"Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, 'I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?' Jesus replied, 'Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness'..." Matthew 3:13-15.
John's baptism was a baptism "of repentance" - in other words, it was to show a change of heart in preparation for the coming of the Lord (Acts 19:1-7). Christian baptism, however, has do with our personal identification with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. It is the sealing of that which Christ has accomplished on the Cross. It is an outward act of obedience by which the believer fulfils, or completes, the inward righteousness which he already enjoys in his heart through faith in Christ's atoning death and resurrection (Romans 5:1).
- He died.................I died in Him (Romans 6:6-7)
- He was buried...........I was buried in Him (Romans 6:3-5)
- He rose.................I rose in Him (Romans 6:8-11)
- He ascended.............I ascended in Him (Ephesians 2:6)
Baptism in water is simply the enacting out of the faith of a believer - that the old life was truly crucified in Christ on the Cross and the new life began in the resurrection of Jesus.
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has gone; the new has come!" 2 Corinthians 5:17.
Every man and woman born into the world is born into the "dominion of darkness" - born slaves of the dictator, Satan (1 John 5:19). There is no way out of this kingdom except by death. Likewise, there is no way into the kingdom of God except by birth. Jesus became both our death and resurrection (see 1 Corinthians 1:30). Colossians 1:18 tells us that Jesus is "the firstborn from among the dead." The moment I receive Christ, Satan no longer has any right or authority over my life (read Ephesians 2:1-9). I am now "dead to sin" and "alive to God" (Romans 6:11).
Water baptism is my funeral service! A burial service is not to kill a person off. It is only performed when the person is dead already. In the same way, when I am baptised I am declaring to the world that the old life is dead in Christ and a whole new life has begun in Him!
Adam was God's representative man. He was created the father of the whole human race. When he sinned, the result was that the succeeding generations inherited a rebellious and diseased nature, alienated from God. This is the Adamic race.
God never intended to try to patch up the fallen Adamic race. Instead, His intention was to put an end to that race and begin a whole new humanity in Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:45 tells us that Jesus became "the last Adam." As He hung upon the cross, He hung there as the last of the Adamic race. God crucified the fallen creation in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 6:6).
"May I never boast except in the cross of Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world" Galatians 6:14.
Jesus was raised from the dead, not as the last Adam, but as "the second man" - the beginning of the New Creation (1 Corinthians 15:20-23,47-49; Colossians 1:18; Revelation 1:5).
"We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death 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.
As the new creation, we have been:
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Unless otherwise stated, all scriptures quoted in these studies are from the New International Version of the Bible, © New York International Bible Society, used by permission. Other versions referred to are: KJV (King James Version), NKJB (New King James Bible), TLB (The Living Bible), Amp (The Amplified Bible) and The Message. All versions used by permission.
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