AboutJoe Norman Expertise I can answer questions regarding acceptable worship, organization of the church, or any apsect of the Christian life. I am the son of a preacher and have studied the Bible from cover to cover since I was 12 years old. I am strong in my research skills and do not follow teachings of men. Many will label me as conservative and some might label me as liberal, but I just seek to be biblical. I understand proper exegesis and hermeneutics and apply them. My desire is to share my knowledge of God's Word with others. Please always keep in mind that none of us who are listed as experts here are divinely inspired and therefore it is possible to get incorrect answers from any one of us. Study the Scriptures and decide for yourself if what is taught is true.
Experience I am the 4th generation in my family to be a faithful member of the church of Christ. I was raised by a preacher and have studied the Bible everyday since I was twelve. I am 44 yrs old now. I am not a "scholar", but I am very familiar with the scriptures.
Organizations member of the church of Christ, served as a Deacon for a few years at LakeShore church of Christ in Waco, Tx. I currently live in the North Dallas area and worship with the Lewisville church of Christ.
Acts 2:38 is a scripture of much debate among many groups. I personally believe this teaches that we are saved by calling on the name of the lord in baptism. The baptism here like Johns baptism is a baptism of repentance. The person I am conversing with online is a teacher of Greek. He contends that this passage is never properly rendered in English and can only be properly understood when read in the Greek text. He states that Peters command is only to repent since it is in the 'imparitive' second person plural. Where as 'be baptised' is not a command but more of a suggestion since the grammar switches to 'passive', third person singular. He contends that English translations do not indicate this transition and thus do not properly render the passage accurately. Remission of sins is attached to the command Repent therefore and NOT to baptism. I would appreciate it if you could provide an indepth explaination as to how and why the translators of Greek rendered this passage in English without indication of this seeming crutial transition? If this passage was to be understood Repent for the remission of your sins, and be baptised why is written in the opposite format every single time?
In Christ
Shane
Answer Hi Shane,
I must apologize for taking so long to respond to your question. I normally respond very quickly but things have come up which have limited my time. Anyway, I do appreciate you choosing me to answer your question.
This supposed Greek scholar you are conversing with must be very arrogant to think he knows better than all the scholars who have ever translated the Bible to English. I am not at all a Greek scholar and in fact do not know Greek at all. I can look at Strong's and Thayer's definitions of Greek words but do not understand all the different tenses and sentence structure of Greek. What I do know is that God would not have allowed such a major error to transpire in every version of the Bible over the past 2000 years. We also have much more than just Acts 2:38 to prove baptism is a necessary part of salvation. Even in the following verses after verse 38 we see evidence of the importance of baptism.
Acts 2:39-47
39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." 40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation." 41 Then those who gladly received his word WERE BAPTIZED; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. 42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
The above is the New King James version but the latter part of verse 40 should read "SAVE YOURSELVES from this crooked generation".
Then we see Paul's conversion being described by Paul himself in chapter 22.
Acts 22:12-16
12 "Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there, 13 came to me; and he stood and said to me, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight.' And at that same hour I looked up at him. 14 Then he said, 'The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. 15 For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16 And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.'
Verse 16 causes major grief for those who believe water baptism does not wash away sins. You and I understand that the power is not in the water to cleanse, but in Christ's blood which we come in contact with at baptism. This blood cleanses us when we submit our will to God's will just as Jesus did by dying on the cross. We must choose to die to our old selves and be raised to live a new life under this New Covenant. There are many more passages we can look to and see the importance of water baptism. Romans chapter six and I Peter chapter three are just two but very powerful examples of the importance of water baptism.
I can't provide an in depth explanation as to how and why the translators of Greek rendered this passage in English without indication of this seeming crucial transition for two reasons. First, I am not an expert in Greek. Second, this guy is claiming God would allow a major error to be made in every translation of the Bible over the past 2000 years. He clearly is wrong.
I will end by adding an excerpt from brother Everett Ferguson's book The Church of Christ - A Biblical Ecclesiology for Today. Brother Ferguson is among the most respected Greek scholars alive today.
Baptism is a result of repentance and an expression of that repentance. The baptism of John the Baptist was a "repentance baptism" (Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3; Acts 19:4). The people confessed their sins (Matt.3:6; Mark 1:5), and John gave specific instructions about what repentance required (Luke 3:7-14). That association between repentance and baptism continued in Christian baptism. The people on Pentecost "were cut to the heart" and wanted to know what they should DO about their sinful condition (Acts 2:37). Peter told them to "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ" (Acts 2:38).
Baptism is involved in the turning associated with repentance. Acts 3:19 offers a parallel to Acts 2:38. Four terms are in both verses: two are the same, and the other two in suggestive parallelism.
Acts 2:38 - Repent - Be baptized - Sins forgiven - gift of the Holy Spirit
Acts 3:19 - Repent - Turn to God - Sins wiped out - Times of refreshing
The identity of the first and third items suggest a certain equivalence between the second and fourth items. Repentance is the decision to turn, and baptism is the turning around. Repentance is the inward turning, and baptism is the outward turning, which is followed by the new life of walking in the opposite direction. Baptism is the act that expresses the rejection of sin and the turning to follow God.
If the human element is in the forefront when baptism is thought of as a confession of faith and an act of repentance, more important are the things God does in baptism. God forgives sins in baptism. Faith takes away the love of sin, repentance takes away the practice of sin, and baptism takes away the guilt of sin. The association of washing in water with purity made it natural to associate the immersion bath with the washing away of sins.
Acts 2:38 states the purpose of repentance and baptism. The Greek construction is a regular way of expressing an object or goal: "for," "unto," or "in order to obtain" forgiveness of sins. Some have doubted this purpose of baptism and have tried to translate it differently, but the grammar will not permit it. Exactly the same construction and wording occurs in Matthew 26:28, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." No one would suggest that Jesus' blood was poured out "because of the forgiveness of sins." There is no doubt that the blood was shed :in order to effect the forgiveness of sins." The same translation must be given to Acts 2:38. This is not to suggest that theologically the water of baptism is equivalent to the blood of the cross, but the wording requires the same grammatical meaning, the same object or goal. The blood provides forgiveness by the divine action; baptism appropriates that forgiveness for the penitent believer.
I do hope that this has helped you in some way. At some point you will need to decide it is time to shake the dust from your shoes and move on. All we can do is present the truth of God's Word and hope their hearts will be open to that truth. Some people will never see or understand the truth and will even do their best to twist it. This man you are conversing with I am convinced is severely twisting God's Word. I pray God's blessings on you for fighting the spiritual battles.
