Water baptism (“baptism of the soul”) brings forth five blessings: remission of sin, indwelling, Spirit-empowerment, anointing, and the writing of our names in the Book of Life.
17 Therefore, if anyone is in the Messiah, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come. 2 CORINTHIANS 5
The common perception is that water baptism is nothing but a public induction of the new members of the Church. It has a higher significance:
3 I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again… 5 No one can enter the kingdom of heaven unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at My saying, “You must be born again.” JOHN 3
Water baptism involves three acts—submersion in water, renouncement of Lucifer and acceptance of the Spirit—which put together are symbolic of the necessary preparations we must comply with before the actual rite for our hearts to be right with God. If we do not comply with them, our baptism would be a sham. No rebirth would come about. We might be held a new member of the Church in the eyes of men, but not in the sight of God.
SUBMERSION IN WATER
This act represents immersion in the Word of God, a baptismal prerequisite that must be done for three reasons:
To read the fine print. Water baptism is entering into a contract with God. Nobody in his right mind would enter into any contract without knowing the terms and conditions, isn’t that right? We must understand what the new covenant is about: its vision of where to go, its mission statement of why go there, and its roadmap on how to get there. We have to evaluate what participation is expected of us and what participation can be expected of the other party. We have to determine whether we can deliver our side of the contract; what the rewards are if we do and the penalties if we fail. We have to check whether we are inclined to be a coworker of God and, if we are, what our motive is. All these have to be done so we can relate properly as a party to the contract.
33 Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. MATTHEW 6
10 Find out what pleases the Lord. 17 …Understand what the Lord’s will is. EPHESIANS 5
To complement our fact-knowledge with faith-knowledge. No one can love God with all his mind without faith-knowledge. It makes him see the spiritual realm, that there is a God who loves him in a fashion more than he can fathom. It broadens his perception of reality beyond the scope of the visible and the tangible.
To cleanse our mind of false teachings. Feed your computer with wrong inputs and you get wrong outputs. In the same way, no one can be conscientious in obeying God unless the false teachings that lurk in his mind are purged away.
8 Unless I wash you, you have no part with Me. JOHN 13
32 [Hold on to My teaching and] you will know the truth. JOHN 8
6 I am the way and the truth and the life. JOHN 14
6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of knowledge of the glory of God in the face of the Messiah. 2 CORINTHIANS 4
Joyce Meyer wrote, “God offers life, light, joy, faith, peace, righteousness, hope and all good things. Lucifer offers death, darkness, despair, depression, devastation, dread, fear and everything bad. Even as I write these things, I think why would anyone choose Lucifer and his ways? Yet multitudes do. Many people are deceived. They are choosing the wrong way because they lack knowledge. Hosea 4:6 says, My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” [1]
2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. ROMANS 12
7 Do not be deceived. GALATIANS 6
7 Let the wicked forsake his ways and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for He will freely pardon. ISAIAH 55
Lucifer, the god of this age, has led the whole world astray (Revelation 12:9), blinding us with false teachings (2 Corinthians 4:4). There is a way that seems right but in the end it leads to death (Proverbs 14:12).
“What is the truth?” Pilate asked Y’shua this question (John 18:38).
The truth is, because Lucifer exists, then God exists. Everything in creation has its antithesis.
14 Opposite evil stands good; opposite death, life; so too, opposite the devout man is the sinner. 15 This is the way to view all the works of the Most High: they go, in pairs, by opposites. ECCLESIASTICUS 33
Behind the whole creation, which is so visible and tangible to us, is the Creator. “God exists,” says Anthony Flew, once the world’s most notorious atheist. “One factor for my change of belief was my growing empathy with the insight of Einstein and other noted scientists that there had to be an Intelligence behind the integrated complexity of the physical Universe. The second factor was my own insight that the integrated complexity of life itself—which is far more complex than the physical Universe—can only be explained in terms of an Intelligent Source."[2]
Behind the signs and wonders we get to experience is God who can make the impossible possible.
The truth is, there is life after death. The resurrection has proven it.
The truth is, there will be Judgment. The fulfillment of the 48 major prophecies in the Old Testament pertaining to the Messiah (from His birth to ascension) is one solid proof that the Word of God comes to pass without fail. Because the Word does not fail and it says a Day of Judgment will come to pass, then it will. We will account for the motives behind our thoughts, words and actions.
The truth is, life is not meant to be a survival of the fittest. God did not create us to trip one another or step on one another, or tear one another apart. We are created to love and be loved. God will judge us by the amount of love we had had for one another.
The truth is, Lucifer is not God.
WHAT DOES IMMERSION MEAN?
Encarta defines it as
1. complete involvement: involvement in something that completely occupies all the time, energy, or concentration available
2. placing something under liquid: the dipping of something into a liquid so that it is completely covered
3. CHRISTIANITY baptism by dipping body in water: the practice of baptism by lowering a person’s head and upper body, or sometimes the whole body, into water
Immersion in the Word means soaking, giving your time and energy in understanding the Word. It also means reading with open ears.
20 Hear the Word, accept it, and produce a crop. MARK 4
Should you literally hear the voice of God talking to you, that’s a bonus, listen to it too. Listen for as long as what the voice says is in complete agreement with the written Word. Should there be any contradiction no matter how insignificant it may be, stop listening; for the voice is demonic. God neither contradicts nor violates His written Word (Isaiah 46:11). Pay attention for what is being said is extremely important.
Peter the Hermit, who led the first wave of the First Crusade, claimed to have a vision of Y’shua in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. He said he was commanded to call on the people to fight the Seljuk Turks who had invaded the Holy Land and destroyed the Holy Sepulchre. Y’shua gave him the authority to lead the crusade and promised heaven for all who took part in the expedition. The expedition proved to be disastrous to its participants. (Dark Side of Catholicism, p. 84)
In 1212 ad, a 15-year-old boy named Stephen organized the Children’s Crusade. According to him, Y’shua urged him to lead it. Twenty thousand children left Germany and France for the Holy Land. The crusade ended in disaster. The children never reached their destination. Many died along the way. Of the survivors, the boys were sold into slavery and the girls were either sold to brothels or taken as maids. (Dark Side of Catholicism, p. 90)
In the Philippines, the scribe of this book was present when two nights before the 2004 national elections Bishop Eddie Villanueva of the Jesus Is Lord Movement confided to Born-Again leaders gathered in a Baguio City hotel that God had talked to him and anointed him to be the next President of the Philippines. He lost in the election.
The scribe also heard Pastor Wilde Almeda of the Jesus Miracle Crusade (he claimed to be a prophet of God) when he prophesied in Dasmarinas, Cavite that Jose de Venecia would win the 1998 presidential election. The pastor vowed to have himself shot by a firing squad at the Luneta Park should De Venecia lose. De Venecia lost. The pastor did not honor his vow.
The point we want to emphasize is this: The demonic forces are most deceiving. Beware of the voices you hear. Stop listening to it should it say something contradictory to the written Word. Be sanctified by the truth to avoid being deceived. An ounce of truth dispenses with a pound of false teachings. The truth will set you free (John 8:32). Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation (1 Peter 2:2).
WERE THE FIRST DISCIPLES IMMERSED IN THE WORD?
Yes, Y’shua immersed them for 3-1/2 years. Then near the end of His public ministry, He said to them, “You are already clean because of the Word I have spoken to you” (John 15:3); He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22). 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. EZEKIEL 36
During the immersion process He did two things: Uncover God’s name (reverting Adonai to YHVH) and replace with the truth the false teachings lurking in the minds of His disciples.
6 I have revealed [uncovered] Your name to those whom You gave Me out of the world… 8 I gave them the words that You gave Me and they accepted them… 14 I have given them Your Word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world… 17 Sanctify them by the truth; Your Word is truth. JOHN 17
Following His example, no church should baptize anyone without first teaching him the Most Holy Name and immersing him in the Word. Infants and children should not be baptized. Water baptism is about making a life-long commitment, only for those who can make a knowledgeable choice. This explains why Y’shua did not rush in baptizing His disciples.
SHOULD IMMERSION IN THE WORD BE STOPPED AFTER WATER BAPTISM?
Of course not, immersion is for life. Keep on learning. One reading is not enough. The Word has so much breadth and fabric. There is always new knowledge and deeper understanding to gain.
12 I have so much more to say to you, more than you can bear now. JOHN 16
Man has a short memory span and it gets shorter as he ages. Keep on being reminded. Lucifer will divert your focus. Read and re-read the Scripture the way you would to letters from a beloved. Keep on reading until you memorize the verses and the punctuation marks that separate them. Keep on reading until you fully understand every instruction in it. Grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior (2 Peter 3:18). Every Word of God is flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him (Proverbs 30:5).
Paul wrote:
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Y’shua the Messiah, the glorious Father, may give you wisdom and revelation, so that you may know Him better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which He has called you, the riches of your glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and His incomparably great power for us who believe. EPHESIANS 1
What happens if the immersion process is stopped? Then you would lose focus so easily.
What happens if you do not submit to the immersion process at all? Then you could be deceived so easily. This Scripture verse would apply to you: “Since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, He gave [abandoned] them to a depraved [debased, reprobate] mind, to do what ought not to be done” (Romans 1:28).
ACCEPTANCE OF THE SPIRIT
This act symbolically represents another baptismal prerequisite: prayer and fasting.
Never will God violate your freewill. If you do not ask for indwelling, no indwelling will take place in you; so ask. It is vital that you do for the human spirit is like to the bus; its driver determines its course.
16 [Pray] that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that the Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith. And… pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of the Messiah, 18 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. EPHESIANS 3
At times the demonic spirit voluntarily abandons the human spirit. But if no prayer is made for indwelling, he could reclaim his seat and drive the man to a worse situation. Have you witnessed how a man can turn so religious overnight and after a short while return to sinfulness in a fashion worse than he was before?
24 When an evil spirit comes out of a man, goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it, then it says, “I will return to the house I left.” 25 When it arrives, finds the house swept clean and put in order, 26 then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. LUKE 11
Ask for remission of sin. Also for protection, guidance and strength. The demonic forces will prevent you from getting to water baptism, but if God is with you, who can be against you? (Romans 8:31).
Now, the surest way to quick answered prayer is through prayer and fasting. Learn how the Israelites do it:
1 They gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads. 2 They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers. 3 They stood where they were and read from the Books of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God. NEHEMIAH 9
The Israelites do prayer and fasting to earn the pleasure of God, not the praise of men. They do not walk around in a holier-than-thou fashion; after all, isn’t the sinner like to an ailing man? The sick keeps to the confines of his room; conserves his strength and energy; and does not boast of his ailment or how he endures it, and the treatment process or how costly it is.
King David said, “I humbled myself with fasting” (Psalm 35:13).
5 And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you… 16 And when you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18 so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. MATTHEW 5
Our advice to start-ups is to do prayer and fasting gradually. Do not do 40 days as Y’shua did even if you can. We recommend the 12-day regimen in this sequence:
§ 7-day diet of liquid and raw food (fruits, vegetables, sashimi). Eat only when hungry; drink only when thirsty.
§ 3 days of liquid, no solid intake
§ 2 days without solid or liquid intake. Then break your fast with a cup of soup. Next meal, have a cup of soft food. After three meals, do regular meal in small intakes, gradually increasing the intake, until your stomach gets used to its former regimen. < The scribe lost 25 pounds and his waistline got trimmed from 40” to 32” the first time he did the regimen. >
What is your guarantee that your petitions will be granted after prayer and fasting? Scripture says
13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him! LUKE 11
RENOUNCEMENT OF LUCIFER
This act represents another baptismal prerequisite: spiritual detoxification.
Just as physical detoxification eliminates toxins (poisonous substances) in our physical bodies, so spiritual detoxification will eliminate the toxins in our souls.
The toxins come in the form of (1) unconfessed and unforgiven sins; (2) sinful desires; (3) fears and doubts; (4) false teachings; and (5) the curses we have inherited from our parents, grandparents, great grandparents and great great grandparents (Exodus 20:5). Bible scholars call them enemy strongholds. If not eliminated, they will bring about our Second Death.
The enemy strongholds are like horse straps that Lucifer and his demons pull to rein us. The Son of Man conquered the evil empire because there were no straps in Him that Lucifer and his demons could pull (John 14:30).
As a manifestation of your desire to turn into a new leaf, submit the enemy strongholds in you to Spirit-demolition through spiritual detoxification. Let nothing and nobody deter or delay the task. If you have seven, submit all seven. Saving or covering one or two will keep you impure.
Spiritual detoxification will require four actions on your part: 1 The listing of your enemy strongholds; 2 repentance; 3 confession; and 4 restitution. It goes without saying that the process will require shrinking your ego. It will not be easy but it certainly is a better option than being the constant object of Lucifer’s whim in this life and of God’s wrath hereafter.
15 I live… with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite. ISAIAH 57
Listing of enemy strongholds. Retreat to a quiet place, away from the maddening crowd, so you can focus. Check yourself for enemy strongholds. List them as you recall them so nothing could be forgotten.
“We have many people who ask us, ‘How can I know about sins in my past that I have forgotten?’ The answer is simple: Ask the Holy Spirit to bring them to your remembrance. Even more frequently we hear, ‘How can I know if there is a curse operating in my life?’ Again, ask the Holy Spirit to show it to you,” wrote Rebecca Brown. (Unbroken Curses, p. 13)
Repentance. Submit to God with a broken and contrite heart. Sirach 21:6 says repentance (“metanoia”) should result in visible reformation and sincere change in your attitude and lifestyle. Manifest determination to lead a righteous life.
38 Repent and be baptized, every one of you… ACTS 2
17 Repent for the kingdom of God is near. MATTHEW 4
20 Examine your conscience before the Lord judges you… He will forgive you. 21 Humble yourself before you are punished with sickness. When you have sinned, show your repentance. 22 ...Don’t wait until you are about to die to set things straight. SIRACH 18
3 Unless you repent, you will all perish. LUKE 3
Reap the practical benefits. As you look back at your thoughts and actions, as you examine them and seek counsel, you will learn from your mistakes. As you renounce the “hidden things of shame” (2 Corinthians 4:2) and take full responsibility for them, you will cease to be their slave. The widening gap between God and you will be remedied before it becomes irreconcilable. God’s personal curse on you and your family will be lifted. You will stop grieving the Spirit. You will earn the moral authority to be a coworker of God.
Confession. Admit to yourself why you have kept your enemy strongholds. Be honest, for you cannot build an honest relationship with God unless you are honest to yourself; then forgive yourself for acting stupid.
26 Don’t be ashamed to confess your sins. SIRACH 4
13 A man who refuses to admit his mistakes can never be successful. But if he confesses them and forsakes them, he gets another chance. PROVERBS 28 tlb
10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His Word has no place in our lives… 8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 1 JOHN 1
Next, seek release from your karmic debts by making a public admission of your enemy strongholds. It is like going to the doctor and candidly telling him what seems to be the problem and what seems to have caused it; no stone should be left unturned.
Confess in church the wrongs of your parents and ancestors that you may be liberated from the curses attached to them (Nehemiah 9:2).
Confess to God the wrongs you have done Him.
Confess to your neighbor the wrongs you have done to him. Confess to God too, for your neighbor is His creation and property. In Luke 15:21 the prodigal son confessed to his father, saying, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.”
Do not confess and leave hurriedly. Say “I’m sorry,” ask for forgiveness, and do your best not leave the presence of the people you have wronged without obtaining their forgiveness.
23 If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there in front of at the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift. MATTHEW 5
16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other that you may be healed. JAMES 5
3 There was a time when I wouldn’t admit what a sinner I was. My dishonesty made me miserable and filled my days with frustration. 4 …until I finally admitted all my sins… and stopped trying to hide them. 5 …and (God) forgave me! All my guilt is gone! PSALM 32 tlb
“Confession must be heartfelt and freely expressed. It is not to be urged from the sinner. It is not to be made in a flippant and careless way, or forced from those who have no realizing sense of the abhorrent character of sin. The confession that is the outpouring of the inmost soul finds its way to the God of infinite pity,” said Ellen G. White. “True confession is always of a specific character, and acknowledges particular sins. They may be of such a nature as to be brought before God only; they may be wrongs that should be confessed to individuals who have suffered injury through them; or they may be of a public character, and should then be publicly confessed. But all confession should be definite and to the point, acknowledging the very sins of which you are guilty.”[3]
A bishop was overheard storytelling of a Nigerian whose head was chopped off after confessing his sin. His listeners were advised not to confess their sins under risk of violence or death. We begged to disagree on the basis of James 5:16, Proverbs 28:13 and Psalm 32:3-5. Confession is component to remission of sin. Without remission of sin, our listeners—whom we hope to pull to life—will remain dead and doomed. But the dead who gains remission of sin—even if his head is chopped off—will enter life! (John 11:25)
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. MATTHEW 10
8 It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal flame. 9 …It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and thrown into the fire of hell. MATTHEW 18
34 If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. 35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me and for the Gospel will save it. MARK 8
24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. JOHN 12
Restitution. Repair any and all damages you have caused to your neighbor as an expression that you are sincerely sorry and willing to undo it.
6 Say to the Israelites: When a man or woman wrongs another in any way and so is unfaithful to the Lord, that person is guilty 7 and must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution for his wrong, add one fifth to it and give it all to the person he has wronged. NUMBERS 5
8 Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” 9 Y’shua said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham.” LUKE 19
6 If a fire breaks out and spreads into thornbushes so that it burns shocks of grain or standing grain or the whole field, the one who started the fire must make restitution. EXODUS 22
What if the wronged is dead or could not be found? Then make restitution to his immediate family. If none of its members could be found, make an act of charity. Charity is helping the needy for love of God. As water quenches a blazing fire, so charity atones for sins (Ecclesiasticus 3:30).
22 …let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. HEBREWS 10
Don’t Mind the Enemy
Some pastors will quote Ephesians 2:8-10 to convince you that it is okay to submit to water baptism without complying with the pre-baptismal requirements enumerated above.
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves; it is the gift of God—9 not by works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Messiah Y’shua to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. EPHESIANS 2
Don’t fall for it. Grace is not enough. So many went through water baptism without gaining indwelling, empowerment and anointing for themselves; they continue in being demon-driven. That’s because they did not comply with the pre-baptismal requirements.
A Christian brother from Singapore asked, “Hundreds of millions of people in the world today cannot read. If immersion in the Word is a prequalification for water baptism, how can they qualify?” The answer is Matthew 28:16-20. It commands the co-workers of God to help the illiterate: “Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Another answer is John 21:15: “Feed My lambs.”To those who say there is no need to comply with the pre-baptismal requirements:
15 This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Isra’el, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it.” ISAIAH 30
Another important thing: Realize this early that the demonic forces and their human agents (the unspiritual and the uncircumspect among us) will try to disturb the seeds of inner joy and serenity that are budding in you. Expect them to use your confession to create in you a longing for the fun and adventure of your checkered past. To shame you in public, ostracize or alienate you, in order to make you feel bitter, make you doubt God’s forgiveness, put a rebellious spirit in you, make you give up the fight and return to your old sinful life. To haunt you with remorse (excessive guilt), especially when your guard is down, for the hurts, grief, injuries and losses you had caused. The apostle Judas hanged himself when hit with remorse.
We are products of our past but we don’t have to be prisoners of it, said Rick Warren. (Purpose-Driven Life, p. 28)
Do not worry of the hurts, grief, injuries and losses you had caused to others after you have done spiritual detoxification for them. There’s no sense crying over spilled milk. Be assured that God has forgiven your wrongs and erased them from His memory (Isaiah 43:25). And do not worry if you cannot afford to make restitution because God will recompense the wronged who forgives you (Matthew 19:29). The burden of perpetuating love is transferred from the wrong-doer to the wronged.
5 Love keeps no record of wrongs. 1 CORINTHIANS 13
40 If they confess their sins and the sins of their fathers—their treachery against Me and their hostility toward Me, 41 which made Me hostile toward them so that I sent them into the land of their enemies—then when their uncircumcised hearts are humbled and they pay for their sin, 42 I will remember My covenant with Jacob and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham. LEVITICUS 26
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 JOHN 1
12 I will frown on you no longer, for I am merciful, declares the Lord, I will not be angry forever. 13 Only acknowledge your guilt—you have rebelled against the Lord your God. JEREMIAH 3
18 Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. ISAIAH 1
God hopes that no repentant soul would ever cross back to his old sinful life.
62 No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God. LUKE 9
26 Lot’s wife looked back [longingly], and she became a pillar of salt. GENESIS 19
ARE YOU EXPECTED TO DEAL WITH ALL OF YOUR ENEMY STRONGHOLDS AT ONE AND THE SAME TIME?
No, getting rid of your enemy strongholds “from glory to glory” will do. No one climbs a mountain in one great leap; it’s done one step at a time. You can climb your own personal mountain this way.
God is not like the foolish farmer who planted seeds and then dug up the soil the next day to see if they had grown roots. He knows that His seeds don’t grow into trees and bear fruit overnight. He knows that you will make mistakes, fail, stumble and hit many a bump in the road. His only hope is that “though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again” (Proverbs 24:16).
18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 2 CORINTHIANS 3 kjv
WHAT ABOUT YOUR NEIGHBORS, AREN’T THEY LIKELY TO JUDGE YOU AS A HYPOCRITE, AND THEREBY SIN, SEEING THE ENEMY STRONGHOLDS YOU HAVE YET TO GET RID OF?
Prevent them from sinning by teaching them the difference between the man who does his best to lessen the enemy strongholds in him, albeit one or two at a time, and the man who does not. Let them call hypocrite the man who knows of the enemy strongholds he must get rid, moreso teaches others how to do it, and yet does nothing about it.
WHAT IF YOU DIE BEFORE YOU GET RID OF ALL YOUR ENEMY STRONGHOLDS? REVELATION 21:27 SAYS NOTHING IMPURE WILL ENTER THE KINGDOM OF GOD.
God is forever merciful, full of love and grace. What matters to Him is your resolve to clean up your act, your dedication to love God and neighbor, your determination not to commit any deliberate sin, your effort to emerge triumphant from your baptism of fire. If your heart is right with God, He will reciprocate your love and faithfulness. His grace will welcome you to His kingdom.
42 [The criminal] said, “Y’shua, remember me when You come into Your kingdom?” 43 Y’shua answered him, “I tell you the truth, today, you will be with Me in paradise.” LUKE 23
24 …the sins of those who dwell [in Zion] will be forgiven. ISAIAH 33
What Happens After Baptism
After water baptism, prove your worth by undergoing baptism of fire. Outgrow your old self. Steel your love and faithfulness to 100% reliability. Train to obey God’s instructions under all circumstances (Exodus 20:20 tev). Advance from the rank of the “called” to the rank of the “chosen” (Mathew 22:14). Try to do all these without compromising your rebirth and purity. Do not become Lucifer’s trophy.
Just how fast you can pass your hour of testing will depend on your intensity, candor and resoluteness.
IS THIS TRUE THAT THE BAPTIZED CANNOT BE AFFECTED BY THE DEMONIC SPIRITS?
It’s not. Don’t fall for it. The baptized may be Spirit-driven and shielded, but he is not infallible.
God said false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive. He gave the warning because the baptized is likely to be deceived. Matthew 24:24 says even the chosen could be deceived.
The baptized is not insulated. The demonic forces might keep a safe distance from the baptized, and the Son of Man might have rendered them powerless, but they could still push their human agents to provoke or tempt him.
The baptized remains a part of a world system that is anti-God, organized and arranged to function without God. It will keep on building in him a strong desire for fame, power, wealth and social acceptance—along with sinful cravings, lust, and the boasting of what he has and does (1 John 2:16)—for him to compromise his newfound stature.
Let’s face it: The new creation still possesses the tendency to sin. His soul remains embodied in flesh, which has the nature of the beast. Ingrained in his flesh are sinful, conditioned responses and curious inclinations which water baptism has put to sleep, but which can be awakened into activity.
He must be careful how he lives (Ephesians 5:15). He must not be complacent when things appear to be running okay. He must not to overlook the little things that could trip him. He must not be awed by false signs and wonders. He must not allow the sinful inclinations and conditioned responses ingrained in his flesh to be awakened.
IS IT TRUE THAT “ONCE BAPTIZED, ALWAYS SAVED”?
Some churches pass off water baptism as an unconditional entry visa to the kingdom of God, no matter if the baptized sins or stops in his strive to be holy and pure. Grace is passed off as a license to sin, as if Y’shua died to legalize sin. “Romans 6:14 is interpreted to imply that it is okay to steal, lie, covet, murder and commit adultery after baptism. The baptized is no longer under obligation to keep the Law and no longer under the condemnation of the Law’s penalty,” says Truth That Matters (p. 11). Once baptized, always saved is a false teaching. Its purpose is to make the baptized complacent, to make him keep back the old yeast. He will be sorry if he falls for it.
A sinful Christian is a contradiction. Sin and God will disown you even if you are baptized (Matthew 7:23).
8 He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning… 10 Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God. 1 JOHN 3
If a Christian consults astrology or worships the sun or the moon or the stars, he is of the devil. If he worships animals—a holy cow, bird or snake—he is of the devil. If he worships a deity or belongs to any religion or society that is opposed to Y’shua and His teaching, he is of the devil. If he fasts and prays, observes the Sabbaths, gives his tithes and offerings, and yet commits sin, he is of the devil. He may be a great evangelist or bishop or pastor, but if he commits sin, he is of the devil. To God it is not what the Christian claims to be that matters, but what he is. (Occult Grand Master Now In Christ, p. 55)
Y’shua died at the cross to save the baptized from sin, not to give him permission to sin. The pardon he has received does not give him freedom to disobey any one of God’s instructions. He should live the rest of his earthly life in doing the will of God (1 Peter 4:2).
Look at it this way: A man was thrown into the water with a millstone tied to his neck. Someone dived in and helped remove the millstone. What should the thrown man do next? What else but struggle fiercely to keep himself afloat, isn’t that right? He would have to exert every effort not to drown. After that, he must be vigilant not to be thrown into the water again, especially with a millstone tied to his neck.
16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of your sinful nature… 19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. GALATIANS 5
If once baptized, always saved were true, then Ephesians 4:31 would not have addressed the baptized in Ephesus to “get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.” 1 Thessalonians 5:19 would not have said, “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.”
12 Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and act according to His good purpose. PHILIPPIANS 2
4 As you come to [Y’shua] the Living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to Him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood. 1 PETER 2
22 In Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit. EPHESIANS 2
48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. MATTHEW 5
Galatians 5:16, 1 Peter 4:2, Philippians 2:12, Ephesians 4:31 and 1 Thessalonians 5:19 are a reminder, even to modern-day Christians, that personal effort is required of the baptized. Water baptism opens the door to restoration but in order to enjoy restoration, he must bring himself in. Water baptism opens the door to perfection but in order to be perfect, he must walk the path to perfection. God will not do it for him.
Water baptism will save him from his past sins (2 Peter 1:9) but not from his future sins. His name may be written in the Book of Life but it may yet be blotted out. A place may be reserved for him in heaven but it may yet be forfeited. He may be baptized in the morning but if he sins after lunch and dies in a state of sin, he cannot enter the kingdom.
33 It is those who have sinned against Me whose names I will remove from My book. EXODUS 32 tev
17 Anyone who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins. JAMES 4
IS IT POSSIBLE FOR THE BAPTIZED TO STAY SIN-FREE AND PURE? ISN’T HE INHERENTLY WEAK AND LIKELY TO SIN AFTER WATER BAPTISM?
Water baptism makes it very doable for the baptized to stay sin-free and pure. Indwelling frees him from Lucifer’s spell, from being reined and enslaved by the demonic spirits. It makes him Spirit-driven, shielded and guided. Spirit-empowerment turns him into a strongman. When faced with temptation, all he has to do is turn his back on it and say no to sin.
3 His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness. 4 Through these He has given us His very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 2 PETER 1
For all intents and purposes, the baptized is left without any excuse for sinning. So now God requires him to preserve his newly minted purity (2 Timothy 2:19).
14 See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you. JOHN 5
11 Go now and leave your life of sin. JOHN 8
6 No one who lives in [Y’shua] keeps on sinning. No one who continues sinning has either seen Him or known Him… 9 No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. 1 JOHN 3
What if he sins after baptism?
If the sin is unintentional, committed unaware or out of ignorance, he may do spiritual detoxification (1 John 5:16-17) and must do it at once. For if he gets to the Judgment without doing it, God will say to him, “You belong to your father, the devil” (John 8:44).
If the sin is deliberate, it is like committing blasphemy of the Spirit—Second Death is irrevocable.
26 If [the baptized] sins deliberately by rejecting the Savior after knowing the truth of forgiveness, this sin is not covered by the Messiah’s death; there is no way to get rid of it. 27 There will be nothing to look forward to but the terrible punishment of God’s awful anger which will consume His enemies. 28 A man who refused to obey the laws given by Moses was killed without mercy if there were two or three witnesses to his sin. 29 Think how much more terrible the punishment will be for those who have trampled underfoot the Son of God and treated His cleansing blood as though it were common and unhallowed; and for those who have insulted and outraged the Holy Spirit who brings God’s mercy to His people. HEBREWS 10 tlb
Sinning deliberately is knowing about God’s instruction but disobeying it anyway. God is knowingly set aside and exchanged for sin. It is like thrusting the spear into His side again, something the kingdom frowns upon heavily.
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the Word of God, and the powers of the coming age, 6 if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again, and subjecting Him to public disgrace. HEBREWS 6
20 If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Y’shua the Messiah and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. 21 It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. 22 Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and “A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud.” 2 PETER 2
Remission of sin is a baptismal grace; no one can procure or appropriate it. The grace is meant to be treasured, not squandered. Before anyone submits to water baptism, he must make a firm resolve to refrain from sinning the rest of his life.
13 You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men. MATTHEW 5
47 The servant who knows what his master wants and does not get himself ready and do it, will be punished with heavy whipping. 48 But the servant who does not know what his master wants, and yet does something for which he deserves a whipping, will be punished with light whipping. Much is required from the person to whom much is given; much more is required from the person to whom much more is given. LUKE 12 tev
22 Many will say to Me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” 23 Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from Me, you evildoers!” MATTHEW 7
[1] Joyce Meyer, The Most Important Decision You’ll Ever Make (Tulsa, Oklahoma: Harvest House Inc., 1996) pp. 20-21.
[2] The magnitude of God’s creation: The universe has 50 billion galaxies more or less, each galaxy containing more than 200 million stars. The stars have solar systems.
[3] Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ (Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1977), p. 38.
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