Jesus commanded all those who believed in Him to be baptized in water. “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit… ‘” Matthew 28:18,19 See also Acts 2:38-41.
To be “baptized” means to be “totally immersed.” When a person repents from his sin and believes Jesus died for him, before many witnesses, he (or she) is to be taken to water, put right under it and brought up again. Why would Jesus command that his believers do such a strange thing?
A. UNDERSTANDING WATER BAPTISM
Grasping the significance of water baptism is essential for experiencing a victorious and liberated Christian life.
The symbolism of being submerged in water and then emerging from it illustrates the transformation that occurs in a Christian believer.
B. FOUR STAGES OF CHRIST’S WORK PICTURED
1. He Died … .. I Died In Him.
“For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be rendered powerless, that we should no longer be slaves to sin – because anyone who has died has been freed from sin” Romans 6:6-7
2. He Was Buried … .. I Was Buried With Him.
“Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death … ” Romans 6:3-4
3. He Was Raised … .. I Have A New Life In Him
“… in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection” Romans 6:4-5
4. He Ascended … .. I Ascended In Him
“And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus … ” Ephesians 2:6
See also Colossians 3:1
C. WHAT IS WATER BAPTISM
1. Your Funeral Service!
A burial service is not to kill a man off. It is only performed when the man is dead already. And so, because you have “died” in Christ, you bury your old life in water baptism.
2. Your Resurrection To New Life!
You rise out of the water demonstrating and declaring you are a new creation in Christ!
“Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. “The death he died, he died to sin once and for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus” Romans 6:8-11
D. THE TWO KINGDOMS
“For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves” Colossians 1:12
Every person who enters this world is born into the Kingdom of Darkness, becoming a captive of the tyrant Satan. The only escape from this kingdom is through DEATH, while entry into the Kingdom of God comes through BIRTH. Thus, Jesus embodies both our death and our rebirth, and this is what we proclaim through water baptism!
E. THE TWO RACES
As there are two kingdoms, so within each kingdom is a different race of people. The Adamic Rac populates the Kingdom of Darkness, and the New Creation populates the Kingdom of God.
1. The First Adam
“For as in Adam all die… ” 1 Corinthians 15:22 See also Romans 5:12.
Adam is considered the father of humanity, representing the entire human race. His sin caused a separation from God for all of us. As a result of his actions, we inherited his rebellious and flawed nature, making us susceptible to death. The descendants of Adam are referred to as “the Adamic Race.”
2. The Last Adam
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly” Romans 5:6
God saw no possibility of redeeming the fallen Adamic race; it was necessary to bring that lineage to an end and establish a completely new humanity.
Jesus is referred to as the Second Adam. He arrived as the final descendant of the Adamic Race and the inaugural figure of this new humanity.
As He was crucified, He represented the Last Adam—the lastborn of the Adamic lineage. In His death on the cross, the Adamic race and its sinful nature were also put to death. Through Him, God effectively ended the fallen creation. The Adamic race ceased to exist in Christ.
3. The Second Man
“… so in Christ all will be made alive” 1 Corinthians 15:22
Jesus arrived as the new representation of humanity through whom a new lineage would emerge. He was resurrected not as the Last Adam, but as the Second Man, the Leader of the New Creation.
So it is written. ‘The first man Adam became a living soul’; the last Adam, (Christ) a life-giving spirit… The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. “As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven” 1Cornthians 15:45-49
4. The New Creation
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” 2Corinthians 5:17 See also Ephesians 2:10
Through water baptism, we publicly announce to our friends and acquaintances that we have stepped away from Adam’s lineage and the Kingdom of Darkness. We are a New Creation in Christ, now part of the Kingdom of God!
Confession: This study has led me to understand that my former life, filled with sin and judgment, has been put to rest through Jesus’ sacrifice. As a result of His resurrection, I am granted a fresh start. With water baptism symbolizing this transformation, I am committed to being baptized and sharing this truth with others.
