A Review

In our last lesson, we examined the story of Philip the evangelist and the Ethiopian eunuch. Remember Philip the evangelist? Do you remember the question of the Ethiopian 'Here's water. What stops me from being baptized?'

Well, we learned from Philip's method of evangelism, right? Remember what we learned specifically? Didn't we learn that baptism is indispensable if you're going to win a soul for Christ? Yup. We learned that you must include baptism in your evangelism, or you're not really evangelizing. You must call people to the commitment of baptism.

Without baptism, you're doing something else--hopefully you're not deceiving someone. But whatever you're doing, it's not evangelism. Baptism is an essential element of evangelism. It is an indispensable component of soul saving.

A Baptism Passage on Steroids

In the last lesson we also said we would explain a passage about baptism--it's a passage from Paul's Letter to the Colossians. Well, that's what we want to do now. We want to explain this passage which (along with Romans 6) is one of the two most turbo-charged baptism passages in the Bible.

Are you ready to read a Bible passage that's on "baptism steroids"? Get ready! In this passage, you and I take a good glance at the multifaceted beauty of baptism. Paul wrote it under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. As Paul wrote, the Spirit gave him no less than twelve unique names for one thing: baptism!

Here are the eleven names Colossians 2:11 to 3:3 gives us for baptism (we suggest you read the list slowly or you won't be able to internalize/digest the meaning of baptism the way you should). Two are repeated in the same passage, so there are 14 references to baptism if you count the part where it says 'buried with him in baptism.'

The other terms for baptism are:

• a circumcision performed without hands

• the removal of the body of the flesh

• the circumcision of Christ

• burial with Christ

• being raised with Christ [this one is repeated]

• being made alive together with Jesus

• the forgiveness of all our wrongdoings

• the cancellation of our certificate of debt

• nailing our certificate of debt to the Cross

• dying with Christ [this one is repeated]

• hiding your life with Christ in God

If these terms are all about baptism (and they are), then it sounds like baptism is pretty deep, doesn't it? Sounds like it's filled with meaning. And that's because it is! Baptism is an onion. It has many layers. Baptism is a diamond. It has many facets.

Read, Preach, Teach

But let's not just talk about the passage; let's read the passage itself. It's never impossible to understand Bible verses if you give them a read, so let's do that. Read-preach-teach, read-preach-teach! As Paul told Timothy: '... devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching' (1 Timothy 4:13).

Here's the passage:

… and in him [Jesus] you were also circumcised with a circumcision performed without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the Dead.

And when you were dead in your wrongdoings and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he made you alive together with him, having forgiven us all our wrongdoings, having canceled the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and he has taken it out of the way, having nailed it [the certificate of debt] to the Cross…

If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the World, why, as if you were living in the World, do you submit yourself to decrees… Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things that are Above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on the things that are Above, not on the things that are on Earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 2:11-14, 20; 3:1-3).

What a passage! It's a tour de force! Who can deny that it’s about baptism? It says (see the yellow highlighted part) 'buried with him in baptism.'

A Deep Experience

This passage proves that so many things happen in baptism. It's a powerful spiritual experience and we need to appreciate its depth. We need to cherish it for the deep commitment it is--a saving commitment! This jewel from Colossians helps us to do just that.

This passage covers many different aspects of baptism. For example, it covers how in baptism we are buried with Christ, how we die with Christ, and how we rise with Christ. It reminds us that Christ circumcises our hearts in baptism. It also shows us that in baptism we experience the forgiveness of all our sins--and that's a big aspect of baptism!

Now, things like forgiveness happen because, in baptism, Jesus cancels our certificate of debt and nails it to the Cross. What a statement! In baptism the Cross becomes ours. Prior to baptism, it is not ours.

No man may make any claim to Calvary until he is baptized.

Jesus died for all, but not all have died with him.

God will only apply the sacrifice of Jesus' death to those who die with Jesus. Have you died with him?

Jesus' death only counts for those who have died with him. You can only die with him in baptism.

The Means

There is only one way to die with Christ--and you do it through water. Water becomes a means.

... there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and the three are in agreement (1 John 5:7-8).

The means of salvation are: the Spirit, the water, and the blood. That means that you need the testimony of water to prove your salvation! Jesus was no stranger to the topic. He zoomed in on baptism as God's means of salvation when he said to Nicodemus one night:

Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5).

No one! Not even if you are the leading teacher of the Bible in your community, unless you are 'born of water' you are not going to enter into the Kingdom of God.

Remember this: Baptism is the exclusive means to get Jesus' death to count for you. There is no other way. It's exclusive--that is, it excludes all other means (including the so-called "prayer of faith" which pastors say supposedly will allow you to "receive Jesus in your heart as your personal Lord and Savior." They are lying).

In just one Bible passage we uncover the multi-dimensional riches of baptism! In these eight verses we disclose a treasure chest of metaphors, similitudes, and spiritual truth. All of these uncover the profound significance of baptism.

The Response

Now, let's get back to baptism in practice. Do you remember the Ethiopian eunuch? Do you remember how Philip shared the Gospel with him? Well, the Ethiopian's response to Philip’s message reveals the heart of Philip’s message.

You’ll recall that the Bible passage from Acts 8 that describes this salvation says that Philip 'preached Jesus to' the Ethiopian eunuch. We deduce then, that if the eunuch responded to the preaching of Jesus by asking to be baptized, that Philip concluded his evangelism with an invitation to baptism.

Is that logical? Of course it is.

We can deduce that an invitation to be baptized was the final part of Philip’s presentation of Christ—baptism is the application of the Gospel!

Modern-Day Evangelism

Let's think this through even more. When the eunuch responded to the Gospel by volunteering for baptism, Philip didn’t act like a modern-day Evangelical pastor and say, “You didn’t get it. Salvation is by faith alone, not by any works, but by faith." You've probably heard Evangelical pastors add this to their evangelization: "You don't have to do anything for salvation. Just believe.”

It sounds nice, and it sounds spiritual, but it’s very wrong. It's a damning lie. Worse off, it's unfortunately what most Evangelical preachers announce to people who want to respond to the Gospel these days. It’s what the majority of pastors would say to someone who came to them today and said “I want to be saved. Please baptize me.”

Some 90% of Evangelical pastors would tell them that baptism is not necessary for salvation. Subsequently, they would lead the penitent people through a "prayer of faith" and maybe schedule them for baptism classes. In those classes they would teach the penitent person that baptism is not a means of salvation.

Beginning and End

Why the huge difference between the Gospel of the those first Christians and the Gospel of the us last Christians? Evangelicals are doing away with Christianity. The Faith started with the Apostles, but will it end with us? Are we destroying what was passed down to us? Why this massive departure from Biblical practice and truth?

Will what started at Pentecost end with Apostasy? Will the ancient tradition be ruined by modern thought? Will what started with the Apostles end with us? Will what began as mass conversions to the Faith end in a great turning away from the Faith?

Philip oversaw the beginning of evangelism. Have you and I seen the end of it?