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WEEK 4:  BELIEVER’S BAPTISM 

    Last week we learned that being obedient to God’s commands is one of the  signs of true conversion.  This week we will look at the first command God gives us after we have believed in Jesus. 

    Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He gave some very explicit instructions to His disciples.  Read Matthew 28:19 and write what those instructions were. _________________________________________________________________

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    Today, this is known as “The Great Commission.”  Jesus gave it, not only to those disciples present that day, but to His church that was yet to be formed.  We are to go and teach all people about Jesus: Who He is, what He did, and how we can receive Him as Savior.  That done, we are to baptize the new believers in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. 

    The word “baptize” means “to dip, to immerse in or wash with water in token of purification from sin and spiritual pollution.”1  It is a symbol to show that Jesus has cleansed us from our sins.  You may ask, if it is only a symbol, why should we go to the trouble?  Well, Jesus commanded it, and the Bible instructs us to do so.  Let’s look at what the Bible has to say on the subject. 

Read Romans 6:6-8 and Colossians 2:12.  What is baptism symbolic of? ___________________________________________________________________________ 

    Just as Christ died and rose again, baptism shows the world that our old sinful nature was put to death on the cross with Christ, and we have risen with Christ to a new life!  

    There are those that teach that baptism washes a person’s sins away and is actually the means of salvation, but we have seen in previous lessons that we are to repent, believe and receive Jesus to be saved.  There are many passages in the Bible that show us baptism is to take place after we have believed and received the Holy Spirit. 

Read Acts 2:41, Acts 8:12, Acts 10:47-48, and Acts 9:17-18.  What can we glean from these verses about when we are to be baptized?

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Read Acts 8: 36-38.  The eunuch asked Phillip what would keep him from being baptized.  What did Peter answer him? __________________________________________________________________________

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        There are also those that teach that we may be sprinkled and not “dipped”  when we submit to the Lord’s command to be baptized.  But merely sprinkling would deny the very meaning of the word!  

Read John 3: 23.  Why was John baptizing in Aenon?

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Would he have needed much water if he was only sprinkling the people being baptized?

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 Apply Acts 8:12—ask yourself these questions.

          -Have I believed on the name of Jesus?

          -As a believer, what does this verse say I should?

          -Have I been obedient to this command?

          -Write Acts 8:12 from memory.

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*All emphasis  mine.
Copyright ©2005 by Mae Shurow 
Permission is granted for non-commercial (free) distribution 
provided proper citation of authorship is included.

1) Zodaities, S., Thd. TheComplete Word Study Dictionary, New Testament. (1992.) AMG Publishers.  Chattanooga, TN.