"And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders, And say unto him, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority to do these things? And Jesus answered and said unto them, I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men? answer me. And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, Why then did ye not believe him? But if we shall say, Of men; they feared the people: for all men counted John, that he was a prophet indeed. And they answered and said unto Jesus, We cannot tell. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authority I do these things."
This lesson demonstrates the unwillingness of the Jewish authority to accept Jesus as the promised Messiah.
When the priests, scribes, and elders asked Jesus by what authority He taught, Jesus challenged them with a very important question, He asked, "The baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men?" The Jewish authority feared that John was a prophet of God and therefore their uncertainty wouldn't allow them to answer the question.
We should examine very closely the question Jesus asked in reference to the "baptism" of John.
Most "Christians" today would have you believe that when one of the phrases "the baptism of John" or "John's baptism", are used, they always imply the use of water. Nothing could be further from the truth. As is obvious by the reasoning of the Jews when they said, "If we shall say, From heaven; he will say, WHY DID YE NOT BELIEVE HIM? But if we shall say, Of men; they feared the people". One cannot "believe", or disbelieve, a water baptism. It either occurs, or it does not. However, one CAN believe a doctrine, or a preached message. Therefore, in the above quote, the phrase "the baptism of John", refers explicitly to the message, or doctrine of repentance John was ordained by God to preach. The term "baptism", as it is applied in this quote, had nothing to do with water.~
As we continue this study, we will find that the above mentioned misinterpretation of the term "baptism", or any of its grammatical variations as they are applied in the gospel of Jesus Christ, is prevalent among many "Christian" denominations.
Exposing the truth about those misinterpretations are paramount to understanding God's plan for the eternal salvation of our souls.~
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