____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ March 19, 1995 ____________________________________________________ Is the Baptism of Acts 2:38 Without Water? by Tom Edwards Notice in Jeffry's following remark that it appears he does realize that Acts 2:38 speaks of a "baptism" that leads to forgiveness; but, unfortunately, he does not believe that this is water baptism--but rather some kind of Holy Spirit baptism. We will also see where he cites the example of Cornelius and his household as "proof" that one can be saved prior to baptism; but let us consider more fully what the New Testament really has to say about these things. Jeffry's statement: Acts 2:38 is not speaking of water baptism, but baptism with the Holy Spirit. It is not water baptism through which we receive forgiveness, but baptism with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the one who makes us clean and pure and washes away our sins because of Jesus' atoning sacrifice on the cross. My Response: If Acts 2:38 is not speaking of water baptism, but rather Holy Spirit baptism, how come the Philippians did not receive the Holy Spirit until after the apostles laid their hands on them? (Acts 8:4-19) Many of these believed and were baptized (Acts 8:12). Then when the church in Jerusalem heard about this, they... ``sent Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For He had not yet fallen on any of them; they had simply been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they began laying their hands on them, and they were receiving the Holy Spirit. Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles' hands....'' (Acts 8:14-18). Clearly, this passage shows that these people were saved before they even received the Holy Spirit. Also, corresponding to this is what we see in Acts 19, where Paul met 12 men who did not know about the baptism Jesus had commanded for the remission of sins; they knew about only John's baptism. (This indicates that it does make a difference that one is baptized for the right reason.) Paul first baptized them in water and afterward he ``laid his hands upon them'' and ``the Holy Spirit came on them....'' (Acts 19:5,6). This is why I believe that the ``gift of the Holy Spirit'' in Acts 2:38 is not talking about the Holy Spirit Himself, but rather His blessings, such as the remission of sins, that had even been prophesied in the Old Testament, but now was being fulfilled in those who obeyed the gospel. Jeffry's remark: When you take the Scriptures as a whole, rather than isolating one verse from the rest, you get the true picture. Acts 10:44-48...proves beyond a doubt that a person is saved *before* water baptism, for the Holy Spirit will *not* fill those who are *not* saved. My Comment: Acts 10:44-48 is a unique case. In preparation for this, God had to give Peter a vision and send an angel to Cornelius (Acts 10). It had almost been ten years since the establishment of the church, and still the Jews were not taking the gospel to the Gentiles. Why? Because they still believed it would be wrong to have anything to do with them. Peter states... ``You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit him; and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy or unclean'' (Acts 10:28). When did Peter find this out? Just a few days earlier, when God gave him the vision of what appeared to be a sheet being lowered to him with various animals--clean and unclean. Also remember, what was it that the angel had told Cornelius to do? He told him to... ``Send to Joppa, and have Simon, who is also called Peter, brought here; and he shall speak words to you by which you will be saved, and all your household'' (Acts 11:13,14). Let's keep this in mind: Cornelius was to be saved by hearing ``words.'' I'm sure we would both agree that those ``words'' pertain to the gospel. Note now Acts 11:15, where Peter says... ``And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as He did upon us at the beginning.'' The point being, Cornelius was to be saved through the message Peter would speak; but Peter had just begun to speak when the Holy Spirit fell upon Cornelius and his household. Peter had taken six Jewish brethren along with him to witness all this and they were ``amazed'' at what was happening. Notice also how it effected the brethren who heard of it in Jerusalem: ``And when they heard this, they quieted down, and glorified God, saying, `Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life'' (Acts 11:18). But this certainly wasn't how they first reacted. Before they heard of the fact that God had given to the Gentiles the Holy Spirit, the Jews in Jerusalem had taken ``issue with'' Peter; and they rebuked him by saying, ``You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them'' (Acts 11:2,3). Obviously, going to the Gentiles to preach the gospel here at the house of Cornelius was a very unique case. God not only gave the vision to Peter, and sent the angel to Cornelius, but He also gave the Holy Spirit to the Gentiles prior to their becoming Christians to serve as a sign to the Jews that the Lord had granted a way of salvation for the Gentiles just as much as He had for the Jewish people. These are definitely some truths that need to be taken into consideration. I hope you will find them helpful. ___________________________________________ Faith Can Become Vain by Tom Edwards In this article, we will see from Scripture that since salvation is conditional, faith can become vain if we are not meeting those conditions. Of course, not all people agree with this, as we see in Mick's opening statement. But let us look to the New Testament for our answers. Mick's Remark: Well it is interesting that Paul says in Romans 1:18 that the gospel is the power of God UNTO salvation to everyone that believes. Now if the gospel is as Paul explains in 1Cor 15 that Christ was crucified buried and once for all raised (it is in the perfect tense) and that believing in THAT is the power of God unto salvation than where is baptism? You must insert an assumption of baptism. My Comment: Actually, Mick, I think the verse you are referring to is Romans 1:16; but still this is a good question you ask. Where is the ``baptism''? I guess I could answer that by saying, it's right over there with the ``repentance'' in Acts 2:38 (as well as in other verses). Maybe we should ask, ``What does it mean to believe in the gospel?'' What if a person didn't believe what the Bible had to say about repentance, so he continued living in sin instead of turning from them. Would we say that this person really believed in the gospel? You mentioned 1 Cor. 15. I think it's interesting that Paul says in verse 2, ``by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain.'' First of all, if one were saved by faith only, how could faith ever become a vain thing? It would always be good enough for eternal life. But if one isn't saved by faith only then faith could become vain when it is not coupled with obedience (James 2:14-26). Paul points out the fact that salvation is conditional in this verse--''if you hold fast the word.'' Do you think that Paul ever preached on the need for people to repent of their sins? And what if some had repented, obeyed the gospel, and became Christians; if they then went back into sin, do you think it could be said of them that they were still holding fast to the word that had been preached to them? I don't think so. Peter speaks about those who become Christians and then go back into sin as those who have fallen into a even ``worse'' state than those who have never obeyed the gospel (2 Pet. 2:20-22). Mick's Comment: When someone performs a certain act at the promise of receiving something in return, what is then given is not a gift but is a debt. For example suppose I told my son if he was to rake and bag the leaves I would take him to the movies. When he fulfills his end of the bargain I am then indebted to him because I owe him something. My Response: Yes, your illustration here is true: the boy undoubtedly would have earned a trip to the movies, but does this even come close to the contrast between what one must do to become a Christian (believe, repent, confess faith, be baptized in water) and the reward of eternal life? Even an illustration of someone picking up one leaf from a yard as being the condition toward receiving $50 billion doesn't even come close to the contrast between what one must do to be saved and eternal life. Can we say that this person really ``earned'' his $50 billion because he picked up one leaf? Surely not. He simply met a condition: ``pick up one leaf, and you'll receive $50 billion.'' It seems almost astonishing that there are people today who feel that we in the church of Christ think that we must ``earn'' our salvation by being baptized. Really think of that. Do you think that I think I've earned my salvation because I was dunked in the water for a few seconds? I simply met part of the condition for it. Mick's Statement: ...to believe is given by God as we saw in the case of Lydia in Acts 16. The Lord was the one who opened her heart. My Response: Yes, the Lord opened her heart, but how? Wasn't it through the preaching that she had been listening to? Isn't God's word ``the sword of the Spirit'' (Eph. 6:17) or, in other words, the instrument He is using to deal with mankind? Weren't many of those in Acts 2 ``pierced to the heart'' as they heard the preaching of Peter and the apostles? Didn't the Corinthians acquire a godly sorrow in their heart from reading Paul's letter (2 Cor. 7:8-11). And in all these examples, isn't it God who is, therefore, indirectly working in the hearts of others through His word? ************************************************** What Must I Do To Be Saved? 1) Hear the gospel (Rom. 1:16; 10:17) 2) Believe in Jesus (Jn. 8:24) 3) Repent of sins (Acts 17:30) 4) Confess your faith in Christ (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts 8:36,37) 5) Be baptized in water (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; 1 Pet. 3:21) 6) Keep faithful (Rev. 2:10) ___________________________________________ Call Us Today About Our BIBLE FILM SLIDES ________________________________________ Tri-State CHURCH OF CHRIST 1314 Montgomery Avenue, Ashland, Kentucky 41101 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 10:50 A.M. Worship 6:30 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:30 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (606) 325-9742 e-mail: tedwards@zoomnet.net Gospel Observer web site: http://www.zoomnet.net/~tedwards/go ________________________________________