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Baptism in Fire
Coul anyone explain what exactly is baptism in fire, please?
Thanks and God bless
Thanks and God bless
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Carla on
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Hi Virginia,
Thank you for your question here....
What is the context of the question?
Blessings, Carla
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Permalink Reply by David Velasquez on
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Hello sister Virginia,
Sister Carla has asked you the correct question, but I am going to go out on a limb and assume you are asking in reference to the verses below, if that is not the case please just ignore it.
Like many other topics (doctrines) in the word, there are several interpretations of what this might mean. My prayer for you sis is the same that Paul prayed for the Ephesians, in chapter 1:17-19 (New International Version)
17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit[a] of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
May the Spirit of truth lead you to all truth sis.
Question:
"What is the "baptism of fire"?"
Answer:
The "baptism of fire" is only mentioned in two places in the Bible:
"I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." (Matthew 3:11)
"John answered them all, "I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."" (Luke 3:16)
John the Baptist said that Jesus will baptize people with the Holy Spirit and with fire, and there are several interpretations of what this might mean:
1.Some people believe that Christians will automatically be "baptized with fire" at the same time that they are baptized with the Holy Spirit (such as the "tongues of fire" that came onto the disciples at Pentecost in Acts 2:1-4). In other words, being baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire is essentially one act (one baptism).
2.Another interpretation is that Christians need to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit after salvation, but we also need to receive a separate "baptism of fire" which will "set us on fire" for the Lord (or for evangelism, etc.). In other words, the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the baptism of fire are two separate baptisms for Christians. A similar view says that Christians will be refined by "fire," which would also mean that the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the baptism of fire are two separate baptisms for Christians.
3.A third interpretation is that Christians will be baptized with the Holy Spirit, but non-Christians will be "baptized with fire" (i.e. the "lake of fire" in Revelation 20:15). In other words, Christians will never receive the "baptism of fire."
I personally choose the 3rd interpretaion.
The third view of the "baptism of fire" is that it refers to sinners being cast into the "lake of fire" on Judgment Day:
"If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." (Revelation 20:15)
The "lake of fire" is never referred to as the "baptism of fire" in the New Testament, but it turns out that there is Scriptural evidence which supports the idea that the "baptism of fire" refers to the fire of judgment. To see why, let's look at the context in which John the Baptist mentioned the "baptism of fire":
Matthew 3:4: "John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey."
Matthew 3:5: "People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan."
Matthew 3:6: "Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River."
Matthew 3:7: "But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?"
Matthew 3:8: "Produce fruit in keeping with repentance."
Matthew 3:9: "And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham."
Matthew 3:10: "The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire."
Matthew 3:11: ""I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."
Matthew 3:12: "His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire.""
The web page below will give you an extensive brake down of each theological stance, enjoy:
http://www.layhands.com/WhatIsTheBaptismOfFire.htm
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Permalink Reply by Virginia on
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I wish there was only a single, unique interpretation for everything in the Bible, I will have to add baptism in fire to my long list of unsolved misteries... Thank you so much for your answer.
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Dear Virginia,
Ephesians 4
11 And he gave some to be apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of ministering, unto the building up of the body of Christ:
13 till we all attain unto the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a fullgrown man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ
Every single verse in scripture means ONLY ONE THING when kept in context. We should all come to the unity of the knowledge of Christ.This is our challenge beloved in Christ, to:
2 Timothy 2:15 (New King James Version)
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
A couple of things to remember sis, are the following:
1. Every verse on the bible means one thing when kept in context, yet a verse may have many applications.
2. When we want to rightly divide the word of God, we must keep in mind that in order to get the right understanding of a verse we must take into account what the bible says about the topic at hand from Genesis to Revelation.
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Hello sis,
This is what the Baptism by fire means sister:
Matthew 3:11 (New King James Version)
11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
Keeping the verse in context through out the chapter, we can safely determine, the fire is reffering to a baptism of judgment upon the unrepentant.
Matthew 3:10-12 (New King James Version)
10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
So sis take baptism in fire out of your long list of unsolved misteries hehe Hallelujah!
KEEP ASKING BELOVED - YOU HAVE VERY GIFTED TEACHERS IN THIS SITE. LT, GREG, CARLA AND SCRIBE ARE JUST A PHEW SISTER. I learn from them.
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Praise the Lord!!
David, as you said you choose the last interpretation are you assuming the other ones are wrong?
Thanks ahead
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Hello sis,
No, no assumptions here sis.
By Gods grace and for His glory, i have been bless with a desire to learn the truth, so i venture into the different theological camps and try to keep open to learn, a teachable attitude.
I am familiar with both Reformed/Calvinism and Arminianism theology.
And love both, yes for different reasons. :)
I said all that, to say that i am very familiar with the other positions/interpretation of the text and after much thought and conviction from the Spirit that leads to all truth; I go with my chosen interpretation.
Blessings
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Permalink Reply by David on
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Virginia,
I have prayed and sought wisdom in understanding this issue through the years. A few verses stand out to me:
Hebrews 6
1 Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death,[a] and of faith in God, 2instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so.
The plural use of baptisms stood out to me.
Luke 12:49
"I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled! 50 But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed!
Mark 9:49 Everyone will be salted with fire.
1st Corinthians 3: 10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, 13 his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. 14If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. 15 If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames.
1st Peter 1:1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:
Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
Hebrews 12:14 Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.
Acts 14:22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, "Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God."
I have also studied the lives of great men of God who have gone before and are not known for their great titles but for their impact in the kingdom of God, through the people they have discipled.
From this and my experience I now believe that there are three baptisms for the believer; the baptism of repentance symbolized by water which John taught, the baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 19) which gives us power to live the life of a disciple, and the baptism of fire which I believe is the same thing as sanctification and which transforms our mind, will and emotions into the nature of Christ.
I believe that this consists of embracing the cross and literally counting it all joy when we encounter various trials...
It is in dying to our beliefs, our will, and how we feel about situations that our carnal being is transformed into the nature of Christ. If we are willing to follow in this, God will even ask us to sacrifice our 'Issac', the very calling and promise He has given us. The result is that the fearful Abram becomes 'Abraham, father of the faithful'.
God showed me once that every great patriarch in the scriptures walked through this except King Saul who went from his calling straight into his destiny. I don't want Saul's legacy and so I submit to the wilderness experience Father God has for me.
This is not growing in theology but growing in trusting Him who led Joseph into the pit and prison and Moses into the wilderness and Abraham to slay his son, and even Jesus into the wilderness. We must come to the place where we can say with Job, "Tho He slay me, yet will I serve Him."
This is not a dark or dreadful path for it leads to freedom and life, fearlessness and faith.
Some great reading I can recommend is 'Hinds feet on High places', and 'The Release of the Spirit' by Watchman Nee
May God's grace and courage be with you.
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Bro David.
I truly enjoyed reading what you shared with us and I think I follow your thoughts, but I want to make sure I do, so I will summarize what I think you are saying bro and believe me brother, your passion and conviction about what the Spirit has placed in your heart comes through in your writing. Very cool.
1. the baptism of repentance symbolized by water which John taught
2. the baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 19)
3. the baptism of fire which I believe is the same thing as sanctification
ok
2. the baptism in the Holy Spirit (Acts 19). David is this baptism the same one as the one found on:
1 Corinthians 12:13 (New King James Version)
13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into[a] one Spirit.
3. the baptism of fire which I believe is the same thing as sanctification, is this equal to:
James 1
2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Including persecutions etc....?
Great post bro.
dave
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Hey Bro,
Thanks for the considerate dialog.
Regarding the first question I have to say, maybe. My background is in software and business architecture and I like to be able to define things precisely. However, sometimes when I study the scriptures things don't line up so precisely or at least not in my current level of understanding. I see nuances in those passages that make me hesitate and not be certain I am comfortable yet with saying that I can attach them to the pattern I discussed.
The second verse and persecutions do seem to me to align with my understanding of the baptism of fire as do other verses talking about the development of our character as disciples of Christ.
It seems to me that there is something about this process that is designed to bring us back to a place of TRUSTING the Father which is where Adam and Eve lost their way in the garden of Eden and where Jesus won his victory in the garden of Gethsemane. When we come to the end of our devices and dreams and totally trust in the Father a new way of living is established in us. The book, 'Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret' describes this beautifully to me.
Many who have embraced this baptism are now admired as pillars of faith. However, while they were choosing to walk through it, there was no glory. The only thing that I have found to keep one walking into the 'fire' is the sure conviction that 'He is worthy'. Yes, the results are worth it on the other end, but that is not sufficient motivation at the time.
Hebrews 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
May His Grace be multiplied to you brother !
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Permalink Reply by Edwin Muir on
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Firstly I am in tolal agreement with this Brother David,by revelation and testimony.
Lk 12.49 I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?
He comes to fill the hungry and OUR *GOD* IS A CONSUMING FIRE.
JUST LOVE IT WHEN YOU BROUGHT UP HOW THAT;
*HE* IS WORTHY,OH YES!,SO WORTHY IS *HE*
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