Previous Lesson -- Next Lesson
8. Christ’s Command to Baptize (Matthew 28:19)
MATTHEW 28:19
19 … baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38-39)
In the history of religions, many prophets and various propagandists have recognized the impurities in the natural man and have proclaimed the need of radical purification if one wants to walk with God. The Lord calls us to confess our sins and repent. Baptism symbolizes the washing away of our sins (Matthew 3:1-6; Mark 1:5). Dipping in water indicates that the old man is unclean, corrupt and evil, and deserves to be drowned and buried so that he may rise a clean, pure, and new man after baptism. However, David, Ezekiel, and John the Baptist admitted that self-denial and discipline are not sufficient to purify us. We need to be regenerated by the Spirit of the Lord so our minds and hearts are renewed. This is why John the Baptist foretold that Christ would baptize his followers with the Holy Spirit (John 1:32-34). Christ Himself revealed, “most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water (baptism of repentance) and Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God (John 3:5). The act of baptism was established by God to be the decisive event and plain testimony of a person who has left his old life and accepted the grace of Jesus.
Christ did not bring us the knowledge of a great, unreachable, and fearful God, but tells us 200 times in His four gospels that God, our Heavenly Father, is near to us and loves everybody. He betroths himself with believers in the new covenant. Jesus confirmed to us that he and his Father are One and did not mention in his great commission the different names of God in plural, but in singular. He desires us to know “the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the One God.”
We do not only believe in three separate, independent persons of the godhead, but in the unbreakable Union of the Holy Trinity. Jesus has confirmed this new faith by saying that He is in the Father and the Father in Him (John 14:10; 17:21-23).
Believers are baptized in the name of the Father, trusting in their adoption as children of the Almighty. They realize their heavenly Father cares for them in person, gives them love and protection, hears their prayers and demands, and accepts them as members in His eternal kingdom as their Father.
If you are baptized in the name of the Son, you will more and more comprehend Christ’s love and sacrifice as the One who has bore the eternal punishment for your sins. His blood purifies you from every sin, having risen from the dead to justify you, and saved you from God’s wrath, death, and Satan. He gives you power and authority and sends you that you may complete His calling. He gives you eternal life that you may live with Him in holiness and love.
Christ came and died for your sake, and He will come to you again and to all those who love and confess Him. There is no salvation but in the Lord Jesus Christ for the glory of God the Father.
Baptism is your confirmation of your contact with the power of the Holy Spirit and your Spiritual second birth. The Spirit assures you that God is your merciful Father. The Spirit also sanctifies you that you may love, rejoice, live in peace with God and men, overcome your temptations to live in self-control and patience, and forgive those who sin against you. The Spirit also warns you of false prophets, confronts you for your trespasses, and gives you peace in all areas of your life, for this Spirit is the divine life itself.
Your baptism preserves you in the love of your heavenly Father, in the authority of His Son, and in the power of the Holy Spirit. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit last forever in all who are baptized and abide in the union of the Holy Trinity.
PRAYER: We glorify You and thank You Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the One God, for You allowed us to be baptized in Your holy Name, enter into the fullness of Your grace, abide in You, and take from You spiritual power, salvation, peace, holiness, and redemption. Help us to encourage those who do not know the eternal assurance of the baptism, leaving their old life and becoming firm in You with determination, steadfastness and help of the Holy Spirit.
QUESTION:
- What is the meaning of your baptism in God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?