Jesus Christ’s Blood is in His Name at Baptism
Part IV
By Michael Trapasso
Paul tells us in Hebrews 9:22, that without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins. As we can plainly see from Paul’s writings, it takes the BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST FOR THE REMISSION OF SINS. Peter, in Acts 2:38, preaches to ‘Repent and be BAPTIZED everyone of you in the NAME OF JESUS CHRIS FOR THE REMISSION OF SINS and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.’ Are not these two statements quite similar?
The ‘BLOOD’ of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins
The ‘NAME’ of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins
From Paul’s statement and that of Peter’s, we can see that ‘BLOOD IS IN THE NAME’, and to have blood applied, we must be baptized (washed) in the NAME of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. This is why the disciple Ananias of Damascus in Acts 22:16, said unto Saul of Tarsus, ‘And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be ‘BAPTIZED,’ and ‘WASH AWAY THY SINS’, Calling on the NAME of the Lord.’ On the Revelator verified this as he declared in Rev. 1: ‘Unto him that loved us, and ‘WASHED’ us ‘FROM OUR SINS’ in his own ‘BLOOD.’ It should be noted that the Lord Jesus said unto Saul of Tarsus that in the city of Damascus, ‘It shall be told Saul of Tarsus to be BAPTIZED. One can understand from these scriptures that those who have been baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ have plunged into the very blood of Jesus Christ. Before we proceed further, however, we would like to stress that we do not mean that baptism is all there is to salvation nor that it is to any avail unless the person being baptized has truly repented of his sins.
The association of baptism and blood has been in God’s plan long before the Christian Era. Even in the very early days of the Hebrew religion, God required that all converts be baptized and that a BLOOD sacrifice must be offered up immediately. (See the Jewish Ency. Vol. II, p. 499 and the Ency. of Religion and Ethics by hastings, Vol. X, p. 402). Paul expresses this same relationship under he anointing of the Holy Ghost when he wrote, ‘Know ye not that so many of us were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?’ And as we know, Christ’s death was his blood sacrifice. (Rom. 6:3)
One can see that Paul again associates baptism in the NAME of Jesus Christ with Christ’s blood when he stated, ‘Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were or baptized in the Name (Onoma) of Paul?’ (I Cor. 1:31). Paul, of course, is reminding these Corinthians that it was Jesus Christ that was crucified for them no himself (Paul), and that they were BAPTIZED into the NAME of Jesus Christ, not into Paul’s Name. We see that Paul reminds them of the crucifixion which was Christ’s sacrifice, and then he immediately reminds them of their baptism into the Name of the one that was crucified for them.
In Acts 8:26-39, we find Philip preaching to the Ethiopian from Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The immediate response from the Ethiopian is, See, here is WATER; what doth hinder me to be BAPTIZED?’
As we have seen in Acts 2:36-38, Peter preached the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and then he immediately gives the command to be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.
In Luke 12:50, Jesus too, associates the term baptism with his crucifixion.
In Co. 2:12-14, we find, ‘Buried with him in BAPTISM, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, `… HAVING FORGIVEN YOU ALL TRSPASSES; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us … NAILING it to his CROSS.’
Again we see the relationship of Christ’s lood and baptism. Heb. 10:19-22, ” Having therefore brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the BLOOD of Jesus, by a new and living way, which we hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his FLESH,… having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure WATER.’
In 1 Peter 3:18-21, the scriptures begin with the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and end with ‘BAPTISM doth NOW SAVE US.’
Paul again reveals the union of Calvary with baptism in Titus 3:4-5 when he wrote, But after that the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared, (the love manifested at Calvary). Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he SAVED us, BY the WASHING OF REGENERATION, and RENEWING of the HOLY GHOST.’ (Thus parallels perfectly with Jesus said in John 3:5, as mentioned earlier.)
Paul writing to the Ephesians, once more reveals this relationship of the blood of Christ with baptism. Eph. 5:25-26,’…Christ also loved the church, and GAVE HIMSELF FOR IT (speaking of how he willingly gave his life for it at Calvary) that he might SANCTIFY and CLEANSE it with the WASHING OF WATER y the word.’
In 1 John 5:8, John relates BAPTISM with the BLOOD and the SPIRIT. He states,’… the SPIRIT and the WATER, and the BLOOD: and these three AGREE in ONE.’
The angels that were cast from heaven before man was ever created had no tempter, and yet they fell and were thrown out of heaven. Jesus taught, however, that when we enter heaven we will never be cast out. Why is it that we will never lose our heavenly inheritance such as some of the angels? Rev. 22:4-5 reveals why,’ And they shall see his face, and his NAME shall be in their foreheads… and they shall reign for ever and ever.’ This is also implied in Rev. 3:12. Those who have taken the NAME of the Lord upon themselves through BAPTISM ere saved by the BLOOD of Calvary and these same souls will be kept safe throughout eternity. Is it possible that the Lord Jesus would someday place his NAME on our foreheads if we refused to take his Name upon us now through BAPTISM?
Shocking as it may seem, very few people have been baptized into that wonderful redemptive Name of Jesus. The masses like Naaman cannot see that baptism into the Name of Jesus Christ is any better than the more popular formula: in the name (ONOMA, identical to the already noted) of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. They do not realize that Father, son and Holy Ghost are only titles and not names and that the Name of these titles is the powerful Name of Jesus. (John 5:43, 17:11-12, R.S.V. as quoted earlier; Matt. 1:21, Luke 1:31; John 14:26; Heb. 1:4). They do not seem to understand that Jesus many times used peculiar statements to bring out truth. For example in Luke 14:26, Jesus said unless a man HATE his father and mother and sister, he cannot be my disciple. Jesus did not literally mean this, no not at all, but rather He was BRINGING OUT that a man must love Him above everyone else. In the very same sense, Jesus was BRINGING OUT that the Name of these titles is his Name. Luke confirms this in his Gospel the 24th chapter and the 45-47 verses by saying that Jesus THEN OPENED their understanding and sent them out to preach REMISSION OF SINS in HIS (Jesus) NAME among all nations ‘beginning at Jerusalem’. This is why Peter, ‘beginning at Jerusalem’, preached BAPTISM in the NAME of JESUS CHRIST for the REMISSION OF SINS. (Acts 2:5, 38). The reason it is so expedient that one be baptized in the proper manner is because the cleansing blood of Jesus Christ is in his NAME. The water is only the means that God chose whereby a soul becomes united with the redemptive name of Jesus Christ.
