WHOSE WATER WASHES THE INSIDES?

Some speak of the efficacy of water so highly that they have made water the ‘god.’ The god of water is not Yahweh but Poseidon. What is it that saves, water or rebirth? The former is a cleansing agent that Jews used ceremonially before sacrificing.

The Old Testament sacrifice of a bullock was a ‘holocaust’ — a burnt offering. It was prepared and offered in the following manner: 

The priests, Aaron's sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat, in order upon the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar: but his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord. (Lev 1:8-9)

 The inward parts, representing the soul of man for which this was a substitutional sacrifice, would be washed with water. The actual offering was by fire. It was not the water that destroyed the inward dirty parts of the beast but fire. Throughout scripture, water has been a cleansing agent in preparation for the sacrifice of the dead animals.

Likewise, water baptism is a cleansing agent, to wit: “John did baptize in the wilderness and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mark 1:4). Repentance is the cleansing agent, but it is not a stream water that cleanses. The cleansing agent for repentance is much like God revealed to Moses above. The bullock was a dead sacrifice and water should cleanse its insides; not able to do so, fire was used.

John’s water baptism was similar — water cleansed the outward organ of the flesh in preparation for the inward cleansing by ‘Living Water.’

You might ask, “What is Living Water?” Jesus, speaking to the woman at the well said to her about drinking, “You would have asked of Him (Jesus), and He would have given you Living Water” (John 4:10) and her inward parts would have been cleansed, “’He that believes on Me,’ as the scripture has said, ‘out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:38).

That is the baptism of the Holy Ghost of Jesus. It would be life-giving water from His own belly that would cleanse her within for with that washing; then out of her own belly would flow Living Waters. She would be saturated with the Living Water from the belly of Jesus.

That water was the Spirit emanating from the inward parts of Jesus that would cleanse her soul, not for the sacrifice even, but for preparation of the sacrifice just as with the bullock.

Jesus even referred to ‘scripture’ when He said those things. Scripture for them was the Old Testament. Ritual sacrifice in scripture was representative of baptism of the Holy Ghost, and immersion was not even required.

Jesus was most certainly quoting the prophecy of Isaiah, “For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour My Spirit upon your seed, and My blessing upon your offspring” (Isa 44:3). Jesus was referring to the “pouring” of water on them that would need it, as Isaiah saw it. God (Jesus) would pour His Spirit upon those who needed it. The baptism that is efficacious is not immersion in water but the pouring out of the Spirit of God — the so-called ‘Living Water;’ and that is the “one baptism” (Ephes 4:5).

Mark wrote that John preached the “baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” The key word therein is underlined. Repentance (metanoia) is a change of mind. Thinking must be changed before sins can be remitted. The water represents the washing away of the inward parts — old ways of thinking before remission, or deliverance, from sin. Water does not deliver from anything; it signifies a new way of thinking and is basically a testimony that the baptized person now thinks differently than before.

Note that when the word ‘baptism’ is written in the Bible; oftentimes it does not indicate which baptism each time. John did baptize in water, but he even inferred that his baptism was not worthy of the Baptism of Jesus:

I (John) indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but He that comes after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire. (Mat 3:11)

There is “one baptism,” just as Paul wrote. What Paul was explaining was that John’s mode of baptism in water was only for cleaning, and not worthy of changing the inward parts — the soul.

Again, we see in the passage that John’s mode of baptism in water was for repentance — signifying a change in the way people think. John, referring to Jesus, said He would baptize you with the Holy Ghost.

Note that Jesus never baptized in water. That was John’s mode. John’s baptism came before the Baptism of the Holy Ghost. It cleansed the outer parts in preparation for the cleaning of the soul — the most inward parts. (Only Jesus received the Holy Ghost at the baptism of John; John 1:33.)

Water baptism is not harmful, but thinking it is the Spirit working blasphemes the Holy Ghost… “Whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemes against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven” (Luke 12:10). Crediting water for the works of the Spirit is blasphemy! That is not my words but the very words of Jesus.

Jesus, John added, would baptize with fire. Luke explained the “fire” part very well, “There appeared unto them (Christians) cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost,” (Acts 2:3-4).

(I omitted the mention of speaking with other tongues because that is for another commentary.)

The Baptism of the Holy Ghost is when the Spirit of God comes like a wind, or breath, from God onto the Christian. Just as God breathed life unto Adam, making him whole, the Holy Spirit upon the Christian is again God breathing life onto Adam’s kind… “The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground (adama) and breathed into his nostrils (literally forehead or mind) the breath of life; and man became a Living Soul” (Gen 2:7). That was the generation of the first Adam and is the same mode of breathing life unto Adam’s kind. God did not change His process of bestowing life; regeneration was the same as the generation of man!

Before Adam received life, God did use water, “There went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground (adama)” (Gen 2:6). At the generation of man, God did use water to cleanse the ground — ‘Adam’ in the Hebrew. In like manner, before God breathes life to make souls alive; He cleanses Adam’s progeny with Living Water to quicken them (1 Cor 15:45).

Water has never been the Way, but most often precedes the Way. Water did not save Noah nor regenerate the world; water was the cleansing of the world to prepare for God to save Noah’s kind from death. Even for Noah, water was not the mode of salvation; it was the Spirit of God on the ark. It is never water that saves, but the Spirit.

Note that water did no harm to Noah; it merely cleansed the Earth; it represented Adam’s kind. It was the Invisible God — the Holy Spirit — that guided the ship and overcame the world to preserve the eight faithful people who decided to enter the door of the ship before God closed it in the face of those who decided to stay and fight the storm on their own.

I have discussed what remit, or deliver, does not mean — water. What does it mean?

Jesus said about the sacrament of communion: 

For this is My blood (wine) of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Mat 26:28)

 The Body and Blood of Jesus are not the actual bread and wine that they drank at the Last Supper. (That is the heresy of Transubstantiation). Jesus was making the point that it his Blood and His alone that remits sins. That was what the crucifixion was all about.

Just as there is ‘one baptism,’ there is also one Lord. Jesus proved that He was the One Lord God at the crucifixion wherein He shed His Blood. There was no water to be found there, only vinegar; albeit Dismus, the repentant sinner, was saved to Paradise.

There was never two ways to Paradise; cherubim guarded the only Way to the Tree of Life (Gen 3:24), and as it turns out the Way to the Tree of Life was Jesus all the time! “Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me” (John 14:6). Water was not the Way; only Living Water from the belly of Jesus. Dismus would have gone the Way to Paradise like any that came before or after him. The old Way was the same as the new Way! (Abraham’s Bosom was as much ‘Paradise’ as Jesus’s Paradise.)

What happened at the crucifixion? “One of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water” (John 19:34). There came the Blood for the remission of sins, and there went Living Water — the Holy Ghost leaving Him.

What about Dismus? Before all that, Dismus had a change of mind. He realized that Jesus was God and only God could save him. With that change of mind (repentance) that made him a Christian, then Dismus was certainly sprinkled with the Blood and Living Water from the belly of Jesus to go to Paradise that very day!

The thief was baptized, but not by the mode of John. He was baptized by the Holy Ghost of Jesus… the only known baptism that Jesus did. Note also, that Adam was ‘baptized’ that same time. I bet you missed that! The ground was sprinkled with Blood and Water from the belly of Jesus. Remembering that the ground is ‘Adam,’ the Blood and Living Water from the side of Jesus baptized all of Adam’s kind that repent — who have a change of mind.

There are not three baptisms. The Church has created a third baptism, in my opinion, given that the early Church misunderstood just whose baptism was effective. Paul straightened them out (Ephes 4:5). Baptism should be done, if it is done, at the time the mind is changed in repentance. Then, it is Jesus who makes the new creature in Christ wherein He supplies His kind of ‘water.’ John immersed but Jesus breathed life onto those who had a change of heart as his lungs forced the Blood and Water onto the thief. Dismus had the effective baptism — the ‘one baptism’ and some would dare take that away from the poor sorrowful thief!

My own position is to consider both Testaments of God; they are both His Will to be done. By neglecting how God willed sacrifices to be done in ancient times removes those who do that as His heirs. The New Testament did not change the Will of God but was a ‘codicil,’ adding the Gentiles to it. His determination of His heirs is still based on who have His Blood and Water within their fleshes.

A few men from the late 1700’s and early 1800’s did much, with good intentions, to change the Will of God. They made the water the ‘Holy Spirit’ and as much made a god of water. Not only that, but even if there is a change of mind, unless the flesh is made clean in their water, the baptism is of no more importance than John’s who admitted that water was not efficacious.

Oh, how dogmatic Christians still blaspheme, knowing not what they do! It must be done their way or to Hell with everyone else! That even robs Jesus of His judgment.

picture credit; Learn Religions; "Water in Laver"