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Christian theology, basic teachings, apologeticsArchive for Basic Christian teachings
Baptism in water
Basics
3. Baptism in water
We have now arrived at the second foundation linked with becoming a Christian, which is baptism in water. Let’s just repeat here the way that people became Christians in the Bible, which was:
i) They repented, believed and were born again,
ii) They were baptised in water,
iii) They were filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2: 38).
There have been many disputes in the churches concerning the significance of “christening,” though almost all of them practice it in some form or other. Let’s look at what the Bible has to say about baptism.
a) The outward confession of an inward decision to follow Jesus – the sign of entry into the new covenant
Throughout the ages, God has entered into relationship with man by means of covenants. We can think of a covenant as being like a contract or agreement between two parties. This will contain promises and obligations to be fulfilled by the parties, which both will read carefully, agree to, and then sign or “seal” with a rubber stamp. According to the New Covenant, the obligation we have is to believe in Jesus and follow him as his disciple, and for this God promises to give us eternal life. If we agree to the conditions, the way we “stamp the contract” is by agreeing to be baptised. (God then stamps it by giving us the Holy Spirit, which is the subject of the next study.) Let’s just compare the covenants of God for a while.
If an outsider, a pagan wished to approach the God of Israel to such an extent that he wanted to join the Jewish community of faith, then he made a decision to change his lifestyle, and live from then on according to the law of Moses. The first step in this process was to be circumcised as a sign that he was “entering” the Mosaic covenant, as well as a confession that he intended to keep the law.
In contrast, physical circumcision is not a factor in the Christian life, because we are now living under a different covenant (see Gal. 5: 2-4, “Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is required to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.”)
On the other hand, the New Testament does compare circumcision with baptism (see e.g. Col. 2: 9-12). This can be understood in such a way, that if someone submits to baptism, he makes a public confession, or pledge, to the world, that he has repented, his life will change from now on, and he will live as a disciple of Christ. As a parallel with circumcision, this is the “initiation ceremony” into the new covenant. (See study 1 on what being a disciple of Christ entails. The continuing sign of the new covenant is the Lord’s Supper, which will be dealt with in due course.)
Whoever follows Christ is called into his service, and for whoever ministers, it is important that he “compete according to the rules.” (Cf. 2 Tim. 2: 5). God called Moses to perform a very important task for him, but when he set out for Egypt to fulfil his calling, God wanted to kill him (Exod. 4: 24-26). Moses had neglected to circumcise his son, even though this was the sign that as a descendant of Abraham, he was in a covenant relationship with God (see Gen. 17: 10-11, 14: “This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised … it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you… Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”)
Bearing this in mind, if someone commits himself to follow Jesus and serve God, he should not neglect to be baptised as soon as possible, so that he too will be able to compete according to the rules.
A brief digression
If baptism is a parallel to circumcision, and if someone is born a Jew, then he is circumcised as a child, so what about infant baptism?
Under the old covenant, the Jews, as a holy nation, were the people of God, and if someone was born a Jew, then he received this sign of the covenant. In contrast to this, God’s people under the new covenant are the Christians (a people made up of those Jews and Gentiles who believe in Jesus). It is important to realise, though, that no-one is born a Christian, even if he is a child of Christian parents. Someone becomes a Christian by the new birth, not by natural birth. So, just as circumcision followed natural birth for the Jews, baptism follows repentance and new birth for Christians.
In all cases that we know from the Bible, baptism followed conversion, and followed it immediately. A little baby can neither repent nor believe.
b) Death and resurrection
I shall quote the passage referred to above, “In him (Christ) you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins…” (Col. 2: 11-13).
As well as, “We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptised into Jesus Christ were baptised into his death? 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.” (Rom. 6: 2-4).
As the freshly converted person disappears under the water and then emerges from it in the act of baptism, this portrays that he has died to his old sins and lifestyle, and from now on will live a completely new life, endued with supernatural, resurrection power.
From the verse quoted above, though, we can see that it is only the faith of the person that makes this at all effective (Col. 2: 12). Baptism is not a sacrament, i.e. a ceremony which works by itself, without any kind of faith being present. If someone is baptised who has not understood the gospel, and not repented, then all that happens is that he gets wet.
c) Washing away sins
When the disciple Ananias came to Paul after his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, he prayed for his healing, baptised him, and prayed for the Holy Spirit (see Acts 9: 1-19; 22: 6-16). In connection with baptism, he said, “And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptised, and wash your sins away, calling on his name.” (Acts 22: 16). Also in his letter to Titus, Paul alludes to washing sins away as well as the work of the Spirit in connection with regeneration, “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit…” (Titus 3: 5).
As baptism is referred to as a washing, and also due to the previous picture of death and resurrection, it is important that it should be performed by full immersion, and furthermore, only on those who have already repented of their sins. The Greek word for baptise (baptidzó), has the primary meaning of dip, immerse or wash, as in reference to the Jewish ceremonial washings (see Luke 11: 38, also the related word baptó in John 13: 26).
d) Cutting off from the past
The New Testament refers to two Old Testament incidents in connection with baptism, where the people of God were delivered from their enemies. 1 Peter 3: 20-21 says, “God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolises baptism that now saves you also – not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience towards God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ…”
Also Paul writes, “For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” (1 Cor 10: 1-2).
The two events referred to are the worldwide flood, which only Noah and his family survived, and the crossing of the Red Sea, when the children of Israel were delivered from the pursuing Egyptian army. In both cases, the people of God passed through “water” in some way, and by means of this same water, those who were responsible for evil in their lives perished – the whole population of the wicked world in the case of Noah, and the oppressive taskmasters who held them in slavery in the case of the Israelites. In this way, the people were able to escape to live a totally new life, in which they were free from all these influences of the past.
In the same way, after baptism, a believer can live a new life having been set free from all evils influences from the past which would otherwise hold him back, such as sin, bad habits, demonic forces, curses, etc.. Once again I should stress that this is not automatic, it is only effective by faith, but it is nevertheless a real deliverance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is baptism a sacrament or a symbol?
Based on the points discussed above, baptism is not a sacrament. The concept of “sacrament” originates from Roman Catholicism. This is a ceremony performed by a consecrated priest (who does not exist under the new covenant) on a layman (who also does not exist), and which is “ex opera operando,” or an act which is effective in and of itself to transmit grace automatically, irrespective of the faith of the priest or the layman. This concept is totally foreign to the world of the Bible. Even the obligatory ceremonies of the Mosaic covenant had no significance without the faith and sincere repentance of the people (see Isaiah 1: 10-17).
Continuing the parallel with the old covenant ceremonies, based on the verses considered above, it appears that baptism has considerable spiritual significance (because it is death and resurrection, washing from sin, etc.), but only in such case that it is combined with repentance and faith. Both the old covenant and the new covenant (baptism and the Lord’s Supper) ceremonies, therefore, are less than sacraments, but at the same time, they are more than mere symbols.
Must someone make a detailed confession of sins before baptism?
This practice cannot be found in the Bible. We see most of the examples of how people became Christians in the earliest period in the book of Acts. The cases can be summarised more or less as follows: the gospel was proclaimed, and the preacher saw that the message had touched the hearers, because they asked, “what shall we do?” (e.g. Acts 2: 37; 16: 30). From this they must have understood that those present were repentant, so they answered: repent, and be baptised (Acts 2: 38); believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved (16: 31). In several cases, we just hear that, “they believed and were baptised” (e.g. Acts 8: 12; 16: 14-15; 18: 8; 19: 4-5).
It is true that when the Jews went out to John the Baptist to be baptised in the river Jordan, in two of the four gospels it is written that, “Confessing their sins, they were baptised by him in the Jordan river” Mark 1: 5, cf. Mat. 3: 6). John’s baptism, however, must not be used as a precedent, because it is clear that this was not Christian baptism. John performed a preparatory baptism, and told people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in the Messiah. When it later became clear that Jesus was the Messiah, then even those who had been baptised by John also had to undergo Christian baptism (Acts 19: 17).
It is probably due primarily to Roman Catholicism once again that this particular practice has become widespread in Hungary. If as an adult someone adopts the Roman Catholic faith, then after preparation and study, he has to confess all the sins he has committed in his life before being christened.
We see no reason to insist on this extra-biblical practice.
How should we be baptised?
With regard to the fact that baptism is death and resurrection as well as washing from sin, and also due to the meaning of the Greek word, baptism should be carried out by total immersion. We do not employ other traditional practices, such as sprinkling or pouring. The Bible also says that people were baptised in the river, or in a place where there was a lot of water (John 3: 22-23). The Ethiopian eunuch together with Philip went down into the water and came up out of it again (Acts 8: 38-39). In the Didache, an early Christian writing which probably dates from the first century, it is mentioned that initiation by pouring water on the head is only admissible if insufficient water is available for baptism, i.e. for immersion (Didache, Chapter 7).
When may someone be baptised?
If he has heard the gospel, accepts it, wants to repent, and be a disciple of Jesus. If not, he should not be baptised. If so, then as soon as possible.
This also means that we do not christen little babies. This practice is nowhere to be found in the Bible.
It must be said, that nowadays leaders have a very difficult task, because they have to decide whether they should actually baptise someone who asks for it. Particularly with regard to the fact that many people have a totally false concept in this post-modern world about what repentance, baptism, and the Christian life actually are. In ancient times they would have understood somewhat better that this involves making a complete break with the past, and adopting a new lifestyle.
If we happen to baptise someone who has not repented, then it is of no help to him at all, but on the other hand he may be given a false sense of security, because he may think that he is now a Christian, when he is not.
If, on the other hand, we do not baptise someone who really does want to repent, then we deprive him of the spiritual help from God, which is available to him through water baptism and baptism in the Spirit. If we want someone to get free of all his sins before being baptised, then we are teaching him to be legalistic instead of walking in the Spirit. A holy lifestyle is only possible as the fruit of the Spirit, and not by the carnal nature making more of an effort.
Let us pray, then, that first of all we can preach the full, true gospel, and then we can have the wisdom and insight to make right decisions in every individual case.
Who may baptise?
Usually the elders of an assembly. This cannot be supported from Scripture, it is just our practice. In the Bible, it appears that “the believers” baptised the new converts, see e.g. Acts 2: 41; 8: 12, 36-38; 9: 10-18; 10: 46-48; 1 Cor. 1: 13-17. With regard to the problems mentioned in the previous paragraph, though, it is wise in this modern world to leave the decision to those with greater maturity in the faith.
What formula should we use when baptising?
This is a disputed issue, because there is an apparent contradiction between Jesus’ commission and the practice of the apostles. Jesus gave this command to his disciples, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” (Mat. 28: 19). In the Acts of the Apostles, though, the converts were baptised in the name of Jesus. If we look at the cases in Acts, however, we can also see that there are differences in the expressions here too, see: “Be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ” (Acts 2: 38); “they had simply been baptised into the name of the Lord Jesus” (8: 16, cf. 19: 5); “that they be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ” (10: 48); be baptised…, calling on his name” (22: 16).
A great many explanations have been proposed as to how these differences can be reconciled, and this is not the place to discuss all of them. Briefly: as there are various differences in the accounts, it is probably not necessary to use an obligatory formula, and we cannot say that if we make a mistake with this then people will not be saved. It is much more likely, with regard to the use of language in that period, that if we do something “in the name of someone,” then we do it on his authority, as his representative, and with respect to him. So the disciples received authority from Jesus Christ, indeed from the whole Godhead, to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, and this was enough to distinguish the baptism they performed from all other baptisms that were practiced in that period (i.e. John’s, that of the Jews, and those of various pagan cults). The important thing is, that someone should receive Christian baptism.
In consideration of all this, and also in order to cover all possibilities, I propose that one of the following be used, “On confession of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, I baptise you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit,” or “On confession of your faith, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, I baptise you in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Is it ever appropriate to rebaptise anyone?
Only when the form of “christening” the person has undergone cannot be accepted or considered as Christian baptism.
We do not accept the christening of infants as baptism, because no such practice can be found in the Bible. A little baby has not understood the gospel, has not repented of his sins, and has not placed his faith in Jesus Christ. Infant christening is not a sacrament by means of which anyone has ever been born again.
It is perhaps more difficult to decide in a case when someone may have been baptised as an adult, but it was into a cult where he accepted a false gospel, and placed his trust in a false Jesus. Furthermore, it was more important to be baptised in the name of the organisation, church or movement, than into the body of Christ. In such a case, it is highly unlikely that he was born again.
For instance, if someone is baptised as a Jehovah’s witness, he is asked the following two questions: “On the basis of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, have you repented of your sins and dedicated yourself to Jehovah to do his will? Do you understand that your dedication and baptism identify you as one of Jehovah’s Witnesses in association with God’s spirit-directed organisation?” We are dealing here with a Jehovah who is not a Trinity, a Jesus who is not God, and a spirit which is not a person. Moreover, joining the Watchtower society is also a feature of the baptismal act.
Compare this case with the two questions that were put to me when I was baptised in a Baptist church. Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal saviour? Do you wish to live as his disciple? And the baptismal formula was this, “On confession of your faith, I baptise you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” I think this second case can be considered Christian baptism, though the previous one is much more doubtful.
On the other hand, we do not undertake to rebaptise anyone who, although he has undergone Christian baptism, is not satisfied with the precise form of words which were spoken over him.
Neither do we rebaptise anyone who once repented and was baptised, then fell away from the Christian life for an extended period, and now wishes to return. We consider his original baptism to be valid.
Is baptism a salvation issue?
I would rather not get involved in this dispute – both answers may be supported by “proof-texting.” On the other hand, if we wish to become Christians like they did in the Bible, then all three foundations are necessary – repentance, water baptism, and baptism in the Holy Spirit.
Do I become a church member on baptism?
If someone is not willing to be baptised then he cannot be a church member, but baptism is not the only condition for church membership. More details on the conditions for membership are to be found in the appendix.
The New Birth
Basics
2. Repentance, new birth
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, no-one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” (John 3: 3). In order for someone to become a disciple of Jesus at all, s/he must first of all be born again. By means of the new birth, a person enters into a relationship with God. In order for this to happen, though, s/he must first of all realise, that s/he as yet has no relationship with God, and the reason for this, is that s/he has a problem.
- The sinfulness of man
The Bible clearly teaches that everyone is a sinner. “There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Rom. 3: 22-23). “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us… If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.” (I. John 1: 8, 10).
Most people are not very happy when someone points out their wicked ways – that is why they killed the prophets in the Old Testament. Many people cannot even imagine that they could be sinners too, after all, they have not stolen anything or killed anyone. Unfortunately, the list is not limited to these two crimes. It is only from the Bible that we can tell how high God has placed the standard.
Here are some lists of sins from the New Testament: “The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage; selfish ambition, dissentions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies and the like.” (Gal. 5: 19-21; “Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral not idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” (I. Cor. 6: 9-11); “Outside (the holy city) are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” (Rev. 22: 15); “What comes out of a man is what makes him unclean. For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside, and make a man unclean.” (Mark 7: 20-23).
But there is even more to it than that! When Jesus was asked, which was the greatest commandment in the Mosaic law, he gave this reply, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself. All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Mat. 22: 37-40). According to these, not only is a person sinful if s/he commits major crimes. If someone does not love God above all else, and does not make every effort to do good to others (not just, not to do evil), then s/he is also considered a sinner.
2. Sin has a consequence
In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul declares, “For the wages of sin is death.” (Rom. 6: 23). In a Biblical sense, death implies first and foremost separation.
God said to Adam in the garden of Eden, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden, but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for in the day you eat from it, dying you will die.” (Gen 2: 16-17). When Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree, they did not die physically at once, but lived on for several centuries after that point. What happened immediately, though, was that their open, honest relationship with God was broken. When God wanted to talk to Adam, he was afraid of him and hid away (Gen. 3: 8-10).
A non-believer can be referred to as spiritually dead, due to the fact that he has no relationship with God because of his sin, “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.” (Isaiah 59: 1-2). Jesus also called such a person dead, “Let the dead bury their own dead!” (Mat 8: 22). The apostle Paul writes, “You were dead in your transgressions and sins.” (Eph 2: 1), and the apostle John, “Anyone who does not love remains in death.” (1 John 3: 14b).
If someone does not repent and turn to Jesus, then this state of separation from God continues after physical death.
Jesus said of those who were not willing to repent, “There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out.” (Luke 13: 28). To the wicked nations at the last judgement, “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” (Mat 25: 41). The apostle Paul writes, that when Jesus returns, “He will punish those who do not know God and who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power.” (2 Thess 1: 9).
All this so far seems rather bad news, but there is also good news to follow, for God did not forget about man in his fallen state.
3. God provides the solution
God has to condemn sin, because he is perfectly just, but he also loves man. Man, on the other hand, is a fallen creature, and can do nothing by his own efforts to come into relationship with God. He may want to be good, or to do good, but he will not succeed.
In order to be able to receive man into his love, God has provided a solution to the problem of sin, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3: 16); “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5: 8). This solution, the gospel, is provided by God alone – the way of salvation was not thought out by man: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no-one can boast.” (Eph. 2: 8-9).
God’s Son is the only way to the Father – God has not provided numerous solutions, so we can just pick the one we like. Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14: 6).
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died for our sins on the cross. This was not by chance, but it happened according to God’s plan (Acts 2: 23). We can also read about it in Old Testament prophecy: 700 years before Christ, Isaiah wrote, “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Is. 53: 5-6).
It is written in the New Testament that Christ died for us, “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly” (Rom. 5: 6), that is, instead of us, “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for (instead of) many.” (Mark 10: 45).
The purpose of this was to bring us to God, “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.” (I. Pet. 3: 18), to reconcile man to God, “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ.” (II. Cor. 5: 18).
4. Man has a decision to make
The Bible teaches that Jesus Christ died for everyone, “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.” (I. John 2: 2). Does this mean, then, that everyone will be saved? Or are there any other conditions?
When the Apostle Peter had preached the gospel on the day of Pentecost, he was asked, “What shall we do?” And he replied, “Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2: 38). This, in a nutshell, is the means by which people became Christians in the earliest period of the church. They did not say a sinner’s prayer, or ask Jesus into their hearts (these things were invented in the nineteenth century to make salvation quick and easy), but they received the following three foundations as quickly as possible:
i) Repentance (the subject of this study)
ii) Baptism in water (the next subject)
iii) Baptism in the Holy Spirit (the one after)
In order for someone to be born again, first of all s/he must hear the gospel. If someone does not know what Jesus has done for him/her, then s/he cannot accept him or believe in him. This message is to be found in the Bible, so the word of God has a role to play in the new birth, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? … Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” (Rom. 10: 14, 17); “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” (I. Pet. 1: 23).
If someone has heard and also understood the gospel, s/he can either accept it or reject it. If for some reason s/he is unwilling to make a decision, then that means the message has been rejected (at least, for the time being). If s/he wishes to accept the gospel, then these are the following steps:
a) Repentance
The word repentance in Greek (metanoia) indicates a change of mind. Someone has thought in a certain way up till now, but this now changes, and from now on s/he will order his/her thoughts in line with God’s ways. It also means that s/he stops, turns round, and from now on follows after God, walks in God’s ways, and acts in accordance with God’s will.
It is also very important to realise, that this also includes repentance from sin. This does not just involve being sorry for past sins, but also deciding not to commit these any more. From now all, s/he will not live for sin, but to serve God.
The Bible also teaches us to repent of sin. It is written of Jesus that, “He will save his people from their sins.” (Mat. 1: 21). Peter said of Jesus, “When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.” (Acts 3: 26). And Paul, “Shall we go on sinning, so that grace may increase? By no means!” (Rom. 6: 1-2).
b) Faith
By faith we accept what Jesus has done for us. When the apostles Paul and Silas were asked by the Philippian gaoler, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” they replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” (Acts 16: 30-31). Without faith it is not possible to please God at all (Heb. 11: 6), but in order to be saved, we must believe and trust in the Son, and in what he has done for us, “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his son.” (I. John 5: 11).
c) New birth
If someone comes to realise s/he is a sinner, and will be lost if left to himself, but s/he desires to repent and change with all his/her heart, and is willing to place his/her trust in the fact that Jesus died for him (having heard the gospel), then the Holy Spirit brings about the new birth. “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.” (John 3: 6). A person’s spirit comes alive, i.e. comes into a direct relationship with God, as the wall caused by sin has disappeared. The person is now “connected” to God, and knows him, “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (John 17: 3). The person can now turn to God and praise him at any time and in any place, as the situation described by Jesus has come into effect, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth.” (John 4: 23-24).
A living relationship with God is established by faith, not by works, but if it is not maintained it can weaken, or even be lost. It is nurtured in the same way as any other relationship – by spending time with God. This is done by prayer, reading the Bible – we talk to God, and obey him!
Postscript
On first hearing, it may seem like repentance and living a holy life is too difficult, but we must note that this does not work in the same way as the law.
The “law,” or a list of rules, may tell us what to do, or what not to do, but if we don’t manage to keep it, then it just condemns us, it does not help.
The gospel differs from this in two areas. First of all, it gives us a means of restoration if we fail, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (I. John 1: 9).
Beside this, secondly, God gives us the Holy Spirit to live inside us, help us and guide us, “Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” (Gal. 5: 16). That will be the subject of a subsequent study.
Basic teachings
Here are some basic teachings I wrote for people wanting to make disciples for Christ.
Basics
- Introduction to discipleship
This foundational material was intended primarily for those who expressed a desire to join our local church in Western Hungary. Several people apparently were not happy with the expression “membership” as it may indicate to them some sort of “them and us” mentality. This was not our intention, but we who already belong to the church have the express goal and vision to be disciples of Jesus Christ, and we understand that this also involves the desire to win and train others for this purpose.
The goals of the church need to be dealt with here, including the idea of what membership or belonging to the church involves, because we have noticed that many misunderstandings have arisen in connection with what we teach.
First of all I have had to realise that misunderstandings also occurred because of cultural differences between myself and the people living here. As I am English and I was brought up in Free Churches (Baptist/Methodist), there are differences in our political, religious and linguistic backgrounds, which have certainly resulted in divergent ways of thinking.
As a teacher in the church, when I preached on a certain topic, I assumed that people understood the teaching and they would put it into practice in their lives. I then went on to the next step and taught on the following subject, while building on the previous one. When in the long term, however, I could perceive no changes in people’s lives, I became frustrated.
Religion
Now, at the beginning of the twenty first century, religion influences people in England to a much smaller extent than in Hungary. Less people attend church or chapel, but in the churches where I have been involved, the majority of people belonging to the congregation took God seriously and wanted to live in a way which was pleasing to him. Of course, this is not true of everyone who attends church there either.
The United Kingdom is considered to have been a Protestant country for centuries – the official state religion in England is Anglican, which is related to the Lutheran faith, though in the Celtic regions (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) the Reformed faith is more dominant. In Hungary, on the other hand, the largest number of people belong to the Roman Catholic Church, and it is noticeable that religious attitudes originating from RC teachings have been impressed on the mentality of people belonging to many other denominations too. Many examples could be cited, but what is most important at this point is the priesthood-laity dichotomy.
If there were such a thing as a distinction between priesthood and laity, then we should imagine the priests as mediators between God and commonplace believers. The priests study, preach, perform ceremonies, and serve people with grace or even salvation by means of the “sacraments.” The laity, therefore, have very little to do, possibly just attend church and “consume” the blessings provided. Nothing is further from the real essence of the Christian life! There is a real problem when a similar difference exists between the “pastor” or “leaders” and the congregation in a Nonconformist chapel situation, and this is reflected in the form of the ministry (i.e. the pastor does everything, and the rest criticise).
There is a great difference between being religious and being a disciple of Jesus Christ. The church received the mandate from Jesus to make disciples (Mat. 26: 18-20) so we regard this as our task here too. From the above it should be clear, that whoever wants to be a member of the church should be willing to be a disciple.
Discipleship
What does being a disciple entail? According to the verse quoted above, Jesus said this to the apostles, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations… teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Mat 28: 19, 20). So if someone becomes a disciple of Jesus, s/he should:
1) Learn what Jesus commanded,
2) Put it into practice in his/her life,
3) Enter into service, in order to win and teach others also.
It appears that it was a problem in early times too, that not everyone wanted to be a dedicated disciple. “Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food!” (Heb. 5: 12). The author then lists the basic subjects that they should have been aware of, “Repentance from acts that lead to death and faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgement.” (Heb. 6: 1-2). These will also be dealt with in subsequent chapters.
Leadership
We who are leaders in the church have been attempting to live for God and follow Jesus for many years, and in consequence we have acquired certain amount of experience; we have learnt a lot, and grown in faith. Our desire and our duty, therefore, is to teach others, so they can also follow Jesus, so that subsequently they also can pass on the knowledge of this life. If all become true disciples in this way, then the circle of disciples continuously broadens and increases.
When Jacquie Pullinger, an English missionary lady working in Hong Kong, was asked how she would define a Christian, her reply was something like this, “A Christian is someone who has been touched by the love of Jesus, and in consequence, is willing to do anything and everything possible to help others know that love too.”
Our task, therefore is:
1) To win people for Christ (by preaching the gospel),
2) To set them free (by prayer and teaching),
3) To train them (in the same way),
4) To send them out, put them into service (so they also can continue the work).
Needless to say, when there are, say, four “ministers” and three hundred critical “consumers” in a church, then the whole process grinds to a halt, not to mention the fact that this situation drives the leaders to distraction (assuming, of course, that they are genuine disciples themselves, and not just in it for the money and the prestige).
What did Jesus do?
As the command to make disciples originates from Jesus, then it is perhaps worthwhile taking notice of his methods. How did he make disciples of those who became the apostles? In summary, the following points can be picked out:
1) He called 12 disciples (e.g. Mat. 4: 18-22). Jesus had more followers than these, but he spent more time dealing particularly with the twelve (Luke 6: 12-16).
2) He taught them, often explaining to them separately what he had taught in public (e.g. Mark 4: 33-34).
3) The disciples watched how Jesus ministered. They were there when he taught, cast out demons, healed, did miracles, got into disputes and preached the gospel (e.g. Mark 5: 35-43).
4) Jesus gave authority to the disciples to do the same things (Mat. 10; cf. Luke 10: 1-24).
5) When he departed from the earth, he gave them the command to carry on this work. For this purpose, he gave them authorisation (the great commission – Mark 16: 15-16) and also the necessary power (the Holy Spirit – Acts 1: 4-8).
As the “end of the age” has not yet come (Mat. 28: 20), then this mandate is still in force for those who have become disciples through the work of the original apostles (with the line coming right down to us today). This picture is not too complicated or difficult to grasp, though the church has often not functioned in this way throughout the centuries.
Therefore, if someone becomes a disciple of Jesus, and is obedient to the commission, then he has eternal life in the kingdom of God – the one who remains a faithful servant until the very end.
The congregation
A member of the church, therefore, should have the desire to grow in knowledge of and in service to God as the years pass. First of all, we get to know him through the new birth, and we learn all about him in the Bible.
As we are a church congregation, and not a club, an entertainment circle, or anything else similar, we should like to conform to the definition of what a “church” is. We have not invented what we teach and practice. We read what God’s will is in the Bible, and try to live accordingly. First and foremost it is not all about us, or about people, but about God – the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We who are members of the church have committed ourselves to order our lives by the will of God as revealed in the Bible, and to do this together.
As an illustration we could mention the following example. I claim that I want to join a choir, but I can’t sing, I don’t even like singing and I do not like it if others sing either. Or if I do sing, then I don’t sing the same tune as everyone else, or possibly I do, but not at the same time. I should not take offence, then, if I am asked why I want to be a member of the choir!
In the same way, if I do not believe what the Bible says, or refuse to do what it teaches, I should not join a church congregation!
The church
The church is undergoing a radical transformation on a world scale at the present time. God wants to restore the original, New-Testament formats, goals and ministries. As a prophetic minister, sensing this, I have wanted to see all this happening right here and now, though others perhaps did not understand what it was all about. At any rate, in the church here we want to be a part of what God is doing, and we have also received promises to that effect.
Just to summarise briefly once again, religious attitudes have always resisted the work of God’s Spirit, often preserving the priesthood-laity dichotomy. Unfortunately, there have been faults both on the “priest” and on the “laity” side.
A priest/minister/pastor perhaps just wants to be seen and respected, and hopefully make lots of money in the process, so he will not allow others to grow up and minister too.
The congregation can therefore get lazy. They are happy to let someone else minister, pray, study and then “serve” them up the results. There is an incorrect view of baptism as well as the Lord’s Supper as “sacraments,” which provide an automatic transmission of grace.
Someone is not a disciple if s/he wants something from God, but is not willing to know God. A person is not a disciple either, who wants to be seen by others to be very religious, but does not want to change on the inside.
Church membership
It is very important, therefore, that a future church member, with regard to discipleship in terms of the above:
1) Should understand what this involves,
2) Should agree to be obedient to Christ and to the vision of the church,
3) Should participate in the work long term – church membership is not permanent, it will be discontinued if someone falls away from the life of the church.
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