Christian Foundations

In this series, we have been looking at the Foundations of the Christian Faith.  So far we have discussed how a loving, all-present Creator planned and spoke the angelic realm, the universe and the Earth into being.  Next, we concentrated on Adam and Eve, including the deception and fall of the human race.

Then we went onto talk about the greatest rescue plan involving Jesus Christ.  Through recognising Him, we become a ‘new Creation’.  Nothing like the Jesus Follower has ever been seen in the whole of human history.  Jesus brought us rights and privileges that only come with faith in Father God.

What do we do when we become the New Creation?  How do we express our encounter with God?  Our life will never be the same again, so how do we let others know that we have ‘changed sides’?  Why do the followers of Christ, Christians, do the things that they do?

In the following post, we will discuss the basics of Christianity: Repentance, Baptisms – Water Baptism, the Baptism of Fire and the Baptism with the Holy Spirit.  In the coming posts on this series, we will continue with the basic of Christianity with a discussion on Communion, Tithing, Prayer, Praise and Worship, gathering together, becoming members of One Body, the Gifts of the Spirit and your place in the Body of Christ.  Some of this list has nothing to do with becoming a Christian but everything to do with being a Christian.

A.  JESUS IS OUR WAY FORWARD

The arrival of Jesus into human existence signalled a new era in God’s dealings with mankind.  God intervened in a very personal way and made it unmistakably clear that He was and is on our side.  It was / is all presented and worked out in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

Men and women have believed in the past that Jesus was God and His death did not stop His message, but promoted it.  Jesus’ message turned the known world upside down!  Soon they realised that He planned to ‘live in them’.  To their surprise, they found themselves living in a world where God called all the shots.  He was to have the last word on everything – quite literally the first and last word.  Everything had to be re-examined, re-imaged and re-centred around Christ.  This is still our challenge today.

B. THE BASICS OF THE CHRISTIAN FAITH

1.  God’s Radical Transforming Power

Anyone who met Jesus was never the same.  Either they joined Him or they rejected Him – seldom was there any middle ground.  Just being in the room with Jesus would have caused anyone to be different.  He was and still is totally, radically challenging.  Encountering the reality of Jesus meant allowing everything else to fade.  The consequence was the willingness to abandon wealth, power, status, position and even to giving up their lives.  You meet Jesus and change occurs!

Can He still do the same today?  As this new life begins to flow through us, we find our thoughts; motives and actions begin to change.  What does a life that has changed sides look like?  Without really trying, we find that “doing the God stuff” becomes more natural.

2.  The ‘Elementary Teachings’ about Christ

There are several places where the Bible sets out the basics of being a Christian:

“’Brothers, what shall we do?’  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.” (Acts 2:38 NIV)

Acts 2:42 “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread (communion) and to prayer.”

Hebrews 6:1 – “Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgement.”

C.  WE START WITH “…REPENT AND ….”

1.  What does the Bible mean by ‘Repent’?

a.  The New Testament use of the word ‘repentance’ (Gk: metanoia) means:  ‘sorrow for sin and a turning to God’.  This encompasses recognition of sin, a change of mind and asking God’s forgiveness.  By turning around 180°, we gain a new perspective of God’s compassion, truth and love.  It means that we agree with what God has said about an issue and choose to do His will rather than our own.

b.  Repentance is not a remorse that ‘I got caught’.  It is not a morbid or morose sorrow, a guilt or a regret for having failed at something.

c.  Nor is it beating ourselves over the head for our past mistakes; a guilty penitence system, where we must atone for our wrong.  It is not a sackcloth and ashes reaction.

d.  Repentance is actually a gift from a loving God, through the Holy Spirit.  There is no salvation apart from repentance (Matthew 4:17).

2.  The Essential Elements of Repentance

a.  To acknowledge that we are lost and without hope, that we cannot rescue or save ourselves.  In Luke 15:3-7 the shepherd left the 99 to find the one lost sheep.

b.  It is expressing a recognition of the effects of past sin on our own life and the lives of others – Luke 5:32, Acts 2:37-38, 8:22, 2 Corinthians 7:9-10.

c.  It is an act of returning to the Father and His best way of living – Luke 15:17-20.

d.  Repentance influences the ability to accept and believe in Jesus – Mark 1:15, Acts 20:21, Revelation 3:19-20.

e.  Then we can do good things because of our change of heart with repentance – Jeremiah 18:11-12, Matthew 3:8, Acts 26:20, Revelation 2:4-5.

f.   We then are able to acknowledge and receive spiritual truth – 2 Timothy 2:25.

D. THEN  “…BE BAPTISED, EVERY ONE OF YOU.”

The word ‘baptism’ brings different images to mind in different cultures.  For some it means confusion and choices; for others pain or even death.

1.  Water baptism was and is the sign of repentance and a change of life.

The word ‘baptism’ in the original Greek language means “…to dip, immerse, put into water to get wet.”   The thirteen baptisms recorded in the New Testament show a public act of confession and statement of faith.  In some places being baptised brings a death sentence as that person has changed sides and tradition.

The act of baptism has been done in rivers, oceans, rivers, swimming pools, baptisteries and bathtubs.

2.  Why would people go through this ritual?

a.  First, as an act of obedience, because Jesus commanded it – Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38.  We fulfil Jesus’ actions by our own.

b.  Being water baptised proclaims an acceptance of the New Covenant relationship that God made with Jesus.

c.  It is a public confession of an inward change – Acts 2:38, 22:16, Colossions 2:11-12, the recognition of a spiritual rebirth experience, Titus 3:5 and the sign of a spiritual circumcision.

d.  It symbolises the forgiveness of our sins, Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16.  Our sins are washed away and we can leave them buried in the waters of baptism.

e.  It is an act of identifying with Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, Colossians 2:12.  We are united with Christ by being buried with Him in the symbolic death, so that we can live a new life, Romans 6:3-4.  Jesus’ spotless life permitted God’s resurrection power to raise Him – and us – to new life, Acts 22:16.  Baptism symbolises ‘being clothed with Christ’, Galatians 3:27.

f.  It shows recognition and unity of one body – 1 Corinthians 12:13, Ephesians 4:5-6.

3.  Baptism is an outward symbol of inner change

a.  The act itself does not ‘save’ us.  Every reference in the New Testament shows that faith is required.

b.  Baptism declares an inner heart change, a change of perspective.  It is a physical representation of our new spiritual reality.

c.  The act is also very personal, as it challenges our own issues.  Perhaps it was designed to do just that, Matthew 3:16, John 3:23.

To put under water or not has become a point of disagreement among groups.  Sometimes we get so caught up in the theology of “how” a person is baptised that we forget the “why” they are being baptised.

For some people, it is a celebration with those who have helped follow their walk.  It can happen in a church building, in a river, in the ocean or even in a swimming pool or bath tub.  I have also included a YouTube video in the next post to show more examples.  Hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

E.  THE BAPTISM OF FIRE – THE SANCTIFICATION PROCESS

The prophet who came to prepare the Jewish nation for Jesus, John the Baptist, declared:

“I baptise you with water for repentance.  But after me will come One who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry.  He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.” (Matthew 3:11)

John the Baptist is describing three different kinds of baptisms.  We have looked at water baptism, now let’s look at the baptism of fire.  We will consider Holy Spirit baptism later in the next post.

1.  The Purifying Force of Fire  

John the used the analogy of ‘refining ore with fire’.  This is the purifying work that occurs when we allow God to cleanse our heart.  The Message, Matthew 3:11 puts it this way:

“I’m baptising you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life.  The real action comes next:  The main character in this drama – compared to Him I’m a mere stagehand – will ignite the kingdom life within you, a fire within you, the Holy Spirit within you, changing you from the inside out. 

“He’s going to clean house – make a clean sweep of your lives.  He’ll place everything true in its proper place before God; everything false He’ll put out with the trash to be burned.”

Many Christians don’t talk much about this part of their walk, especially to new Christians.  As a result, few new converts really expect this refining to be part of their journey.  When we are ‘born again’ there is still plenty of old baggage in our heart.  Reactions and personal challenges are still being brought to light.  Christians need to adopt this attitude from James 1:12:

“Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him.”  Our loving Creator loves us too much to leave the rubbish, hurts and pains of the past still stuck in our heart.

2.  The Transforming of the Inner Man

This ‘hagiasmos’ (in the Greek language) growth is a gradual, inward transformation.  It results in greater purity, better moral attitudes and more godliness.  It is not some strange new thing God has designed just for us; It happens to all who love Him.

3.  Becoming more like Jesus

The aim of such refining is to build in us the character and nature of Jesus Christ.  Father God aims to build faith in us by allowing us to go through the trials and tribulations of life.  We are called to suffer as Jesus suffered (1 Pet. 2:20+21).  So then it stands to reason that we will all go through things that allow Him to train and teach us.

CONCLUSION:

We have only introduced the topic of the three baptism as an important issue for all  Jesus Followers.  Shelves in libraries are full of books dedicated to this topic.  Sometimes we forget that change is part of the Christian Foundations as we walk with Him!

May your growth in Him continue until He calls us home!

Susanne Fengler, Blog Author

www.christianfoundations.jesustreeoflife.info

 

 

Tags: 3 baptisms
Filed under: Foundations of our Faith, Series #1: Being a Jesus Follower