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WhatAbout
BAPTISM?
Are you sick of yourself-your way-the wor/d's way? Do you abhor what your
life has been? Do you want to change? Are you changing? If your answers are
"Yes!" then there is something more you must do.
t is time to take positive ac–
tion, when finally you come to
see just how far short you
fall- how utterly unsuccess–
ful and useless you are coro–
pared to Christ.
The beginning of repen–
tance is seeing the
self
for what it
really is.
To deterrninedly begin construc–
tive changes- to ernbark on growing
in good character- is the natural
consequence.
Is this happening to you? If you
grasp the fact that you really need to
CHANGE, and are in the process, you
rnust seriously question: "What's
next?' ' God cornrnands
another
step!
That next step is baptisrn!
Absolutely Free Gift
Baptisrn brings together, in syrnbolic
grandeur, three wonderful gifts: 1)
the precious BLOOD of Christ, 2) the
WATER of regeneration, 3) the HOLY
SPIRIT. Everything in this rnagnifi–
cent picture is
absolutely free!
There
is no way to pay for it.
lt
cannot be
earned.
_
Christ generously offered Hi s
body and blood in the suprerne sacri–
fice. This offering is great enough to
cover the sins of all rnankind. Stag–
gering as it rnay secrn, all of
your
sins
rnay be washed away in the blood of
Christ (Heb. 10:10; Rev. 1:5).
24
by
Clint C. Zimmerman
Baptisrn is an essential "doorway"
in the corridor to salvation.
Chrlst Commands You!
Jesus Hirnself has set the pattern.
His followers
baptized
even more
people than did John the Baptist
(John 4:1).
Later, after His resurrection, He
pointedly cornrnanded His disciples
to preach the gospel worldwide and
to baptize a ll believers (Matt. 28: 19;
Mark 16:16).
On the day that the New Testa–
rnent Christian Church was estab–
lished, conscience-stricken converts
irnplored the apost1es to tell what
rnust be done to get right with God.
On the authority of Christ, Peter
gave an irnrnediate, decisive, conclu–
sive but simple answer, "Repent, and
be baptized" (Acts 2:38). Three
thousand were baptized that day.
Philip continued the sarne practice
(Acts 8). Paul, rnuch later, carried
right on without deviation frorn the
established exarnple (Rorn . 6:3-5,
Col. 2:12). Ever since that fateful
day, God's rninisters have beld to ex–
actly the sarne cerernony.
No one-EVER- has been given
authority to change any part of the
procedure. For any rnan, or group of
rnen, to introduce any change is to–
ta lly unwarranted.
There has been
no scriptura/
change whatsoever.
We sbould still
be practicing the very sarne rite, in
the very sarne way, for the very sarne
reason, on the very sarne kind of
people today!
Nonetheless, rnen
have
introduced
human ideas, human changes.
Sprinkle or Splash?
God could have inspired another
word than the Greek
baptizo
to be
used in discussing this irnportant top–
ic if He had not wished to perfectly
picture the THREEFOLD rneaning of
WASHING, BURIAL and RESU R–
RECTION (Rorn. 6:4-5).
For exarnple, the words
ekcheo.
proscheo
and
katacheo
all come
frorn the root
cheo,
which rneans to
POUR ouT. They are used in such
scriptures as John 2:15, Acts 2:17-
18, Revelation 16:1-4, Hebrews
11:28, Matthew 26:7 and Mark 14:3
in reference to pouring out rnoney,
the Holy Spirit, vials of wrath, a box
of ointrnent, and sprinkling the blood
of sacrifice. Sorne churches pour or
splash water at their "baptisrns," er–
roneously thinking this is what God
rneans when He says
baptizo.
Another word,
rantizo,
is used in
Hebrews 9:13, 19, 21; 10:22; 12:24;
and J Peter 1:2, where it rneans, as it
a1ways does, to SPRINKLE. Sorne
churches sprinkle
(rantizo),
thinking
they are baptizing
(baptizo).
The
words just do not say the sarne thing.
They are
entirely different!
God inspired the Greek word
bapti–
zo
to be used in
every
case when His
Scripture deals with BAPTISM. This
word is EVER trans1ated by the En-
The
PLAIN TRUTH September 1979