Audio Teaching • Water Baptism, Part 1 (KJV)
This teaching comes from the King James Bible, and every verse I quote is from the KJV.
These are my own convictions from the Word of God, shared through The Prevailing Word of God ministry, and they do not speak for any local church.
Water baptism is a command of Jesus Christ for every believer, and water baptism does not save anyone.
The full teaching, spoken. MP3, 32 minutes 11 seconds.
A note on the Scripture labels. Each verse I quote carries one of two labels. Prescriptive marks a text that teaches what God requires or declares as true for every believer, such as Ephesians 2:8-9. Descriptive marks a text that records what happened or what was said at a particular time, such as an event in the Gospels or the book of Acts. Both are fully the Word of God, and the label only shows how a verse works in its setting.
Prescriptive
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”
Matthew 28:19 (KJV)
This message opens my series on water baptism. Few subjects in the church raise more disagreement, so I ask you to do what the Bereans did. Search the Scriptures daily and see whether these things are so (Acts 17:11). Your own salvation is at stake, so check everything I say against the King James Bible.
I begin with how a sinner is saved. Paul wrote that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, and not of ourselves (Ephesians 2:8-9). The thief on the cross was never baptized, yet Jesus Christ promised him paradise that same day (Luke 23:43). Without shedding of blood is no remission (Hebrews 9:22), and we were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:18-19). No verse in the Bible makes water the means of the remission of sins.
Descriptive
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJV)
Water baptism is still a command. The risen Jesus Christ told His disciples to teach all nations and to baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost (Matthew 28:19-20). Disciples are made first, and baptism follows. In the book of Acts, believers were baptized right away, often the same day they believed (Acts 2:41; 8:12; 16:31-33).
Cornelius and his household received the Holy Ghost before they were baptized in water (Acts 10:44-48). Baptism pictures what God has already done in the believer. It shows our burial and resurrection with Jesus Christ (Romans 6:3-4), and it is the answer of a good conscience toward God (1 Peter 3:21). A believer who loves Jesus Christ keeps His commandments (John 14:15).
If you have come to Jesus Christ and have not been baptized, do not delay any longer. If you have not yet come to Jesus Christ, baptism is not your next step. Come to Him first, and be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:20).
Scriptures in This Message
Acts 17:11; Ephesians 2:8-9; Luke 23:42-43; John 7:38-39; Hebrews 9:22; Romans 3:23-25; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Acts 2:21; John 3:16; Matthew 26:28; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:41; Acts 8:12; Acts 10:44-48; Acts 16:31-33; John 14:15; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21; Luke 18:9-14; 2 Corinthians 5:20
The Central Proclamation
Salvation is only through a personal relationship with God the Father by grace through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. At the moment of faith in Jesus Christ, the believer is instantly and permanently indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit regenerates, seals, leads, guides, empowers, and sanctifies the believer in their walk with God.
Descriptive (verses 18, 19, and 21) and Prescriptive (verse 20)
“And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 (KJV)
The Prevailing Word Radio
This message is part of the radio program. Every program is on the Radio page, and you can carry them with you by adding the podcast feed to your listening app.
Watch the teachingNew verse by verse studies go out every week on YouTube, King James Version, with the passage on the screen. Subscribe to The Prevailing Word of God, taught by John Kempf of Melbourne, Florida.