DUNKING OR SPRINKLING?
BATH OF PURIFICATION (Mikve)
Besides Bethesda and of Siloam, there were many mikve or pools of water in Jerusalem. Recently, archeologists have excavated a tunnel pathway from the Siloam to the temple mount with many mikve nearby. They have also found a huge river flowing underneath. This may be the same river of life that will burst forth from the Mount of Olives when Yeshua’s feet touch it. It will result in the Dead Sea swarming with fish and living creatures (Rev. 22:1,2; Ezekiel 47:8–11; Zech. 14:8).
As per Zachariah’s prophecy, men and women are already praying apart at the Wailing wall. Soon a fountain shall burst forth and fill the pools. Jews will accept Yeshua as Messiah and take baptism in the same pools where Peter baptized three thousand souls. (Zech. 12:12-14; 13:1;9)
However, before that happens God is making Jerusalem a cup of wine that staggers the people nearby. It is being trodden over by Gentiles (Muslims) that is taking place right now (Zech. 12:2; Luke 21:24).
During feasts, pilgrims camped around these pools. They had to find two witnesses (Deut. 19:15), confess those sins, and then take a mikve bath. Even today, Jews regularly take Mikve, in many cities, especially women after their niddah (menstrual period) is over. Priests did not baptize anyone, whether men or women. They only offered sacrifices and burnt incense. Today, any baptized person may baptize others.
PENTECOSTAL MEN AND WOMEN HEAD FOR SEPARATE POOLS
Women went to separate pools to baptize each other, because they take off all their clothes to make sure that water touched every part of their body. Naturally, it was inappropriate for men to be present.
Orthodox “Bleeding Pharisees” would shut their eyes when they saw a woman coming from the opposite direction, resulting in their crashing into sidewalls of the narrow, cobbled streets of Jerusalem, and consequent bleeding from their faces. They also kept women behind curtains in synagogues to avoid eye contact. Handling of wet women at baptism by a man would amount to adultery (Matt. 5:28). Women would not confess their sins to men, hence they baptized each other.
BAPTISM MUST HALLOW HIS GREAT NAME AMONG THE HEATHENS
Some Baptists would have us to believe that “baptizo” means dunking and nothing else, but the Greek word has a wide latitude of meaning. Immersing, ablutions, sprinkling, washing, pouring out, etc., all come within the purview of this word. Moses baptized Israel by sprinkling the blood of the animals. The Holy Spirit did so by being poured out from above (Heb. 9:10, 13, 19, 21; Titus 3:5, 6; Acts 2:3).
Baptism was a controversial subject even at the time of Yeshua (John 3:25). Jews baptized their pots and pans (Mark 7: 4, 8). The purpose of baptism was to affirm God’s giving a new heart and a new spirit, so that His great name be hallowed in us before the eyes of the heathen. Baptism glorifies God through witnessing to the lost. God looks neither at the amount of water nor at who baptized, rather he looks at the heart and motive of the baptized. Your baptism should transform you and others through you, thus expanding His kingdom (Acts. 2:37-41).
BAPTISM HAS BECOME A POLITICAL WORD
In the 16th century, but for the political protection of Prince Fredrick of Germany, Martin Luther would have been a dead duck. The Prince made a political decision forbidding a shift from infant baptism to adult baptism. When the Bible was translated, the Greek word “baptisma” was retained, because by that time, child baptism by sprinkling holy water had become a law and baptism of adults by immersion, a crime. Anybody talking about immersion baptism in those days would have been dunked till dead or barbequed into a charred steak by the church. Many were baptized in rivers and pools, but there is no description of anyone being laid like a cadaver in a horizontal position under water to signify burial, as some insist. It would be unrealistic legalism to insist on dunking in deserts, wherever water is scarce, or in icy Tundra.
ANY BELIEVER CAN BAPTIZE
Yeshua commanded His disciples, “Go preach the good news to all nations. He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:15-17). There is no specific authority given to the clergy to baptize. Philip was an ordinary table server who baptized hundreds of Samaritans, including the treasurer of Ethiopia. Ananias was an ordinary disciple who baptized Saul into Paul (Acts 8:12; 9:17-18).
THERE ARE MANY REFERENCES TO WATER BAPTISM IN THE NT
- “Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand! And all the people went out to him and were baptized in the river Jordan, confessing their sins” (Matt. 3:1-6).
- John baptized Yeshua in the river Jordan. He said, “It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness… And being baptized, Yeshua came up immediately from the water” (Matt. 3:15; Mark 1:9).
- Yeshua began to preach, “Repent … The Pharisees heard that Yeshua had baptized more disciples than John (though Yeshua Himself did not baptize, but His disciples)” (John 4:1-2).
- Yeshua commissioned and sent His disciples, saying, “Go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19).
- On the day of Pentecost, Peter ordered, “Repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Yeshua!” (Acts 2:37-38).
- The Ethiopian eunuch said to Philip, “See, here is water, what hinders my being baptized” Philip replied, “If you believe with all your heart, you may”. Both went down into the water, and he baptized him” (Acts 8:35-39).
THE MEANING OF BAPTISM
Baptism is like Hara-kiri, a Japanese form of suicide by cutting open one’s own belly, for a cause. Baptism is no different, as we die to the world to avoid punishment for our sins.
“As many of us as were baptized into Messiah Yeshua, were buried into His death. Therefore, we were buried with Him through burial into death, that just as Messiah was raised from the dead, by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:3-4).
“We were buried with Him in baptism… we shall be in the likeness of His resurrection” (Rom. 6:4-5).
WE GAIN A NEW IDENTITY WHEN WE ARE BAPTIZED
- We confess our sins and repent, and our sins are forgiven, washed away by the blood of Yeshua (Acts 2:37-38; 1 John 1:7-9).
- We die to the world and are buried with Him. We resurrect spiritually (Rom. 6:6-14).
- We confess the Lordship of Yeshua over our life (Rom. 10:910).
- Saints lay hands on us to fill us with the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:6).
- We become a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17).
- We are no longer strangers and foreigners, but members of the Household of God (Eph. 2:19).
- We are now sitting in the heavenly places with the Messiah (Eph. 2:6; Heb. 3:15; 2 Cor. 6:2).
- We serve on earth as His ambassadors (2 Cor. 5:20).
- We are commissioned now, not only to baptize individuals but nations. (Matt. 28:19)
- We receive the ministry of reconciliation for lost humanity as well as for the travailing creation (2 Cor. 5:18-20; Rom. 8:19).
In the NT: repentance, water baptism, being filled with the Holy Spirit took place simultaneously (Acts 2:37-41, Acts 8:12-20, Acts 10:44-48, Acts 19:1-6, Acts 22:16, Heb 6:1-2; Mk 16:15,16 etc.)
Thus, baptism means death, burial and resurrection with Messiah Yeshua. Through baptism, we publicly seal our relationship with the Lord Yeshua (Rom. 6:3-4).
DUNKING DELAYED IS OBEDIENCE DENIED
The rival “anti-Pope” Novatian (251- 258) erroneously decreed that sins committed after baptism might attract a more serious punishment. For this reason, Emperor Constantine waited to take baptism on his deathbed, given by an Arian Bishop who did not believe in deity of Yeshua. Some fear lest the new believers revert to their old faith if baptized too soon. However, there is greater a danger of losing them if baptism is delayed. Baptism is not a reward for becoming mature, but the first step in the process of becoming a follower of Yeshua. The umbilical cord of a newborn baby is immediately cut off lest it harm him. Similarly, the worldly practices of a newborn believer should be cut off as soon as he identifies himself with Messiah.
As soon as a person repents, he or she should be baptized. There is no instance in the Scriptures of baptism being delayed except for Saul, the theologian, who took three days to be converted into Paul the apostle (Acts 9:3-20). Peter instructed all the 3,000 new believers to be baptized immediately (Acts 2:41). Philip baptized an Ethiopian treasurer within hours in a roadside pool (Acts 8:3439). Paul baptized a jailor’s family in the middle of the night in the prison pool (Acts 16:33). Paul was baptized by Ananias a disciple in the home of Judas in Damascus (Acts 9:10-18). Baptism delayed is baptism denied. Baptism is a gift of grace, not a privilege to be earned through a long period of discipleship.
Scripture says “Today now is the day, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts!” “Behold now is the accepted time; behold of salvation” (Heb. 3:15; 2 Cor. 6:2).
BAPTISM AND SPEAKING IN TONGUES
The first time that the apostles spoke, everyone understood it in their own native language (Acts 2:4-8, 11). The second time they were filled with the Spirit, they spoke the word of God with boldness (Acts 4:31). Sometimes, even before baptism, Gentiles were filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:44). Paul spoke in tongues in private and forbade others to do so in their assembly, unless they had an interpreter (1 Cor. 14:18-19, 27-28). Tongues is one of the many gifts that is available although it is not necessary for everyone to speak in tongues to be saved (1 Cor. 12:29). It is better to ask for a higher gift, especially prophesy, which is more useful for the edification of the Ekklesia (1 Cor. 14:1).
CARPET TIME
Nowadays it Is fashionable to spend “Carpet Time” after being “Slain in The Spirit” by a celebrity preacher. Sometimes he just waves his hand or cloak, or he gives a gentle push, and folk fall backwards. “Slaying in The Spirit” is not in the Scriptures. Some think that Paul was slain in the Spirit on the Road to Damascus, but he never went into a catatonic trance, and he held a clear conversation with The Lord (Acts 9:3-6). Nor was this held in a healing crusade but in the middle of a muddy road. It was also not initiated by a celebrity preacher, for the Lord was dealing directly with him. The acid test of a Spirit-filled NT Ekklesia is not believers falling backwards but unbelievers falling forwards (prostrate) and confessing, “Truly God is amongst you” (1 Cor. 14:24-25).
LAYING ON OF HANDS AND BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Baptism is not necessarily connected with speaking in tongues. Yeshua did not speak in tongues after receiving the Holy Spirit. Paul, received the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands by a local disciple named Ananias, but he did not speak in tongues, nor did he start gyrating in ecstasy, but immediately preached Yeshua boldly to the Jews of Damascus (Acts 9:17-22). Today, people start speaking in tongues at the drop of a hat, when ordered to do so by the leader during worship. Baptism is an act of “identification” with Yeshua and His Body (Matt. 6:33; 2 Thess. 3:8-12).
John’s water baptism of repentance is not enough. Even though Philip baptized Samaritans in the name of Yeshua, the Holy Spirit had not fallen on them, so Peter and John had to go to Samaria and lay hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:1217). Yeshua came to baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire. Without the Baptism of the Holy spirit, you do not belong to Christ, “And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ (Rom. 8:9,14-17). It makes us members of one Body and not multiple denominations, “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free” (1 Cor. 12:13). Baptism of fire refers to being baptized with the Word of God, “Is not my word like as fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” (Jer. 23:29).“ It equips a new believer to face persecution that is likely to follow. “Everyone shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.” After skinning a sacrificial animal, its body was salted before being offered on an altar. (Matt. 3:11; Mark 9:49)
The laying on of hands signified the passing on of the “keys of the kingdom”, having a definite expansionist agenda, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8). To lay hands on a novice is forbidden just as the gifts received through it should not be neglected (1 Tim. 3:6; 4:14). The apostles laid their hands on “the seven Greeks” who then got busy advancing the kingdom among their own people. So did Paul and Barnabas in the Ekklesia at Antioch when they said “nay” to the world and “aye” to the Lord. In Baptism we identify Yeshua as our King, agreeing to obey Him and to do His will (John 3:3; 1 John 5:6-8).
BAPTISM MUST LEAD TO FULL TIME COMMITMENT
After baptism, a believer should be fully committed to serve. After His baptism, Yeshua announced the Kingdom of God on earth as His vision statement, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” He also explained the method as to how he is going to achieve it, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men!” (Matt. 4:17.19). At the time of their baptism with the Holy spirit and fire the disciples were given the mandate to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). At the time of his baptism with water and the Holy Spirit, Paul was given the Great Commission, “Open eyes of the Gentiles, and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among the saints” (Acts 26:17,18). Later he went through the baptism of fire when he was persecuted and eventually martyred like the other disciples.
Baptism should not be given only to make people members of the congregation, but only to those who are willing to be co-workers with Christ (2 Cor. 6:1). This does not mean that you have to stop earning a living. All the early Ekklesia members were bi-vocational, that is, they earned their own living whilst working for the Lord. However, when in conflict, “seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” The priority must be working for the kingdom and that you can do even while working in a secular enterprise (Matt. 6:33; 2 Thess. 3:8-12).
INFANT MORTALITY LED TO BABY SPRINKLING
In those days, infant mortality was high due to lack of sanitation and medical facilities. Though there is no instruction in the Scriptures, priests used to sprinkle holy water on dying children. In AD 416, Pope Innocent I, signed an edict that made infant baptism a law, to increase church membership.
ONLY BELIEVER’S BAPTISM
Young children should not be baptized, because the Holy Bible teaches us that “whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.” Philip said to the Ethiopian eunuch, “If you believe with all your heart, you may be baptized” (Acts 8:34-39). Baptism should only be given to believers (Mark 16:16). Infants neither can nor need to repent, and therefore they neither should need to be baptized. Parents and godfathers cannot repent on their behalf. “Because all have sinned” (Rom. 6:23), all must confess his own sins, and then “the blood of Yeshua cleanses him from all sin” (1 John1:7-9).
HOUSEHOLD BAPTISM SHOULD NOT INCLUDE INFANTS
In the NT, whole households were baptized, but only those who had repented and believed. Elders blessed the little children just as Yeshua had done (Matt. 19:13-15). Some people mistakenly think that babies must have been baptized with the Household. If a whole family eats spicy curry, it does not mean that their infants eat the same food. Cornelius, Lydia, the Jailor and Stephanas Households, when baptized, probably had no babies anyway. Infants cannot confess their sins so should not be baptized. They can however be dedicated. If the sprinkling of water were valid, then Baby Yeshua would have been the best candidate to receive it.
An ancient document titled The Didache (65-80 AD) or “The Teachings of the Apostles,” gives several choices for the baptizing of believers: running water, other water, pouring cold or hot water three times, according to circumstances. In a Chinese jail, Brother Yun, the “heavenly man,” was allowed only one glass of water a day. So, one day he did not drink any water and instead secretly baptized his ten prison mates with just one glass of water. During his Burmese incarceration, he put their heads under a tap and baptized them.
CONFIRMATION IS NOT BAPTISM
Confirmation is another man-made tradition for which there is no reference in the Bible. Yeshua went to the temple when He was thirteen years old. The Jewish custom known as “Bar-Mitzvah”, which signals coming of age, occurs when boys reach age 13 years and girls age 12 years, becoming responsible for their actions. But this is not baptism. According to Jewish custom, little children were dedicated but not baptized. Yeshua, when eight days old, was dedicated and blessed in the temple, but He was not baptized till an adult when He was about to start His ministry.
YESHUA WAS BAPTIZED
Yeshua took baptism at about age of thirty, even though He did not require it. He did so to be an example and to fulfill all righteousness. He was following a Levite custom of entering priestly service in the temple at the age of thirty (Num. 4:47). However, we are free to take baptism whenever we are ready to make a conscious decision to follow Yeshua (Matt.3:14-15).
MILLIONS OF MULTINATIONALS WILL STAND BEFORE THE THRONE
Taking baptism just to obtain a paper certificate for church membership, a job, marriage, or admission into a Christian institution, makes a mockery of this blood covenant. For confession of faith upon repentance from sins is mandatory for baptism. Baptism, however, does not change one’s ethnicity, for one-day believers of every tribe, tongue and nation will stand before the throne of God. The Samaritan woman who became a believer remained a Samaritan. A tribal continues to belong to the same tribe, but instead of worshipping the creation, he now worships the Creator. A Muslim (meaning “one who surrenders”) surrenders to the LORD OF LORDS (Isaiah 60:6-7) while others give up idol worship and burn incense only to Yeshua (Rev. 5:9-10, Mal. 1:11). All these will stand before the Throne of God as believers. Baptism is an event at a point in time, whereas full maturity in Messiah, which includes making a believer into a fisher of men, remains a process.
GOD THE FATHER HAS CHILDREN BUT NO GRANDCHILDREN
No one can go to heaven because his/her parents were Christians. Everyone must confess his own sins and accept Yeshua as the Lord of his life (Romans 10:9-10). There is no other way. It is essential that the ordinances given in the scriptures be followed in letter and spirit. Had Naaman the leper not immersed himself seven times in the river Jordan, but instead just sprinkled himself, he would not have been cured of leprosy. Had the Israelites thought that, since their houses contained the blood of the lamb they had killed, they need not put blood on their doorposts, they too would have perished. Had the Israelites walked round the walls of Jericho six days and rested on the seventh day, the walls of Jericho would not have fallen. In the same way, if the blind man had not walked two miles to Siloam to wash the mud from his eyes, then his eyesight would not have been restored.
Therefore, if the Lord is saying, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16), then to disobey the Lord’s simple command will surely attract condemnation. When Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, offered “strange fire” instead of following the exact instructions given by God, they died instantly (Lev. 10:1-3). Therefore, as soon as people accept the lordship of Yeshua Messiah, you means you (not the priest), should baptize them.
A BIG CROWD OF UNBAPTIZED BELIEVERS IN HEAVEN
“Unless you are born of water and the Spirit, you cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John3:3-5). Yet Yeshua retains His sovereign right to take people to paradise even without water baptism. After a thief repented on a cross went to paradise without baptism. Poor Lazarus peacefully basked in Abraham’s bosom without having been baptized. (Luke 16:19-31; 23:43)
Back in the 80’s, Herbert Hoefer, a Lutheran theologian of Portland, Oregon (CHURCHLESS CHRISTIANITY) conducted a survey of Madras (now Chennai), a city of eight million people in India, showing that 200,000 were unbaptized, unchurched believers worshipping in shanty towns that outnumbered Christians in the contemporary churches. They were not baptized because Pentecostal pastors insisted on removing their marriage and cultural symbols including their red slash and dot from their hairline and forehead, and their “thali”, a neckless worn by married women. Removing these symbols is a sign of widowhood which is considered a curse and they would not be allowed entry into other homes. That would effectively kill their testimony in their communities. One woman has found out a novel way to keep both happy. On Sundays she comes to the church without these embellishments but on weekdays when she goes out preaching, she puts them all on and has instant welcome.
God is doing a new thing by calling people of other faiths to become salt and light within their own culture and context. God baptized Moses and all Israel in the Red Sea along with their possessions including their livestock. To insist on baptizing only after folk disown their culture is a road to stagnation. Praise the Lord! A huge throng of non-baptized believers from structureless churches is being gathered before his Throne (1 Cor. 10:1-2).
BAPTISM — PUBLIC OR PRIVATE
Scripture allows private discipling to those of reputation (Gal. 2:2). There are certain Communist and Muslim countries where baptism cannot be taken openly. In India, in Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat states, baptism cannot be given without first getting government permission. Even if there is no law against it, there is always great opposition from non-Christian fundamentalists. Where mass baptisms eventually invite persecution, it remains advisable to secretly baptize in small numbers. Baptism means joining the Body of Christ, whether openly or secretly, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body--whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” (1Cor. 12:13). Whenever possible, all must be baptized following the example set by our Lord Messiah Yeshua (Matt. 3:15; Mark 7:6-9).
BAPTIZING OTHERS IS THE PRIVILEGE OF ALL BELIEVERS
As royal priests, all believers have been ordained to disciple, baptize and bring forth abundant fruit that remains (John 15:8,16). Because the clergy have been wrongly indoctrinated that they are the only ones ordained to dunk, they have intentionally failed to convey this command of Yeshua to the ordinary believers (Matt. 28:18,19; Mark 16:15,16). This has resulted in millions being denied baptism, even though there is not a single verse in the Bible that authorizes the clergy to baptize. Ideally, the person who has led a new believer to Messiah should baptize him. Then he will be responsible for equipping the new believer into a fisher of men. It is not our academic qualifications, but the blood of the Lamb, that makes every believer a priest and a king (Rev. 5:9-10; 1 Pet. 2:9).
The Lord Yeshua has “chosen us and ordained us, to bring forth fruit that remains (multiplies)” (John 15:16 KJV). Any ordinary believer like Ananias, who laid his hands on Paul, can consecrate us for specific ministries. Like Paul, we are also chosen vessels of the Lord to bear His name among the Gentiles, kings, and the Jews. We are also chosen to suffer many things for His name’s sake (Acts 9: 10-18). There can be no “abundant fruit” unless all believers, men and women, be allowed to disciple, baptize and to serve the Lord’s Supper. This is a fundamental, blood-ordained right and duty of every believer (Mark 16:15, 16; Matt. 28:19). There can be no greater heresy than to usurp that right.
THE GREAT DELUSION
Most Christians are deluded into thinking that they belong to Christ because they have been baptized in the name of Yeshua by immersion in water. But unless you have received the Holy Spirit, you do not belong to Christ, “And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ” (Rom. 8:9). You are only convicted but not transformed. You will not realize your full potential and remain a spectator in the church and continue to have spirit of fear of the Pastor, the community, and others. You will not have the boldness to preach where Christ is not named, baptize, disciple and serve the Lord’s supper, “For you did not receive a spirit of slavery that leads you to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” (Rom. 8:15)
Water baptism results in forgiveness of your personal sins, making you a member of a ‘come and be blessed church’, while baptism of the Holy Spirit makes you ‘go and be a blessing to others.’
How long do you plan to sit in the pew and listen to pep talks when you could reboot and be a world changer? God is looking for entrepreneurs who are ready to change the world, who see risks as opportunities, and blast their way to victory.
The primary purpose of Holy Spirit baptism is to fulfil the global expansionist agenda of the Kingdom of God, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you shall receive power and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8).
The Greek word for ‘power’ is ‘dunamis’ from which the word dynamite comes. The super charged Ekklesia with miraculous power is to go into the demonic world and explode like the dynamite.
Water baptism turns a dry sinner into a wet believer, while Holy Spirit baptism takes a sinner out of the kingdom of darkness and launches him to take others out into the kingdom of light. (Acts 26:18)
The Lord has commanded all believers, male and female, young and old, to go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Note that the “Name” is singular and not in the plural. Hence everyone in the NT were baptized in the name of Yeshua. (Matt. 28:19).
To disobey the Lord’s clear command would amount to rebellion and attract judgment.
Praise God who is moving many ordinary believers, including women and teenagers are taking up the challenge to disciple and baptize newcomers into the kingdom by the thousands.
GEMS:
- All baptisms in the NT took place on the day they confessed their faith in Yeshua. Earning your baptism by a long process of discipleship has no scriptural basis.
- No priest in the OT ever baptized anyone. Rather, thousands of ordinary believers, both men and women, baptized each other.
- It is not the amount of water but rather whether you were immersed in the Holy Spirit, that is important. The Samaritans baptized by Philip in the name of Yeshua remained powerless, until Peter and John came and laid hands on them and empowered them. Most Christians sitting in the church are still in Philip’s baptism with no firepower (Acts 8:16,17).
- Man was created in the image and likeness of God now marred by sin. Yeshua shed His blood to restore that image of all those who come to Him. It is our job to bring all those marred images to Him so that He can restore them to the image and likeness of God. (Gen. 1:26, 27; Rom. 5:14; Heb. 7:25)
- “Let us go and create a Book of Acts culture of eating, preaching, teaching, baptizing, multiplying disciples and sending them onwards to do the same” should be the clarion call of all God’s people.
- In God’s coming kingdom, there will be neither a clergy-layman nor a secular-sacred dichotomy, for God will reign directly through His Saints, throughout the world (Dan. 2:44; 7:18, 27; Rev. 5:10).
- Yeshua took the wind out of the sails of religious leaders who controlled others. Nothing else controls as does religion. “He who is least among you all will be greatest” (Lk 9:48). “You do not be called ‘Rabbi’. But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant” (Matt 23:8-11). “You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever desires to be first shall be slave of all” (Mark 10:42-44).
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