People hear the word "baptism" and immediately they add the word "water" in their minds. "Baptism" in today's world has become synonymous with "water baptism". And in Jewish society people would have thought the same thing, since water baptism originated as a Jewish custom.

However, John the Baptist who was in the Old Testament (see Luke 16:16), knew that Jesus was coming to bring a different understanding of baptism, just as he was going to do with so many of the old traditions and laws. Jesus' baptism was going to maintain the spirit of the old baptism, but without the outward religious ritual.

This is what John the Baptist said of Jesus:

"There comes one mightier than I am, after me, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and unloose. I indeed have baptized you with water; but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost." (Mark 1:7-8, Matthew 3:11 and Luke 3:16)

Here is the man who was most famous for baptising people with water, saying that Jesus' baptism would be a different baptism. And we know that Jesus did not baptise with water himself. (See John 4:2.) So Jesus lived up to what John the Baptist had said of him, in that Jesus' baptism was a spiritual one, and not a physical one.

Water baptism does not seem to be what Peter has in view in 1 Peter 3:21. The English word "baptism" is simply a transliteration of the Greek word baptizo, which means "to immerse." Peter is not talking about immersion in water, as the phrase "not the removal of dirt from the flesh" indicates.
He is referring to immersion in Christ's death and resurrection through "an appeal to God for a good conscience," or repentance....

See Matthew 3:11.

Acts 10:44-48 reads, "While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.
Then Peter answered, 'Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?' And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then they asked him to stay a few days."

In other passages of scripture, we see people believing before baptism (Acts 8:13), receiving the Word before baptism (Acts 2:41), hearing and believing before baptism(Acts 18:8), and in this passage, we see them filled with the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues before baptism. Can an unsaved, unbeliever be filled with the Holy Spirit? Of course not. Can an unsaved person glorify God with the gift of tongues? Absolutely not. Therefore, we can safely conclude that these people were saved before their baptism.

Paul puts baptism in proper perspective in 1 Corinthians 1:17. It reads, "For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect." If Paul wasn't even sent to baptize, then how can it possibly be a prerequisite for salvation? If it were, Paul surely would have been sent to preach the gospel and baptize.

Did you know that Jesus Christ never baptized anyone? John 4:2 reads, "Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples (baptized)."

We can suffice it to say that Jesus didn't come to baptize either. Therefore, we have the two most prominent and influential teachers in Christianity, and in the entire history of the world, and they did not come to baptize. How could baptism possibly be a prerequisite for salvation?
The answer is simple. It cannot be.

Mark 16:16 reads, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned." This is an interesting verse and if you read it closely, you will understand it. Who will be condemned? Are the condemned the ones that don't get baptized? No, the condemned are the ones that don't believe. Mark 16:17 is an important verse, too. It reads, "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;" Will unbelievers cast out demons and speak in tongues to the glory of God? Of course not...

Let's Suppose...

      Another way of making this clear is to use an illustration. Let's suppose that a person, under the conviction of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8), believed in Jesus as his savior (Rom. 10:9-10; Titus 2:13), and has received Christ (John 1:12) as Savior. Is that person saved? Of course he is. Let's further suppose that this person confesses his sinfulness, cries out in repentance to the Lord, and receives Jesus as Savior and then walks across the street to get baptized at a local church. In the middle of the road he gets hit by a car and is killed. Does he go to heaven or hell? If he goes to heaven then baptism isn't necessary for salvation. If He goes to hell, then trusting in Jesus, by faith, isn't enough for salvation. Doesn't that go against the Scriptures that say that salvation is a free gift (Rom. 6:23) received by faith (Eph. 2:8-9)?
      Saying that baptism is necessary for salvation is dangerous because it is saying that there is something we must do to complete salvation. That is wrong! See Gal. 2:21; 5:4.

By Sheila Rae Myers

    The main focus of this study is to determine if baptism is required for our salvation. A second question may be posed as to whether or not a person who claims to be a Christian needs to be baptized at any time because many will make the statement that if a person isn't baptized than they are not really Christians.

Around the world people are letting the vanguard of the anti-Christ into their homes and into the hearts and souls of their children. Please send this warning out to everyone you know and care about!

The Immaculate Conception as Perverted in the Pagan Harry Potter Books

An article by Lurlene Tyranna Shores

by Marcia Montenegro
Written June, 2000

Harry Potter is a character in a series of books written by J. K. Rowling about a young boy who discovers he is really a wizard, in other words, a sorcerer. Four books have come out in the Harry Potter series, with 3.8 million copies of the fourth book being released in the U.S. on July 8, 2000. Worldwide, 35 million copies of the first three books are in print, with about half of total sales in the U.S. (“USA Today,” 6-22-00, p. D-1). The first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, was released in England as Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. The “Philosopher’s Stone” is part of the lore of alchemy and medieval sorcery, and was supposedly a stone which could be used to turn base metal to gold, and was the Holy Grail of sorcery (Bill Whitcomb, The Magician’s Companion, St. Paul: Llewellyn, 1994, pp. 351, 485, 527).

The reading phenomenon known as "Harry Potter" is sweeping the globe, and it truly has an international presence as readers in 200 nations, in over 40 languages, indulge in this series. A U.S. consumer research survey reports that "over half of all children between the ages of 6 and 17 have read at least one Harry Potter book". With the financial backing of Warner Brothers, Mattel, Coca Cola, and Scholastic, Inc., Potter is sure to be a force to reckon with for years to come. Public school educators and many parents in America are thrilled with a series that has captured the imagination of children like no other in history, prompting a revived interest in reading. Reading is a good thing, but not all is as innocent as Potter fans would have others believe.

(Courtesy: Christian Answers Net)

HOMOSEXUALITY--The Biblical Viewpoint [Compiled and edited by The Christian Digest ] The issue of homosexuality has been in the news a great deal lately. Some people profess it or support it, many people think homosexuals should at least have certain rights, privileges and benefits, and a few others actively campaign against homosexuality.