Believers are Baptized and Receive the Holy Spirit
Acts 19:1-7
This Sunday is known as Baptism of the Lord Sunday in which we remember that Jesus was baptized by John in the River Jordan, even though Jesus had no sin to repent of. When this happened, there was an enrichment of what Baptism means. The base idea that Baptism was administered as a sign of repentance and in the message that a greater one than John was coming soon. This baptism being administered in the River Jordan near the place where Israel crossed from Jordan at Gilgal reminds us that Joshua there circumcised the men of Israel, a command which had been neglected. (See Joshua 5:1-5). Circumcision of men in the Old Testament was the sign that they belonged to the covenant that Yahweh had made with Abraham. So these sons of those who had passed through the Red Sea into the wilderness were not Israelites at all until they were circumcised. The radical baptism in Jordan seems, therefore, to imply that the Jews who had come to John were not Jews at all, seeing that they went to where the reproach of Israel was rolled away to be baptized. Baptism was applied to Gentile converts as well as circumcision, but for a Jew to be baptized was shocking.
Jesus added to this doctrine of baptism by being identified by John as the Lamb “which taketh away the sin of the world.” It would be Jesus who rolls away our reproach. Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day as all Jewish males were. He did not need to be re-admitted into the Covenant by the administering of Baptism. So, here is the first enrichment of Baptism. For more on the purpose of this Baptism, you can read the sermon “You are My Son, the Beloved” in this sermon archive.
Another enrichment to the doctrine of baptism was that there was not only was there to be a water baptism but the baptism of the Holy Spirit (fire). John the Baptist identified Jesus as one who would baptize with the Spirit. This is a distinct baptism from water. Water baptism in Scripture follows belief and repentance and precedes Spirit Baptism but not always as we see this reversed at Cornelius’ house. The two baptisms could occur at the same time or could come later.
This morning, we are looking at one of the alternate lectionary texts for this Sunday from Acts 19:1-7. What does this add to our understanding of baptism? Let us see.
In today’s passage, Paul had just returned to Ephesus from Jerusalem. Before going to Jerusalem, Paul made a brief visit to Ephesus but could not stay long. However, he left two of his colleagues there to begin the work of spreading the Gospel there. The message of john the Baptist had spread there, and he had followers. One of these was an Alexandrian Jew named Apollos who preached the Gospel from the Old Testament. He believed in the Messiah whom John had preached about but was unfamiliar with Jesus having come as the fulfillment to this prophecy. He was a excellent and passionate orator. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they were impressed. But they also took time to tell Apollos the rest of the story. The text says they taught him more accurately. This is not to say that what Apollos preached was somehow defective. What he preached was right. What he needed was enrichment. Having been more completely furnished, he felt led by the Spirit to go to Corinth where he proved to the stubborn Jews there that Jesus was indeed the Messiah.
But Apollos was not the only one who needed to be enriched at Ephesus. Paul came across a small synagogue there of about 12 Jewish men who were “believers.” I think it is important we look at the word “believers.” These had heard of John’s message and believed it, just as Apollos had. They were members of the New Covenant. they were, therefore, saved. What they knew was correct. What they needed was more information. This should remind us that we did not know everything about Christianity when we believed. The content of our faith may have been very limited. But we became Christians when we acted upon what we were told about Jesus and followed in obedience unto baptism. The expectation is that we are to grow in knowledge of the Lord, both doctrinally and experientially. Even now, we have much to learn. We would do well to be as eager as these believers in Ephesus to be taught by those who have accurate information about Christianity.
These believers had heard about John’s call to repent and be baptized. But for some reason, they were unaware of John’s message about the Coming One baptizing in the Spirit. They were also unaware that the Coming One had come in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. Paul discerned that these believers needed more instruction. He asked if they received the Holy Spirit when they believed. Although one cannot believe apart from the Holy Spirit, they were experientially unaware of His presence. So, Paul is going beyond the doctrine that when one believes, they believe because of the Spirit. There is more to the doctrine of the Holy Spirit than this, something beyond what these believers knew.
After accepting what Paul told them, they were baptized in water, after which they also received the perceptible baptism of the Holy Spirit. This has presented innumerable problems to those who refuse any idea of re-baptism. Yet, this is what happened here. One would have to separate the Baptism of John the Baptist from Christian Baptism to hold this view. But as we have noted, these men were already believers, even if they possessed an immature faith. We also can find any Scriptural warrant separating the Baptism of John from that of Jesus. John the Baptist was still baptizing in John 3 at the same time the disciples of Jesus were also baptizing. If there was a difference in the baptisms, John would need to be upbraided. We see no evidence of this. If the baptisms were different, John would need to cease and desist. It is true that John had disciples at tis time who should have heard John like Andrew and the Apostle John who immediately left to follow Jesus. However, the Lord did not seem to be annoyed over this. Even to the end, He affirmed the greatness and validity of both John and his message.
Christian Baptism in water is an enhancement of John’s baptism in that it adds to John’s baptism. But is also takes away nothing from the validity of John’s baptism. Paul does not simply pray for the believers that they also receive the Holy Spirit. He baptized them in water first. We must at least not condemn those who ask to be re-baptized, especially those who were baptized as infants. The example from Scripture is our rule of faith and not the constructs of Christian theologians. An exception to unitary water baptism is made here. This is also not to say that some Christian theologians have made important discoveries about the very deep meaning of baptism. But perhaps it is not good to be overly dogmatic in such case as these and break the unity of the Church which Jesus so desires. Let us patiently teach the believers and show some tolerance when Scripture shows that tolerance is needed. On the other hand, we must not limit our understanding to that of John’s baptism. John’s baptism is valid as far as it went, but now we have more information. Let us be diligent to teach the enhanced doctrine of baptism, so long as it is clear that it follows the teaching of Scripture.
Now, let us deal with the doctrine of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit which is also taught here. This is the issue that Paul is more concerned with. The Baptism of the Spirit is not to be neglected. When Jesus came up from the water, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him like a dove and the Father’s approval was audibly spoken when He said “This is my Son, the Beloved.” When new people were converted in the Book of Acts, it seems to have been accompanied not just by water baptism but the baptism of the Spirit. The Baptism of the Lord included baptism of the Spirit. Jesus is set as the example for us all. Even though Jesus as the second person of the Trinity equally with the Father and the Son could have performed his ministry in his own Person, He submitted to the will of the Father and was led by the same Holy Spirit which is to guide the Christian as well. The early believers had to wait until Pentecost and the reception of the Holy Spirit to begin their ministry. Everything before this point was merely preparation. (For more on this, refer to the sermon “When the Day of Pentecost was Fully Come” in this archive
It seems that much of the church today is satisfied with just the receiving of the Holy Spirit upon conversion, This infilling is considered to be imperceptible. The teaching of these churches say that the baptism of the Holy Spirit was for the Apostolic age only. Once the King James Bible came, there was no need for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Here again, there is no Scriptural warrant for such a doctrine. When Peter addresses the baptism of the Holy Spirit in His Pentecost sermon, referring to Joel 2, he says that this gift was for them, their children, to those who were afar off. Some would consider those afar off as just referring to the Gentiles in Paul’s day. But it also says “as many as our Lord and God will call. It is for everyone of all ages as the Lord wills. The Lord is omnipotent. He is not limited by our confined doctrine. Scripture teaches the vitality of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Who are we to limit what God the Holy Spirit can and can not do. Because many are afraid of enthusiasm in the church, we have impoverished our doctrine of the Holy Spirit out of fear. We strain on the doctrine of re-baptism as a gnat but swallow a camel as a result. We are called to teach all of Scripture, rightly divided. Yes, there is a lot of heresy in the church. But the antidote is not to limit the power of the Spirit. In fact, what we need is the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit all the more.
So let us remember the two baptisms of the Lord this Sunday, the first by John in the River Jordan, the other of the Holy Spirit which is meant to be normative for the believer. Let us seek further growth in the faith, trusting that the Holy Spirit is able to discern truth from error. Let God be God!
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