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From the Bible, we can see four types of baptism (or washings) and they are:
1. Mosaic baptism– The word baptism is not used in the Old Testament of the Law, but rather washings. Under the Law of Moses “baptism” or washings were part of the system of purification. The baptism or washings was a part of the rites of purification prescribed by the Mosaic/Levitical Law. Depending on the sacrifice or ritual it involved the washing of hands and feet, as well as the body and sometimes clothing. These washings are seen throughout the Old Testament.
2. John’s baptism– John’s baptism was the baptism of repentance. This baptism in water prepared the way for individuals to accept Christ as the Messiah. Obviously, the Jews would have been familiar with Hebrew washings or baptisms. They would have accepted John’s Baptism as an opportunity to get right with God. John’s baptism provided the opportunity to repent of their sins. This repentance would prepare them for accepting or believing the coming of the Messiah (Jesus) when He appeared.
3. Christian baptism- Christian baptism identifies the believer with Christ. In particular his death, burial, and resurrection. A Christian baptism is an act of faith following salvation. Baptism is a public declaration that you are a Born-again Christian. When you are baptized by submersion in water there is a surrendering to the waters of Baptism. In essence, you are choosing to be submerged fully into Jesus Christ. To become “conformed” or like Jesus Himself. It is important to note that baptism does not confer salvation by itself, but is an act of faith following repentance and believing in Jesus Christ! Having said that a person can be born-again and baptized as a single event. The prerequisite for salvation is to “repent and believe”.

The Apostle Paul presents a compelling explanation of the power of Baptism in Romans chapter 6:1-14. In that chapter, Paul explains that when we are baptized we are baptized into Christ Jesus and that we identify with His death. “Therefore, we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so, we also should walk in newness of life” Romans 6:4. Verse 5 states that our union in His death guarantees our union in His resurrection. Verses 6 and 7 reveals that our “old man” was crucified with Him, therefore we are forgiven and no longer “slaves to sin”. Romans 6:8 says, “Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him”. By the way, isn’t it great that God does not see the person you were (the old man or woman) before you accepted Christ!

You see going into the waters of baptism represents our dying to sin, coming out of the waters of baptism represents our new resurrected life! In the words of Paul, the Apostle in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new”. That is why Paul could say in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me”.

To be clear, Jesus was crucified, died, and rose again in your place. Baptism is your way of saying that you are not ashamed, and you are making a public declaration that Jesus is your Lord and Savior.

There are some who refuse to be baptized because of pride, they are embarrassed to make a public proclamation. As a practical matter, you cannot be a “closet Christian” for very long. Being afraid or embarrassed by your faith is a sure way to stunt your growth as a believer. Listen to the words of Jesus in Luke 9:26, “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory…”. You see, if you really know Jesus you would not be ashamed of Him. Keep in mind the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:21, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven”. While baptism is voluntary it is an important step in growth as a Christian.

If you accepted Jesus as your savior and you have not been baptized, I encourage you to do it soon. If every time you hear a message or call to baptism and feel the Holy Spirit’s tug- just do it and have a clear conscience (1 Peter 3:21).

4. The fourth baptism is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and we will cover that in the next post.

So, what is faith?
The word faith in the original Greek is “Pistis”. In general, the word faith means to have a moral conviction of the truthfulness of God and the Scriptures. In reference to our topic “the faith by which you turned to God” it means you believe Jesus is the Savior. Faith in this sense means that you have an assurance, a confidence, a belief that you are Born-again.

There are three types of faith in Christianity:
1. Saving Faith- by which you turned to God or your salvation, as in Hebrews 6:1-3.
2. Word of Faith– faith in the promises of the Word of God – Christian Living. Psalms 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
3. Gift of Faith– One of the nine spiritual gifts mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12. A supernatural release of faith to see the miraculous take place.

Now let’s examine the first type of faith that must happen before any other area of faith in God can take place. Faith in God for your salvation!

You must constantly remind yourself, that God loves you and that His love is Agape love. That is, it is unconditional love. Most of us, if not all of us, grew up learning that if you were “good” you got love, and if you were “bad” love was withheld. That is conditional love and frankly quite natural. However, God’s love is supernatural. I heard someone define Agape love this way, “Love is living your life for someone else’s good”! God’s greatest joy is to bless you His creation. Of course, His blessings are contingent upon your obedience.

The amazing thing about God’s love is that it is never changing! Even when you are disobedient and sinning against God, His love doesn’t change. That is an amazing truth to comprehend. Here are some verses to support that truth.
1. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”, Romans 5:8.
2. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever”, Hebrews 13:8.
3. God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent…”, Numbers 23:19a.

Here is the point of this post; you are Born-again once! You can’t lose your salvation as in losing a set of keys or by accident. You will make mistakes in your walk with God. No one is perfect in actions and thoughts, it takes time to mature as a Christian. That is why it is so important to settle the issue once and for all. You are saved!

The struggle to do right and be right indicates that you are on the right road. You see, a person who is not Born-again would not even want to try and become better in Christ! Here is a promise to hold on to, “… being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you (the Holy Spirit) will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;” Philippians 1:6.

You do have an enemy who will try to create doubt in your mind about God’s love for you and the certainty of your salvation! 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober (clearheaded), be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour”. Don’t fall for the Devil’s lies and don’t become entrapped in the emotional rollercoaster he can create. Here are some truths to fall back on:
1. “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me”, John 14:6.
2. Hebrews 13:5b says, “For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you”.

I can remember very clearly my own struggle to become established in my salvation. In the very early days there were times I felt “saved” and then the very next day felt “unsaved” or that I had lost it. It was only when I learned not to rely on feelings, but to hold onto what God said in His Word. Jesus said, “And I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; neither will anyone snatch them out of My hand, John 10:28.

Let me close with this final verse from Hebrews 6:1, “Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God”.

What is a Work?
The Jews believed that the Torah contained 613 Mitzvots or commandments. A practicing Jew observed these Laws. 365 of these commandments were negative Mitzvots or Laws. These the practicing Jew had to avoid. There were also 248 positive Commandments to keep or observe. With so many positive and negative laws it was almost impossible to keep them all. So, God provided repentance through sacrifices and restitution to cover the sin.

A “work” then involved: Keeping the positive laws, avoiding the negative laws, and making sacrifices of repentance when a law was violated. Doing the works of the Law was the normal practice of Hebrew life under the Law.

Jesus Christ ushered in a New Covenant and it replaced the Law found in the Torah or Tanakh. Not that any of the 613 Mitzvots were wrong or not beneficial, but Grace replaced the Law. We no longer please God by observing the letter of the Law; now we please God through a relationship with Him. God’s Grace makes relationships possible.

What is a Dead Work?
Anytime you see the word “dead” at the beginning of a phrase you know that it isn’t going to be good. So, it is with the phrase “dead works.” Dead works are the works of the Law in a New Covenant setting. The key point here is if you are under Grace, it makes no sense to continue in the works of the Law. In essence the works of the Law are pointless to pleasing God because Grace has replaced the Law with Grace.

How do I know if an act is dead or not? To distinguish if an action is a dead work it is necessary to understand the word “Grace”. God’s grace means that it is a free gift. God’s salvation is the greatest example of grace. God’s gift of salvation to mankind is not on the basis of merit, no one deserves it! One cannot earn God’s Grace! The moment you try to deserve or work for your salvation is the moment you nullify God’s grace. Grace and works are opposite sides of the coin. If it is by grace it can’t be by work; if it is by work, it can’t be grace!

God’s love makes Grace available to us. The New Testament of the Bible was originally written in Greek. There are four Greek words translated as love and they are:
A. Eros – passionate love as found between husband and wife.
B. Philio- brotherly love, Philadelphia is the city of brotherly love.
C. Storge- family love of parents, children, relatives, and close friends.
D. Agape- unconditional love, a love not based on performance but on a decision to love!

The highest form of love is Agape; Agape is God’s kind of love. God decided to love you and there is nothing you can say or do to make Him un-love you! It is not about what you do for God, but who you are in Christ!

Let’s put it all together, Repentance from Dead Works:
Dead works can be those actions to try and balance out the wrong you have done. It is the idea of the Balance Scale, trying to make sure you do more good works to outweigh sinful works. The problem is that no one can be good enough!

Rites, rituals, traditions, and practices of the Christian religion have only one true purpose and that is to point to Jesus Christ. They exist to help us remember what Jesus did, is doing, and will do for those who put their trust in Him. Those rites, rituals, traditions, and practices were never meant to put us in God’s favor or to earn or deserve His grace.

In conclusion, the book of James teaches us that true faith has an outworking or work. This is the kind of work that pleases God because it is by faith (Heb 11:6). The evidence of faith can be a work, but a work isn’t necessarily by faith. The key to knowing if what you are doing is by faith or simply a ritual is to look at your motivation. Are you motivated by the love of God and His Holy Spirit or is it simply a religious practice or habit?