Let’s recap the points we’ve made so far:
1.
As you are going about your normal daily
business,
2.
Disciple
3.
Everyone!
I guess I’m a stickler for grammar. If we were to diagram
Matt 28:19-20, the main part of the Great Commission is….
Disciple all the peoples of the world!
….and the way to do this is indicated by three participles:
1.
Going
2.
Baptizing
3.
Teaching
I’ve already ridden the “Going” horse, so today let's talk about “Baptizing.”
The grammatical form of “baptizing” is exactly the same as “going.”
It’s a participle, indicating ongoing action. It’s not a command, “Baptize!” It’s
just a statement of fact, “As you are going, disciple all the peoples,
baptizing them.”
But notice that we aren’t just baptizing them – we’re
not just immersing them in water! We are baptizing disciples into something!
– the Greek preposition εις (eis) implies motion: moving from one place to
another, into a new place, into a new status. And it indicates possession or
ownership: When a disciple is baptized, they are declaring to the world that
they have moved “into God,” and no longer belong to themselves, they belong to
God! Wow – what a concept!
And note well the Trinitarian Formula on the lips of Jesus.
He’s not content just to say “into God.” No! He specifies the Holy Trinity: “into
to the name of Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (literal
translation)! This is huge.
And it’s enough for today. More next week . . . . J
Really huge ... to be 'immersed' into SOMEONE who claims to know God so intimately he calls God 'father' and claims to be ONE with God and Holy Spirt ... huge.
ReplyDeleteOnce moved "into" Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one no longer belongs to ones self. That is a pretty powerful statement by itself. It took me a while to really understand that and I think God is still teaching me what that really means for my life. My prayer for all of my brothers and sisters is that we obey what Jesus commands here and that when we disciple everyone, baptizing them, that we really encourage one another to understand that we give up ourselves when we move "into God."
ReplyDeleteThe statements clarify what I have heard throughout my experience in Sunday school or church. This is clear and concise and is beginning to make more sense.
ReplyDeleteI find the concept of one being baptized into the trinity interesting. I feel as if the idea of baptizing being a verb is an idea I am familiar with, but I do appreciate the mindfulness of specifying what one is being baptized/ welcomed into.
ReplyDeleteI love the emphasis that baptism is not simply immersion in water, it is an introduction into a new life in God; it marks a new beginning, a fresh start. Baptizing and teaching are building blocks in the act of discipling.
ReplyDeleteBaptism is much more than the typical church teaching calls for. It is the physical setting apart in front of the world and declaring that they no longer belong to this world but they now belong to Christ. They have been claimed and removed from the grips of the fallen world...Amen!
ReplyDelete