Lesson 362

(Lesson 362)(08-11-12) Acts 8:26-40, "And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans. And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. 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. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea."

In this lesson, The Lord tells Philip to go and preach to the Ethiopian eunuch. Because this eunuch was reading from Isaiah, he was obviously already seeking God when Philip was sent. After Philip explained that Isaiah was talking about the coming of Jesus and his sacrifice for the sins of all mankind, the eunuch understood and believed. He subsequently submitted himself to water baptism.
This lesson clearly demonstrates that one's salvation must be demonstrated before water baptism can to be administered. This truth can be established by what Philip demanded of the eunuch before he could be baptized. "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." Philip would not baptize the eunuch until he was assured of his salvation. Philip had learned his lesson when Simon pretended to believe and was then baptized, his insincerity making a mockery of his baptism.
NOTE: Every mention of water baptism, made in the New Testament before Jesus was crucified, placed the baptism BEFORE repentance. Every mention of the term baptism, after the ascension of the Glorified Jesus, placed the baptism AFTER belief in, recognition and acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Son of God.
To put it in simpler terms, water baptism, until the ascension of a risen Jesus Christ, was practiced as a Jewish traditional preparation for all things religious, including repentance. After Christ ascended, water baptism was practiced as a verification, by the Church, of one's salvation and a symbol of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and was practiced AFTER salvation had been professed.~