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Churchwork
08-28-2008, 02:56 PM
"Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to the whole creation. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned" (Mark 16.15-16).

Hypothetically speaking and answering honestly, if this verse is true, would you be saved or condemned?

If you get angry or frustrated when someone preaches the gospel, are you denying the gospel to any part of the whole creation?

Interesting. Why then does one shut their mind down to the gospel, the Word, perdition, Christ, consequence? Because they are "already condemned" (John 3.18), for you admit, even now, you will never believe in Christ, so God returns with His commensurate judgment.

To me it's like a tenant who keeps violating some code the landlord has established in their tenant agreement, and every time the landlord comes to the tenant to resolve this problem, the tenant gives the landlord a cold shoulder to avoid facing up to breaking the landlord's contract with the tenant.

Though the landlord is hurt by this unloving behavior of the tenant, the tenant does not escape judgment, for the problem does not magically go away. The tenant still goes to bed every night knowing their wrong doing. That has to eat away at their conscience day in and day out and would not, nor could not make them a happy person. How could they be, for their dishonesty and unfriendly behavior is just plain old fashioned wrong!

Do you believe baptism (http://www3.telus.net/trbrooks/waterbaptism.htm) is, after having died on the cross, with or without water in burial and resurrection with Christ for service to come out of the world by asking a member of the body of Christ to bury you which lets Christians know you are a member of the same body ("by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body" 1 Cor. 12.13) and baptized by God (see 1 Cor. 1.30)?

You were not the only one who went down in the water; your world went down with you. Does the water represent Christ, since "baptized into Christ" (Rom. 6.3a) is into water; as well as death, since we are "baptized into his death" (6.3b)?

Is baptism a testimony before angels and men that your sins were washed away and forgiven by God? Was your baptism "the answer of a good conscience toward God" (1 Pet. 3.21)?

Since you have died and don't want the old life anymore so you let it be buried through baptism. Do not live as though you need to repeat the "teaching of baptisms, not laying again a foundation of repentance" of water, Spirit, and judgment by fire (Heb. 6.1-2, Matt. 3.11).

Upon experiencing the baptism of the Holy Spirit did your intuition become acutely sensitive to discover in your spirit a spiritual world open up before you (of things and beings) so that not only can you touch the supernatural power of God but are able to contact God's Third Person as well?

(As the Apostles were taught of the Scriptures by the Lord after Calvary; but they were made conscious of the real existence of a spiritual realm following the Spirit-baptism at Pentecost, the starting point of spiritual warfare with the enemy-an engagement of spirit with spirit.)