Lesson
8
Buried
With Him In Baptism
IV. Buried With
Him In Baptism
The next thing Peter
commanded them to do was to be baptized.
A. How
There is only one
Scriptural method of baptism prescribed by the Word of God. This is by
immersion. The word baptism is derived from the Greek word, baptizo, which means
to dip, to plunge, to immerse. The reason that it is so important to immerse
the candidate for water baptism is simple. Repentance in the Bible is symbolic
of death—death to the sins and ungodliness of life before meeting Jesus
Christ. Spiritually speaking, when a man comes to an altar of repentance, he is
actually coming to the cross of Calvary. Old carnal natures are crucified with
Christ. After death (to sins) it is a "must" to be buried. This is
why Romans 6:4 says, "we are buried with him by baptism into death."
In repentance Jesus is followed to
Calvary. In baptism He is followed to the grave and "we are buried with
Him." But how is a person buried? Is he sprinkled with a few handfuls of
dirt at burial? Of course not! This would not constitute proper burial.
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name
under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).
Jesus commanded the
apostles in Matthew 28:19 to baptize in the "Name (singular) of the
Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost." Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost are not proper names, but are titles of God.
* He is the Father in
creation.
* He is the Son in
redemption.
* He is the Holy Ghost
dwelling within the believer.
But these are only
titles. The apostles understood when they were given the Great Commission,
(Matthew 28:19) that they were to baptize in the one singular name, that is of
the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, and that name is Jesus!
* The Name of the
Father is Jesus—John 5:43.
* The Name of the Son
is Jesus—Matthew 1:21.
* The Name of the Holy
Ghost is Jesus—John 14:26.
Jesus had
opened the disciples understanding to this great truth of the Name of Jesus in Luke
24:45-47. This is precisely the reason why the apostles always, in every place
in the Scripture, obeyed Matthew 28:19 by baptizing in the Name of Jesus Christ
for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; Acts 8:16; Acts 10:48; Acts 19:5).