Floyd wrote:

I have always believed the apostle Paul wrote Hebrews, but some question him being the writer. What evidence have you that it was Paul who wrote Hebrews, the way he starts and ends some believe is not Paul's way of writing.

Thanks,
Floyd

Dear Floyd,
God bless you, and thank you for writing. Yes, we believe Paul wrote Hebrews, and we present the following research to show why.

Hebrews

Paul, Its Writer

Paul wrote at least one epistle to the "Dispersion", for Peter says so (2 Pet. 3:15), but that, of course, does not prove that The Epistle to the Hebrews is referred to by Peter, nor does it prove that Paul wrote it. It only assures us that even though he was the Apostle to the Gentiles, he did write at least one Epistle to believers of the Jewish race. His own vehement love manifested in Romans 9:1-5 would also make it very likely that he would write to them as well as pray for them as he did. It has been objected that the style and the vocabulary of Hebrews is unlike that of Paul's other Epistles, but that can be accounted for both from the nature of the subject, and the great amount of the O.T. that is quoted and referred to. There are one or two features that link Hebrews with Paul's other Epistles, which we will set out before going on to the study of the Epistle itself.

If Hebrews be written by Paul, then he is the only writer in the N.T. to quote from Habakkuk two: "The just shall live by his faith". In Romans, the stress is laid upon the word "just" (Rom. 1:16-17). In Galatians, the stress is laid upon "faith" (Gal. 3:11). In Hebrews, the stress is laid upon "live" (Heb. 10:38). No other writer in the N.T. uses Psalm 8 in the way that Paul and the author of the Hebrews does. Notice the peculiar way in which Paul seizes upon the universality of the subjection when the end comes, "It is manifest that He is excepted, which did put all things under Him" (1 Cor. 15:27), and with this compare the peculiar argument of Hebrews 2, "For in that He put all in subjection under Him, He left nothing that is not put under Him" (Heb. 2:8). Surely the same mind is revealed at work in both of these references to Psalm 8. The only other reference is that of Ephesians 1:22, where the theme is the ascended and seated Christ, Head over all things to The Church. Here there are two O.T. passages, handled in a way that suggests a common author.

The way in which a writer quotes Scripture will often prove a guide, and there is one passage, Deuteronomy 32:35, that will link the Epistle to the Hebrews with the Epistles of Paul, by its very peculiar mode of quoting the words "to Me belongeth vengeance and recompense" (Deut. 32:35). Had Romans 12:19 and Hebrews 10:30 contained a literal quotation of the LXX, it would have proved nothing as to common authorship, but if both passages depart from the LXX, and in the same particulars, a very strong case is made out. Here is the LXX of Deuteronomy 32:35:

The reader may demur and object that the two passages are not exactly the same. In this way, they are cheated by the English translators.

Here is the Greek of Romans 12:19:

And the Greek of Hebrews 10:30:

Emoi ekdikesis, ego antapodsoo, legei kurios.

They are exactly the same down to the letter.

If this is not a pro of common authorship, what is? We now draw attention to the way in which certain words are used by Paul and which are used in the same connections in Hebrews.

• Agon, a word borrowed from the Greek games and translated as "conflict," "contention," and "fight" (Phil. 1:30, Col. 2:1, 1 Thess. 2:2, 1 Tim. 6:12 and 2 Tim. 4:7). The only other occurrence is Hebrews 12:1, "the race that is set before us."
  
  
• Athlesis, athleo, and sunathleo are similarly borrowed from the games (Heb. 10:32, Phil. 1:27, 2 Tim. 2:5). In addition, it should be noted that in 1 Corinthians 4:9, Paul uses the word theatron, "spectacle," and in Hebrews 10:33 theatrizomenoi, "gazing stock", which reveal the same shrinking and sensitive mind.
  
  
• Apekdechomai. This word does not occur anywhere else except in Paul's undoubted Epistles and Hebrews. It means always expectation in connection with the second coming of the Lord (Heb. 9:28, 1 Cor. 1:7, Phil. 3:20).
  
  
• Douleia, "bondage," occurs only in Romans, Galatians, and Hebrews. The bondage of corruption and the bondage of the fear of death are associated ideas.
  
  
• Intercession (entugchano) (Rom. 8:27, Heb, 7:25).

One will find other examples, but we pass on to other "proofs."

The writer of Hebrew speaks of our brother Timothy (Heb. 13:23). In the opening of 2 Corinthians and of Colossians, Timothy is called "our brother", while the idea that Timothy would "come" and that "shortly" is found in 1 Corinthians 16:10, 1 Thessalonians 3:6 and Philippians 2:19,24. Timothy, by reason of his parentage, had been circumcised and would be accepted by the Hebrew Christians. These are but a few selected from a mass of parallels accumulated, tabulated, analyzed, and commented on in a book of 670 pages by Forster on Hebrews, a book literally crammed full of evidence for the Pauline authorship of Hebrews. Our space, however, is exceedingly limited, and so we pass on to another proof of the Pauline authorship of Hebrews. It is often said that Paul's name does not occur in the Epistle. That is so, but his sign manual is there for all to see.

Owing to a deception that had been practiced upon the church by someone sending an Epistle purporting to have come from Paul, he drew attention to the fact that he wrote "like this" where not only the handwriting itself is referred to, a proof in itself, and one accepted today in banks, wills, leases, contracts, judgments, marriages, births, and deaths, but also that he adopted a certain phrase, which added to the proof of his identity. "The salutation of Paul WITH MINE OWN HAND."

"Which is the TOKEN in EVERY Epistle: so I write." Something therefore, Paul assured the reader he would write and that he would write it in every Epistle. This necessity would also demand Divine supervision to prevent anyone else from using the same terms at the close of an Epistle; otherwise, the object would be defeated. "So I write" (2 Thess. 3:17). Then follows, in the handwriting of Paul himself, the words "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen" (2 Thess. 3:18). Now if each of the thirteen epistles that bear the name of Paul is examined, it will be found that each has a benediction which uses the phrase "Grace . . . with you" in a variety of ways.

2 Corinthians concludes with the longest and fullest of these benedictions, and Titus ends with one of the shortest, "Grace be with you all. Amen" (Tit. 3:15). It is with these identical words that the epistle to the Hebrews closes. Shall we not, therefore, be compelled to accept this "sign-manual" of the Apostle and maintain that Paul was the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews? This is the one anonymous epistle of the twenty-one that are found in the N.T. Why should the writer of any epistle suppress his identity? When we remember the deep prejudice of the Jew, and of the Jewish Christians, and Paul's sensitiveness concerning them, and that he should give none offense, neither to Jew, Gentile nor the church of God, and that he was not sent as an Apostle to them, can we supply any adequate reason to account for the withholding of the writer's name. Sufficient, we trust, has been said on this head. Those who are not convinced will probably remain unconvinced, though we wrote a volume.

We turn now to another feature, the result of a comparison made between the distinctive teaching of Hebrews with that of Ephesians.

• Comparison No. 1. Ephesians, like the bulk of Paul's epistles, contains in its salutation the name "Paul" and his apostolic office. This indicates that he writes with full apostolic authority. It is not called a "word of exhortation" in which the readers are called upon "to suffer" as in Hebrews but is the revelation of a secret portion of the Divine plan presented to their faith by an accredited apostle. The absence of the name and office of Paul from Hebrews indicates that he was writing in a private capacity to those whose calling and sphere did not fall within the dispensation granted to him. This in no sense alters its inspiration, but it does call upon all who read it to exercise discrimination lest they confound things that differ.
  
  
• Comparison No. 2. Ephesians is most definitely and exclusively addressed to "Gentiles." This word never appears in Hebrews, which uses instead the words "the fathers" and "the people," neither of which finds a place in the epistle to the Ephesians, nor do these terms pertain to the dispensation of the grace of God entrusted to Paul the prisoner "for you Gentiles."
  
  
• Comparison No. 3. Hebrews is full of references to "angels": Ephesians does not once mention them but stresses the exaltation of the Lord above "principalities," a term not found in Hebrews. Yet both epistles quote Psalm 8 in reference to the Lord's exaltation, speaking, in Hebrews, of the Lord's relation to angels and, in Ephesians, of His relation to principalities and powers, two different spheres in glory being thus indicated.
  
  
• Comparison No. 4. While both Ephesians and Hebrews quote Psalm eight, the epistle to the Hebrews leaves us in no doubt that it speaks of the "habitable world to come" (oikoumene), whereas the context of the quotation of Psalm eight in Ephesians goes beyond the habitable world, beyond the present heavens to that place which is described as far above all principality and power, and speaks of Christ as "Head" and His church as "the body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all."
  
  
• Comparison No. 5. Redemption by blood is found both in Ephesians and Hebrews; so also is the forgiveness of sins, but in Hebrews, this redemption and forgiveness is associated with the old and new covenants. Also, "access" in Hebrews is related to the new covenant, and a different Greek word from that used in Ephesians is employed. The Ephesian saints had been "made nigh," whereas the Hebrews are exhorted to "draw near."
  
  
• Comparison No. 6. Both in Hebrews and in Ephesians, the outstanding position of Christ is "seated at the right hand of God," but in Hebrews, He is seen seated there as "the High Priest," whereas in Ephesians, He is seated there as "The Head." In Ephesians, the believer is looked upon as being seated with Him; in Hebrews, He is there alone. In the whole of Paul's thirteen epistles, there is not a single reference either to a priest or to a high priest, yet, without these offices, the teaching of Hebrews could not proceed. An examination of the Scriptures written prior to the law of Sinai reveals that sacrifices were offered not by a priest but by the head of a family or tribe. Priesthood is thus linked with Israel, but the Gentile calling of Ephesians is linked with Christ as Head.
  
  
• Comparison No. 7. The word diatheke, "covenant," lies at the heart of Hebrews. No covenant, old or new, enters into the teaching of Ephesians. The "seated Priest" of Hebrews is the Mediator of the new covenant, but this is entirely foreign to the calling or dispensation of Ephesians. In the place occupied by the new covenant in Hebrews, Ephesians places "The Mystery."
  
  
• Comparison No. 8. The hope of both epistles, when examined and compared, reveals the same associations that have marked all the preceding studies. "Prove all things, hold fast that which is good."

The preceding comparison is negative in character, but the present reveals that the purpose with which Hebrews was written is similar to the purpose of Philippians. The dispensation in which the two Epistles work is different, but their teaching is parallel. Both urge the believer to ''go on unto perfection," whatever that perfection may mean in either case, and both warn about drawing back "unto perdition," whatever that perdition may prove to be. In both a race and a prize is in view, even though the prize is different and the sphere of enjoyment is different.

                    Hebrews                                                                                 Philippians

Things accompanying salvation Heb. 6:9                                       Work out salvation Phil. 2:12
Heavenly city Heb. 11:10; Heb. 12,22                                              Citizenship in heaven Phil. 3:20
Reproach Heb. 11:26; Heb. 13:13                                                     Fellowship of sufferings Phil. 3:10
Reward Heb. 10:35, Heb. 11:26                                                        Prize Phil. 3:14
The race set before us Heb. 12:1                                                     I press toward the mark Phil. 3:14
Leaving. . . let us go on Heb. 6:1-2                                                  Forgetting things behind Phil. 3:13
Obtain a better resurrection                                                            Attain unto an out-resurrection
                       (Condition attached) Heb. 11:35                                        (Condition attached) Phil. 3:11
Power of His resurrection Heb. 13:20                                            Power of His resurrection Phil. 3:10
Work in . . . His will Heb. 13:21                                                        Work in... His will Phil. 2:13
Christ the Image Heb. 1:3                                                                Christ the Form Phil. 2:6
Angels worship Him Heb. 1:6                                                          Every knee bow Phil. 2:10
Thou Lord, in beginning Heb. 1:10                                                 Jesus Christ is Lord Phil. 2:11
A little lower than angels Heb. 2:9                                                 No reputation... He humbled Himself Phil. 2:7-8
Cross endured for the joy and used                                              Cross suffered... wherefore exalted...  
                                     as example Heb. 12:1-2                                           Let this mind be in you Phil. 2:5, Phil. 2:9
Crucify to themselves afresh Heb. 6:6                                          Enemies of the Cross of Christ Phil. 3:18

                  PERFECTION                                    OR                                     PERDITION
            (Heb. 6:1, Heb. 10:39)                                                               (Phil. 3:12, Phil. 3:19)

Fight of afflictions (athlesis) Heb. 10:32                                  Strive together (sunathleo) Phil. 1:27, Phil. 4:3
Discernment Heb. 5:14                                                              Discernment . . . differ Phil. 1:9-10
Look diligently lest. . . Esau Heb. 12:15                                   Mark them that walk Phil. 3:17
For one morsel of meat sold his birthright Heb. 12:16        Whose God is their belly Phil. 3:19
That generation - tempted God                                               Perverse generation... do... 
                                   in the wilderness Heb. 3:7-10                                      without murmurings Phil. 2:14-15
Be content with such as ye have Heb. 13:5                           Whatsoever state content Phil. 4:11
Communicate Heb. 13:16                                                         Communicate Phil. 4:14,15
With such sacrifices well pleased Heb. 13:16                        Sacrifice. . . sweet smell, well pleasing Phil. 4:18
Fruit of righteousness Heb. 12:11                                           Fruit of righteousness Phil. 1:11
Compassion in bonds Heb. 10:34                                            Partaker in bonds Phil. 1:7
Whose faith follow (mimsomai) Heb. 13:7                             Be followers together of me (summimetes) Phil. 3:17
Ye took joyfully the spoiling of your goods Heb. 10:34       Let your moderation be known unto all men Phil. 4:5
You have in heaven an enduring substance                         Our citizenship is in heaven
                                                  (huparchonta) Heb. 10:34                                                       (huparcho) Phil. 3:20
Salutation from Italy Heb. 13:24                                             Salutation from Caesar's household Phil. 4:22
Paul's sign manual Heb. 13 :25                                               Paul's sign manual Phil. 4:23

We hope this helps,
The Believers

Carol wrote:

I think this study is fascinating.  However, I would like to point out that Jesus was not in hell for 3 days and 3 nights.  He died on Friday afternoon and rose on Sunday morning at sunrise when the priest was collecting the firstfruits of the harvest.  Three days, maybe, but only two nights!
Cheers,
Carol

Dear Carol,
God Bless you, and thank you for writing.  

THE "THREE DAYS" AND "THREE NIGHTS"

OF
MATT. 12:40

The fact that "three days" is used by the Hebrew idiom for any part of three days and three nights is not disputed because that was the common way of reckoning, just as it was when used for years. Three or any number of years was used inclusively for any part of those years, as may be seen in the reckoning of the reigns of any of the kings of Israel or Judah.

But, when the number of "nights" is stated as well as the number of "days," then the expression ceases to be an idiom and becomes a literal statement of fact.

Moreover, as the Hebrew day began at sunset, the day was reckoned from one sunset to another, the "twelve hours in the day" (John 11:9) being reckoned from sunrise and the twelve hours of the night from sunset. An evening-morning was thus used for a whole day of twenty-four hours, as in the first chapter of Genesis. Hence, the expression "a night and a day" in 2 Cor. 11:25 denotes a complete day (Greek nuchthemeron).

When Esther says (Est. 4:16), "fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days," she defines her meaning as being three complete days because she adds (being a Jewess) "night or day."  And when it is written that the fast ended on "the third day" (Est. 5:1), "the third day" must have succeeded and included the third night.

In like manner, the sacred record states that the young man (in 1 Sam. 30:12) "had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights."  Hence, when the young man explains the reason, he says, "because three days agone I fell sick". He means, therefore, three complete days and nights because, being an Egyptian (1 Sam. 30:11, 1 Sam. 30:13), he naturally reckoned his day as beginning at sunrise according to the Egyptian manner (see Encycl. Brit., 11th (Cambridge) ed., vol. xi. p. 77). His "three days agone" refers to the beginning of his sickness and includes the whole period, stating the reason for his having gone without food during the whole period.

Hence, when it says that "Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights" (Jonah 1:17), it means exactly what it says, and this can be the only meaning of the expression in Matt. 12:40; Matt. 16:4.

It will be seen from the above that we have neither power nor authority to alter or shift any day or date or change the order or position of any events recorded in The Holy Writ.

Each day is marked by a return to Bethany during the last week (up to the Preparation Day), and each day is filled with recorded events.

It follows, therefore, that the Lord was crucified on our Wednesday, was buried on that day before sunset, and remained "three days and three nights" in the tomb, as foretold by Him in Matt. 12:40; rising from the dead on "the third day," "the first day of the week."

The fixed days and dates, at either end, hold the whole period as in a vice and place the whole subject on a sure foundation.

All God's Blessings,
The Believers

Ephesians 1:4

According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world. . .

Nda wrote:

Greetings in Jesus name,
I was intrigued by the content of your website. However, I did not have sufficient time to browse through the whole website thoroughly.

May I pose just one question: what Biblical evidence can you cite to substantiate the notion that plants and animals in Eden were dying before Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden? I picked up this notion from clicking a link to your Bible studies. This is the context of the notion that I say I contrived from your statements:

Adam was made a living soul and afterward put in a garden eastward in Eden. He was set in an environment of mortality. All about him, plants and animals were dying. He knew the facts of death.

I find absolutely no evidence from Scripture that Adam was surrounded by plant and animal life that died all around him, even before he fell into sin and came under the curse of death himself.

On my iGoogle homepage, I have subscribed to your Bible Verse for the Day. Genesis 3:15 is one of my favorite texts, the critical text describing God's eternal provision for man's wilful sinning. I more than agree with you when you state that Adams living up to the age of 930 years did not mean that he did not die at the moment that he sinned. It is just that God absorbed Adam's default and died in his stead, that death symbolized by the death of the first animal sacrifice for man's sin.

Kind regards,
Nda
(South Africa)

Dear Nda,
God Bless you, and thank you for writing. We believe that the only place to look is the Scriptures, not at what men may say about the Scriptures. We believe The Word Of God answers your question but only through the knowledge of a number of Scriptural Truths about the devil and his rebellion, the earth that was and perished, and man's soul and that of the animals.

If we consider the devil, the Scripture says:

Isaiah 14:12-14  How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:  I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 

So there was war in heaven, the devil was defeated and cast down, and creation disrupted, and the first earth perished.

2 Pet. 3:6  Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:

We know this is true from Scripture and the fossil record going back millions of years, so clearly, death happened long before Adam.

Christ said of the devil: 

John 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. 

So, from the beginning of the devil's rebellion, there was murder long before Adam.

For more on this subject, see Fallen Angels.

If we think about Adam and the animals we find that Genesis 2:4-25 supplements the account of Genesis 1, giving us fuller details of the formation both of Adam himself and of Eve. "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground." Man shares with the rest of the animal creation an earthly origin - "of the earth, earthy."

There is, however, a difference to be observed.

"And (He) breathed into his nostrils the breath of life." This expression, a translation of neshamah, occurs 24 times in the Old Testament. If these occurrences are examined, the conclusion arrived at is that this "breath of life" belongs only to God and to man and not to the lower orders of creation. Man is separated from the rest of creation. He is, for a little, lower than the angels. He is in possession of the "breath of life," a gift not possessed by any other creature on the earth. He is in the image and likeness of God.

The characteristics in which man is allied to the existing creation are expressed in the third statement - "And man became a living soul" (Gen. 2:7). Tradition has it that this implies the immortality of the soul. Scripture declares that Adam, as created, was natural and thus non-spiritual.

... The first man Adam was made a living soul ... that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural (1 Cor. 15:45-46).

The translation blunts the point of the argument here. Our language possesses the two words, 'spirit' and 'spiritual,' but not the words 'soul' and 'soulish or soulical.' Now the word translated 'natural' is rightly 'soulical' if such a word could be permitted. All that Adam was and could give to his descendants was soulish and earthy; the Lord Jesus alone, as the Last Adam and the Second Man, can give spiritual and heavenly enduements. The words, "man became a living soul," far from teaching man's spiritual and immortal nature, actually teach the reverse. The following passages taken from Genesis will prove this without any doubt:

"The moving creature that hath life (margin soul)" (Gen. 1:20).

"Every living creature that moveth (margin living soul)" (Gen. 1:21).

"Let the earth bring forth the living creature" (Gen. 1:24).

"Everything... wherein there is life (margin a living soul)" (Gen. 1:30).

The two words nephesh and psuche, the Hebrew and Greek respectively, for 'soul,' occur 857 times in the Scriptures. Yet, not one reference can be found that speaks of an immortal or never-dying soul. Consequently, we reject such teaching as untrue and accept that the are mortal and can and do die. A reading of Genesis 3:22-23, moreover, shows that The Tree of Life was such that man, by partaking of it, could live forever, but that as a result of sin, God took special precautions to prevent man from living forever by banishing him from the garden. Immortality can only be obtained through Christ and will be entered upon at Resurrection (1 Cor. 15:53-54).

Animals could not eat of the Tree of Life, and so when God told Adam:

 Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Adam knew what that meant, for he had seen animals die, as no soul is immortal and must eat of The Tree of Life to continue living.

We now look deeper into God's Word to discover more Truth and add further light on the subject.

Rachel wrote:
Mark 16:16 says he who believes and is baptized WILL be saved but he who DOES NOT believe SHALL be condemned. do you believe that baptism is essential?

Dear Rachel,
God Bless you, and thank you for writing. We can see you have put careful thought and study into this question. The question of baptism has long troubled Christianity in that there are many differing opinions on what the Bible teaches on this important subject. We, as students of the Rightly Divided Word of Truth, must not be swayed by the traditions and teachings of men but always look to the Scripture as our rule book of faith and practice.

Among the words written near the time of the beginning of Christianity, the new Hebrew believers were exhorted "to leave" not "lay again," laws and ordinances including "the doctrine of baptisms" Heb. 6:2, these being among the elements that were to be left behind as the believer pressed on unto perfection

The N.T. teaching concerning baptism is distributed thus:

1. John the Baptist. This baptism falls under two headings:

(a) It was a baptism unto repentance, in view of the near approach of the kingdom of heaven
Matt. 3:1-2

(b) It was the work of John as the forerunner prophesied of by Isaiah in the fortieth chapter of his prophecy.

(c) It was concerned only with Israel or with those who joined themselves to Israel, as the words "Comfort ye" of Isaiah 40 were concerned.

(d) It was a baptism in water that spoke of a future baptism with The Holy Ghost and with fire.

(e) It was specifically designed to make manifest to Israel the One Who was sent to be their Messiah John 1:30-34

2. The baptism with the Holy Ghost promised by John was fulfilled in Pentecost Acts 1:5.

3. During the Acts, water baptism and the baptism of the Spirit went together Acts 2:38, 10:47

4. During the first ministry of the Apostle Paul, baptism by water was practiced, 1 Cor. 1:16, but baptism never held the place in Paul's commission 1 Cor. 1:17 that it did in that of Peter's (Acts 2:38). Peter could never have said: "Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach The Gospel" as Paul did.

Baptism during the early ministry of Paul:

(a) united the believer by burial with the death of Christ Rom. 7:6-4

(b) united Jew and Gentile, making them "all one in Christ and Abraham's seed" Gal. 4:27-29.

(c) baptizing these believers into one body, with particular reference to the exercise of spiritual gifts 1 Cor. 12:13

5. After Acts 28 and the revelation of The Mystery, we enter into a calling where shadows give place to the reality of the Fulness of Christ Col. 2:17.

Baptism in the Epistles of The Mystery is either that which unites the believer with the death and Resurrection of Christ, Col. 2:12, or by which the believer becomes a member of The Church, which is His Body - Eph. 4:5.

Owing to the failure on the part of expositors and teachers to discern the change of dispensation consequent upon the setting aside of Israel at the time of Acts 28, there has been a failure to discern the extreme difference that exists between baptism as taught in the earliest part of the N.T. or even in the earlier epistles of Paul and as it is taught in the Epistles of The Mystery.

Galatians 3:19 asks a question: "Wherefore then serveth the law?" and the answer is: "It was superadded" (prostithemi). The Galatians were turning back to the weak and beggarly elements of the ceremonial law. "Now, this law was not promulgated in the first instance to the Jewish people, but was a superaddition to the antecedent moral law is a matter of universal notoriety. It is well-known (says Whitby) that all these ancient fathers were of the opinion that God gave the Jews only the Decalogue, till they made the golden calf, and afterward He laid the yoke of ceremonies upon them." "The law was superadded in behalf of transgressions being ordained in the hand of a mediator."

The Christian Church has fixed its attention so much upon these superadded carnal ordinances and has modeled its doctrine of baptism so much upon these things which were imposed until the time of reformation that they have given little or no place to The One Great Baptism, which was not added because of transgressions but was an integral part of the Redemption of the nation, namely The Baptism of the whole nation unto Moses at the Red Sea. That is the type that remains for us today; all others are carnal ordinances that have no place in the present economy of pure grace.

The Baptism of Colossians 2 is not likened to anything that was introduced into the Aaronic priesthood or Tabernacle service. It is likened to the initiatory rite of circumcision. Now, in Colossians 2, this circumcision is the spiritual equivalent of that practiced by the Jew; it is explicitly said to be "the circumcision made without hands" and repudiates "the body of the flesh" (sin is not in question; the revised text omits the words "of the sins"), and this is accomplished "by the circumcision of Christ." Now, until it can be proved that the circumcision here emphasized is the literal carnal ordinance, the consequential burial by baptism will have to be understood of the spiritual equivalent too and find its type, not in the many baptisms of the ceremonial law, but in The One Baptism of the whole nation at the crossing of the Red Sea. This "One Baptism" forms an integral part of the Unity of The Spirit, which those blessed under the terms of The Mystery are enjoined to keep. The seven parts of this unity are so disposed as to throw into correspondence the One Baptism in The One Spirit, thus:

This sevenfold unity is composed of seven units - and to tamper with the repeated word "one" is to deny inspiration and to destroy the Apostle's insistence. We can no longer believe that "One" Baptism means two, i.e., "water and spirit," then we can import plurality into faith, hope, or the Lordship of Christ. It is the custom of those companies of Christians who stress baptism in water to call themselves "baptized believers." It is also, unfortunately, the habit of many who see the spiritual nature of Baptism in Colossians and Ephesians to allow this claim, but such are wrong. Members of The One Body are "baptized believers," for without this One Baptism, membership of The One Body is impossible. To speak otherwise is to magnify the carnal ordinance that pertains to the ceremonial act above the spiritual reality. The truth is that no company in the N.T. has ever known what True Baptism really is, except The Church, where baptism in water is absent and unknown.

Note the beautiful typology in 1 Peter 3:18-22:

1. The Ark It is clearly implied that the Ark represents a relationship with Christ. Noah and seven other persons were "in" the Ark, high and dry, so to speak, throughout the catastrophe. They were saved through the flood waters of judgment in the baptism of the Ark These verses do not teach baptismal regeneration, but rather ceremonial water baptism. Ceremonial baptism was the shadow; real baptism, the substance, is a relationship "in" Christ. In 1 Peter 3:21, the putting away of the filth of the flesh refers to ceremonial water baptism, which Peter contrasts with real baptism, the answer of a good conscience toward God. See also Romans 6.

2. The Flood Waters. As touched upon above, these represent judgment. The flood was necessary to destroy humanity corrupted by intermarriage with fallen angelic beings, the spirits in prison mentioned in 1 Peter 3:19-20. So, as some teach, it can not refer to human souls in some place of conscious torment like purgatory or hell. For further study, see Appendices 23 through 25 of the Companion Bible.

The Flood Waters can be applied typically to The Judgment, which took place at Calvary. Christ at Calvary was baptized into the wrath of God. All the waves and billows of that wrath passed over Him. Psalms 42:7 and Jonah 2:3. The believer does not fear the wrath of God which is to come. He is "in" Christ, the Ark.

The death, baptism, and Resurrection of Christ save him.

3. The Eight Souls. This was the number of persons in the Ark, and it is significant. Such numbers as 6, the number of man, and 7, the number of perfection, are examples known to most Bible students. The number 8 is the number of resurrection, The Resurrection of Christ in which all believers will share. It is The Hope of the believer, and it will make fully known and manifest The Truth of God as it is in Christ.

The unbelieving naturally cling to the ceremonial baptism. It ministers to the flesh. But no one shall experience resurrection and see God without the experience of the real baptism in this life.

Which baptism is for you?

The One Baptism we, as believers in this Dispensation of the Mystery, have is our spiritual identification with our Lord Christ Jesus. We are complete in Him (Colossians 2:10). The word complete in Greek means fulfill or filled to the full. We have Christ's death, burial, and Resurrection as ours and being raised with Him and seated with Him in the Far above heavens (Ephesians 2:6), where no sin or sinner has ever been or will be. We also found that our citizenship papers are from this same place (Philippians 3:20). Furthermore, since we have been raised with Him by the operation of God (Colossians 2:12), death and sin need no longer have dominion over us. We are to walk worthy of our calling, putting on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24). We have obtained all of this by faith and not of ourselves.

Paul writes and warns the Colossians in Col. 2:2 that it is only through the "...acknowledgment of The Mystery of God and of The Father, and of Christ, in Whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge", that they could find the wherewithal to walk in this world--not through the traditions, philosophies or the vain deceits of man. Behind all these entrapments is religion, the mother of which is Babylon. No matter what form religion may take, idolatry is the foundation of its worship. The flesh is easily deceived into believing that the observation of rituals, holy days, doctrines, abstinences, and commandments of men will gain for the flesh, and hence the person a closer walk with God. This was the point of the attack experienced by the believers at Colossae from the Gnostics and Judaizers.

Paul emphasizes to the believers that their completeness in Christ alone is sufficient. Religion would entrap the believer into holding onto something other than The Headship of Christ, which in this Dispensation of The Mystery provides our total life source.

Today, the members of The Church of The One Body are also subject to these attacks by spiritual wickedness, as were the Colossians. Our only source for wisdom, knowledge, and power comes from Christ, Who is our Life (Colossians 3:4), not from anything (including religion) of or in the world. We can know Him by His Word. We can receive further wisdom and revelation about Him in His Word and discover how completely we are identified with Him and how, by The One Baptism, His finished perfect work was graciously implanted in us. Search The Scriptures and see this identification for yourself.

The history books reveal that the question of baptism has been the cause of much bitterness, strife, and division. The basis for these disputes has risen out of the failure to discern the dispensational differences that distinguish the ministries of the N.T. These can be divided into three periods. Beginning with John the Baptist, it was water only with the promise of Spirit baptism. Secondly, during the Acts period, it was both water and Spirit. The third period, the period that we live in today, followed Acts 28:28. The Pentecostal dispensation, which began at the time of Acts chapter 2, ended because of Israel's unbelief. The only baptism that God honors for today is Spirit baptism.

Not long ago, we heard a preacher give a commentary on Ephesians 4:4-6 where we find the seven unities to be kept by The Church. He had no problem giving spiritual content to six of them, but the "One Baptism" proved a problem, needless to say. One Baptism means one, not two. What is it, water or spirit? It can't be both! The preacher saw the problem. He "solved" it by consulting at least 15 commentaries. All of them said it was water baptism! Consequently, each of us is faced with the responsibility of this decision: what will we believe, the Word of God or the commentaries?

The Unities of Ephesians 4:4-6 are not to be made, but to be kept! They contain the only formula available to prevent divisions. If the churches kept these Unities, they would not be so powerless and would not be the object of scorn and derision.

In 1 Corinthians 1:17, the Apostle Paul seems to have made a positive statement, For Christ sent me not to baptize, But to preach The Gospel." Yet Paul had listed the names of three individuals he had already baptized. He also included the household of one of the people he had baptized, so we don't know exactly how many Paul had baptized.

In the account of Paul, Silas, and Timothy preaching in the house of Justus in Corinth (Acts 18:7-8), we are told that many of the Corinthians heard, believed, and were baptized. At that time, Paul had undoubtedly baptized those he named in the first Corinthian letter.

However, we are left with the question, "If Christ had sent Paul not to baptize, why had he baptized any of them?" In order to answer this question and resolve the problem created, we must get a better understanding of the place of baptism. When John the Baptist began his ministry to Israel, he preached baptism for the repentance of sins.

Peter at Pentecost followed the same preaching as had John the Baptist, when Peter answered those who asked him,  "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" (Acts 2:37) Peter's reply was, repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38). Notice that Peter said that remission of sins was through Jesus Christ and the result of their baptism unto Him. Peter did not tell them, "Christ died for our sins," as Paul did in 1 Corinthians 15:3.

If we look at the context of The Scripture quoted first, 1 Corinthians 1:17, we see that Paul contrasts baptism with the preaching of the cross. This is the answer to Paul's statement, "Christ sent me not to baptize...lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect." (made void). 

Paul was sent to preach the cross, the death of the Lord Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, not the baptism as John the Baptist and Peter had preached. Paul states, "Christ sent me not to baptize for the remission of sins, but to preach the cross for the remission of sins." Paul had been given a further understanding of the place of baptism in the purpose of God.

Baptism was to be for the identification of the believer with the death, burial, and Resurrection of The Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 6:3-4). Therefore, Paul was not hypocritical in saying one thing and seemingly doing another. By baptism, he was identifying those believers with the death, burial, and Resurrection of The Lord Jesus Christ.

While much more could be said, we are necessarily limited, but we believe every essential feature has been considered so that you can pursue the matter in detail with every hope of attaining unto fuller light.

All God's Blessings,
The Believers