Baptism: Its Meaning and Significance

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Mungo

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Wormwood said:
Ruth,

Actually, infant baptism was noted by Justin Martyr as something that started taking place in his day (and he disagreed with it). There is no scriptural precedent for infant baptism. See above.
Reference please.
 

Polt

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Wormwood said:
Baptism is supposed to signify death to self and sin, burial with Christ and being raised to a new life of faith. An infant can't do this. All of Paul's instruction about baptism in Romans 6 would be completely meaningless if infants were being baptized.
1 Cor 7:14 says that the children are made holy by a Believing father. Being made holy is an act of Christ of which baptism would still symbolize. This baptism is an act of faith of the parents and the children are raised in faith.

There are no examples of a baby being baptized. But, there is also not one statement or example of a baby being excluded from baptism. We are told several times that if the head of the house believes, the whole household is saved. This is the same pattern in the Old Testament with circumcision.

In the Old Testament, no adult was circumcised until after a confession of a faith (conversion). Yet, infants of Believers were circumcised and raised in the faith. (Pseudo-)Jews still follow this practice of considering their infant children to be members of the faith (until if the children join another faith).
 

Ruth

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Salvation is not by grace alone, salvation comes from Jesus, thorough repentance faith and baptism.

Never does any person in scripture come to saving grace without baptism.

2 Peter teaches that baptism is a gift for you and your children, we read that entire households were baptized.

The Greek word for “household” used in the New Testament specifically includes children and infants
 

Mungo

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Verses that explicitly say baptism save us:

1. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved (Mk 16:16)

2. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, (1Pet 3:21)

3. Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day. ……. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. (Acts 2:41….47)

Verses that implicitly say baptism saves us:

4. Or are you unaware that we who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
(Rom 6:3-4)

5. “..he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)

6. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. (1Cor 11:16)

7. “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. (Jn 3;5)


Verses that link baptism to some aspect of salvation:

8. Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. (Acts 2:38)

9. Now, why delay? Get up and have yourself baptised and your sins washed away, calling upon his name. (Acts 22:16).

10. let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (Heb 10:22)
11. You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. And even when you were dead (in) transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions; (Col 2:11-13)

12. all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (Gal 3:27).

13. “In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” (Col 2:11-12)


14. As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptised into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit. (1Cor 12:12-13).
Baptism brings us into the body of Christ (the Church).

15. This text also shows this: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; (Eph 4:4-5)

16. Through baptism we are brought into the new covenant “In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” (Col 2:11-12)
This clearly links a “spiritual circumcision” with baptism, a link from baptism to the covenant, not through physical circumcision (as in the Old Covenant) but a spiritual one.

17. For through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendant, heirs according to the promise. (Gal 3:26-27)

Paul tells us in Romans 9:8 “That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.” It is in baptism (with water) that we become children of the promise; we are made children of God.
 

Wormwood

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Polt said:
1 Cor 7:14 says that the children are made holy by a Believing father. Being made holy is an act of Christ of which baptism would still symbolize. This baptism is an act of faith of the parents and the children are raised in faith.

There are no examples of a baby being baptized. But, there is also not one statement or example of a baby being excluded from baptism. We are told several times that if the head of the house believes, the whole household is saved. This is the same pattern in the Old Testament with circumcision.

In the Old Testament, no adult was circumcised until after a confession of a faith (conversion). Yet, infants of Believers were circumcised and raised in the faith. (Pseudo-)Jews still follow this practice of considering their infant children to be members of the faith (until if the children join another faith).
Oh, so we need to find Scriptures that "exclude" something to prove it doesnt teach it? Really? Also, by this rationale, we should only evangelize dads. If we can save the dad than the whole family is assure to go to heaven. Actually, all Israelites were circumcised and God-fearing Gentiles who wanted to embrace the whole law were circumcised. Christian baptism is not Israelite circumcision. One is an act of faith and the other is a marking of the flesh to belong to a theocratic community. By this rationale we should not baptize women at all. There is so much wrong with this I dont have time to address it all.
 

Polt

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Wormwood said:
Oh, so we need to find Scriptures that "exclude" something to prove it doesnt teach it?
When we find repeated references to whole households being baptised upon conversion of the head of house, just as we saw with circumcision which included children, then yes, children have to be excluded to prove it doesn't teach infant baptism.

When a gentile, by faith, accepted God, he and his household were circumcised. If not faith, then what led gentiles in the Old Testament to become Jews? If not faith, what led Abraham?


It would be smart to focus more on evangelizing dads. When a dad comes to church, the whole family comes. When a mom comes, often dad stays home. The family is the dad's/husband's responsibility. But, baptising both females and males is explicitly taught in the Bible.
 

Alanforchrist

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Polt said:
I don't see anything in the New Testament that says only believing adults were baptized. Rather, whole households were baptised when they were headed by a believing father, which would include infants. See Acts 10. Baptism serves exactly the same function, a symbol of inclusion in God's covenant, as circumcision in the Old Testament/ Mp no one would dispute that infants were circumcised when their father became a believer. Also, there are people raised from birth as Christians and have always believed.
Whole households didn't mean infants, It means people of the age of understanding.
As for "Children", In Acts 2: 39. The Greek word is, "Teknon", And if it meant infant, The Greek word would be,"Brephos".

I say to a lady, "How's your children", And they are in their 30s, And that's what children mean in Acts.

The Bible's way for baptism is.
[1]Hear and understand.
[2]Believe.
[3Repent and be converted.
[4]Then and then only can one be baptised.
So how can an infant, Hear, understand, believe, repent and be converted??.

Mungo said:
A person receives the Holy Spirit when they are baptised in water. Baptism in the Holy Spirit is not baptism. It's just a metaphor.
I received the Holy Spirit when I got saved on Dec 7: 1975. I was baptised in the Holy Ghost and spoke in tongues,
On May 11. 1976. And baptised in water on Juy 3rd 1976.
So how can one receive the Holy Spirit at water baptism??.

What about the disciples, They were baptised in water, But they didn't receive the Holy Spirit until after Jesus died and rose again.
What about Paul, He was saved three days before he was baptised in the Holy Ghost, And that was before he was baptised in water.
What about the Gentiles in Acts 10, They were save, Baptised in the Holy Ghost, But they weren;t baptised in water at that time.

Your problem is, You believe the pope's porkies and the catholic con-men rather then the Bible.

Mungo said:
Verses that explicitly say baptism save us:

1. Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved (Mk 16:16)

2. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, (1Pet 3:21)

3. Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day. ……. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. (Acts 2:41….47)

Verses that implicitly say baptism saves us:

4. Or are you unaware that we who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.
(Rom 6:3-4)

5. “..he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)

6. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. (1Cor 11:16)

7. “Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. (Jn 3;5)


Verses that link baptism to some aspect of salvation:

8. Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. (Acts 2:38)

9. Now, why delay? Get up and have yourself baptised and your sins washed away, calling upon his name. (Acts 22:16).

10. let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (Heb 10:22)
11. You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. And even when you were dead (in) transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions; (Col 2:11-13)

12. all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (Gal 3:27).

13. “In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” (Col 2:11-12)


14. As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptised into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit. (1Cor 12:12-13).
Baptism brings us into the body of Christ (the Church).

15. This text also shows this: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; (Eph 4:4-5)

16. Through baptism we are brought into the new covenant “In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.” (Col 2:11-12)
This clearly links a “spiritual circumcision” with baptism, a link from baptism to the covenant, not through physical circumcision (as in the Old Covenant) but a spiritual one.

17. For through faith you are all children of God in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free person, there is not male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendant, heirs according to the promise. (Gal 3:26-27)

Paul tells us in Romans 9:8 “That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed.” It is in baptism (with water) that we become children of the promise; we are made children of God.
[1]The Greek emphesis for "Saved", In Mk 16: 16, Is on the "Believing" NOT baptsim, Also see , He that believeth not shall be damned, It didn't say he that isn't baptised shall be damned.

[2]The Greek meaning for baptism in 1 Pet 3: 21, Is,
"It is a symbol, A type, A figure of salvation, The expression, Not the medium, The symbol, Not the cause".

[3]As for the, "Washing of regeneration" In Titus 3: 5. The Greek word is, "Loutron", If it meant baptism, The Greek word would have been, "Baptismos"...So Titus 3: 5, ISN'T talking about water baptism..STOP TWISTING THE SCRIPTURES..

[4]Please note, Jn 3: 5 doesn't say you must be born of the Spirit and baptised in water, DOES IT??. No, False religious people have made that lie up.

[5]As for Acts 2: 38, The Greek enpesis is on the "Repenting", Not baptism.
In the Greek, There are persons and numbers, And they bothhave to agree in order to build a doctrine, And,
"Repent ye for the reission of sins, And Ye shall recieve the gift of the Holy Ghost", They agree in person and number.
But, "Be baptised", Doesn't agree in number or person, with Repent and recive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
So this is the way the people would have heard and understood Peter,
"Repent for the remission of sins, And ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost".. Then you can be baptised.

[6]As for Acts 22: 16, Paul was already saved when Ananias said be baptised and wash away your sins,
Plus, Baptism and washing away sins is symbolic of salvation, As proved in my point [2].

[7]As for 1 Cor 12: 13, That is talking about the Spirit baptising us into the body of Christ, It has nothing to do with water baptism, PLEASE NOTE, It doesn't say, "For by water baptism we are baptised into the body"..DOES IT??....No. No. False religious people have made that lie up.

[8]The, "One baptism" In Eph 4: 4-5, Is the rebirth,,Se 1 Cor 12: 13, Jn 3: 3--8.
There are three Christian baptisms,
[A] The rebirth, 1 Cor 12: 13.
Water baptim, Acts 8: 36-39.
[C]The Baptism in the Holy Ghost, Acts 1: 4-5.

[9]Gal 3: 26--27, Is the Spiritual baptism into the body of Christ, See 1 Cor 12: 13, Jn 3: 3--8.

We DO NOT become children of God through water baptism.
 

Mungo

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Wormwood said:
Oh, so we need to find Scriptures that "exclude" something to prove it doesnt teach it? Really? Also, by this rationale, we should only evangelize dads. If we can save the dad than the whole family is assure to go to heaven. Actually, all Israelites were circumcised and God-fearing Gentiles who wanted to embrace the whole law were circumcised. Christian baptism is not Israelite circumcision. One is an act of faith and the other is a marking of the flesh to belong to a theocratic community. By this rationale we should not baptize women at all. There is so much wrong with this I dont have time to address it all.
Actually only men were circumcised not ALL Israelites.

It's true that Christian Baptism is not Israelite circumcision but there is a lot of commonality.

God fearing Gentiles who were circumcised became Jews. They said prescribed prayer, circumcised and took and mikvah (ritual bath). That's similar to baptism except circumcison which was dispensed with by the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15)

Israelite circumcision was a sign of the Abrahamic Covenant.


Alanforchrist said:
I received the Holy Spirit when I got saved on Dec 7: 1975. I was baptised in the Holy Ghost and spoke in tongues,
On May 11. 1976. And baptised in water on Juy 3rd 1976.
So how can one receive the Holy Spirit at water baptism??.
On Dec 7 1975 you had an experience in which you think you received the Holy Spirit and got saved.

You actually got saved when you were baptised in water (providing it was done correctly)


Alanforchrist said:
What about the disciples, They were baptised in water, But they didn't receive the Holy Spirit until after Jesus died and rose again.
What about Paul, He was saved three days before he was baptised in the Holy Ghost, And that was before he was baptised in water.
What about the Gentiles in Acts 10, They were save, Baptised in the Holy Ghost, But they weren;t baptised in water at that time.
1. The disciples - Christian baptism wasn't instituted until Jesus died and rose again.

2. Paul wasn't saved until he was baptised in water.

3. Acts 10 - they were saved when they were baptised in water, That is why Peter had to have them baptised.


Alanforchrist said:
Your problem is, You believe the pope's porkies and the catholic con-men rather then the Bible.
There was a poster here who used to make exactly the same comments. If I remember rightly he got banned. Are you him come back under a new name?


I'm going to come back to the rest of your post later. I don't have time right now
 

Alanforchrist

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Mungo said:
Actually only men were circumcised not ALL Israelites.

It's true that Christian Baptism is not Israelite circumcision but there is a lot of commonality.

God fearing Gentiles who were circumcised became Jews. They said prescribed prayer, circumcised and took and mikvah (ritual bath). That's similar to baptism except circumcison which was dispensed with by the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15)

Israelite circumcision was a sign of the Abrahamic Covenant.



On Dec 7 1975 you had an experience in which you think you received the Holy Spirit and got saved.

You actually got saved when you were baptised in water (providing it was done correctly)



1. The disciples - Christian baptism wasn't instituted until Jesus died and rose again.

2. Paul wasn't saved until he was baptised in water.

3. Acts 10 - they were saved when they were baptised in water, That is why Peter had to have them baptised.



There was a poster here who used to make exactly the same comments. If I remember rightly he got banned. Are you him come back under a new name?


I'm going to come back to the rest of your post later. I don't have time right now
[1]I know I was saved on the 7th Dec 1975, I felt the Spirit enter me, And I almost fell to the floor by His power.
I know I received the baptism in the Holy Ghost on May 11, Because I spoke in tongues and had the power and love of God in a very strong measure...So I know baptism doesn't save...You have come to late to tell me baptism saves.

[2]So you are saying the twelve Apostles weren't saved, Because there is no record of them being baptised after Jesus rose from the dead, There is a record of disciples being baptised, in the book of Acts. But that was after they were saved.
 

Wormwood

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Actually only men were circumcised not ALL Israelites.
Mungo, you have a unique way of missing the obvious and stating the obvious.
It's true that Christian Baptism is not Israelite circumcision but there is a lot of commonality.

God fearing Gentiles who were circumcised became Jews. They said prescribed prayer, circumcised and took and mikvah (ritual bath). That's similar to baptism except circumcison which was dispensed with by the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15)

Israelite circumcision was a sign of the Abrahamic Covenant.
First, if there is so much "commonality" then why does Paul expect the first and reject the second for Christians? Clearly Paul did not see this commonality. In fact, it appears that in Paul's mind, there was a great deal of contrast as one focused on a mark of the flesh and a covenant of law, while the other devalued any emphasis on flesh and brought idenfication with the death and ressurection of Jesus.
Its not similar to baptism. In fact, it is so unsimilar that Jews were wanting to kill Paul over the issue.

Alanforchrist,

Because I spoke in tongues and had the power and love of God in a very strong measure...So I know baptism doesn't save...You have come to late to tell me baptism saves.
Our doctrines are not determined by your personal experiences (and neither should yours be).

Mark 16:16 - "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved..."
1 Peter 3:21 - "Baptism now saves you..."

If Scripture basically says the exact opposite of what you say, I have to go with Scripture.

[3]As for the, "Washing of regeneration" In Titus 3: 5. The Greek word is, "Loutron", If it meant baptism, The Greek word would have been, "Baptismos"...So Titus 3: 5, ISN'T talking about water baptism..STOP TWISTING THE SCRIPTURES
Yeah, Greek word means "batheing." We can just as easily (and much more accurately say) "If it meant Spirit baptism, the Greek word would have been "pneuma" of regeneration. So, Titus 3:5 ISN'T talking about a subjective and potentially unrecognizible spiritual experience or the gift of tongues. Lets be cautious of accusing people of "twisting" scripture. This implies intentional deceit and misuse. It takes more of a leap to identify "batheing" with a spiritual experience than it does being dunked in a pool of water as a prayer for a clean conscience toward God by faith in Jesus.
 

Levi

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Just my take, but too many people put too much emphasis on a step-by-step salvation plan, baptismal included in this plan. I'm not saying we shouldn't get baptized, but just because you got wet doesn't mean you're on the right road. Especially infants who have been sprinkled - not only do they not know which road they're on, they don't even know what a road is. :)

Repentance is a precursor for baptism -

Acts 2:38 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.

A person needs to comprehend the significance and purpose of repentance.
 

Wormwood

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Well, in my mind, Levi, too many people put too much emphasis on their own ideas than following Scriptural precedents. No one is saying getting wet makes you a Christian. I agree that repentence is necessary (and this is not just another "step" in a process either). However, where do we find praying a "sinner's prayer" in the NT? If we are going to put our faith and action behind the words of God, it only make sense to me to do what Jesus commanded and the disciples practiced. It's not about a "process" but a proper response of faith.
 

Levi

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Wormwood said:
Well, in my mind, Levi, too many people put too much emphasis on their own ideas than following Scriptural precedents. No one is saying getting wet makes you a Christian. I agree that repentence is necessary (and this is not just another "step" in a process either). However, where do we find praying a "sinner's prayer" in the NT? If we are going to put our faith and action behind the words of God, it only make sense to me to do what Jesus commanded and the disciples practiced. It's not about a "process" but a proper response of faith.
There is nothing here I disagree with. :)

A sinner's prayer would be one of those step-by-step plans I mentioned earlier. We should get baptized, but why put all of our eggs into one basket? Faith is what overcomes - not baptismal water.
 

Wormwood

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I understand. But what is "faith?" Faith in what? Faith in Jesus? What does that look like? Is it merely some ideas about who Jesus was? James says demons have that kind of "faith." Faith is a trusting obedience to the words and authority of God over someones life. God tells us we are saved by the work of Jesus and to become a follower of Jesus we are told to be baptized (Matt. 28). So to not be baptized, in my mind, is to not have faith in the words of Jesus. The grace of Jesus is applied to human beings as they respond in faith. That response has been clearly dilineated in Scripture. This isnt putting all our eggs in one basket. Its just not picking and choosing our eggs. Must someone repent? Must someone confess Christ as Lord? Must someone be baptized? Must someone believe? Must someone continue in their faith? I would say yes to all. To remove one or more of these elements for the sake of emphasizing "faith" is to misunderstand faith in my estimation.
 

Levi

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Wormwood said:
I understand. But what is "faith?" Faith in what? Faith in Jesus? What does that look like? Is it merely some ideas about who Jesus was? James says demons have that kind of "faith." Faith is a trusting obedience to the words and authority of God over someones life. God tells us we are saved by the work of Jesus and to become a follower of Jesus we are told to be baptized (Matt. 28). So to not be baptized, in my mind, is to not have faith in the words of Jesus. The grace of Jesus is applied to human beings as they respond in faith. That response has been clearly dilineated in Scripture. This isnt putting all our eggs in one basket. Its just not picking and choosing our eggs. Must someone repent? Must someone confess Christ as Lord? Must someone be baptized? Must someone believe? Must someone continue in their faith? I would say yes to all. To remove one or more of these elements for the sake of emphasizing "faith" is to misunderstand faith in my estimation.
First of all, baptism is something we should do as believers, but it should not be used as a step-by-step process in order to receive eternal life. Just as you mentioned earlier, man has emphasized other steps to be taken in order to receive salvation - the sinner's prayer, membership to an organized church, involvement in the church, group bible studies and the list goes on.

The real test is the Fruit produced.

Faith is the substance of something hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. Demons do not have faith in God, they just know He exists.
 

Ruth

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The history of the Christian church shows us that as far back as of the year 180 AD Infants were baptized.

It was not until the Anabaptist come along in the 1500's did people start to question this practice....why?

Why did the Anabaptist think they were more enlightened then the apostles and the early church fathers?

Why did John Calvin and the likes of him think they new better than the organized church on who should be baptized and what baptism means?

If any of you would do research on the church's history on baptism you would know infant baptism was performed and stated so in the earliest writings of the church history

An early Christian author Hippolytus from 200 AD writes about whole families, infants included, would be baptized together in the river.

If you read the bible alone without the knowledge of your Christian history you may come to the conclusion that only adults are baptized, but this is only because you do not have the whole picture, the whole of knowledge from the apostles and what the early church taught.

The apostles letters in the bible were never meant to be read as if this is the full story..they were letters sent to church's speaking on topic and concerns of that church.....many teachings were expressed outside these letters....this is why we must rely on the EARLY Christian church to know what was practiced.

After 300 AD THE CHURCH STARTED TO ADD False teachings...such as works penance, meaning not grace alone, but having to do some practice ordained by the priest to receive forgiveness... having to confess to a priest, ...making mother Mary sinless, ...praying to the dead,... purgatory, ...paying the church to get their dead family members out of hell.......the church became very sick, and filled with sin...this is why Martin Luther broke away from the Catholic Church....and brought it back to the practice of the earLy church.

Infant baptism is done because of Abrahams covenant with God, that all of Abrahams seed, adults, children and babies are grafted into the tree of life....a baby is saved through faith, the child is discipled as a Christian, and must continue in this faith their whole life...we are all working out our salvation......any Christian at anytime in their life can commit apostasy and fall from grace.
...........

5 For you, O Lord, are my hope,
my trust, O Lord, from my youth.
6 Upon you I have leaned from before my birth;
you are he who took me from my mother's womb.
My praise is continually of you.....O God, from my youth you have taught me,
and I still proclaim your wondrous deeds. (ps. 71:5-6, 17)


Yet you are he who took me from the womb;
you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.
10 On you was I cast from my birth,
and from my mother's womb you have been my God. (Ps. 22: 9-10)
.................

God wants us to regard our children as Christians from the birth, so we baptize them....for baptism is commanded by Christ for all believers....the child is then desipled as a believer, not a sinful child waiting to be saved, but brought up in the church as a child of God.....there is NO AGE OF ACCOUNTABILITY IN THE BIBLE.
 

Mungo

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Wormwood said:
First, if there is so much "commonality" then why does Paul expect the first and reject the second for Christians? Clearly Paul did not see this commonality. In fact, it appears that in Paul's mind, there was a great deal of contrast as one focused on a mark of the flesh and a covenant of law, while the other devalued any emphasis on flesh and brought idenfication with the death and ressurection of Jesus.
Its not similar to baptism. In fact, it is so unsimilar that Jews were wanting to kill Paul over the issue.
It's my view that the ritual bathing signified a number of things that carried over into Christian baptism.

But circumcision did not because it was a sign of the acceptance of the old Covenant and the Law that went with it. It was that which Paul was against because he saw it as rejecting grace and trying to save yourself under the Law.

There are other Christian rituals that have their origins in Judaism, for example the Lord's Supper.

To go back to the Jewish ritual bathing (tevilah) in a ritual bath (mikvah):
There seem to be three occasions where a mikvar is required in Leviticus, those involving birth (including sex and menstruation), death (including skin diseases) and coming into the presence of God. They seem to be a reminder of our uncleanness and the need for purification. So the tevilar/mikvar also became a symbol of repentance, of expressing faith that cleansing was available and of asking for it. Hence John the Baptist baptised in the Jordan as a baptism of repentance.

Jesus took this Jewish ritual and made it a Christian one (Mt 28:19 and Mk 16:16) but making the effects more powerful because it is Jesus who is the prime baptiser.
We can see the three purposes I noted above in Christian baptism.

Birth – we are born from above (born again) in baptism (Jn 3:5)


Death – Paul compares baptism to dying with Christ and rising to new life. There are two connotations here because entering a mikvar involved physical descent and coming out a physical ascent (rising), something Paul would be very aware of. (Rom 6:3-4 and Col 2:11-12). When Jews became Christians the public and private mikvahs became used for baptism instead.

Coming into the presence of God and forgiveness of sin – In baptism we are made children of God and our sins are forgiven (1Cor 12:12-13, Coll 2:11-13, Acts 2:38 and Acts 22:16).
 

Episkopos

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Mungo said:
It's my view that the ritual bathing signified a number of things that carried over into Christian baptism.

But circumcision did not because it was a sign of the acceptance of the old Covenant and the Law that went with it. It was that which Paul was against because he saw it as rejecting grace and trying to save yourself under the Law.

There are other Christian rituals that have their origins in Judaism, for example the Lord's Supper.

To go back to the Jewish ritual bathing (tevilah) in a ritual bath (mikvah):
There seem to be three occasions where a mikvar is required in Leviticus, those involving birth (including sex and menstruation), death (including skin diseases) and coming into the presence of God. They seem to be a reminder of our uncleanness and the need for purification. So the tevilar/mikvar also became a symbol of repentance, of expressing faith that cleansing was available and of asking for it. Hence John the Baptist baptised in the Jordan as a baptism of repentance.

Jesus took this Jewish ritual and made it a Christian one (Mt 28:19 and Mk 16:16) but making the effects more powerful because it is Jesus who is the prime baptiser.
We can see the three purposes I noted above in Christian baptism.

Birth – we are born from above (born again) in baptism (Jn 3:5)


Death – Paul compares baptism to dying with Christ and rising to new life. There are two connotations here because entering a mikvar involved physical descent and coming out a physical ascent (rising), something Paul would be very aware of. (Rom 6:3-4 and Col 2:11-12). When Jews became Christians the public and private mikvahs became used for baptism instead.

Coming into the presence of God and forgiveness of sin – In baptism we are made children of God and our sins are forgiven (1Cor 12:12-13, Coll 2:11-13, Acts 2:38 and Acts 22:16).

Well said and laid out!
 

Alanforchrist

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Wormwood said:
Mungo, you have a unique way of missing the obvious and stating the obvious.
First, if there is so much "commonality" then why does Paul expect the first and reject the second for Christians? Clearly Paul did not see this commonality. In fact, it appears that in Paul's mind, there was a great deal of contrast as one focused on a mark of the flesh and a covenant of law, while the other devalued any emphasis on flesh and brought idenfication with the death and ressurection of Jesus.
Its not similar to baptism. In fact, it is so unsimilar that Jews were wanting to kill Paul over the issue.

Alanforchrist,


Our doctrines are not determined by your personal experiences (and neither should yours be).

Mark 16:16 - "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved..."
1 Peter 3:21 - "Baptism now saves you..."

If Scripture basically says the exact opposite of what you say, I have to go with Scripture.

Yeah, Greek word means "batheing." We can just as easily (and much more accurately say) "If it meant Spirit baptism, the Greek word would have been "pneuma" of regeneration. So, Titus 3:5 ISN'T talking about a subjective and potentially unrecognizible spiritual experience or the gift of tongues. Lets be cautious of accusing people of "twisting" scripture. This implies intentional deceit and misuse. It takes more of a leap to identify "batheing" with a spiritual experience than it does being dunked in a pool of water as a prayer for a clean conscience toward God by faith in Jesus.
Of cause you don't go by personal experience, Because you don't have any.
I have explained what Mk 16: 16, And 1 Pet 3: 21 mean.

To understand the Bible, You have to know who is doing the talking, You need to know when it's God, A Biblical character, Or when it's the Bible translators.
And the original Greek texts say Baptism DOESN'T save...So it isn't the opposite of what I say, You was nearly tight though, Just the wrong person, Because it's the opposite of what you say.
Every Greek word and meaning for baptism, Including, "Wash, Dip and bath", Is total immersion, As the part that is washed, dipped or bathed has to be completely covered with water.

Why would the Greek word for "Washing" In Titus 3: 3, have to be Pneuma ??.
It is the washing of regeneration by the Holy Ghost.
This is talking about the new birth, Not the baptism in the Holy Ghost,And we don't receive tongues until we are baptised in the Holy Ghost.

Titus 3: 5 certainly isn't talking about water baptism, Because if it was the Greek word would be,"Baptimos", Not "Loutron".
 

Eric E Stahl

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Inmate said:
Meaning? lol sorry im 17 I just want to be able to enter heaven, and I don't go out in public too much
Baptism by immersion in water is a picture of your death with Christ and rebirth as a born again Christian. It is a witness to the world that you are a Christian.

You don't have to be baptised to go to heaven. For example the theif on the cross went to paridise the same day with Jesus but was never bapised with water. He was baptised by the Holy Spirit when he was saved by faith in Jesus.