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    [[Image:Baptism Tanzania.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Baptism in Tanzania in a cow trough]]
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    '''The word ''baptize''''' comes from the from the Greek word βάπτειν, which means "to immerse". For two thousand years, Christians have been immersed in water to demonstrate their obedience to the words of Jesus, who instructed his followers to be baptized "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." The Bible records that the apostles baptized all new converts in the name of Jesus Christ.
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    <div style="float:left;width:29%;padding:.3em 0;margin:2px 2px 0; background-color:#cedff2">[[Quotes:Water baptism|William Branham's Teachings]]</div>
    <div style="float:left;width:24%;padding:.3em 0;margin:2px 2px 0; background-color:#cedff2">[[Biblestudy:Water baptism|Bible Study]]</div>
    <div style="float:left;width:25%;padding:.3em 0;margin:2px 2px 0; background-color:#cedff2">[[History of Baptism]]</div>
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    [[Image:Baptism Siberia.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Baptism in Siberia through the ice]]
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    [[Image:Baptism-Philippines.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Baptism in the Philippines.]]


    '''The word ''baptize''''' comes from the from the Greek word βάπτειν, which means "to immerse"For two thousand years, Christians have been immersed in water to demonstrate their obedience to the words of Jesus, who instructed his followers to be baptized "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." The Bible records that the apostles baptized all new converts in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ as this is the common name of the person of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
    Baptism symbolizes a Christian's participation in Jesus' death, burial, and resurrectionIt demonstrates submission to the teachings of Jesus Christ, and is also an acceptance of the promise of eternal life.   


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    [[Image:Baptism Tanzania.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Baptism in Tanzania using a cow trough]]
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    [[Image:Baptism Siberia.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Baptism in Siberia through the ice]]
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    [[Image:Baptism-Philippines.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Baptism in the Philippines in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.]]
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    Baptism symbolizes a Christian's participation in Jesus' death, burial, and resurection.  It demonstrates submission to the teachings of Jesus Christ, and is also an acceptance of the promise of eternal life.  Anyone who has not been baptised in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, as instructed by the scriptures and demonstrated in the Book of Acts, must be baptized or rebaptized in this Name: ''"for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."'' (Acts 4:12)


    =Why must Christians be Baptized?=


    <div style="border-bottom:1px #B87333 solid; text-align:center; font-size:140%; padding:1px; margin:1px;">Why must Christians be Baptized?</div>
    [[Image:Baptism Ukraine.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Baptism in the Black Sea, Ukraine.]]
    [[Image:Baptism Ukraine.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Baptism in the Black Sea, Ukraine.]]
    '''Jesus commanded it.'''
    '''Jesus commanded it.'''
    Line 38: Line 22:
    :''For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call.'' (Acts 2:39)
    :''For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call.'' (Acts 2:39)


    '''Baptism is God's instruction for us.  It is not wise to reject this instuction'''
    '''Baptism is God's instruction for us.  It is not wise to reject this instruction'''
    :''He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.'' (Mark 16:16)
    :''He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.'' (Mark 16:16)
    :''But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.'' (Luke 7:30)
    :''But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.'' (Luke 7:30)


    '''Baptizm is identification with the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.'''
    :While Christians believe that baptism is a very important practice, they hold that it is by faith alone that a person is justified. At the same time, while this ordinance is not a requirement for salvation, the New Testament does give the impression that an unbaptized Christian is not to be the norm since the rite is a means of identifying with the death and resurrection of Christ. Every Christian ought to be water baptized as long as it’s understood that this is not a work the person is doing to somehow qualify for justification in God’s sight.<ref>Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson, Answering Mormons’ Questions: Ready Responses for Inquiring Latter-Day Saints (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2013), 167.</ref>
     
    '''Baptism is identification with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.'''
    :''Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 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. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [in the likeness] of [his] resurrection:''  (Romans 6:3-5)
    :''Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 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. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [in the likeness] of [his] resurrection:''  (Romans 6:3-5)


    =Should Christians be Immersed?=


    <div style="border-bottom:1px #B87333 solid; text-align:center; font-size:140%; padding:1px; margin:1px;">Should Christians be Immersed?</div>
    [[Image:Baptism-Philippines Jail.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Immersion in a Philippine Jail.]]
    [[Image:Baptism-Philippines Jail.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Immersion in a Philippine Jail.]]
    Full Immersion is the only Biblical method of Baptism.   
    Full Immersion is the preferred Biblical method of Baptism.   


    The Greek word for baptize (βάπτειν) means to fully immerse something in a fluid.  Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words states that the word is derived from bapto, meaning to dip, and was used among the Greeks to signify the dyeing of a garment, or the drawing of water by dipping a vessel into another.  Vine's also sets forth the noun form as follows: "baptisma ... baptism, consisting of the process of immersion, submersion and emergence (from bapto, to dip)."   
    The Greek word for baptize (βάπτειν) means to fully immerse something in a fluid.  Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words states that the word is derived from bapto, meaning to dip, and was used among the Greeks to signify the dyeing of a garment, or the drawing of water by dipping a vessel into another.  Vine's also sets forth the noun form as follows: "baptisma ... baptism, consisting of the process of immersion, submersion and emergence (from bapto, to dip)."   
    Line 61: Line 47:
    #''Having been buried with him in baptism.'' (Col. 2:12)
    #''Having been buried with him in baptism.'' (Col. 2:12)


    =In what Name should Christians be baptized?=
    [[Image:Baptism-India.jpg|right|thumb|Baptism in India.]]
    Jesus said ''Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, '''baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost'''...'' (Mat. 28:19)   
    The following scriptures record actual baptisms in the New Testament:
    #''Be baptized in the '''name of Jesus Christ'''.'' (Acts 2:38)
    #''...and the '''name of Jesus Christ''', they were baptized...'' (Acts 8:12)
    #''They were baptized in the '''name of the Lord Jesus'''.'' (Acts 8:16)
    #''Be baptized in the '''name of the Lord'''.'' (Acts 10:48)
    #''That is, on Christ Jesus.  When they heard [this], they were baptized in the '''name of the Lord Jesus'''.''(Acts 19:4b,5)


    <div style="border-bottom:1px #B87333 solid; text-align:center; font-size:140%; padding:1px; margin:1px;">In what Name should Christians be baptized?</div>
    Christians should be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ '''or''' in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, provided that it is made clear that the person is doing this on the basis that they have believed on Jesus Christ for the remission of their sins.
    [[Image:Baptism-India.jpg|right|thumb|Baptism in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ in India.]]
    Christians shoudl be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.


    Jesus said ''Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:'' (Mat. 28:19)  The Name, singular, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, is the Lord Jesus Christ.
    The reason that baptisms in the Book of Acts were "in the name of Jesus" is not because it was a formula, but because being baptized “into” (εἰς, eis) the name denotes incorporation into the Lord and his community, declaring one’s allegiance and implying the Lord’s ownership.<ref>Darrell L. Bock, Acts, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 331.</ref>


    #The name of the Father is Lord.
    We can see proof of this in Acts 4:7-10:
    ##''I am the LORD; that is my name!'' (Isa. 42:8)
    ##''The LORD who formed it the earth and established it— the LORD is his name.'' (Jer. 33:2)
    #The name of the Son is Jesus.
    ##''She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.'' (Matt. 1:21)
    #The name Christ (Greek: Christos), frequently applied to Jesus, is the name wherein the Holy Spirit, the anointing, is identified.
    ##''Christ [Greek: Christos] in you, the hope of glory.'' (Col. 1:27)
    #The Name of the Father (Lord), and of the Son (Jesus), and of the Holy Spirit (Christ) cannot be separated into separate persons. 
    ##''God hath made ... Jesus... both Lord and Christ.'' (Acts 2:36)
    ##''Jesus Christ: (He is Lord of all).'' (Acts 10:36)


    Christians should therefore be baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, which is in the Name is the Lord Jesus Christ.  The words 'Father', 'Son', and 'Holy Spirit' are not names (or one Name), but are titles reflecting various attributes of God.  
    :''After making Peter and John stand in their midst, they began to inquire, “'''By what power or by what name did you do this?'''”  Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, replied, “Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today for a good deed done to a sick man—by what means this man was healed— 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, this man stands before you healthy.


    The following scriptures record actual baptisms in the New Testament:
    So "in Jesus' name" is not a magical formula for what must be specifically stated when baptizing a person.  "In Jesus' name" simply means by Jesus' authority or power.  To baptize in Jesus' name simply means to do so in obedience to His power or authority.  His authority is the authority of God , which is the same power as that referred to in Matthew 28:19 - the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  So to baptize in accordance with Jesus' name is to baptize according to His power or authority, which is the same as baptizing according to the name or authority or power of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Either formula would appear to be acceptable from scripture.
    #''Be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.'' (Acts 2:38)
     
    #''...and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized...'' (Acts 8:12)
    We also see this from Acts 8:14-17:
    #''They were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.'' (Acts 8:16)
     
    #''Be baptized in the name of the Lord.'' (Acts 10:48)  
    :''When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.<ref>The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Ac 8:14–17.</ref>
    #''That is, on Christ Jesus.  When they heard [this], they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.''(Acts 19:4b,5)
     
    Given the promise that those who repent and are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ will have their sins forgiven and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38–39), are we to conclude that there was something deficient in the faith of the Samaritans?
     
    Luke seems to be at pains to stress the orthodoxy of Philip’s preaching, the close attention paid by the Samaritans to what they heard, and the genuineness of their response (Acts 8:5–6, 12; contrast the ‘disciples’ in Acts 19:1–5). Was it because there were no apostles present? Luke later makes it clear that the Spirit can be given when the person baptizing is not an apostle (Acts 9:17–18).
     
    Was it because they needed to receive the Spirit in a fuller sense, for inspiration, or for the reception of charismatic gifts?  Was it because they specifically needed the Spirit to be given to them in this way to empower them for mission? The idea that they needed more of the Spirit is ruled out by Luke’s insistence that the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them. With the words not yet (oudepō), Luke indicates that the Samaritan incident provides ‘a clear break with the “norm” we might expect from Acts 2:38–39.
     
    The best explanation is that God himself withheld the Spirit until the coming of Peter and John, in order that the Samaritans might be seen to be fully incorporated into the community of Jerusalem Christians who had received the Spirit at Pentecost. 


    Baptizing in the name does not merely mean doing it in the authority of. It means invoking the name; it means speaking the name aloud. In the 'great commission,' Jesus said, "In my name they will drive out demons...they will place their hands on sick people." The apostles did this by invoking the name, speaking aloud his name. The same should be done at water baptism.
    The apostles simply needed to be there as reliable witnesses on behalf of the Jerusalem church, not to impart the Spirit because of their office. Significantly, in Acts 8:25 they return to Jerusalem to report what God has been doing. The delay in the sending of the Spirit put the Samaritans somewhat in the position of the Jewish disciples before Pentecost. They had a genuine faith in the risen Lord, but had not yet received the promised Holy Spirit. Neither the experience of those first disciples nor the experience of the Samaritans can be made the basis for a two-stage view of Christian initiation, in the two-stage view of salvation in the Pentecostal sense.  '''William Branham's insistence that as long as someone is baptized  "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" they are entitled to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit does not work here either.'''


    These were unique events in salvation history, not the normal pattern of salvation known to Luke.<ref>David G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009), 286–287.</ref>


    <div style="border-bottom:1px #B87333 solid; text-align:center; font-size:140%; padding:1px; margin:1px;">Is rebaptism necessary for someone that has not been immersed in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ?</div>
    =Should people who have left the message be rebaptized?=
    [[Image:Baptism Brazil.jpg|right|300px|thumb|Baptism in Brazil, where the majority of the population are baptized as infants.]]
    Christians who have only been baptized in the titles of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit should be repabtized for the following reasons:


    '''1) It is clear from the Bible (Acts 19:1-5) that people that were baptized incorrectly were commanded to be rebaptized:'''
    Martin Luther argued against rebaptism if a person was baptized correctly but perhaps did not believe correctly:


    :''And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?  And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.''
    :''For it is not enough to claim they were baptized without faith, therefore they should be rebaptized. Some reason is needed. You say it is not proper baptism. What does it matter, if it is still a baptism? It was a correct baptism in itself, regardless of whether it was received rightly. For the words were spoken and everything that pertains to baptism was done as fully as when faith is present. If a thing is in itself correct you do not have to repeat it even though it was not correctly received. You correct what was wrong and do not have to do the entire thing over. Abuse does not change the nature of a substance, indeed it proves the substance. There can be no abuse unless the substance exists.


    '''2) God wants us to obey his commandments as stated in I John 2:3-5:'''
    :''When ten years after baptism faith appears, what then is the need of a second baptism, if baptism was correctly administered in all respects? For now he believes, as baptism requires. For faith doesn’t exist for the sake of baptism, but baptism for the sake of faith. When faith comes, baptism is complete. A second baptism is not necessary.


    :''And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.  He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.  
    :''It is as if a girl married a man reluctantly and altogether without a wife’s affection for the man. She is before God hardly to be considered his true wife. But after two years she gains affection for him. Would then a second engagement be required, a second wedding be celebrated, as if she had not previously been a wife, so that the earlier betrothal and wedding were in vain? Of course, you would be considered a fool, if you believed that, especially since everything is in order now because she has come into her right and properly keeps to the man she had not properly accepted. So also if an adult falsely allows himself to be baptized but after a year comes to faith, do you mean, dear sir, that he should be rebaptized? He received the correct baptism incorrectly, I hear you say. His impropriety makes baptism improper. Should then human error and wickedness be stronger than God’s good and invincible order? God made a covenant with the people of Israel on Mt. Sinai. Some did not receive that covenant rightly and in faith. If now these later came to faith, should the covenant, dear sir, therefore be considered invalid, and must God come again to each one on Mt. Sinai in order to renew the covenant?<ref>Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, Vol. 40: Church and Ministry II, ed. Jaroslav Jan Pelikan, Hilton C. Oswald, and Helmut T. Lehmann, vol. 40 (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1999), 246–247.</ref>


    '''3) Refusing God's invitation to baptism means that He has no obligation to give you the gift of the Holy Ghost.'''
    A similar view is that baptism is a sacrament which should not be repeated because, just as in the natural life a person is born but one time, so also in the spiritual life a man can be reborn one time only: “So, then, as our Lord died once and for all, we also must be baptized once and for all.” This view would suggest that those from a heterodox background should be rebaptized as rarely as possible.<ref>John Karmiris, “Concerning the Sacraments,” in Eastern Orthodox Theology: A Contemporary Reader, ed. Daniel B. Clendenin, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), 25.</ref>


    Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost, and having been given the Keys to the Kingdom by Jesus, answered the people who asked "What shall we do?" with the following commandment in Acts 2:38:
    Others contend that baptism administered by a heretical minister should be rebaptized since baptism administered by heretics and schismatics was not true baptism.<ref>Francis Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, ed. James T. Dennison Jr., trans. George Musgrave Giger, vol. 3 (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 1992–1997), 396.</ref>


    :''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.''
    '''OUR VIEW''': Because baptism in itself does not save a person, it does not appear that anyone should be rebaptized '''unless the purpose of the original baptism was not focused on Christ''', but rather on a person entering the message or believing in William Branham as a prophet.


    If a person does not obey the scriptural pattern of conversion by repenting, then baptizm in Name of the Lord Jesus Christ by immersion, God has no obligation to give them His Holy Spirit.   
    =Is baptism required for salvation?=


    '''4) No one has the authority to supersede the Biblical example of Water Baptism'''
    Baptism is not salvational... it does not save a person.  This is clearly demonstrated in scripture:


    Peter, who Catholics consider to be the first Pope, was given the keys to the kingdom by Jesus (Mat. 16:19).  Jesus told Peter to baptise ''in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost'' (Mat. 28:19), and Peter then went out and preached that everyone must ''Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ'' (Acts 2:38).  Peter was not disobeying Jesus, but knew that the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost is the Lord Jesus Christ.  Galatians 1:8 says that ''But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.'' This means that even if the Pope himself tells you not to be baptised by immersion in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that message is a different gospel than the one that Peter and Paul preached.  
    Acts 8:9-23
    :''8 Now there was a man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great...
    :''13 Even '''Simon himself believed; and after being baptized''', he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.
    :''18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,
    :''20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
    :''21 “'''You have no part or portion in this matter''', for your heart is not right before God.<ref>New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Ac 8:20–23.</ref>


    '''5) All Churches agree that baptism according to the Bible is necessary.'''
    Baptism is the immersion in water of a believer in Jesus Christ performed once as the initiation of the believer into a community of believers, the church.  Baptism signifies the believer’s confidence that Christ’s work was complete for his forgiveness and justification and indicates his desire for unity with the church, Christ’s community of the new covenant, purchased at the price of his blood.  


    In the article "Are Catholics Born Again?" by Bishop Robert H. Brom (San Diego), it states:
    Salvation does not derive from the act of baptism itself. The person baptized has no scriptural warrant to believe that, in baptism, Christ’s saving activity is initiated, augmented, or completed. In its symbolism, however, it sets forth the saving gospel of Christ both in its objective and subjective aspects. It pictures the historical event in the life of Christ that brought to fruition the purpose of his incarnation, namely, to give his life as a ransom for many. It pictures the believer’s conscientious testimony that Christ’s acceptable sacrifice alone allows a sinner to approach God in the confidence of being accepted. It pictures the present experience of the believer in his awareness that when he was dead in trespasses and sins, God “made [him] alive with Christ” (Eph. 2:5) by the powerful operations of the Holy Spirit. The power that is necessary to produce this change is “like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given” (Eph. 1:19–21).<ref>Thomas J. Nettles, Baptist View: Baptism as a Symbol of Christ’s Saving Work, ed. John H. Armstrong and Paul E. Engle, Understanding Four Views on Baptism, Zondervan Counterpoints Collection (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2007), 25–26.</ref>  
    :''Catholics should ask Protestants, "Are you born again—the way the Bible understands that concept?" If the Evangelical has not been properly water baptized, he has not been born again "the Bible way," regardless of what he may think.'' <ref name="Are Catholics Born Again">[http://www.catholic.com/library/Are_Catholics_Born_Again.asp Are Catholics Born Again]</ref>


    While not supporting the various Protestant interpretations of being born again that are discussed in Bishop Brom's article, it is important to note that Bishop Brom states that ''many Protestants have abandoned this biblical teaching, substituting man-made theories on regeneration.''  However, the Catholic church, is guilty above all other religous organizations and Christian denominations of abandoning biblical teaching for man-made theories - including their method of water baptism.  Baptism by immersion in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ is the only Biblical way to be baptised. 
    =The History of Water Baptism=


    If you have not been baptised by immersion in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ, you should be rebaptised.




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    Latest revision as of 17:03, 28 July 2022

    Baptism in Tanzania in a cow trough

    This article is one in a series of studies on baptism - you are currently on the topic that is in bold:

    The word baptize comes from the from the Greek word βάπτειν, which means "to immerse". For two thousand years, Christians have been immersed in water to demonstrate their obedience to the words of Jesus, who instructed his followers to be baptized "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." The Bible records that the apostles baptized all new converts in the name of Jesus Christ.

    Baptism in Siberia through the ice
    Baptism in the Philippines.

    Baptism symbolizes a Christian's participation in Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection. It demonstrates submission to the teachings of Jesus Christ, and is also an acceptance of the promise of eternal life.


    Why must Christians be Baptized?

    Baptism in the Black Sea, Ukraine.

    Jesus commanded it.

    Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19)

    Baptism was taught and practiced by Jesus' Disciples (the Apostles)

    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 2:38)

    The Apostle Peter said this doctrine was applicable to all Christians - in every century.

    For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, [even] as many as the Lord our God shall call. (Acts 2:39)

    Baptism is God's instruction for us. It is not wise to reject this instruction

    He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:16)
    But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him. (Luke 7:30)
    While Christians believe that baptism is a very important practice, they hold that it is by faith alone that a person is justified. At the same time, while this ordinance is not a requirement for salvation, the New Testament does give the impression that an unbaptized Christian is not to be the norm since the rite is a means of identifying with the death and resurrection of Christ. Every Christian ought to be water baptized as long as it’s understood that this is not a work the person is doing to somehow qualify for justification in God’s sight.[1]

    Baptism is identification with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

    Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 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. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also [in the likeness] of [his] resurrection: (Romans 6:3-5)

    Should Christians be Immersed?

    Immersion in a Philippine Jail.

    Full Immersion is the preferred Biblical method of Baptism.

    The Greek word for baptize (βάπτειν) means to fully immerse something in a fluid. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words states that the word is derived from bapto, meaning to dip, and was used among the Greeks to signify the dyeing of a garment, or the drawing of water by dipping a vessel into another. Vine's also sets forth the noun form as follows: "baptisma ... baptism, consisting of the process of immersion, submersion and emergence (from bapto, to dip)."

    Consider also the following scriptures:

    1. At that time Jesus...was baptized by John in the Jordan. As Jesus was coming up out of the water... (Mark 1:9-10)
    2. Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were constantly coming to be baptized. (John 3:23)

    The fact that baptism is to be by full immersion is further validated by its being likened biblically to a burial.

    1. We were therefore buried with him through baptism. (Rom. 6:4)
    2. Having been buried with him in baptism. (Col. 2:12)

    In what Name should Christians be baptized?

    Baptism in India.

    Jesus said Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost... (Mat. 28:19)

    The following scriptures record actual baptisms in the New Testament:

    1. Be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. (Acts 2:38)
    2. ...and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized... (Acts 8:12)
    3. They were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. (Acts 8:16)
    4. Be baptized in the name of the Lord. (Acts 10:48)
    5. That is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard [this], they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.(Acts 19:4b,5)

    Christians should be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ or in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, provided that it is made clear that the person is doing this on the basis that they have believed on Jesus Christ for the remission of their sins.

    The reason that baptisms in the Book of Acts were "in the name of Jesus" is not because it was a formula, but because being baptized “into” (εἰς, eis) the name denotes incorporation into the Lord and his community, declaring one’s allegiance and implying the Lord’s ownership.[2]

    We can see proof of this in Acts 4:7-10:

    After making Peter and John stand in their midst, they began to inquire, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, replied, “Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today for a good deed done to a sick man—by what means this man was healed— 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, this man stands before you healthy.

    So "in Jesus' name" is not a magical formula for what must be specifically stated when baptizing a person. "In Jesus' name" simply means by Jesus' authority or power. To baptize in Jesus' name simply means to do so in obedience to His power or authority. His authority is the authority of God , which is the same power as that referred to in Matthew 28:19 - the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. So to baptize in accordance with Jesus' name is to baptize according to His power or authority, which is the same as baptizing according to the name or authority or power of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Either formula would appear to be acceptable from scripture.

    We also see this from Acts 8:14-17:

    When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 15 When they arrived, they prayed for the new believers there that they might receive the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit had not yet come on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.[3]

    Given the promise that those who repent and are baptized in the name of Jesus Christ will have their sins forgiven and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38–39), are we to conclude that there was something deficient in the faith of the Samaritans?

    Luke seems to be at pains to stress the orthodoxy of Philip’s preaching, the close attention paid by the Samaritans to what they heard, and the genuineness of their response (Acts 8:5–6, 12; contrast the ‘disciples’ in Acts 19:1–5). Was it because there were no apostles present? Luke later makes it clear that the Spirit can be given when the person baptizing is not an apostle (Acts 9:17–18).

    Was it because they needed to receive the Spirit in a fuller sense, for inspiration, or for the reception of charismatic gifts? Was it because they specifically needed the Spirit to be given to them in this way to empower them for mission? The idea that they needed more of the Spirit is ruled out by Luke’s insistence that the Holy Spirit had not yet come upon any of them. With the words not yet (oudepō), Luke indicates that the Samaritan incident provides ‘a clear break with the “norm” we might expect from Acts 2:38–39.

    The best explanation is that God himself withheld the Spirit until the coming of Peter and John, in order that the Samaritans might be seen to be fully incorporated into the community of Jerusalem Christians who had received the Spirit at Pentecost.

    The apostles simply needed to be there as reliable witnesses on behalf of the Jerusalem church, not to impart the Spirit because of their office. Significantly, in Acts 8:25 they return to Jerusalem to report what God has been doing. The delay in the sending of the Spirit put the Samaritans somewhat in the position of the Jewish disciples before Pentecost. They had a genuine faith in the risen Lord, but had not yet received the promised Holy Spirit. Neither the experience of those first disciples nor the experience of the Samaritans can be made the basis for a two-stage view of Christian initiation, in the two-stage view of salvation in the Pentecostal sense. William Branham's insistence that as long as someone is baptized "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ" they are entitled to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit does not work here either.

    These were unique events in salvation history, not the normal pattern of salvation known to Luke.[4]

    Should people who have left the message be rebaptized?

    Martin Luther argued against rebaptism if a person was baptized correctly but perhaps did not believe correctly:

    For it is not enough to claim they were baptized without faith, therefore they should be rebaptized. Some reason is needed. You say it is not proper baptism. What does it matter, if it is still a baptism? It was a correct baptism in itself, regardless of whether it was received rightly. For the words were spoken and everything that pertains to baptism was done as fully as when faith is present. If a thing is in itself correct you do not have to repeat it even though it was not correctly received. You correct what was wrong and do not have to do the entire thing over. Abuse does not change the nature of a substance, indeed it proves the substance. There can be no abuse unless the substance exists.
    When ten years after baptism faith appears, what then is the need of a second baptism, if baptism was correctly administered in all respects? For now he believes, as baptism requires. For faith doesn’t exist for the sake of baptism, but baptism for the sake of faith. When faith comes, baptism is complete. A second baptism is not necessary.
    It is as if a girl married a man reluctantly and altogether without a wife’s affection for the man. She is before God hardly to be considered his true wife. But after two years she gains affection for him. Would then a second engagement be required, a second wedding be celebrated, as if she had not previously been a wife, so that the earlier betrothal and wedding were in vain? Of course, you would be considered a fool, if you believed that, especially since everything is in order now because she has come into her right and properly keeps to the man she had not properly accepted. So also if an adult falsely allows himself to be baptized but after a year comes to faith, do you mean, dear sir, that he should be rebaptized? He received the correct baptism incorrectly, I hear you say. His impropriety makes baptism improper. Should then human error and wickedness be stronger than God’s good and invincible order? God made a covenant with the people of Israel on Mt. Sinai. Some did not receive that covenant rightly and in faith. If now these later came to faith, should the covenant, dear sir, therefore be considered invalid, and must God come again to each one on Mt. Sinai in order to renew the covenant?[5]

    A similar view is that baptism is a sacrament which should not be repeated because, just as in the natural life a person is born but one time, so also in the spiritual life a man can be reborn one time only: “So, then, as our Lord died once and for all, we also must be baptized once and for all.” This view would suggest that those from a heterodox background should be rebaptized as rarely as possible.[6]

    Others contend that baptism administered by a heretical minister should be rebaptized since baptism administered by heretics and schismatics was not true baptism.[7]

    OUR VIEW: Because baptism in itself does not save a person, it does not appear that anyone should be rebaptized unless the purpose of the original baptism was not focused on Christ, but rather on a person entering the message or believing in William Branham as a prophet.

    Is baptism required for salvation?

    Baptism is not salvational... it does not save a person. This is clearly demonstrated in scripture:

    Acts 8:9-23

    8 Now there was a man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great...
    13 Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.
    18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,
    20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
    21 “You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.[8]

    Baptism is the immersion in water of a believer in Jesus Christ performed once as the initiation of the believer into a community of believers, the church. Baptism signifies the believer’s confidence that Christ’s work was complete for his forgiveness and justification and indicates his desire for unity with the church, Christ’s community of the new covenant, purchased at the price of his blood.

    Salvation does not derive from the act of baptism itself. The person baptized has no scriptural warrant to believe that, in baptism, Christ’s saving activity is initiated, augmented, or completed. In its symbolism, however, it sets forth the saving gospel of Christ both in its objective and subjective aspects. It pictures the historical event in the life of Christ that brought to fruition the purpose of his incarnation, namely, to give his life as a ransom for many. It pictures the believer’s conscientious testimony that Christ’s acceptable sacrifice alone allows a sinner to approach God in the confidence of being accepted. It pictures the present experience of the believer in his awareness that when he was dead in trespasses and sins, God “made [him] alive with Christ” (Eph. 2:5) by the powerful operations of the Holy Spirit. The power that is necessary to produce this change is “like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given” (Eph. 1:19–21).[9]

    The History of Water Baptism

    Footnotes

    1. Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson, Answering Mormons’ Questions: Ready Responses for Inquiring Latter-Day Saints (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2013), 167.
    2. Darrell L. Bock, Acts, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007), 331.
    3. The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Ac 8:14–17.
    4. David G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009), 286–287.
    5. Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, Vol. 40: Church and Ministry II, ed. Jaroslav Jan Pelikan, Hilton C. Oswald, and Helmut T. Lehmann, vol. 40 (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1999), 246–247.
    6. John Karmiris, “Concerning the Sacraments,” in Eastern Orthodox Theology: A Contemporary Reader, ed. Daniel B. Clendenin, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), 25.
    7. Francis Turretin, Institutes of Elenctic Theology, ed. James T. Dennison Jr., trans. George Musgrave Giger, vol. 3 (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 1992–1997), 396.
    8. New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Ac 8:20–23.
    9. Thomas J. Nettles, Baptist View: Baptism as a Symbol of Christ’s Saving Work, ed. John H. Armstrong and Paul E. Engle, Understanding Four Views on Baptism, Zondervan Counterpoints Collection (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2007), 25–26.


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