Subject: Explanations of difficult verses |
Bible Note: If your comments represent the only truth then anyone in history who was baptized by any other means other than emersion was not really baptized. I believe the verses you are referring to (Romans 6:4 and Colossians 2:12) do not have anything to do with water. It is buried unto “death” and not into water. In the verse from Colossians we see that the soul is raised through “the operation of God”. It is not that our bodies are raised out of the water by the physical strength of man. These passages signify the deepest work of grace---separation from sin and made alive to God. They are figurative and no more literal as to being put under water than the passages of scripture such as ‘crucified with Christ’ mean we are to be nailed to a literal cross of wood or that ‘resurrection’ and ‘raised up from the dead’ in Romans 6:4-5 mean a literal resurrection of the body. Paul says, “We are buried with Christ,” not that we were buried in water. To really represent His burial the body of the baptized candidate would have to be left under the water three days and three nights. Another thing was that Jesus’ body was exposed in the tomb and not covered up although the tomb was sealed Jesus was not covered up. There is a lot of difference in being buried with Christ by baptism into death and buried under water by a preacher. The baptism Paul is speaking of here is the same as that spoken of in Luke 12:50, which is the baptism of suffering and death. I hope this helps. |