Expert: Rev. Frank Ricketts - 1/27/2005

Question
Hello Rev. Ricketts,
I was babtised in the holy spirit as a baby through the Methodist church. After we moved I started attending a Presbyterian church that my Girlfriend was a member of. We were in high school and very much in love. We later were married in this same church {31 yrs and going strong}.
My question: In all the years of attendance the Presbyterian church never fully immersed those that were saved in water. The method used by Reverend Watkins {no matter what age} was a sprinkling over the head. Since then I have came to know Jesus as my Lord and savior. I have asked him into my heart both in private and in Church.
Now that I am looking for a more Bible oriented church for my wife and I to attend, they tell me I was not Baptised properly. This has been quite confusing ? It seems as though I am accepted as a believer in Jesus in the denominational church's {Methodist,Presbyterian,etc.} But, the Bible Church's "non denominational" wont recognize my baptism. God knows my heart {not man} and I was raised that God loves all his children and since I am a child of God and God accepts me why can't these certain Church's ? They want me to conform to thier specific church rules towards Baptism.
Please help ? The mainstream church's are to involved in politics and this is why I want to switch to a Bible centered Church. "But" why all the condemnation and fuss ?
God knows my heart so why can't they {these Bible church's" accept that ?
Please Rev.Ricketts re-read my letter a second time. I pray in Jesus name and have called on him to be in me. I am a Christian so why wont they give me acceptance. "Yes" I was baptised in the name of the Father and the holy spirit with a sprinkling both as a baby and adult. So what is the issue ?
Thank You !! for your guidance on this matter of Baptism.
Ron

Answer
The usual Trinitarian formula used for baptism is found in Matthew 28:19. The setting is the Great Commission. These are some of the last words that Jesus told His disciples before He ascended.

It reads:
Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

The first thing I would like to point out here is that name is singular. This is significant. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit all have one name. Now I do not intend to try and explain this passage away. These are the words of Jesus. But we must ask ourselves, what does this mean? We must not take this one passage in isolation and ignore everything else that the Bible has to say about baptism. We must let scripture interpret scripture and look at all that the Bible says on any given subject.

Next I would like to point out now that this is not the only account of the Great Commission. There is a reason why we have four gospels. God inspired each writer to write the same truth from different points of view. John did not record the Great Commission, but we will look at what the others said.

When we look at Mark's account we read:
Mark 16:15 Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues
So we see that Mark records the command to go and baptize, but does not speak of a name in connection with baptism. However, we do see a mention of Jesus' name in the very next verse. More importantly we need to look at how the apostles obeyed these commands which we will see in the book of Acts. But now lets look at Luke's account:
Luke 24:47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 And you are witnesses of these things. 49 Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high.

So here we read a command to preach repentance and remission of sins, in His name (which is fulfilled in Acts 2). If we look at the preceding verse we see that the pronoun His refers to Christ. So repentance and remission of sins are to be preached in Jesus' name! Where do we receive the remission of sins? Well, let's look at what Jesus' disciples did with this command:

Acts 2:38 Then Peter said to them, 'Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.'

So we have three different accounts of what Jesus' commanded His apostles at the Great Commission. Now we look at how they obeyed Jesus' words. We should take note that Jesus died after the Passover, was buried for 3 days and was then on the earth for 40 days after the resurrection (Acts 1:3). From the Passover until Pentecost is 50 days (Pente- means 50). So only about a week transpired between Jesus commission and Peter's sermon on Pentecost. Surely they didn't forget His command that fast. It is also interesting that Matthew, who later wrote Matt. 28:19 was present as well (Acts 1:13). We would expect him to stand up and stop Peter if he was preaching the wrong thing! ("Hey Pete, don't you know that Jesus said . . . ") But we don't see that. So we need to reconcile these two facts:

Jesus said: Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

The disciples did this: Acts 2:38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

Now who would be in the best position to understand the meaning of Jesus' words? Us, almost 2,000 years later, or His own disciples who He spoke them to. Throughout the book of Acts as we will see they routinely baptized people in Jesus' name. And when we read the Epistles to the churches, we will find out that they too were baptized in Jesus' name. So it is obvious that Jesus' disciples understood the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost to be Jesus! NOWHERE in scripture do we find anyone being baptized using these words, only in Jesus' name.

Acts 4:12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. (Jesus – vs. 10)

Although this verse may not be talking exclusively about baptism, we see that Jesus is the name by which we are saved, and that there is no other!

Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized.

Acts 8:16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Acts 10:48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.

Acts 19:5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Acts 22:16 'And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.'

So Peter, John and the rest of the disciples baptized in the Jesus' name throughout Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria. And Paul re-baptized the believers in Ephesus in Jesus' name (19:1-5). Now let's look at some of the other churches:

Romans 6:3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?

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 also should walk in newness of life.

The reason that we are baptized in Jesus' name is that we are being baptized into Jesus. We are taking on his name, similar to the way a woman takes on her husband's name. We are saying that we belong to Jesus and we are identifying with Him in His death and burial. Even if God were a trinity, Jesus is the one who died for us and He is the one who the Christians at Rome were buried with.
1 Corinthians 1:13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
If we follow Paul's train of thought, his obvious implication is "No, Christ was the one crucified for you and so you were baptized in the name of Christ" So the believers at Corinth as well as those in Rome were baptized in Jesus' name.

Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Colossians 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.

In addition to those in Rome, Corinth and Ephesus (as well as Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria), we see that the Christians in Colosse and those in the region of Galatia were all baptized in Jesus' name. They would not have connected baptism so exclusively with Christ had they routinely baptized using the words "Father, Son and Holy Spirit." As I said before, the only way that we see anyone being baptized is in Jesus' name. When Jesus' was on this earth, He baptized His disciples (John 4:1,2) and then commissioned them to go and baptize others in His name, or in His place. When Jesus baptized someone, He didn't have to say "in Jesus name." He was Jesus. But when we stand in his stead, we do it in his name. Scripture tells us that whatever we do in word or deed should be done in Jesus' name (Col. 3:17). Baptism is an act of both word and deed.
Finally, I would like to demonstrate where history shows us that the Catholic Church changed the way that people were baptized. From there on people continued to follow this tradition, probably because it fit so well with their

Trinitarian doctrine:

BRITANICA ENCYCLOPEDIA
The baptismal formula was changed from the name of Jesus Christ to the words Father, Son & Holy Ghost by the Catholic Church in the Second Century. – 11th Edit., Vol. 3, ppg. 365-366.

CANNEY ENCYCLOPEDIA OF RELIGION
The early church always baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus until development of the Trinity Doctrine in the Second Century.

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA
Here the Catholics acknowledged that baptism was changed by the Catholic Church. – Vol. 2, pg. 263.

HASTINGS ENCYCLOPEDIA OF RELIGION
Christian baptism was administered using the words, "in the name of Jesus." – Vol. 2, pg. 377. Baptism was always in the name of Lord Jesus until time of Justin Martyr when Triune formula used. – Vol. 2, pg. 389. NAME was an ancient synonym for "person." Payment was always made in the name of some person referring to ownership. Therefore one being baptized in Jesus' name became His personal property. "Ye are Christ's." – Vol. 2, pg. 377 on Acts 2:38.

Now, does our church have specific rules towards baptism? No. We just follow the rules (commands) that were instructed to us as first commanded to the disciples by Jesus Christ.

I do not have the authority to change those commands.

Galatians 1:6 I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:
7 Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.
8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.
9 As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.
10 For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ.
11 But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

How did I receive revelation? By the Word of God through the revelation by Jesus Christ.

What do I preach and teach? What was revealed to me. Baptism in Jesus Christ name only.

If you think a church has a set of rules for baptism, then by all means investigate. But if you read the Scripture and it commands you a certain way, then I guess you have a decision to make. I can't help you with that.

Are you really upset at what you precieve as rules or are you upset because you may have to make a hard decision. Been there, done that as they say. I live the way I do because it's a way of life not a set of rules.

I pray I have been of some help.

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