The Question of Baptism

Although meaning has traditionally been taken from Scripture through the study of how early theologians understood the Greek and Hebrew texts (grammatico-historical exegesis), the Apostle Paul wrote that the visible things of this world reveal the invisible things of God (Rom 1:20), and that the physical things of this world precede the spiritual things of God (1 Cor 15:46). Paul advocated typological exegesis. And in addressing infant baptism, about which Scripture is silent except for saying that the Philippian jailer and his entire household were baptized (Acts 16:31-34) as well as Cornelius and his household (Acts 11:14), with the assumption being that not all within the household of the jailer or within the household of Cornelius were adults, the traditional practices of the State Church cannot be accepted as authoritative. For typological exegesis holds that the physical birth and maturation of a former son of disobedience reveals and precedes the invisible spiritual birth and maturation of this same person when this person, born of Spirit as an infant son of God, has been set free from bondage to sin. This person’s physical birth and maturation will occur before this same person’s spiritual birth and maturation. Therefore, the son of disobedience who has not yet been born of Spirit—who has not yet been twice born—has no life but that which comes from the cellular oxidation of sugars. This person consists of flesh and shallow breath: soma [σομα] and psuche [ψυχε] (Matt 10:28 – read this in the original Greek; the first disciples had not yet received the Holy Spirit). This person is described by Solomon:

I said in my heart with regard to the children of man that God is testing them that they may see that they themselves are but beasts. For what happens to the children of man and what happens to the beasts is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and man has no advantage over the beasts, for all is vanity. All go to one place. All are from dust, and to dust all return. (Eccl 3:18-20 – emphasis added)

The twice born disciple consists of “deep breath,” shallow breath, and flesh: pneuma [πνευμα], psuche, and soma (1 Thess 5:23). Until a son of disobedience is born of the Holy Spirit [Pneuma ’Agion], this person does not have within him or herself eternal life, the gift of God (Rom 6:23). To say otherwise is calling God a liar.

The human infant is born as a son of disobedience (Eph 2:2-3), consigned to disobedience (Rom 11:32) by the sin of the first Adam, through whom death entered this world (Rom 5:12-14). There is no child of God within the tent of flesh into which newborn physical life came through the water of the womb, for being born of Spirit will not precede being born of water.

If the baptism of an infant is not valid, then throughout the practice of infant baptism by the Universal Church, heavenly Jerusalem was as empty as physical Jerusalem was during the seventy years when all of Israel was in Babylon, the captive peoples of its human king. The Church, spiritual Israel, because of its lawlessness was sent by God into captivity in spiritual Babylon, the king of which is the prince of this world (Isa 14:4-21). The Church, the spiritual Body of Christ, would have been as dead as was the physical body of Christ during the three days and three nights that Jesus laid in the garden tomb. And as the grave would not prevail against Jesus’ physical body, the gates of hell would not prevail against the spiritual Body. As the physical body was resurrected during the dark portion of the first day of the week, the fourth day of Passover week, the spiritual Body was or will be resurrected during the dark portion of the fourth day of the spiritual creation week.

When and where “Believers’ Baptism” or adult re-baptism began has been the subject of considerable study, with three concepts emerging: “monogenesis,” “polygenesis,” and the continuation of marginalized apostolic practices through a differing but valid apostolic succession. Monogenesis holds that adult re-baptism began January 21, 1525, when Conrad Grebel baptized Georg Blaurock. Under monogenesis, Israel was taken captive by the prince of this world at the Council of Nicea in 325 CE, and twelve centuries later, a remnant of Israel left Babylon in 1525 to rebuild the house of God in the Jerusalem above. Twelve centuries has about it echoes of the seventy years physical Israel was in physical Babylon. Thus, the seventy weeks prophecy will also apply to the reconstruction of the spiritual temple.

Polygenesis holds that adult re-baptism began over a period of several decades, or even longer, and in several locations throughout Europe. The lack of a unified Anabaptist doctrine supports the concept of multiple fellowships beginning the practice of adult re-baptism as if a divine Zeit Geist caused many to rush from spiritual Babylon to rebuild the heavenly temple.

The teaching that adult baptism continued from the apostolic era into the 16th-Century has within it the flaws found by Sabbatarian disciples who seek to show that Sabbath observance continued in marginalized fellowships from the apostolic era forward. The existence of these marginalized fellowships becomes an article of faith, for no evidence remains of their practices and beliefs. Where evidence does exist, the evidence has not supported the conclusions drawn. Therefore, until apostolic succession can be shown, the teaching should be avoided. It, like the concept of church eras, smacks of deceit.

If the captivity of both houses of Israel forms the lively shadow of the spiritual captivity of the Church, both the school at Ephesus [the northern house] and the school at Alexandria [the southern house], then disciples should expect to find a remnant of Israel returning from the Babylonian captivity of the southern house beginning a long theological trek back across the 4th, 3rd, 2nd, and 1st Centuries, a trek that can be visualized as a journey across the desert sands of western Iraq, Syria, and Jordan, with entrance into Judea coming when those making this trek return to Sabbath observance. A few early Anabaptists crossed into spiritual Judea, God’s rest (cf. Ps 95:10-11; Heb 3:16-4:11; Num chap 14), in the 16th-Century, but they were truly trailblazers. The remnant of the remnant (several times removed) didn’t reach the heavenly city until early in the 20th-Century, and only more recently has construction begun again on the foundation that Paul laid (1 Cor 3:10-11) in this heavenly city.
* * *
"Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved."