Walking In The Spirit Is A Choice

Ephesians 4:22-24, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

Salvation is a free gift from God, received through faith in His only begotten Son, Jesus. You did nothing to deserve God's forgiveness, and His gift of eternal life is accompanied by another gift—the blessed indwelling Holy Spirit (who is the Godhead living in each believer). The Holy Spirit is the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, who enables you and me to live the Christian life. John 14:26, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” The Holy Spirit helps you in resisting temptation and making wiser decisions. He gives us knowledge through searching the inspired Word of God, to help us make daily decisions.

The FLESH (our human sinful nature) is diabolical and always ready to separate us from the spiritual things of God. Galatians 5:17, “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” Every saint of God struggles between the flesh and the spirit. I have heard some preachers teach that when a person gets saved, the old nature is forever gone, and only the new nature in Christ remains. However, it cannot be denied that even with the new nature (which is Christ in us, united with our spirit), we still have the sinful FLESH to contend with. So call it what you will, every Christian still has the old sinful flesh which is contrary to the Holy Spirit in us. The old nature may be gone, but the flesh is still here!

Our old nature is when our spirit was dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1), and we did not know God; but then we trusted in Jesus Christ, and we became a new creature (2nd Corinthians 5:17). God gives us a new spiritual understanding of the things of God (i.e., now we have the indwelling Holy Spirit to teach and guide us into all truth. John 16:13, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” Even though we have a new nature, in which the indwelling Spirit of God convicts us about the sins in our life, it is possible for us to CHOOSE to continue walking in the flesh, and not walk in the Spirit, so that we will still fulfill the sinful lusts of the flesh.

This does not mean we are not born-again, it just means that we are not obeying our heavenly Father to walk in the Spirit. If saved, always saved! At the moment of salvation, God regenerates our spirit that was dead, giving us life in His Holy Spirit. The Bible refers to the Holy Spirit as the “Spirit of Christ.” Romans 8:9, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” That is precious! The Holy Spirit is Jesus' Spirit in us as believers. We also have the Spirit of God the Father in us as believers. That is, we have the Godhead living inside of our spirit, soul and body as redeemed saints of God.

What a magnificent God, who loves us so much that He wanted to make His abode inside our very being. Wow, what amazing love and grace!!! What saith the Scripture? John 14:23, “Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” The man who loves God will keep His Words. We find those words in John 6:40, “And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.”

Our born-again spirit is sinless by virtue of the Cross! But should we continue to sin? God forbid! With Grace on our minds, the last thing we want to do is grieve the Holy Spirit. Remember, as believers we FALL IN GRACE, but never FROM GRACE! Romans 6:1, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?” When we choose to sin as God's children, even committing the most despicable of crimes, God's grace always abounds, so that we could NEVER lose His free gift of forgiveness of sins and eternal life. The reason why is because we didn't earn it. We did not pay for it, Jesus did, with His precious blood that He shed on the cross, and sprinkled on the Mercy Seat in Heaven (1st Peter 1:18-19; Hebrews 9:12, 22-24; 12:24).

True perfection will not come until the Rapture of the church when we rise to meet Jesus in the air. (1st Thessalonians 4:17). We will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ to follow (2nd Corinthians 5:9-11), where our works (the good and bad done in our body) will be judged and rewards will be given (1st Corinthians 3:6-15). Tears will flow for most saints, who wasted their time here on earth (1st Corinthians 3:11-15); while a few soulwinning saints will shine as the brightness of the stars forever (Daniel 12:3). They will shine because they will be a hero to all the people whom they led to Jesus Christ back on earth.

In salvation, Christ redeemed our soul, but our body won't be redeemed until Christ returns. Our redemption will be complete at the Rapture (which I humbly think will happen BEFORE the 7-year Tribulation period), and we will live and reign with Christ throughout the 1,000-year Millennium, in our glorified bodies in sinless perfection (Revelation 20:6; Philippians 3:21; 1st Corinthians 15:51-58).

As believers, God's Spirit lives in us and renews us every day. Walking in the Spirit is a choice. We can ignore God and make the wrong choices, indulging in sin, losing our calm and peace of soul; or we can choose to walk in the Spirit, by bringing every thought into captivity unto obedience to Christ. ...

2nd Corinthians 10:3-6, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”

At any given moment we can choose to walk in the Spirit, but we won't always make that right choice because we are still tied to the sinful flesh (which is where the word “carnal” comes from, fleshly; as in Carna Asada steak, which means “flesh roasted”). Psalms 119:9, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?  by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.” The Bible will keep us from sin; or sin will keep us from the Bible.

The Holy Spirit ALWAYS guides us with the inspired Word of God. If you ever hear Oprah Winfrey or anybody else, talking about spiritual things and they are not including the Holy Bible, run away as fast as you can; because any spirit that is not the Holy Spirit is a familiar spirit (a demon). The Holy Spirit always leads a child of God in accordance with the written Word of God, and never contrary to it. People do a lot of crazy things, claiming that God's Spirit led them to do it, but don't you believe them for a moment.

Was Jesus' Teaching Works For Salvation In Luke 10:25-28?

Luke 10:25-28, “And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.”

This is an intriguing passage of Scripture. I love something that Dr. Curtis Hutson (1934-1995) said: “A good rule to follow when interpreting the Bible is to never use an obscure passage to contradict a clear one.” Using that important Bible study principle, we can say without a doubt that Luke 10:25-28 is NOT teaching a works-based plan of salvation! We know this because of clear passages; such as, Romans 4:3-5, “For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness.”

To understand what Jesus is saying in Luke 10:25-28, it is key to notice that one of the wicked unsaved Pharisees, a lawyer, is tempting Him. Luke 10:25, “And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” So we must keep in mind that Jesus is responding to a wicked man who is tempting Him. The Lord often spoke in parables, or in a clever way, when dealing with skeptics and unbelievers...

Mark 4:34, “But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.”

Jesus was a sincere man, He refused to cast pearls before the swine, before those whom Jesus knew resented His Words and had no interest in the truth. Jesus asked the lawyer how he interpreted the Old Testament. Luke 10:26,“He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?” The lawyer gave a works based plan of salvation, so Jesus agreed with him. Christ did the same thing with the rich young ruler...

Mark 10:17-23, “And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!”

The young man called Jesus, “Good Master.” Although Jesus was good, God in fact, sinless in every manner; the rich young ruler didn't recognize Jesus as such. Instead, the young man saw Jesus as a good man, who had perfectly kept God's commandments. The Old Testament law had originally been given by God as a measuring stick, by which when sinful men compared themselves, they realized their sinnership and need for the coming Messiah (Romans 3:19-20). Unfortunately, the Jews failed to understand this truth and instead turned the law into a plan of salvation. So instead of seeing themselves as sinners and turning to Christ by faith to be saved, they were now trying to perfectly keep the law as a means of attaining eternal life. The law had become a stumblingblock to the Jews!

Jesus was not giving the rich young ruler in Mark 10:17-23 a plan of salvation, He was using the law the way it was intended to be used—as a measuring stick to show men their desperate need for salvation through faith in Christ alone. Acts 10:42, “To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.” Everyone in the Old Testament was saved the same way we are today—by faith alone in Christ alone.

So in Luke 24:25-28 Jesus is NOT giving a plan of salvation to this lawyer—the Lord is simply agreeing with the Pharisee that if he wants to get to Heaven by keeping the law, he must do so perfectly. Carefully notice what Jesus told him in Luke 10:28, “And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.” Notice that Jesus said, “THIS DO” (that is works). Jesus was simply agreeing with the man, who had said that you attain eternal life by keeping the law. Just as Jesus did with the rich young ruler, so also is he simply agreeing with this lawyer that if he wants to work his way to Heaven, then he must perfectly keep the law.

Please notice the lawyer's insincerity and confirmation that he is trying to work his way to Heaven in Luke 10:29, “But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?” You see, this heathen lawyer is trying to JUSTIFY HIMSELF!!! No one has ever been born-again by justifying himself. We can only be justified by faith in Jesus Christ, accepting His sacrifice on Calvary's cross as payment for our sins. The Pharisee lawyer in Luke 10:25-29 is seeking self-justification, and Jesus knew it; so the dear Savior used the law as it was intended to be used, to show men that no matter how much they may try to keep the law perfectly to merit eternal life, they cannot.

Again, we know that this passage in Luke 10:25-28 cannot be a plan of salvation, because it would contradict plain passages of Scripture; such as, the entire Gospel of John. A good rule to follow when interpreting the Bible is to never use an obscure passage to contradict a clear one. In the Gospel of John we find the word “faith” mentioned 85 times, but there is no teaching of doing works, praying, turning from sins, speaking in tongues, surrendering to Christ's Lordship, confessing, following, serving nor of water baptism to get to Heaven. John 6:47, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.”

The two greatest commandments in the Holy Bible are to LOVE GOD, and to likewise LOVE OUR NEIGHBOUR. These two commandments are really just one: TO LOVE!!! But loving God means different things to different people. Biblically, loving God means to obey His commandments, the foremost of which is to believe on His only begotten Son, the Christ (John 3:16; 20:31). No one has rightly divided the inspired Word of God, who thinks that a person can be saved through personal righteousness. In fact, we can only be saved by God's imputed righteousness, which is through faith in Jesus Christ. Philippians 3:9, “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:”

The Worst Pervert in The World Is The Gospel Pervert

Galatians 1:6-12, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed. For do I now persuade men, or God? or do I seek to please men? for if I yet pleased men, I should not be the servant of Christ. But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

“The worst pervert in America is the Gospel pervert!” —Evangelist Lester Roloff (1914-1982), “The Gospel Perverts Or Jesus?”

Amen and amen! Brother Roloff is exactly right, as we read in our text passage of Scripture. Please notice the portion of our text passage from Galatians 1:6-7, “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.” Some ungodly people pervert the Gospel on purpose, but the most deadly

It is truly disturbing that the Gospel is being presented inaccurately in thousands of churches today. Sadly, this includes so-called “independent fundamental Baptist” churches. I have been an independent fundamental Baptist since the day I got saved at age 13 in 1980. Of the approximate 6,500 independent Baptist churches across the United States, I dare say only 3% accurately present the Gospel. Case in point, take a look at the demonic counterfeit gospel preached by Sam Adams, senior pastor of Independent Baptist Church in Ocala, Florida.

It is in our flawed human nature to merely go along with the program, to believe what we hear without questioning it, without thinking objectively for ourselves. Then there is peer pressure, causing humans to fear going against the herd (the majority, the crowd). Nobody wants to be rejected, avoided, shunned and ostracized by their peer group. This is where we separate those who truly love God above all else, versus those phonies who merely profess to love God, but when push comes to shove they choose the praise of men more than the praise of God. John 12:42-43, “Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.”

There's not a more phony cult group today than Pensacola Christian College (PCC). They talk the talk but they don't walk the walk. PCC is nothing more than a secular institution today with a Christian religious label slapped over it. PCC doesn't care about individual people, of which I am living proof, having been permanently banned from attending their Campus Church since August 2, 2022. SHAME on PCC!!! Only a religious CULT selectively decides who can or cannot attend a local New Testament church. I sit home from church on Sunday and Wednesday nights, and visit different churches on Sunday, having no home church, because of PCC's hatred and refusal to allow me to attend their church. What wicked people!!!

PCC wickedness bids Godspeed to infidel Ken Ham, who teaches that more than faith is required to get to Heaven. It is tragic that professed Christians today only care about making filthy lucre, but don't care about contending for the faith. PCC has never contended for the faith, they merely parasite off off the churches to make lots of money.

What Ken Ham preaches is called 'Lordship Salvation,' which is a perversion of the free grace Gospel. Lordship Salvation combines and confuses DISCIPLESHIP with SALVATION. Pilgrim's Progress author, John Bunyan (1628-1688), made this beautiful statement in defense of a free grace Gospel:

“If you do not put a difference between justification wrought by the man Christ without and sanctification wrought by the Spirit of Christ within, you are not able to divide the Word aright; but contrariwise, you corrupt the Word of God, and cast stumbling blocks before the people.” —John Bunyan

Yes, incompetent preachers, evangelists, missionaries, chaplains, laymen and pastors everywhere nowadays are corrupting the Gospel, casting stumblingblocks before the people, damning men's souls to the Lake of Fire forever. Here are some excellent helpful quotes differentiating between SALVATION versus DISCIPLESHIP to help you see the difference...

"It is an inexcusable error to confront sinners with problems that concern the Christian life and call upon them to make promises regarding them. An unsaved person is never called upon to surrender himself to God. The saving act is in no instance represented as our 'giving ourselves to God'; it is, on the contrary, taking His Son as our Savior." —Ryrie, Charles, Balancing the Christian Life; Moody Press, Inc., 1969 (p. 170) 

"The second approach finds faith in the gospel alone an 'easy Believism' and seeks to add something to faith in order to accomplish salvation. To repent is to 'change one's mind,' and to believe is to remove one's trust from that in which it has rested and place it in Christ." —Howard, William, Is Faith Enough to Save?, Bibliotheca Sacra; January-March, 1942 (p. 99) 

"This kind of faith is not 'easy believism'. It is not easy to say, 'I can't save myself, I must recognize that there is something wrong with me, and I must seek help from someone else.'" —Hook, H. Phillip, A Biblical Definition Of Saving Faith, Bibliotheca Sacra; April-June, 1964 (pp. 133, 138) 

"Eternal life is free. Discipleship is immeasurably hard. The former is attained by faith alone, the latter by a faith that works... the former brings with it the righteousness of God so that a man is 'justified freely by his grace' (Romans 3:24). The latter develops a personal righteousness, based on good deeds, so that a man was also 'justified by works' (James 2:24). The former constituted the believer God's workmanship, the latter fulfilled the wonderful purpose for which he had been created. The former cost man nothing, the latter could cost him everything, including life itself." —Hodges, Zane C, The Hungry Inherit; Moody Press, Inc., 1972 (pp. 114, 115) 

"There is a vast difference between coming to Jesus for salvation and coming after Jesus for service. Coming to Christ makes one a believer, while coming after Christ makes one a disciple. All believers are not disciples. To become a believer one accepts the invitation of the Gospel, to be a disciple one obeys the challenge to a life of dedicated service and separation. Salvation comes through the sacrifice of Christ; discipleship comes only by sacrifice of self and surrender to His call for devoted service. Salvation is free, but discipleship involves paying the price of a separated walk. Salvation can't be lost because it depends upon God's faithfulness, but discipleship can be lost because it depends upon our faithfulness." —DeHaan, M. R., Hebrews; Zondervan Publishing House, 1959 (p. 117)

"For the unregenerate man, repentance is the change of mind whereby he turns from unbelief to faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ." —Post, Roger, The Meanings of the Words Translated 'Repent' and 'Repentance' in the New Testament; Master's Thesis, Wheaton College, June 1972 (p. 80)

"There are those who, in their zeal to get people to turn from their sinful ways and receive the Lord, almost put repentance on a par with believing... Repentance, as it relates to Christ, means to change our minds about Him, who He is and what He's done to provide forgiveness and deliverance from our sins. When we place faith in Jesus as having taken our place personally on the cross and borne the penalty due our sins, then we're automatically repenting, because we couldn't accept Him in this way without having had to change our minds in some way concerning Him." —Lindsey, Hal, The Liberation of Planet Earth; Zondervan Publishing House, 1974 (pp. 136, 137)

"Discipleship is frequently equated with salvation and often erroneously made a condition for becoming a Christian." —Pentecost, J. Dwight, Design For Discipleship; Zondervan Publishing House, 1971 (p. 11)

"Certainly discipleship is a most important aspect of our relation to Christ, but it belongs to the sphere of Christian life rather than entrance upon that life... One does not become a disciple in order to become a Christian, but because he has become a Christian by faith in the Savior, it is fitting that he embark upon a life of discipleship." —Harrison, Everett F., Must Christ be Lord to Be Savior?-No; Eternity, September 1959 (p. 14)

"There is no more piously subtle abrogation of the Gospel than to tell a Sinner that he must not only believe in the Savior, but dedicate himself to do God's will, crown the Savior Lord of his life, etc., etc. Obviously, dedication and service are highly desirable, but they are the privilege and the duty of the saved, never a condition of salvation for the unsaved (cf. Romans 12:1, 2)." —Unger, Merrill F., God Is Waiting To Meet You; Moody Press, 1975 (pp. 117, 118)

"People are sometimes led to believe that there is saving value in some public confession of Christ, or profession of a decision. "With the heart man believeth unto righteousness." This is salvation. "With the mouth confession is made unto salvation." This is the voice of the newborn child speaking to and of its father. The only condition on which one may be saved is to believe." —Chafer, Lewis Sperry, Salvation; Dunham Publishing Company, 1917 (p. 46)

The evidence that we are saved is the indwelling Holy Spirit, not the way we live. 1st John 3:24, “And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.”

“If you have to look at your life to prove that you are saved, it proves that you're not!” —Pastor Ralph 'Yankee' Arnold, “Why Lordship Salvation is WRONG!”

The Harm Of Infant Baptism

Acts 8:36-38, “And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.”

by Dr. John R. Rice

Since salvation must come, according to the Bible, before there can be Bible baptism, it is obvious that there is no reason for baptizing babies, unaccountable infants. There is not one New Testament record of the baptism of an infant. Jesus did lay His hands on little children and bless them, but certainly He did not baptize them or the Scripture would somewhere have said so.

In the sixteenth chapter of Acts, there are two cases where households were baptized. The first was the household of Lydia of whom the Scripture says in Acts 16:14,15:

“And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.”

We do not know who was included in her household. Nothing was said about children, and it is not even intimated that she was married. Certainly there is no teaching of “infant baptism” here. In the case of the jailer, in the same chapter, the Scripture makes it certain that there were no unaccountable babies. That passage in verses 29 to 34 says:

“Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house, And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.”

Verse 33 does say “and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.” But notice that verse 32 states that Paul and Silas preached the word “to all that were in his house” and verse 34 says that he “rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.” Certainly everybody who was baptized in that household heard the word and believed in Christ.

BABIES CIRCUMCISED, WHY NOT BABIES BAPTIZED?
It is true that boy babies were circumcised in Israel when eight days old (Genesis 17:12). But baptism and circumcision are two entirely different matters. Circumcision was for boys and men only, while baptism is for both sexes alike. Circumcision was for every boy or man of Hebrew blood, while baptism is only for saved people. Circumcision and baptism mean entirely different things. Circumcision meant that this child was an Israelite, one of the chosen race by natural birth. Baptism means that the one baptized is born again and one of God’s children by a birth from Heaven. One has no right to be baptized until he is born as God’s child. The Bible does not say one word about dedicating little children to the Lord by any kind of Christian ceremony and certainly does not mention baptism of babies anywhere in the Bible.

It is a sad and remarkable fact that many earnest Christian people have followed Roman Catholics in sprinkling unaccountable babies when there is not one verse in the Bible to even intimate that it was the will of God! In the Bible, people were baptized after they believed and were saved, as was the case with the jailer and his entire family.

THE HARM OF INFANT BAPTISM
Baptism of an unaccountable baby does untold harm. For one thing, it leaves the impression that the change of heart is not necessary. It leaves the impression that the religion of the Lord Jesus is a matter of ritual, not of personal faith. It ignores the Bible teaching that baptism represents the burial and resurrection of Jesus and the believer’s change of heart. Worst of all, the one who is thus given a ceremony which was only for Christians, often is led to believe, in after years, that since he is a member of a church, has been baptized, and is a respectable citizen, therefore he does not need the change of heart, does not need to be converted, saved by the blood of Jesus. Whatever fine argument you may make for the sprinkling of a little baby, it is answered by the plain, indisputable fact that Jesus did not command it and it is certainly unscriptural and wrong.

We begin to see, then, why the Lord Jesus puts such stress on baptism. It is the gospel, so simple that every new convert can preach it. It pictures the plan of salvation. Yea, it safeguards the plan of salvation. If I change the form of baptism, I change the meaning of baptism, I change the doctrine of salvation. If I take a little child, unaccountable, who has not trusted in Christ for salvation, and without his volition, I put water upon his head and “baptize” him, I have taught an entirely different plan of salvation. I have said to the unthinking world that people do not need a change of heart, but that with a simple rite of dedication they have a right into the fellowship of a New Testament church. When I change the form of baptism, I have lost all the picture about the death of Christ, His atonement, His resurrection, the change necessary in the believer’s heart and the change commanded in his life. When people go wrong on baptism, they go wrong on the doctrine of salvation.

If people have a right to change the form of baptism, they have a right to change the form of church government, change from the New Testament program of soul winning to the modern program of education. Good, old time Methodist people who believe, as John Wesley did, in a change of heart, oftentimes wonder why that strong tendency of modern Methodism toward teaching salvation by works, by character, by education and by culture instead of salvation by the blood! One reason is, they do not have Bible baptism, a burial of the believer with Christ, to picture to the world the great teaching of the plan of salvation. Sprinkling babies teaches against the need for a change of heart.

STAY WITH BIBLE BAPTISM
Suppose we even retain the form of baptism, but still teach it as essential to salvation as do our Catholic friends and as do Churches of Christ or Disciples, Lutherans and others. When one is baptized, then, he says to the world. “I am saving my soul by my good works.” The preacher or priest is saying, perhaps unconsciously, to the world, “The church by rites and ceremonies is saving this man’s soul.”

The candidate baptized, the preacher or priest, and the onlookers alike all miss the blessed, blessed teaching that Christ died for our sins, that men are saved simply by faith in His shed blood, that a deep-seated, fundamental change has been made in the heart of the believer, called the new birth. BIBLE BAPTISM IS GOD’S SAFEGUARD AROUND SOUND DOCTRINE ON THE PLAN OF SALVATION. That is the reason if baptism was not done the right way, or if it was done with the right method, but without the scriptural teaching in the minds of the people, it should be done again, as Paul baptized the second time those converts at Ephesus as told in Acts 19:1-6. Let us stay with the Bible as to the form and meaning of baptism and baptize only those who have a Bible right to baptism, that is, saved people. Certainly baptism of babies is unscriptural, dangerous and wrong.

"𝗜𝗡𝗙𝗔𝗡𝗧 𝗕𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗜𝗦𝗠 - 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗢𝗡𝗘" (𝗗𝗿. 𝗠𝗮𝘅 𝗗. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲)

"𝗜𝗡𝗙𝗔𝗡𝗧 𝗕𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗜𝗦𝗠 - 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗧𝗪𝗢" (𝗗𝗿. 𝗠𝗮𝘅 𝗗. 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗲)