Water. Physically and Spiritually Needed
by Bro. Willoughby
In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: For the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.) John 7: 37-39
The word of God is shaper than any two-edged sword. Sharper than any single edged gilette. It gets right down in there, it’s quick, and powerful. Thank God for the word.We are living in a time when we need to keep the message simple. We should beware at anytime lest our minds be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Jesus Christ. Sometimes ministers throughout the country, especially those not of this faith, are very guilty of getting very intriget and complex in their preaching. A preacher in Texas once said to a friend of his, “I think we should keep our messages simple.” The other said, “I agree with that. By the way what did you preach on last Sunday morning?” His response was, “Well, I preached on the fatal perversity of a lawless ambition.”
In the few next pages I would like to discuss the subject of water. Just one simple word, water! I am going to keep this as simple as possible.
Water is a very common element. In fact the surface of the earth is covered with more water than it is with land. If you take the sum total of the Atlantic ocean and the pacific ocean and all of the other bodies of water on this earth, you will find that some seventy-five percent of the surface of the earth is covered with water. That’s right! Good old H20; a very common element created by God. The human body itself, the physical frame of the human body, is seventy-eight percent water. So if someone was to call you a drip, don’t feel so bad about it, after all, they may be getting pretty close to the truth. There is no reason for any of us to become proud, after all we are all just glorified mudballs anyhow. In the human market the human body is worth less than two dollars. (That is unless you way over 3501bs.) It is the soul that is important; the soul is priceless. You cannot put a price on it. It is not worth a man to gain the whole world and loose his own soul.” In other words, what shall a man give in exchange for his own soul.
Seeing that water is such a very common element, there are a lot of things that we know about water. One thing that we know about water is that it is absolutely necessary for the sustaining of life. Louis and Clark, the famous explorers, when they left St. Louis traveling westward, stayed very close to the bodies of water. They realized that their life depended upon their access to water. They were traveling on uncharted territory, they did not know what lied ahead of them. When they finally settled near Portland, Oregon, they settled near a body of water. Every large or major metropolitan area is built near a large body of water in our world today.
We know that water has satisfying properties like nothing else does. The human body actually craves water. You have to.
In fact, sometimes have a certain intake and level of water in order to survive. That which God has made has satisfying properties far beyond anything that man has to offer.
Water has always held a place of importance in the scripture, and in God’s plan for the redemption of human beings. There came a time on the face of the earth that the imaginations and the minds of men were evil continually. In the scripture of I Peter 3:20-21, you can read about the eight souls that were saved by water. Now the question arises that water was what destroyed the world, how could eight souls be saved by it, did the water have a dual purpose? Yes it did! And it all depended upon which side of the ark you were on! If you were on the outside of that closed door you were drowned, but if you were on the inside of that closed door, that God himself closed, the water served a purpose and it lifted you up above the debris and the destruction and you were saved.
Water has always held a place of importance in God’s word. Even in the Tabernacle you can not miss the labor of water. If you wanted access to God you had to go to the labor. Exodus 30:8-20 gives us instructions on how the priests were to use the labor. They were to wash their hands and their feet before they entered into the holy place or they would die. That does not sound like water was an optional item in God’s plan. It sounds more like it was an essential in the plan. God was saying that you cannot serve him nor walk with him until you have been to the water.
Now lets turn the record over and go to the New Testament. Water is still important in God’s plan. After four hundred years of silence, from heaven, here comes a man whose birth was a miracle birth, who was named with a miracle name; he was a man sent from God whose name was John.
He dressed, ate, and talked different. His message was different for he baptized in water. How did he baptize in water? John 3;23 says this, “And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there…” Baptism comes from the Greek word baptizo, which means literally to be fully whelmed. To say baptism by sprinkling would be like saying emersion by sprinkling. Sprinkling was instituted officially at the Counsel of Revena in 1311 a.d. That’s thirteen centuries after the time of Jesus Christ. It is not in the Bible! If it’s not in the book, we are going to put a question mark by it.
And if it is in the book, we are going to put an exclamation mark by it.
Not only did John baptize, but in the great commission it was commanded. Mark 16:16, Jesus speaking says he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved. Notice it does not say he that believeth and is saved shall be baptized. There are some people who believe you are saved when you repent. The message of many denominations today is simply repent and believe. They do not mention baptism and the infilling of the Holy Ghost. We need to stick with the book.
Ephesians chapter four says there is one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. Some may ask, does the bible say that you have water baptism and you have spirit baptism? Which one are you going to take? In John the fourteenth chapter, Jesus prophesied and made this statement, “And in that day ye shall know that I am in the father, and you in me, and I in you.” When you are baptized in water, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sin, according to Romans chapter six, you are being baptized into Jesus. And when you are filled with the Holy Ghost that is Jesus being baptized in you. According to Colossians 1:27, it is Christ in you the hope of glory. Look at it this way, you get into Jesus Christ through water baptism and he in you through spirit baptism! If you have not been baptized in Jesus name you are not in him, and if you have not received the Holy Ghost he is not in you.
We have just proven that water is in the New Testament. God gave Peter the keys to the kingdom of God. Peter opened the doors to the Jews in Acts chapter two, Samaritans in Acts chapter eight, and the Gentiles in Acts chapter ten. On the day of Pentecost, he stood when they were pricked in their heart; when the conviction had reached a focal point and said, “Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins. And yea shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”
At times people are afraid to discuss Mathew 28:19, this is a great unfortune. Acts 2: 38 is the fulfillment of that great commission. Here is were a lot of churches make their mistake. They do not fulfill the command they merely recite the command. There are a lot of preachers who will baptize you in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, but yet they do not do it. It is the same as telling someone to go close the door, and they go to the door and say to the door, “Go close the door.” If they did that they would not be obeying the command, rather they would be reciting it. Jesus did not say to go out and recite my word, but he said to obey his word. Acts 4:12 plainly states that there is no other salvation in any other name, for there is no other name under heaven were by men must be saved. His name is Jesus!
“The baptismal formula was changed from the name of Jesus Christ to the words father, son, and holy ghost by the Catholic Church in the second century.” “Everywhere in the oldest sources, it states that baptism took place in the name of Jesus Christ.” “The early church always baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.” “We changed baptism.”The Catholics boldly announce what they have done. “Name was an ancient synonym for person; payment was always made in the name of some person referring to ownership.” Therefore one being baptized in Jesus name becomes His personal property. Ye are Christ’s!
Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ, that’s where the authority is at, In the name. There is no authority in a title. Jesus said,” In my name they shall cast out devils. In my name they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall be healed. In my name there is remission of sins.” When you are baptized in the water, in the name of Jesus, your baptism is sealed, and your sins are washed away.
Man has more than one kind of appetite. Men and women today have a spiritual appetite but they are trying to satisfy it with material goods. Some how they found out that this does not fill the vacancy in their heart. Jesus got into a conversation with a woman at the well. She was a Samaritan. Jesus told her that he had living water for her. She told him that she did not understand how he could get water out of such a deep well without a bucket. He said, “Women, if anyone drink of this water he shall thirst again, but if anyone will drink of the water that I have to give, it shall be in him, a well of water, Springing up into everlasting life.” Jesus can satisfy our thirst through the baptism of the Holy Ghost! Amen!
