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The New Birth: Advanced Book 1, Lesson 2: Changing My Heart and Life
Teacher's Comment: God wants a relationship with us. That he made known before the foundations of the earth. Amazing!
Acts 13:22
22             After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'

Question 3. What will happen if we ignore his kindness and refuse to change?

Student’s Comment:  I ask a friend of mine and he answered: "that he will continue loving us the same, and we will continue living bad".

Teacher's Comment: Yes, God loves sinners enough to send his Son to die for them. But, in the end the unredeemed sinner will spend eternity in hell with Satan and his angels.
Matt 10:28
28    Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

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The New Birth: Advanced Book 1, Lesson 3: What is Baptism?
Question: TRUE or FALSE Being born of water and the Spirit is like starting life again.
The correct answer is "True."
Teacher's Comment: New Beginnings

When Jesus spoke about a man being unable to enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again (John 3:3-5) he was talking about new beginnings and he was talking about new beginnings to an already grown man, Nicodemus.

John 3:3-5
3     In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
4     "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"
5     Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.

Why the need to be re-born? The apostle Paul explains in the Roman letter that sin pays wages and (spiritual) death is the wage sin pays. (Romans 6:23)   He also explains that we have all sinned and the sin problem is painted as black as can be.

Romans 6:23
23    For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 3:23
23    for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 

Man, because of his sin, is doomed to eternity without God. You and I are both under that sentence.   But - God has given us hope in that he has made provision for our sin problem. The sentence can be removed and our guilt can be taken away.  When that happens God looks at us as if we had never sinned.  We will stand justified before him. There is a solution to the problem because Jesus Christ stepped up to be the atoning sacrifice for us by shedding his blood at Calvary. (I John 2:1-2)  No guilt, no condemnation because Jesus paid the price of our debt.

I John 2:1-2
1     My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense-- Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.
2     He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

But how can this forgiveness be a reality in our lives? Where does forgiveness take place, in the mind of the sinner or in the mind of God? Many believe it takes place in the mind of the sinner, but that cannot be. Forgiveness must take place in the mind of the one who has been sinned against. When we listen to the conditions of the Holy Spirit and when we comply with those conditions, we are promised forgiveness.

What are the conditions? Faith that Jesus is who he claimed to be, the very son of God, and Lord, (John 8:24; Rom. 10:9-10) repentance of our sins, and Baptism (immersion in water) in order to have our sins forgiven.  (Acts 2:38, 22:16) A new birth of water and the Spirit marks our new beginning. (John 3:3-5; II Corinthians. 5:17)
John 8:24
24    I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am, you will indeed die in your sins."

Romans 10:9-10
9     That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10    For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.

John 3:5-6
5     Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
6     Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.

2 Corinthians 5:17
17      Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 

What a wonderful solution to our sin problem! What a wonderful Savior who paid our debt and is willing to set us free from the guilt of that debt.

Romans 6:3-8
3     Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
4     We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
5     If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.
6     For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin--
7      because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.
8     Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.

How is this forgiveness effected? Because Romans 6:6 states that it is in that watery grave of baptism that we crucify our old self and that we arise from that grave, raised to a new life, to new beginnings, (Romans 6:4) we must conclude therefore, that forgiveness takes place during our baptism and not before.  A new birth, a new beginning, and a new life in Christ with forgiveness. Is it mine?  Is it yours?   Praise God, it can be ours!

author: Roseann Ekman

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The New Birth: Advanced Book 1, Lesson 4: History of Sprinkling and Pouring

Question 2. Why didn't someone object to the changes that took place during the first 1,300 years of church history?

Teacher's Comment: Ever hear of the "Frog Principle?"

Here it is: If you put a frog in cold water, he will be happy. If you raise the temperature very, very slowly, he will move around and then be happy again. If you continue to raise the temperature, very slowly, he will kick around some and in a while he will get use to it and then be happy again. If you continue this slow process of change, you can cook the frog and he will never jump out of the pot.

Amazing!  We are like the frog sometimes. It may take a few generations, but we get used to change. This is the way false doctrines get into our churches.

True-False         T F Immersion was the only form of baptism in New Testament times.
Student answer: T (F) Immersion was the only form of baptism in New Testament times.

Teacher's Comment: The correct answer is (T). There is no example of sprinkling in the New Testament. The word "baptizo," means to immerse. The word was not translated "immerse" in the King James English Translation in 1611. It was transliterated into the word "baptize.” The reason is simple. King James in England didn't want to loose his job because the Church of England sprinkled instead of immersing when baptizing.

Strong's definition
907  baptizo (bap-tid'-zo);
from a derivative of 911; to immerse, submerge; to make overwhelmed (i.e. fully wet); used only (in the N. T.) of ceremonial ablution, especially (technically) of the ordinance of Christian baptism:
KJV-- Baptist, baptize, wash.

Some teachers discount baptism as a requirement for salvation. Some say that it is a work and we are saved by grace only; therefore, baptism is to be done to "join the church."

For example, here is a paragraph from a Bible Dictionary stating this position.

BAPTISM ACCORDING TO “Faith Only”DOCTRINE

            “The symbolical view -- This view stresses the symbolic nature of baptism by emphasizing that baptism does not cause an inward change or alter a person's relationship to God in any way. Baptism is a token, or an outward indication, of the inner change which has already occurred in the believer's life. It serves as a public identification of the person with Jesus Christ, and thus also as a public testimony of the change that has occurred. It is an act of initiation. It is baptism into the name of Jesus.”
(from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary)
(Copyright (C) 1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)

BAPTISM ACCORDING TO BIBLE TEACHING
Yet, there is nothing more clear in scripture than the teaching about baptism. The "sticking point" seems to be the purpose of baptism. The purpose according to scripture is to 1) receive forgiveness of sins and 2) to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit living in us. When one is baptized, God adds him to his kingdom.
Purpose of Baptism
Acts 2:38
38    Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:47
47        praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Baptism is not an option.
Mark 16:15-16
15    He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
16    Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

The relationship between baptism and forgiveness
Acts 22:16
16    And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.'

What is happening in the water?
We are asking for forgiveness when we are in the water. In Peter 3:21  Peter says Noah got into the water to be saved and we are to get into the water to be saved. While we are in the water, our bodies are not cleansed of dirt; instead, we are asking God to forgive us.

How does one get " into Christ?"
Gal 3:26-27
26    You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus,
27    for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.
1 Corinthians 12:13
13    For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body -- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free -- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Importance of being "In Him"
Ephesians 1
1. Every spiritual blessing is IN HIM
2. Chosen IN HIM
3. Adopted through JESUS
4. Grace given in THE ONE HE LOVES
5. Redemption, forgiveness IN HIM
6. Purposed IN HIM
7. Hope IN HIM
8. Included IN HIM
9. Marked with Holy Spirit IN HIM

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The New Birth: Advanced Book 1, Lesson 5: The Purpose of Baptism

Question 2: In what way is baptism a spiritual circumcision?

Baptism in the New Testament is like circumcision found in the Old Testament because it is the point in one's life where a new relationship is established with God, a new identity occurs, and a new life begins.

In the Bible's first mention of circumcision, God instructed Abraham to circumcise every male child in his household, including servants, "in the flesh of your foreskins" (Gen 17:11). The custom was performed on the eighth day after birth (Gen 17:12). At this time a name was given to the son (Luke 1:59; 2:21).

Abraham's agreement with God was sealed by a cutting off of the foreskin; likewise, there is a "cutting off" of the old sinful self and the beginning of a new life (Rom 6:3-4)  in God's New Agreement (Testament) with a baptized believer. A new identity as God's child and a new relationship is established. It is a spiritual circumcision.

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The New Birth: Advanced Book 1, Lesson 6: Who Should Be Baptized?
Question: TRUE or FALSE   According to the Bible, teaching always comes before baptism.

Teacher's comments: The correct answer is (T). We must be properly taught to know how to be saved by God's grace.

Many people today believe that one is saved the moment they come to believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Others would include that there must be a genuine repentance as well as intellectual belief.
God's grace is all that is needed, because we cannot work our way to salvation. Salvation is free and we need only accept it in faith.
Ephesians 2:8-9
8    For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God--
9    not by works, so that no one can boast.

While it is true that we cannot be good enough to be saved by ourselves, and that God's grace, our faith, and accepting Jesus is required, the Apostles taught more than just Grace, faith and acceptance.

Ephesians 2:8-9 - Were they saved without baptism? Is that all there is to the response process of salvation? These people will insist that is what Ephesians. 2:8-9 reveals to us. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast."

I would ask that person who wrote the Ephesian letter. According to the very first verse of chapter 1, we learn it is the Apostle Paul who is writing.

I would also ask how were these Ephesians saved by grace through faith? Please tell me where I can find the history of the conversions of people from Ephesus.

First of all, in answering the question I would direct our thoughts to Ephesians. 1:13 which states that these Ephesians were saved when they heard and believed the message of the gospel.

I would also go back to Acts 20:20-21 and remind us that the Apostle Paul told the elders of Ephesus that he taught the same thing everywhere he went, and that his teaching included repentance. Now we see that the Ephesians heard, believed and were taught to repent.

In Acts 19:1-7 when the Apostle Paul found 12 men from Ephesus Paul asked whether they had received the Holy Spirit and when they stated that they had not heard of the Holy Spirit, this was a cue to the Apostle about their baptism.

His next question was: "Then what baptism did you receive?" (vs. 3) They said " John's baptism."     Of course, John's baptism was not accompanied by the Holy Spirit as was Acts 2:38 baptism of the Great Commission. When they explained their baptism was John's baptism,

Paul knew they were not even Christians so he taught them aright in regard to the baptism that was taught by Christ through the Holy Spirit as it had its inception on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2... baptism for the forgiveness of sins and the reception of the Holy Spirit to indwell them.

Paul then baptized these men and then laid his hands on them to impart some spiritual gift. His initial question to them was in regard, no doubt, to the reception of the miraculous spiritual gifts, thinking they were Christians. All Christians receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit at baptism, but the early Christians received empowering of the Holy Spirit by the laying on of an Apostles' hands in order that God could use them to hasten the process of teaching and to confirm the word as it was being proclaimed. (Acts 8:18, Mark 16:20)

Conclusion: The Ephesians were saved by grace through faith just as the rest of us are, by hearing the good news, believing it, repenting of their sins and being baptized to receive forgiveness of sins and the Holy Spirit to indwell. Ephesians. 1:13, Acts 20:21, 2:38.

Author: Roseann Elkman