THE BAPTISM Y'SHUA INSTITUTED
When John introduced Y'shua as the Messiah to the nation his ministry began to decline and fade into insignificance as he had said "I must decrease, He must increase" because the ultimate purpose of his ministry was to inaugurate the ministry of Messiah, to initiate the transition of the old order into the new. John 3:30
As Y'shua began to minister, the multitudes who had flocked to John the forerunner, now followed the One to whom he had pointed - the Messiah, and we have recorded in the scriptures that He baptised more disciples than John, and His popularity rose so that he had more followers than John. John 4:1
When Y'shua presented Himself to John it was not a baptism 'unto repentance', but a baptism to 'fulfil all righteousness'. Messiah confirmed and validated the message of John by being baptised by him, even though the greater had come and the transient, old order was passing away. (Matt.3:15)
THE PATTERN AND THE TYPE
He is the mediator of the New Covenant, and as such, because the old order was still in place, Y'shua Himself did not baptise those coming unto repentance - His disciples did, and they did it according to Yochannan's baptism.
Yochannan's baptism of repentance was still in effect until Y'shua had effected the work of redemption upon which he issued a new decree - "Go ye therefore, and teach (disciple) all nations, baptising them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Ruach Ha Kodesh: Teaching them to observe all things which I have commanded you ... .. " Matthew 28:19
The true inner and spiritual cleansing from sin was only to be found in Y'shua Himself and was brought into effect after He was offered "But Mashiah came a Cohen Ha Gadol of things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle ..... not of this creation (Hebrew 9:11) "the law having a shadow of the good things to come ......." (Hebrews 10:1)
And so, until the time of His offering as THE Passover Lamb when He also would mediate the new covenant as our Cohen Ha Gadol, Yochannan's baptism 'unto repentance' remained in place. When the 'blood and water' flowed from His side on the tree, it put an end to all ceremonial offerings and cleansing. This was the true 'washing' and cleansing. He fulfilled all types and they were abolished in His 'once for all' perfect, sinless sacrifice. Hebrews 7:22-28
When He gave the new command for baptism, His DEATH, BURIAL and RESURRECTION was complete, the finished work of redemption had been made manifest, and John's baptism was thereby annulled.
THE NEW ORDER
Y'shua's death, burial and resurrection was enacted for us to receive its Spiritual benefits. Not only in sins forgiven but in an imparted new Life. The water baptism of Y'shua pointed forward to His death.
In Yordan He was buried in water and His natural life as a man came to an end, a 'death'. That was the symbolic watery grave of His old life. Three and a half years later He was literally buried in Joseph's tomb. Upon arising from the water in Yordan He received the Spirit, later to be resurrected by the power of the Ruach HaKodesh. He arose to be a 'new' man, a new order of man, a second Adam, the firstborn from the dead (Colossains 1:18).
See Psalm 2:7 and Acts 13:30-33 where it identifies the Father saying 'this day I have begotten thee' as the time when He was risen from the dead. He became His Son by rebirth at the resurrection, executed by the Spirit (1 Peter 3:18), at that time a second 'Adam' was born to the Father who lives by the power of an endless life, a spiritual man, one who had passed the test of obedience and gained the right to partake of the tree of life.
And so, all who identify with Him in Baptism become 'new creatures' in Mashiah, they become identified in His death, burial and resurrection and therefore by the operation of the Spirit, arise in Him to a new and glorious life (Colossians 3:1-3). They bury their old life, putting the old nature to death (by faith) and come out of the water in the power of His resurrection. (Romans 6:3-6)
He was the One cast in to the bitter waters of sin. Y'shua removes the curse of sin's penalty to release refreshing waters of life. See the type in Exodus 15:23-26, at the waters of Marah the 'tree' was cut down and cast into the water to make the bitter water sweet. The work of the 'cross' applied to our life makes that which was cursed and bitter, sweet and a blessing. It completely cancels the retribution from sin and releases us into the glorious liberty of a son of God. John 1:12; Galatians 4: 4
IDENTIFICATION AND UNION WITH MESSIAH IN BAPTISM
When a person immerses in the waters of the Mikveh, he is placing himself in a state of death to his previously known life and is subjecting himself totally to God's creative power. The Mikveh (pool) itself represents both the grave and the womb. First the individual enters the world of the grave and undergoes a burial. Then he emerges from the womb, his soul having been saturated or overwhelmed by the Spirit, the Ruach HaKodesh, to be resurrected from the watery grave as a new creation in God.
This is an identification with Y'shua in His death, burial and resurrection. Speaking of His own soon-coming death, burial, resurrection and glorification as the new-creation Man, Y'shua said, "Most assuredly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain." John 12:24
Those who identify themselves with Him in his death, burial and resurrection become one of the many 'grains' which sprout from the earth from THE Seed, Y'shua Ha Maschiach. His death becomes their death, His burial theirs, and subsequently His resurrection to new life is imparted to them. In the process of rebirth, the seed must be planted in the ground or buried in death before it emerges in new life. When it appears, it gradually grows and becomes the plant which it was designed to be. So is the person who is immersed in the Mikveh, he is reborn, as a new creation into an elevated state of spiritual life which has separated or delivered him from the natural, carnal state of existence in this world, just as the waters of the Red Sea separated Israel from the world of Egypt, "He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love" Colossians 1:13.
BUT, "Except a man be born of WATER and of the SPIRIT he cannot enter the kingdom of God" John 3: 5
Baptism is the entrance into the spiritual kingdom.
OUR UNION WITH HIM IS IN 1. HIS DEATH 2. HIS BURIAL 3. HIS RESURRECTION
1. IN DEATH His death was for our sins, our alienation from the Father. He as the Sin- Bearer, took the penalty for our sins. He paid the price in full, our debt has been fully paid and there is no longer condemnation for past sins.
In dying for us and remitting our sins we have been brought back into union with God and have received eternal life. This life is in His Son as a result of the life which He received from the Father as the Second Adam, the first of a new order when he arose from the dead. Natural human life falls short of The Standard of Elohim and as a result of the first man Adam, becoming alienated from Him, whose life we have inherited by genealogy.
To henceforth live on a level pleasing to Elohim, we need walk in the newness of life which is imparted to us from the Second Adam, Y'shua the Messiah. To do this, we must undergo a spiritual death, burial and resurrection in union with Y'shua, our Redeemer. "as many of us as were baptised into Y'shua Messiah were baptised into His death" (Romans 6: 3-4)
We must identify with Y'shua in His death and bury the old life, the life which we lived in our fleshly nature, in the watery grave of the Mikveh. It is a FACT that our old man WAS crucified with Him on the torture stake. As Paul said, "I am crucified with Messiah" (Galatains 2:20)
His death was our death!
When we look upon Him on the torture stake, we see that it was for us He died and that in receiving His substitutionary work, that He died in our place, we understand that we died there with Him, in His death.
2. IN BURIAL In immersion, we go down into the watery grave and bury that old life. It has been identified with Y'shua in His death and that which is dead, now needs a burial. The old life/person is buried and left in that watery grave.
"Buried with Him in baptism" (Colossians 2:13)
This is part of the conversion from one life to another, so that we may say, "It is no longer I that lives, but Mashiah that lives in me" (Galatians 2:20) "For he that has died has been freed from sin" (Romans 6: 7)
3. IN RESURRECTION "Just as Messiah was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection" (Romans 6: 4-5)
As Y'shua was raised by the Father as a spiritual man. so also should we rise up to walk in a new spiritual life.
In the Greek text, it is all in the past tense. You also were raised with Him" (Colossians 2:12) The fact is, you were raised when He was raised!
"If any man be in Messiah, He is a new creation ... ... all things are become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Baptism is a covenantal immersion into the new-creation man with all the rights and privileges endowed of sonship in the Father's kingdom. It is The Elohim-Ordained entrance into the new covenant which will be attested to with supernatural signs.
THE BAPTISM BY THE SPIRIT INTO Y'SHUA
Yochannan had referred to Y'shua as the One who baptises with the Spirit, the Ruach HaKodesh (John 1:32-34)
Although the Spirit came upon Him at His baptism in water, Y'shua Himself said afterward, "I have a baptism to be baptised with" (Luke 12:50). This was an immersion in the Spirit and Y'shua was held under the constraint of that until it was accomplished. That was His literal baptism into death, burial and resurrection by the operation of the Spirit whereby He was raised a new creation Man, which is the basis of the new covenant.
His disciples in aspiring to sit on His right hand in the kingdom said they were able to be baptised with His baptism and Y'shua confirmed that they would indeed be partakers of that baptism. (Matthew 20:20-23) The disciples received that baptism at Pentecost, fifty days after His ascension to the right hand of the Father. This baptism that Y'shua instituted for believers is a powerful immersion by the Spirit into the 'new-creation-man', Y'shua, to form the 'Body of Messiah'.
Through the Spirit we have been made to comprise one spiritual 'Body', called in scripture 'the Body of Messiah' - "For by one Spirit we were all baptised into one body - ..." "Now you are the body of Messiah ... " (1 Corinthians 12:13, 27)
"So we being many, are one body in Messiah" (Romans 12:5)
"There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism ; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all." Ephesians 4:4-6)
We who have believed in Y'shua the Messiah have become through baptism, one spiritual body comprised of many members with varying gifts and ministries. Together corporately we are Messiah's 'body' by the indwelling Spirit in fulfillment of Y'shua's prayer "that they all may be one, as You Father, are in Me, and I in You, that they may be one in Us," (John 17:21) The Body has been brought into unity in the same way that the Father was in Y'shua by the Spirit. The Father in Y'shua and the Father in us, as Paul also said, 'One Elohim and Father of all, who is ..... ..... in you all' (Ephesians 4:6)
The indwelling Spirit is interchangeably called the Spirit of Messiah or the Holy Spirit (Ruach HaKodesh). Y'shua said, "When the Comforter comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, He will testify of Me," (John 15:26) Y'shua sent the Spirit from the Father, to take His place with the believers. Resulting in us having fellowship with both the Father and the Son.
ONE BAPTISM FOR BELIEVERS
As Paul says in Ephesians 4:5 there is ' one baptism ' The original ordinance of Baptism in the apostolic era, was an immersion in water wherein the candidate was also baptised in the Spirit at the same time, thus effecting in one operation, what today has often been separated into two operations of the Spirit. As the candidate goes under the waters of baptism, the Spirit witnesses to their obedience and faith in Y'shua, and the immersion in water becomes also an immersion in the Spirit of God. 1 John 5: 6-8
As John says, the Spirit, the water and the blood agree together as witnesses on earth to the spiritual operation of the Father, the Word and the Spirit of God to enact the power of the sacrificial blood of the covenant in the believer's life.
The natural element of water is a great solvent and purifier and Elohim uses the believer's immersion in it as a catalyst for the Spirit of God to operate and effect a spiritual washing and cleansing in the lives of those who undergo the waters of baptism. Through the effectual operation of the Spirit, by identification with Y'shua, the believer is reborn as a child of God and is baptised into His Body to become part of the spiritual kingdom of God as a new-creation man.
"For you are all sons of God through faith in Messiah Y'shua. For as many of you as were baptised into Messiah have put on Messiah." Galatians 3:26