Salvation through Water

We understand from Hebrews 6.2 that there are many baptisms.

Romans 6:3-4 “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized  into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead  through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”
This talks about a baptism that unites us with the death of Christ. 

1 Corinthians 12:13 “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”
Here, we see that this happens when we receive the Holy Spirit, who connects all of us to one body in Christ.

The second baptism is water baptism; this is symbolic. It proclaims/ testifies our faith to the world. It shows that we were also crucified, buried, and resurrected with Jesus.We symbolically enact this by immersing and coming out of water just as Jesus was crucified, buried and resurrected. Even though it is symbolic, it has great value. 
This is why God sent Philip to baptise the man in the desert. Even when Paul and Silas were released from prison miraculously, they immediately baptised the jailor and his family right after they believed. 
In the Bible, baptism always followed accepting the gospel. Water Baptism is faith in action. 

1 Peter 3:20-21 “20 to those who were disobedient long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built. In it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water, 21 and this water symbolises baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ”

Peter, who conducted the first baptism after Jesus’ ascension, wrote this passage. He talks about the Old Testament time of Noah. A huge ark was built over one hundred and twenty years. Noah conceived the blueprint from God Himself because this was the first of its kind. But only eight people were saved through water then. This water symbolises the baptism that now saves us too! This water baptism which saved them from destruction was a sign/ shadow/ symbol of the New Testament water baptism. This baptism is not a cleansing one, but a pledge of clear conscience toward God. 

In Genesis 6, the Holy Spirit left mankind because man was steeped in sin. He only came back on the Day of Pentecost. Noah and his family were saved through water from the corrupt generation/ world system of his time. Even today, the apostles preached for us to repent and be saved from our corrupt generation through water!

We must remember the great condemnation from which we are receiving salvation through baptism. Water also symbolises creation. In Genesis, the Holy Spirit hovered over the waters during creation. A new born baby is birthed in his/ her mother’s water bag. 
It also symbolises a new creation and a new life, as we move from death to life through baptism. 

1 Corinthians 10:1-5 “For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2 They were all baptised into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3 They all ate the same spiritual food 4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.”

The Old Testament Israelites were baptised into Moses in the cloud and the sea. They saw two types of baptisms. This is relevant today as well. The cloud shows spiritual baptism when we receive the Holy Spirit, the sea shows water baptism which is symbolic action of the first spiritual baptism.

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