like the burning bush or the pillar of fire
- Look again at Matthew 3:11-12
- He is speaking to a mixed audience (not just believers) because the pharisees and Sadducees hadn't repented
- I think that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is for believers and the baptism in fire is for unbelievers
- Matthew 13:30
- Luke 3:17
- Matthew 3:12 again
- Another option is that both believers and unbelievers will experience a baptism of fire
- It will be a refining and purifying fire for believers and a destroying fire for unbelievers
- Matthew 3:13-15
- Jesus was baptised with John's baptism
- However unlike everyone else Jesus had nothing to repent of
- Why does Jesus get baptised?
- For both of the ("us") to fulfill all righteousness
- Notice that they were both doing what God wanted them to
- Matthew 28:19-20
- I believe that part of the "great commission" is to do the baptising ourselves rather than delegating it to a pastor just as I believe making disciples is to be done by all believers rather than just delegating it to a pastor
- I know that I would personally want and try to find a way to baptise my own children for sure
- 1 Corinthians 1:16-17
- Although baptising people may not be your calling as it was for John, I think that we should still do it at least once if we have the chance
- Matthew 3:16-17
- When Jesus received John's baptism the Holy Spirit came on Him
- Again, just like in Acts where just because fire was present didn't mean it was a baptism in fire, so too in Jesus' case the presence of the Holy Spirit did not change this from a water baptism to a baptism in the Holy Spirt
- There is a lot I don't know about this unique event
- Was Jesus not already filled with the Holy Spirit from birth as John was? (Luke 1:15)
- Was this just a public demonstration
- He had probably heard His Father speak before although maybe not so public and dramatically, so could the same be true of the Holy Spirit?
- Mark 10:38-39
- What sort of baptism is Jesus referring to?
- A Holy Spirit baptism?
- A metaphorical baptism of suffering/death? Mark 14:36 and John 18:11 suggests that the cup at least refers to suffering
- Luke 12:45-50
- Was Jesus taking on the baptism of fire on our behalf just as He bore our sins?
- John 3:22-30
- It is my belief that John's baptism was a temporary baptism that was only for that time and place and was to decrease just as Jesus' baptism increased
- That is not to say that a lot has changed but it is slightly different
- I think that is the reason that John's baptism is always named as such even after Jesus rose
- John 1:31
- The reason John baptised people in water was so that Jesus would be revealed through baptism when the dove descended and a voice was heard
- Jesus' baptism
- John 4:1-2
- It was actually only ever performed by the 12 disciples but under His leadership and authority, much like all baptisms should be conducted today
- Why didn't Jesus baptise people himself?
- 1 Corinthians 1:11-15
- I think that people would have taken it to be a superior baptism which is why I think it is wise for famous Christians to not do too many baptisms
- Acts 2:38
- Is this water baptism or Holy Spirit baptism?
- I personally read it as only water baptism
- Jesus had just told them to baptise people just before he went back to Heaven and as far as I can tell, water baptism is the only type of baptism they had ever witnessed or done themselves under Jesus' tutelage
- Also, and this is just my opinion, but both baptisms that John said Jesus would do (Holy Spirit and Fire) are things that He does and doesn't ask us to do
- But that is just my assumption
- `Here the order is reversed
- Sometimes people receive the Holy Spirit immediately and other times not
- Some receive it before baptism and other times (most other times in the Bible) it is the other way around
- Acts 19:1-6
- This is a very influential passage for me
- First notice that John's baptism was not good enough any more, they needed to be baptised in Jesus which again is why I believe that John's baptism only served a temporary function to point to Christ and His baptism(s)
- Imagine the following fictitious catechism question and answer:
- Q: Do you receive the Holy Spirit when you put your faith in Jesus?
- A: Of course, all believers have the Holy Spirit from the moment they are saved!
- That does not jive at all with this passage
- Paul did not tell them to study doctrine more to learn that they already had the Holy Spirit, rather he fully acknowledged the possibility of being saved but not being filled with the Holy Spirit
- The symbolism in baptism
- Romans 6:3-5
- Christ's baptism which is a water baptism seems to be a symbolic representation of Christ's death and resurrection
- 1 Corinthians 10:1-5
- Crossing the Red Sea and the cloud that lead them and then separated them from the Egyptian army are pictures of baptism
- 1 Corinthians 12:13
- Because all believers are to get baptised in Christ it unifies us in His body
- Galatians 3:25-27
- Baptism connects us to Christ
- 1 Peter 3:20-21
- Noah's journey on ark is a picture of baptism
- Also, it isn't just a physical bath that cleans our body
- Q&A
- 1 Corinthians 15:29
- This verse is used by Mormons to support their practice
- Paul does not imply that he or other believers do it and because it flies in the face of how the Bible teaches people get saved I take it to be a pagan tradition that Paul is using to say that even their customs assume the dead rise again
- Ephesians 4:4-5
- Here there seems to be clearly only one baptism yet throughout the Bible it treats John's baptism as different from baptism in the Holy Spirit and Fire and believers water baptism
- I take this the same way I take a verse about God being one and Jesus being God as well as the Father and the Holy Spirit
- I do not want the other verses to trump this one or vice versa
- Is baptism necessary for salvation?
- Mark 16:16
- I take this to mean that believers will get baptised out of obedience but baptism itself doesn't save
- When should you get baptised?
- Acts 9:17-18
- It seems that once anyone is saved they can get baptised right away
- Acts 8:36-39
- I don't see the necessity of doing it in front of a Church as a public declaration or in a dedicated water facility like a baptismal tank. I would be fine with doing it in a bathtub or a swimming pool, or a river or lake
- Is there an age limit on getting baptised?
- Acts 16:14-15
- Notice the household gets baptised
- Acts 16:32
- Acts 18:8
- 1 Corinthians 1:16
- These are the 4 verses that are used to give support for infant baptism and although the Bible doesn't give an age requirement I would not assume that there were any infants in these households and find the assumption unfounded particularly because of the next Q&A
- Are there any minimum requirements to get baptised?
- Only salvation is a prerequisite
- From John refusing to baptise unrepentant people to the disciples only being told to baptise believers, I see no exception to that rule
- Does Jesus' baptism wash away our sins?
- Acts 22:12-16
- I read this as separate things although many read them as cause and effect
- To me repentance leads to God granting forgiveness but a case can be made that they are linked
- John 13:9-10
- Suppose I shower every morning and go paint every day
- When I come home for supper I only need to wash my hands and wherever got painted rather than my whole body
- Some see baptism as that initial full body bath and subsequent repentance as just washing your feet/hands
- I see salvation as God freeing us from all sin and giving us that full-body wash and then subsequent sins need to be repented of and forgiven after that