Question 165. What is baptism?

 

Question 165. What is baptism?

Answer. Baptism is a sacrament of the New Testament, wherein Christ washes us with water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is a sign and seal of our ingrafting into Christ himself, of our remission of sins through his blood, of our regeneration by his Spirit, and of our resurrection as adopted sons unto everlasting life. By this means the baptized persons are solemnly admitted into the visible church, and are bound by a public profession of their promise to belong wholly to the Lord alone.

John 3:5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” Baptism is a ceremony of being born again through water and the Spirit. The ceremony of going into water signifies death to sin. The Holy Spirit first burns the body of sin with the fire of the Holy Spirit in those who have died to sin. Then, He gives them new life.

Luke 12:49-50 “I came to throw fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! I have a baptism to be baptized, and how I am distressed until it is accomplished!” The blood Jesus shed on the cross corresponds to the baptism of water, and his torn flesh corresponds to the baptism of fire.

The baptism of fire is for those who lived in Sodom and Gomorrah who would have been burned to death by fire coming down from heaven. Those who have received the baptism of fire also confess that they died on the cross with Jesus. This is not a formal ceremony, but something that is engraved in the heart. The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is widely cited as a subject of adultery. It refers to spiritual adultery rather than physical adultery. Spiritual adultery means believing in God but also following idols. In today's terms, it refers to believers who believe in Jesus but also follow superstition, legalism, and gnosticism. These are typical examples of spiritual adultery. God hates spiritual adultery very much.

John 1:33-34 “And I did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water, the same said to me, ‘On whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining on him, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.” Baptism in the Holy Spirit is when Christ gives the Holy Spirit to those who have been baptized in water and fire.

It is not that fire baptism and the baptism of the Holy Spirit are given at the same time, but that the covenant is established through fire baptism and the covenant is completed through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. In between, there is the temptation of Satan. Jesus was also tempted by Satan after being baptized. All believers are tempted by Satan after being led by the Holy Spirit after being baptized in water. Satan tests the faith of believers. He tests whether they are still in legalism, superstition, and gnosticism. And those who pass the test are reborn by Jesus sending the Holy Spirit (baptism of the Holy Spirit).

The baptism of the Holy Spirit is Christ giving the saints resurrection life. Therefore, it is the confirmation of salvation. Those who do not believe in the present resurrection have never received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Those who are baptized today but are under the law have also never received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is a gift from Christ to those who believe in dying with Jesus and being resurrected with Christ in the present.

Galatians 3:2-3 "This only I would learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now trying to perfect yourself by the flesh?" The point is that believers must begin with the baptism of the Holy Spirit and end with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, but there are those who return to the law. This is how the crime of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is committed.

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