What is the difference?

 In a Bible class this week, I was asked, “What’s the differences between the baptism of John and the baptism of Christ?” Before we can answer this, we need to see that the baptism of Jesus was the same as John’s before Jesus died (John 3:22-23; John 4:1-2). Both were a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins (Matt. 3:6,11; Mark 1:4-5; Acts 19:1-5). However, the baptism of Christ changed significantly after His death and resurrection. Consider these differences.

Baptized for the remission of sins

On the day of Pentecost, many Jews were gathered together in Jerusalem. Peter and the other apostle were also there. When the people heard the gospel and asked what they needed to do, Peter said, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins…” (Acts 2:38). The one baptism taught today (Eph. 4:5) is for the remission of sins (Acts 22:16).

Baptized in the name of the Lord

The baptisms conducted by John and Jesus (prior to His death) were not done in the name of anyone. This changed in Matthew 28:19. After Christ resurrected, He gave this commission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”  In Acts 10:48, Peter commanded Cornelius and his household to be baptized in water in the name of the Lord.

Paul later discussed the difference between these two baptisms.  “John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus,” (Acts 19:4-5).

Baptized into the death of Jesus

While speaking to the Roman brethren, Paul made mention of their common baptism: “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?” (Rom. 6:3). Obviously, John and Jesus could not baptize people into His death before He died. The point of Christ dying on the cross was to pave the way for the salvation of mankind. Thus, when one is buried with Christ, they put to death the old man of sin (Rom. 6:6). This person is able to rise up in spiritual newness of life, just as Christ was physically raised from the dead (verse 4).

Baptized the one true way

Earlier in this article, we mentioned the “one baptism” of Ephesians 4:5. Baptisms conducted prior to the death of Jesus were not valid after He died. Because the scriptures show that we are only to baptize into Christ’s death today, we can logically conclude that we all have one common source of salvation (Jude 3). Multiple types of baptism would contradict scripture. If we know that this baptism saves us (I Pet. 3:21), why would we accept any other baptism?

Beware lest your baptism only get you wet

Remember that John’s baptism, like a baptism into Christ’s death, was an immersion in water. Though the people in Acts 19 were immersed, they only got wet. John’s baptism did not meet the requirements for a baptism into the death of Christ, so they were not saved. Similarly, people today who are baptized without proper understanding and belief can go into the water a dry sinner and come up a wet sinner. Make sure you understand what is necessary for a proper baptism into the death of Christ.

Chuck

It’s all about authority

 Does God really care how we accomplish what He wants us to do? Do the ends justify the means in spiritual matters? Many people today toss Biblical authority aside because they feel that certain Biblical truths do not matter or are less important than others. They are not unique – the Bible is full of people who thought this way too. Let us look at these examples to see what we can learn.

Logically, we can only know God’s opinion on anything from on His word. For example, God does not care whether we eat meat or only vegetables. Both are acceptable to Him (I Cor. 8). A person cannot know this without seeing it in His word. “Feeling” that God will accept something is not the same because it cannot be proven.

Some brethren in the first century thought that it did not matter how widows were taken care of, so long as they were looked after. How did they know this conclusion was acceptable though? In I Timothy 5:16, brethren were told that using money from the church treasury to take care of widows was wrong if that widow still had family members who could care for her. There was obviously a proper way to care for these women. The ends did not justify the means.

Consider the subject of church discipline. A church could choose to ignore the sinful behavior of a member and hope that behavior would stop. What if that erring brother does stop sinning and repents? Was the church right to remain silent? Not according to I Corinthians 5. There are many ways to do things for the Lord. However, the scriptures are clear that we are wrong if we lack His authority!

Too many religious groups today justify their actions based on results. A common strategy, for example, is to use free food to draw people to church events. Some people have certainly become members of these groups because of that first invitation. Did these religious groups stop to consider what our Lord says about this strategy though? Jesus Himself gives an answer in John 6:26.

It can be difficult to say that something was not done properly when good things result from it. We need to remember, though, that we care how things are done because the Lord cares how things are done. The point is to avoid sin! Consider Philippians 1:15-18. Paul said some preachers were sinful yet had some success in converting people. The apostle rejoiced for the converts but still did not approve of the sinful preachers. Regardless of how many converts they made, these sinful preachers were still not approved in God’s eyes.

Paul’s example clearly demonstrates that the ends do not justify the means even when there is some success. People need to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ, but I will not do things that are scripturally inappropriate – going to a bar, for example – to try and teach them. We need to remember how powerful our example can be (I Tim. 4:12). Doing things for God in our own way might work in the short term, but we are compromising our teaching by not consistently following only God’s word. We also need to remember that we are potentially hurting our example to all the other people observing the situation.

How things are done plainly matters to God. It also matters to Christians who want to respect God’s authority. When we think with our emotions and not with our heads, we run the risk of establishing our own righteousness rather than seeking righteousness through Christ (Rom. 10:1-3).  Make sure you consider what God says about something rather than just assuming it is okay. Paul made it clear: “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Col. 3:17).  It is all about God and His authority.

Chuck                                                                      

Defending the truth

As I write this bulletin, there are plans for me to meet with a local religious leader and one of their members to talk about the Bible. The member just wants the religious leader and I to present what the Bible teaches about salvation so she can determine who is telling the truth.  I think open discussions are great and would be thrilled if more people could listen. When I present from the Bible though, I need to remember the points our Lord makes about defending our faith.

Consider the event in Matthew 21:23-27. Jesus was in the temple teaching when the elders and chief priest confronted Him. They wanted to talk about the idea of authority and asked Jesus a couple of questions. Let’s break down this encounter to learn how to stand up for what we believe.

Have a willingness to talk

The first thing that we notice from our Savior is that He didn’t run away. He actually welcomed the opportunity to have a discussion openly.  Christ didn’t say he would talk about this later, privately, when no one else is around. As a matter of fact, it was while He was in front of those people, whom He was teaching, that he agreed to talk (verse 24).  There is something seriously wrong with any religious teacher who would refuse to talk about what he believes openly.

Establish that it goes both ways

Nobody wants to participate in a discussion where someone is on the defensive all the time. It is never fair to force one person to defend what they believe while the other person just asks further questions.  These situations are never profitable for people who are genuinely seeking the truth. When Jesus was asked questions (verse 23), He also stated that he would gladly answer their questions if they would answer His (verse 24).  If both parties state and defend what they believe, listeners can decide for themselves. If someone refuses to state what they believe or will not defend it, we should be concerned.

Focus on facts, not personalities

All-knowing Jesus could have easily belittled or made fun of the religious leaders who confronted Him. He could have brought up past events or, knowing their hearts, even challenged their motives. Notice that He did not though. Truth and true motives will surface during the discussion. Jesus asked them a simple question, and they refused to answer (verse 25-27). I recognize that focusing on Biblical facts will anger some people, but this just reveals that they are more interested in “winning” the argument rather than sharing Biblical truth. Truth does not need to be defended with name-calling, belittling, yelling or lost tempers.

Do not be afraid to expose error

The short confrontation between Jesus and the leaders of the synagogue ended when Jesus told them that because they would not answer His question, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things,” (verse 27). If someone wants to talk about the word of God, they need to be prepared to face the consequences. Jesus was not going to apologize, nor did He need to. By refusing to answer questions from Jesus, these men demonstrated that they could not refute His teachings. This is evidence that Jesus was right.

We do not need to sugarcoat our faith to defend it.  We must be willing to state that if “2 + 2 is 4”, than any other answer is wrong. We cannot be for something without being against something contrary.  This requires courage. Remember, the only thing that suffer from sound investigation is error. Let us all be willing to give an answer for the hope that is within us (I Pet. 3:15).

                                                                                                   Chuck