Why Every Christian Should Be Baptized in Water & Spirit | Season 02, Episode 02 | Simple Truth Podcast

I've got a question for you. Why was Jesus Christ baptized in water and then filled with the Holy Spirit? Think about it. Why was he water baptized and filled with the spirit? Everything Jesus did was intentional. Nothing was random. So when he stepped into the water and received the spirit, God was showing us, you and me, something really important. So what are we supposed to learn from this? Well, last episode we started answering the question of what is a Christian? We looked closely at the Bible and saw that a Christian is a follower of Jesus Christ. We saw that a follower does more than watch from a distance, but a follower actually walks the same path. So, if Jesus's path included water baptism and being filled with the spirit, you and I should look at what that means for us. So, let's open the Bible and see why these two events matter more than most people realize in this episode of The Simple Truth. Welcome to the Simple Truth podcast, where we open the Bible to uncover simple, biblical, and essential truths that can transform your life. And now, here's your host, Ted Ross. >> Hi, my name is Ted Ross and this is the Simple Truth Podcast. Your home for biblical truth clearly taught and freely given. I am super excited about this episode's topics, cuz these are two topics that many Christians are told to go do, and they often never understand why. So, let's go ahead and get started with a simple truth. Our next simple truth, you should be water baptized. What is water baptism? Well, not everybody's familiar. So, I'm going to give you just a quick universal answer of what water baptism is. Step one, someone who's baptizing the baptizer. They explain the purpose of water baptism to the Christian, the baptisee, if you will. Second, the Christian and the baptizer, they enter water that's deep enough to immerse in. Could be a river, could be a lake, could be the ocean, could be a pool, whatever it may be, it's deep enough to immerse. Third, the baptizer prays for the Christian. And fourth, the baptizer lowers the Christian fully into water and then raises the Christian out. That is water baptism. That's the act of it. But what does it mean? Well, let's see in the Bible about water baptism. Jesus came to John the Baptist to be water baptized and John the Baptist initially refused. Let's see this in Matthew 3 verses 13-15. It says, "Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan. This is the River Jordan to be baptized by him. And John tried to prevent him." That's Jesus saying, quote, I need to be baptized by you and you are coming to me. That word baptized. So it says Jesus came to John to be baptized by him. The word means immersed, dipped, submerged. And so Jesus came to be immersed in water. Dipped or submerged in water by John as a part of this act. John though felt not worthy since Jesus was quote mightier than I. It's an expression he used back in verse 11. John was like, I need to be baptized by you. Why would you come to me to be baptized by me? John showed humility. Next verse. But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." And then John allowed him. So Jesus insisted that John baptize him to quote fulfill all righteousness. That word fitting. So when Jesus says it is fitting for us, that means it's proper, it's suitable, it's appropriate for us to fulfill, that is to complete or to fill up what is lacking of all righteousness. Notice folks that there was no Old Testament prophecy that said that John the Baptist needed to baptize Jesus as the Messiah. That is not something that was intended. So why did Jesus insist on being water baptized by John? Because water baptism is a righteous act and it's part of a Christian's path and Jesus is our example. There are many examples of Christians becoming born again in water baptized in the book of Acts. So, let's take a moment. Now, we've discussed what a water baptism looks like, and we read about Jesus's water baptism, who is our example. In fact, he insisted on being water baptized because he's our example. But why do we do it? What does water baptism mean? Let's take a look in the Bible. Water baptism is a physical declaration of leaving your old life, being buried with Christ in his death, and being raised with him in a new life. Repeat that. Water baptism is this physical declaration of laying down of leaving your old life, your pre-born again life, being buried in the death of Christ, and then coming out of that water and being raised with him in a new life. So let's see Romans 6 3-6. Quote, "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?" Baptize. That word is immersed, dipped, submerged. There's that word again, right? This is a baptism in water. So, we're to be submerged in water as a part of it. We're to be buried with him in baptism so that we could live a new life. Let's see Romans 6:4. 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, that's you and me, also should walk in newness of life. It says we're buried with him. That words means to bury together. It implies a decisive break from an old life and a commitment to a new one. That we were put to death. That we were put in a burial tomb with Jesus Christ. Now, clearly you and I didn't die at water baptism, but our old man, our old self does. That's the intent of it. And it says, "Then we were raised from the dead." That means we're awakened. We're roused from asleep. This physical representation of something very powerful spiritually. It says that even so we should then walk that is to conduct ourselves or to live in newness of life. That's a renewed new state of life. Verse five, for if we have been united together in the likeness of a death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of his resurrection. We die to our old self so Christ can live through us in a new reborn life. That word likeness, when it says we're united together in the likeness of his death, that means in the resemblance of his death. Jesus Christ lived with love and purpose and strength. Water baptism signifies that so will we. We will walk in that same love, that same purpose, and that same strength because we're following Jesus as an example. Water baptism is a physical symbol of a real spiritual truth. So verse 6, Romans 6:6, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, with Jesus, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin. That word old man, when it says our old man was crucified with him, that's our former self, our former person, that pre-born again person with all those desires and bad habits. And it says that the body of sin might be done away with that is made powerless or rendered weak. The old sinful self that we repented from is buried with Christ and no longer has power over us so that we could live a new life in Christ Jesus. Hallelujah. Do you believe this? Do you believe it? This is what the Bible says about us. And it's your and my job to humble ourselves, to repent of our past, and to believe it, and to gain tremendous benefits for doing so. Water baptism will be discussed in detail in a future simple truth episode. So, let's take a moment. Okay, you're born again. You've been baptized in water. What else do you need as a Christian? Well, what happened next with Jesus? Our next simple truth. You should be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus after his water baptism. Let's see this in Luke 3 verses 21 and 22. Quote, "When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized in water. And while he prayed, the heaven was opened. And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are my beloved son. In you I am well pleased." Interesting. Verse 22 says, "The Holy Spirit descended upon him." The Holy Spirit literally means the sacred breath or the holy wind of God. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead, divine, personal, and omnipresent. It says the Holy Spirit descended. The Holy Spirit came down from heaven and it had a form, an appearance, or a sight like a dove. And then the father says to Jesus for all to hear, "This is my beloved son, my dearly loved son, and in whom he is well pleased." Luke 4:1. Here we describe the idea that Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and then led to do something. He was led into the testing of the wilderness. Luke 4:1. Then Jesus being filled with the Holy Spirit returned from the Jordan and was led by the spirit into the wilderness. That word filled means full to capacity, complete, lacking nothing. Jesus was filled to capacity and made complete with the Holy Spirit. Holy Spirit, same as before, the sacred breath, the Holy Wind of God. And it says that then Jesus was led, he was guided, he was induced, he was persuaded by the spirit to go into the wilderness. And the wilderness is the desert. It's the it's the solitary place. What does the wilderness look like in Israel? like what would have looked like for Jesus to go into the wilderness. Let's see. Here is an image of the wilderness. We're gonna actually analyze the wilderness in what is a Christian part two because there are some very profound and important reasons why Jesus was led by the spirit into the wilderness. And there are profound reasons why you and I are led into our own wilderness experience. To follow Jesus's example, we should all be immersed in God's spirit. John 1:32 and 33. Quote, "And John bore witness, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and he remained upon him." We just read this in our preceding verses. Verse 32. I did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, that's the father, quote, upon whom you see the spirit descending and remaining on him. This is he who baptizes with the holy spirit. Interesting that word remained. So John says, I saw the spirit descend like a dove and remain upon Jesus. To remain is to dwell, to take residence. Interesting. The Holy Spirit took residence in Jesus. That word baptizes again, immersed, dipped, submerged. So the same way that you are baptized or immersed or submerged in water, that same word is used for the Holy Spirit here in John 1:32. And it says that Jesus is the one who emerges, dips or submerges Christians with the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit again is God's sacred breath, his holy wind. Jesus baptizes us in the Holy Spirit and fire. That is some imagery, right? Let's take a look. Matthew 3:1, John the Baptist said, quote, I indeed baptize you with water under repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, that's Jesus, whose sandals I'm not worthy to carry. I can't even carry Jesus's shoes, John said, quote, he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. That word baptize again to immerse, to dip, to submerge. So the same word again that we see with water where you're to be submerged or immersed in water. We see it with the Holy Spirit, to be dipped, to be submerged, to be immersed in the Holy Spirit. And that word fire, it just means fire. It implies the purifying work of the spirit. So being baptized or filled with the Holy Spirit, it creates a purification. It helps clean you up. I want that. So let's take a moment. So what does it mean to be baptized in the Holy Spirit? What's the purpose? What will be different in my life after I'm filled with the Holy Spirit? Well, the baptism in the Holy Spirit is when Jesus baptizes or immerses us in God's Holy Spirit and then the spirit lives in us from then on. Like it said with Jesus, it remains or it resides with us. Now, let's see Christians in the Bible who are following the example of Jesus and this is happening with them. Jesus instructed the disciples to wait for the baptism in the Holy Spirit. Let's look at Acts 1 verses 4 and 5. And being assembled together with them, he, that's Jesus, commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which he said, you have heard for be, that's Jesus. Verse 5, for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. Again, that word baptized. You will be immersed. You'll be dipped. You'll be submerged with the Holy Spirit. The disciples were then later in the book of Acts filled with the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Acts 2 verses 1-4. When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. The day of Pentecost is also known as the feast of weeks. It's about 50 days after the day of Passover. And it says that they were all with one accord in one place. They were of one mind. They had shared intent. They were all there for one purpose. The disciples were filled with the spirit and they had a physical manifestation. So verse three, then there appeared to them divided tongues as of fire and one sat upon each of them. Verse four, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the spirit gave them utterance. So it says that there appeared to them divided tongues. These are distributed tongues. It implies this very powerful idea. There was a unity but there was also an individualism. They were together in one accord. They all had tongues rest upon them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit. But it also showed that these tongues were separated. So each one had an individual tongue for a specific purpose. Powerful. And it says they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. That word filled to fully supply, to saturate, to take over. And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues. These are other languages. And it says as the spirit gave them utterance as the spirit gave them the ability to speak out to declare. Samaritans later in the book of acts they were born again and they were water baptized but they needed this baptism in the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:14. Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God they sent Peter and John to them. Verse 15. Who when they had come down prayed for them for the Samaritans that they might receive the Holy Spirit. That word receive is to obtain or to get a hold of. Right? Peter and John were sent because they knew that they were born again. They knew they were water baptized, but they needed to obtain or get a hold of the Holy Spirit. Peter and John laid hands on the Samaritans, and then they received the Holy Spirit. Verse 16, for as yet he, the Holy Spirit, had fallen upon none of them, they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Verse 17, then they laid hands, this is Peter and John, on them, this is the Samaritans, and they received the Holy Spirit. To fall upon means it hadn't fell upon them or embraced them. infectionally and seized them. Yet to say fall upon has an implication. When you look at a lexicon, it says it implies an event that is sudden, personal, transformative. You don't accidentally get filled with the Holy Spirit. It implies something that is a seizing and embracing something that's transformational. It's a good thing, folks. And then it said that Peter and John laid hands. To lay hands is to place hands upon. And it's usually something that's intended to impart something spiritual to the other person. In this case, the Holy Spirit. Laying hands will be discussed in detail in a future simple truth episode. Then it said that they received the Holy Spirit. They obtained and they got hold of the Holy Spirit. Peter tells what happened visiting Cornelius's household in Acts 10. And he describes something really interesting. So Acts 11 15-17 says, "And as I began to speak," this is Peter, "the Holy Spirit fell upon them," this is Cornelius's household, "as upon us at the beginning. Then I remembered, I being Peter, the word of the Lord, it's the Lord Jesus, how he said, quote, John indeed baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit." Verse 17. If therefore God gave them, Cornelius's household, these were non-Jews, the same gift as he gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could withstand God. The Holy Spirit fell on Cornelius and his household just as it fell on the disciples in Acts two. The same way it fell upon them, the same way that it came in like a rushing mighty wind and it fell upon them with visible manifestation. The Holy Spirit, Peter says, is a valuable gift for Christians. It says in verse 17, if therefore God gave them Cornelius's household the same gift as he gave us, that gift is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is such a valuable gift for Christians. You should be filled with him. The Holy Spirit is also our helper, our advocate, our comforter, our teacher. John 14:26 here Jesus says, "But the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, in Jesus's name, he, the Holy Spirit, will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." That word helper, pariclete, it's an important Greek word. That helper means some really important things. It means that the Holy Spirit is our advocate. The Holy Spirit's our comforter, our counselor. It implies the spirit is called alongside us to support us, to help us, to strengthen us. That's a great thing. The Holy Spirit also intercedes for us with unspoken words. Let's see that. Romans 8 26. Likewise, the Spirit also helps in our weakness. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. That word helps. It says the spirit helps in our weakness. That means to lend a hand, to provide assistance. I know I need help when I'm weak. I know I need assistance from God. And the Holy Spirit does this. And it says, "For we don't know what we should pray for as we ought to pray, but the Spirit makes intercession. Thank you, Father." Intercession is to plead on behalf of, to make requests for, and the Spirit does it with groanings. Those are intense groans, too deep for words that cannot be uttered. The demonstrations, also known as the gifts of the Holy Spirit, they benefit others. They benefit us. We see this in 1 Corinthians 12 7-11. Quote, "But the manifestation of the spirit is given to each one for the profit of all. For to one is given the word of wisdom through the spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the same Spirit. It's the Holy Spirit. to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. Verse 11, but one and the same spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as he the spirit wills. That word manifestation, right? That word manifestation in verse 7 is a visible demonstration of the Holy Spirit. All of these quote unquote gifts of the spirit, they're manifestations of the Holy Spirit and they're there for our profit, for our benefit. These workings of the Holy Spirit benefit the church. They benefit other Christians and they benefit you. Don't be filled with alcohol like the Bible says. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 5:18, "And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the spirit." To be drunk, that's a word I think we could all guess. It means to be intoxicated. Don't be intoxicated with wine. Don't be drunk with wine. That brings about dissipation. That's not a word we use very often. What does it mean? Recklessness, moral unrestraint. Don't be drunk with wine or beer or vodka or whatever it may be. It makes us reckless. It makes us morally unrestrained. It causes us to do all sorts of things that we regret later on. But instead, be filled, be made full, be made complete. It implies actually a daily goal to keep being filled with the spirit of God. If Christians are followers of Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ was filled with the Holy Spirit, then Christians should be too. Baptism in the Holy Spirit will be discussed in detail in a future simple truth episode. You want the Holy Spirit for what lies ahead in the Christian path. You're going to need the Holy Spirit for what lies ahead in the Christian path. So, let's take a moment. Jesus was filled with the spirit and wants us to be filled with the spirit. The spirit descended upon Jesus after his water baptism. Got it? John the Baptist said Jesus would baptize us in the Holy Spirit. This baptism, it immerses us in the Holy Spirit and then the Holy Spirit then lives in us, resides in us, remains in us. There are many examples of baptism in the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts. We reviewed several and there's even more that we didn't cover in this episode. The spirit is a valuable gift for followers of Jesus Christ, aka Christians. Peter, remember he was talking about Cornelius's household said this gift that was given to Cornelius's household is the same gift that was given them. A gift is a wonderful thing. Don't refuse it. The Holy Spirit is our helper, our advocate, our comforter, our support. And the Holy Spirit has powerful visible demonstrations, also known as the gifts of the spirit. And they are there for the profit or the benefit of everybody. But how do I get filled with the Holy Spirit? That's a great question. Number one, if you don't have the Holy Spirit, then you should ask God for the Holy Spirit and ask in faith. God wants to give him to you. Number two, be open to God. Yield to God. Maybe there's something God wants you to work through or some conversion process you're doing to get it out of the way so you could then be filled with God's Holy Spirit. Number three, focus on activities that fill you with the spirit. That includes reading the Bible, meditating on the word of God, humbling your soul with fasting, seeking to be led by his spirit, and praying to God and praising and worshiping God. These are all items that we're going to discuss in a future episode. Okay. filled with the Holy Spirit. Got it? But you might be saying something to yourself. You might be saying, "That's an awfully high bar for me to follow Jesus as an example, but I like to drink too much. But I like to sleep around, but I like to be violent. But I love money. How can I go from this these things that I desire and I do daily to walking like Jesus Christ? Don't worry. God's got you. He will lead you into the wilderness to change you. Let's be clear. You may be born again. You may be water baptized. You may be filled with the Holy Spirit. But you still need to be converted. You need a thorough change in your heart, in your lifestyle. You need to go from a person who's driven by unhealthy desires of their flesh. We all know about this, folks. To being a person who can hear God, who obeys God, and fulfills your purpose. That's being a Christian. You need a metamorphosis. In other words, you need to go from that old prickly caterpillar to a beautiful new butterfly. And you could totally do it. God has done this for so many people and you are one of them. Remember when we became born again, it talked about this idea of being dead then made alive. So when we became born again, our spirit became alive. But our soul, our will, our intellect, our emotions, our personality, if you will. And our body, they were very much the same as before becoming born again. Let me say that one more time. When we became born again, our spirit became alive, but our soul and our body were quite a bit like how they were before we were born again. We need our souls, our habits, our desires, our thoughts to be transformed. That's why we're experiencing what we experience. And that's why it seems so hard to go from who we were to who God has called us to be. After Jesus was filled with the spirit, he did something. He was led by the spirit into the wilderness. In other words, we need the wilderness. And that is what starts the conversion of our souls. That is going to be in the next episode of the simple truth. You and I need the wilderness experience to thoroughly improve us, to thoroughly change us. The metamorphosis from the prickly caterpillar to the beautiful butterfly. And when we come out of the wilderness, just like Jesus did, we come out in power. We come out with our purpose. Jesus did it. We must do it. And this is a part of being a Christian. Thank you for listening to this episode of the Simple Truth Podcast. In this episode, we covered some pretty important topics in answering a fundamental question. What is a Christian? Through the Bible, we see a Christian is a follower of Jesus Christ and that following means making Jesus our example. We see that God wants to conform Christians into Jesus's likeness and that includes living as Jesus lived. Most importantly, Jesus's life is a model and a pattern for a Christian's life. So that means we must be born again. We must be born from above. We should be water baptized and we should be filled with the Holy Spirit. But even if we're born again, water baptized, and filled with God's spirit, our soul still needs to be converted. We've got these habits and these desires that need to be thoroughly changed. This is why Jesus was led into the wilderness, and that's why we are led into the wilderness. So, please join us for the next episode. If you enjoyed today's podcast, don't forget to like and subscribe and share it with somebody else. It has been a real pleasure talking about the Bible with you. I pray that God bless you and God keep you until next time. >> Thank you for listening to the Simple Truth Podcast. For additional episodes, visit us at www.simpletruth.org