Chapter 11
Water Baptism.
"Baptize" is defined in Strongs Concordance as follows:
"Baptizo. Not to be confused with bapto. The clearest example that shows the meaning of baptizo is a text from the Greek poet and physician Nicander, who lived about 200 B.C. It is a recipe for making pickles and is helpful because it uses both words. Nicander says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable should first be 'dipped' (bapto) into boiling water and then 'baptised' (baptizo) in the vinegar solution. Both verbs concern the immersing of vegetables in a solution. But the first is temporary. The second, the act of baptising the vegetable, produces a permanent change. When used in the New Testament, this word more often refers to our union and identification with Christ than to our water baptism. e.g. Mark 16:16. 'He that believes and is baptised shall be saved.' Christ is saying that mere intellectual assent is not enough. There must be a union with him, a real change, like the vegetable to the pickle!
Bible Study Magazine, James Montgomery Boice, May 1989."
Baptism is the outward, physical act of what happened inside of you, which is, death, burial and resurrection.
Matthew 28:19 says, "Therefore go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." This literally means to immerse into the name of and the character of God Himself. Baptism is a life-long process of being changed into the image of Jesus, which includes being dunked in water.
If you were put into a pool of water and died from suffocation, and then were born again with the life of God in you, that would be a good example of what happened to you in the spirit realm. That is why Jesus wants us baptized. It shows the world, demons, our flesh, body, and mind what actually happened to us in the spirit realm. The actual act of going into the water and coming out really does not do anything for you, except giving you an opportunity to obey God.
Baptism does not give you salvation.
It is an act of obedience which leads you to further salvation. Salvation does not just mean the initial born again experience. Salvation, or being saved, is from a Greek word that means to be delivered from danger and made whole. After our initial salvation experience, we need to move on to "being made whole" or salvation. Baptism is one of the first acts of obedience that opens the way for developing your relationship with God. It is very important, but not vital to our going to Heaven.
Baptism is a process not an event. The word "name" means the character of someone. Baptism into the name of Jesus, the name of the Father and the name of the Holy Spirit, literally means to be immersed into their character so that you become like them.
"He who believes and is baptized [immersed into the character of The Father, Jesus and the Holy Spirit] will be saved [made whole, delivered from danger, and conformed to the image of Jesus], but he who does not believe will be condemned" (Mark 16:16).
Paul talked about our having been baptized with Christ when we were born again. Romans 6:4 says, "Therefore we were buried with Him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father; even so we also should walk in newness of life."
Colossians 2:12 says, "…buried with Him in baptism, in whom also you were raised through the faith of the working of God, raising Him from the dead."
Jesus was baptized. He had no sin, but this was a sign that he was going to identify and absorb our sin.
Matthew 3:13-17 says, "Then Jesus came from Galilee to Jordan, to John, to be baptized by him. But John restrained Him, saying, ‘I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?’ And answering Jesus said to him, ‘Allow it now, for it is becoming to us to fulfill all righteousness.’ Then he allowed Him. And Jesus, when He had been baptized, went up immediately out of the water. And lo, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting upon Him. And lo, a voice from Heaven, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.’"
Jesus spoke about His crucifixion as another one of His baptisms. Matthew 20:22 says, "But Jesus answered and said, ‘You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?’ They said to Him, ‘We are able.’"
Some argue about being sprinkled or being dunked. I can tell you that in Muslim countries when people accept Jesus as Lord, the ones that are baptized by being immersed into water are the ones who are killed and persecuted. You cannot be changed into someone’s likeness by being "sprinkled" with their character; you must be immersed into their character and likeness.
You do not need to be baptized by some special religious or spiritual person. A friend baptized me in a backyard swimming pool. I have baptized some of my children in a river.
John spoke about the baptism in the Holy Spirit as another type of baptism. Luke 3:16 says, "John answered all, saying, I indeed baptize you with water, but He who is mightier than I comes, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to loose. He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." This baptism is covered in another chapter.
Chapter 12
A new way of life: new habits.
Before I go into this idea of a new life and habits, I want to establish something about which I feel very strong. It has to do with different cultures. I am writing this book as a person from the USA. I know that people from many different cultures will be reading this book. There have been many times in history when Western missionaries have imposed their culture along with the Gospel; for instance in Africa. A lot of damage has been done out of good motives.
A good friend of mine from South Africa asks the question, "Do we fit culture into the Gospel or the Gospel into the culture?" Should an American criticize a mother in the third world for breast feeding her baby in church? Should an African criticize an American for going to a movie theater and paying for entertainment (which would be unheard of in many cultures)?
The early church experienced this same crisis regarding Jews and the Gentiles. The leaders held a historic meeting known as "The Jerusalem Council" in Acts Chapter 15. They came up with only two categories that superceded their cultural differences and those were; (1) abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and (2) from sexual immorality.
My friend from South Africa and I debated this issue and we agreed in this way: It is not the task of a missionary or a teacher who is discipling a new Christian to attempt to change his/her culture. That is the Holy Spirit’s job. We believe that the Holy Spirit will not alter one’s culture except in those areas that affect the believer’s relationship with Jesus. For instance, dancing during a church service may not affect one’s relationship with Jesus. However, unforgiveness will affect the relationship. Living a life that is not based upon loving God and loving your fellow man will affect the relationship, whereas, breast feeding in church will not.
The Holy Spirit does not want all Christians to look alike. His only aim is to get each believer as close to Jesus as possible. Only the Holy Spirit can convince a person to give up a habit that is hurting him. If a fellow believer does the correction it probably will not be with the heart of love that only God has. The Holy Spirit does the necessary correction for the benefit of and out of love for the person.
A person has no right to correct another without first having a close, trusting relationship with that individual; and then, the correction should be done constructively and in love.
Integrity.
One of the misunderstood characteristics of God is His integrity. "Integrity" comes from the word "integer", which means whole number. An integer does not have a fraction, it is whole and complete. Integrity carries the meaning of being pure, upright, honest, whole, congruent, finished, complete, and honorable. A person of integrity is pure; he is not mixed with some truth and some deceit. He is not mixed with some honesty and some dishonesty.
God is a person of integrity and He desires to work that characteristic into us as we mature in Him. Sometimes people start to walk with the Lord after living without integrity and they assume that God is just like them. However, God wants to change us into His likeness; into people of integrity..
The first thing that God began to work in my life, after He became Lord of my life, was to rid me of all dishonesty and lack of integrity. "Blessed are the pure [not mixed, integrity] in heart, for they will see God" (Matthew 5:8). If you really want to see God, seek a pure heart!
I had only known the Lord for about six months when He began to reveal things to me from my past that needed restitution . I had habitually underpaid my government income taxes before I became a Christian (just call it cheating). The Lord directed me to pay back all that I had cheated the government.
The amount I estimated was more than I could have paid back, but I told my accountant to make the necessary adjustments anyway. He advised me not to do it, as it was his opinion that I would never be caught. I told him that God had already caught me. He did not know what to think about that! He went ahead and reported the back amounts. I have since changed accountants!
As it turned out, that was the year that the new tax laws provided for massive tax credits for the employment of students. I owned a retail business and had employed dozens of students. The tax credits totally wiped out the amounts I owed.
In addition, the Lord gave me the promise in Matthew 17:27, which says, "But so that we may not offend them, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours." Each and every year since then (1980), I have received a miracle of some kind when it came time to pay my taxes! I call it "finding a fish with a coin in its mouth" for me. My new accountant loves to watch for the "fish" every year!
The Bible is loaded with promises for the person of integrity!
"The man of integrity walks securely, but he who takes crooked paths will be found out" (Proverbs 10:9).
"As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws. I will establish your royal throne over Israel for ever… " (1 Kings 9:4-5a).
Here is a promise for your children. "The just walks in his integrity; his sons are blessed after him" (Proverbs 20:7).
Jesus is a man of integrity. "They came to him and said, ‘Teacher, we know you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth...’" (Mark 12:14). They knew Jesus was a man of integrity because they noticed that men did not sway him. You cannot please both God and men. You will disappoint one of them for sure.
"In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness" (Titus 2:7).
It may seem hard to be a person of integrity, especially during your first few months and years of being a Christian, but it is the only way that you can move on with God. The truth may make you free, but first it may make you miserable. However, it is always worth it!
Money is one of the most important measures of our dedication to God. "No servant can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (Luke 16:13). The word mammon can mean money. It more accurately includes the whole idea of increase in worldly security. Jesus spent more time talking about this subject than He did talking about Heaven and Hell.
He told the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19, that his religion, power, influence and youth would not gain eternal life for him. In fact, He told him that all of those things in which he trusted could keep him from eternal life. Jesus told him to give all he had to the poor and come follow Him. The Ruler would not do as Jesus said. God does not always ask us to give away all of our money, but He does want us to subordinate whatever we have that could be taking the place of God. This man was trusting in "other gods."
Jesus never asked me to give my money away, but I surely did. Looking back, I can see that it was the Lord that had influenced me. I got into a giving frenzy when I first came to God. It made some people mad, but God spoke to me when the last cent was gone. He said, "Now you have sown what is corruptible, and you will reap the incorruptible" (1 Corinthians 15). I can tell you that since 1979, God has been faithful to what He said to me! There were many times when it did not look as if He would be faithful, but He always was.
God does indeed desire prosperity for you. However, He is more interested in your character and integrity than He is in your financial comfort. The word "prosperity" carries the root meaning of integrity. You cannot have Godly prosperity without integrity. "Beloved, in regard to all things I pray that you prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers" (3 John 1:2). I have learned that prosperity in the soul always comes first and is the most important issue. Any material prosperity that God has designed for your life will be an outflow of the prosperity of your soul.
Material prosperity can mean something different for each culture, but to God I believe it has a very simple definition: having enough resources to execute your God calling, and having enough left over to give to the poor and to the Gospel. We are also called to bless Israel!
There is more to be said about money than this entire book would allow. However, I am going to touch on some key issues.
Tithing. "Bring all the tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. And test Me now with this, says the LORD of hosts, to see if I will not open the windows of Heaven for you, and pour out a blessing for you, until there is no sufficiency" (Malachi 3:10).
"Tithe" means one tenth. You are to return one tenth of your increase to the "storehouse." The word "storehouse" means the armory from which we receive our weapons. This refers to the Word of God. Actually, according to the Old Testament, you are supposed to tithe to your "priest." Your New Testament priest is Jesus. You are to give your 10% to Jesus (in prayer) and allow Him to tell you where to send it. The safe place is your local congregation from which you are receiving the anointed Word of God. The main things are; tithe, give, and hear from Jesus.
Why are you supposed to tithe? Is it because God needs your money? Is it because the church needs your money? No! No! No!
The law of the tithe goes like this: If a person gave the first 10% of his/her increase to God, under Old Testament laws, the 90% remaining would be blessed. God knows that money is of the world system and it is cursed. He also knows that you need to use it while you live on planet Earth. So, he provided a way for money to be a blessing to you and not a curse. If you tithe your increase, the first 10%, then the 90% will be so blessed that it will go further than the original 100%.
If you are not employed, or if you are financially unable to give, then give something else. Give your time. Tithe your time that you would normally spend on the job. Give at least four hours per week (10% of forty hours) to your church and even more than that to the poor. Or bring in 10% of your food to the church and/or the poor. If you qualify as one of the "poor," you need to find something to tithe and to give. If you do not start where you are, God cannot give you increase. You need to give, otherwise, you are limiting God’s blessings!
Tithing is not giving. The first 10% belongs to God. You cannot give to God what already belongs to Him. That is like returning something you have borrowed. We are supposed to give above our tithe. We are supposed to give to the poor, to missions, to ministries, etc. Giving (not only giving money) should be our way of life in Jesus Christ. God is a giver and we cannot live in God’s character without being givers. Love is expressed in giving. You may wish to refer to ISOB lesson 321, "Tithing and Economics" . You should also study Leviticus 27 as well as other Scriptures having to do with the tithe.
You cannot "out-give" God.
"Blessed is he who has regard for the weak [poor]; the LORD delivers him in times of trouble. The LORD will protect him and preserve his life; he will bless him in the land and not surrender him to the desire of his foes. The LORD will sustain him on his sick bed and restore him from his bed of illness" (Psalms 41:1-3).
"Give, and it shall be given to you, good measure pressed down and shaken together and running over, they shall give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you measure, it shall be measured to you again" (Luke 6:38).
Working hard versus laziness.
God will never bless laziness. Christians who feel like they now "live by faith" and therefore do not have to work any longer, have always disturbed me. They feel like God should just have people come along and support them. I can tell you, it is not God who gives them this idea!
The Bible seems to be a paradox on this point, but it really is not. It tells us to allow God to provide for us, and yet, it tells us that if we do not provide for our family, we are worse than an infidel (1 Timothy 5:8).
"For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: ‘If a man will not work, he shall not eat’" (2 Thessalonians 3:10).
"He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need" (Ephesians 4:28).
I like this principle in Ephesians 4:28. We must work so that we can give. When we give, we are operating in the Kingdom of God and God can indeed supply our needs. "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matthew 6:33). Jesus worked as a carpenter up until He was thirty years old. He was only in ministry on earth for three years.
God is very practical and He is not a panderer. He is not going to be a partner to our fleshly desire to be lazy and have others take care of us.
If you are in special need and cannot take care of yourself, then God will surely provide. If you are handicapped, if you are a widow, if you simply cannot find employment, God does not expect you to do what you are incapable of doing. But He does expect you to trust Him and not look to other people for support. Trust in God’s Word, not in handouts. There is a difference!
God usually deals in steps as in the parable of the talents in Matthew 25. He put certain amounts of money in each of His three servant’s hands; five, two and one talent(s) each. He told each of them to utilize what He had given them. When He returned, He rewarded those who used what they had with more, and told them to go do the same again. I suppose, when He came back again, the rewards continued to increase in size. However, the one servant who hid the talent and did not use it was called lazy. Not only did he not receive a reward; he even lost the original talent.
God honors hard work.
God honors being faithful with what is in our hand today. God honors patience, which means being consistent over a long period of time. Faithfulness and consistence build character that God prizes.
If you are not sure what God expects from you or does not expect from you, then go ask Him. He will reveal His plan for your life. Just be real with God.
So far I have dealt with new ways of personal integrity, of handling money, and dealing with work.
Now I am going to talk about personal relationships.
This can be one of the big stumbling blocks in your Christian walk.
Do not manipulate people.
Do not allow yourself to be manipulated. This is one of the greatest sicknesses in the world today. God never manipulates and He never blesses manipulation. The devil uses this tactic and you do not want to be used by him!
How to deal with your old friends.
"Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15). Perhaps for a long time you have had a group of friends who have been a bad influence on you. There is a very good chance that God may want you to rearrange your friendships. There is also a very good chance that if you really become radical for God, many of your old friends will just drop you and want nothing more to do with you.
Jesus said that He wants us to be in the world, but not of the world. He wants us to influence the lost people of the world, but He does not want them to influence us.
Jesus said, "My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it" (John 17:15,16).
Be honest with your friends. Apologize to them for not being a real friend in the past. Let them know what has happened to you. Do not lay some "religious trip" on them; just be honest with your own personal testimony. Be humble and have a meek and gentle spirit.
Give them something to read if possible, telling them about the Gospel. Pray for your friends. Continue to write to them, but don’t preach to them. Just tell them what God is doing in your life.
If you have a friend with whom you have been in a sexual relationship, break it off immediately. If you have been dating, immediately put that on God’s "altar" and allow Him to either take it away or make it right in His sight.
What about your family?
Family can be a more complicated issue than friends. Jesus is a promoter of family, however, He understands that under certain conditions, family relationships can compromise your walk with God.
"Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many things like that" (Mark 7:13).
"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (Matthew 10:37).
"For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother" (Matthew 12:50).
This is a very sensitive subject and you need to hear from God for yourself on this matter. You could go overboard either way and it would be wrong.
We need to respect and honor our parents and our families. However, we need to be aware of the danger of submitting to their potentially strong influence. We need to know that curses are carried down through families. If we identify too closely with a family member who is not totally sold out to God, we could be in danger of being influenced in the wrong way. Please refer to the discussion on ancestral spirits in Chapter 7.
Love your family. Let them know where you stand with God, but do not preach at them and become offensive. They will have a lot more respect for your love and forgiveness than they will for your harsh and condemning attitude.
What about romantic relationships?
This can be a major stumbling block in your walk with the Lord. God did not bring Eve to Adam until after he had a solid relationship with God. Why? Because we each have many needs that need to be met. We tend to look to other people to meet those needs. When we do that, we put impossible demands on them. Those kinds of relationships will always turn into selfishness and end in disaster. First, you need to have all of your needs met by God. Then, allow Him to bless you with that perfect romantic relationship in His own timing.
Do not go "hunting" for romance; it will end in disaster. Trust God and be content with being single until God sees that you are prepared for romance. Keep yourself clean and pure sexually. If you have made mistakes in the past, God has forgiven you and has made you white as snow!
Here is a rule to live by. Romance was never designed to exist between two people unless total commitment went along with it. You cannot have one without the other; it will not work!
Marriage. This is a subject that could take up an entire library of books! It is of utmost importance. Therefore we will cover some of the key issues here. I strongly suggest reading other books on marriage including: The Marriage Covenant, by Derek Prince, Whitaker House, New Kensington, PA., 1978. Derek Prince also has an excellent book titled God is a Match Maker.
Our relationship with God is through a blood covenant. Our relationship with our spouse is also through a blood covenant with Jesus Christ. While we are in covenant with our brothers and sisters in Jesus through the New Birth, we have a special relationship with only one other person, our spouse. It is a spiritual mystery. "For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church" (Ephesians 5:31,32). This Scripture says that the two become one, as in a blood covenant. I believe that we actually change spiritually when we become married in the Lord. If you disagree, fine, that is just my belief.
Marriage is very special to God. He has a perfect plan, "blueprint" for this relationship. Due to various circumstances in life, not everybody has had the opportunity to realize this perfect plan. However, God can change people and create miracles from messes, as He has done for me. He has given me, in my life with Him, a wife that I could only dream about prior to meeting Him.
If there are some issues that I state here that you have not enjoyed in marriage, do not be condemned or feel inferior. Just do your best with your circumstances and trust God to take your marriage on the pathway towards the perfect plan. Whatever your circumstances may be, seek the face of God, trust Him, and He will make your life complete. Take God’s plan and imprint it on your children as a vision for their life.
God’s plan for marriage is for both the husband and the wife to become servants to one another. They are to love each other with unconditional love, preferring the other over their own self. It takes two to have a real relationship. One spouse cannot achieve this. Put your spouse into God’s hands and do not try to manipulate or change him/her.
Romance and sexual enjoyment should be a vital and continuing factor in marriage, but it is the result of a good marriage relationship, not the cause of one.
Intimacy. Many people confuse intimacy with sexual relations. Intimacy is much more than that. Often people gain intimacy with their future spouse while they are courting, but after marriage they treat them like slaves. Intimacy is originated through words, eye contact and through time spent with one another. Exclusiveness is one key element of intimacy. Both parties need to know that there are no others involved. They need to know that that the other party is exclusively devoted only to them. Some call it a "single eye". The marriage relationship is likened to our intimate relationship with the Lord. Intimacy requires taking time to talk and to listen. There is a desire to spend time with the other person.
Honesty. There can be no relationship or intimacy without total gut level honesty. I do not care how painful it may be; honesty is the only way to approach God’s best for a marriage.
The husband’s duty is to love as Christ loves. He is to initiate unconditional love. He is to give his wife the emotional security she so desperately needs. The wife’s duty is to honor, respect and admire her husband. Submitting to him means to give herself to him for protection, security, leadership, and love. The husband needs to honor the wisdom of his wife in his leadership role. Criticism from either spouse will cause the death of the relationship.
One of my favorite pastors has said from the pulpit, "If you give your wife emotional security, she will submit all over the place."
Marriage can be the most beautiful gift that God has to give. I can honestly say that my wife, Carol, and I have both received this gift.
Finally.
"As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received" (Ephesians 4:1).
You have received the most precious gift, eternal life. Now it is up to you to cooperate with God to live a life pleasing to Him.
Ask God to show you those areas and/or habits in your life that He wants to change. He wants to bless you by changing you.
Be honest with God.
If you do not have driving passion in your life to live a life worthy of God, ask God to change you. Confess it to Him as sin and He will change your likes and dislikes.