What Unimportant Thing can we Fight About Today?

Are we supposed to be baptized in the name of Jesus only, or in the names of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit?

I thought I knew the answer, but then I thought I didn’t. Now I know I know.

Traditionally, churches have baptized in the name of the Trinity. There is scriptural support for this. In Matthew 28, Jesus commanded the disciples to baptize in all three names.

Question answered, right?

No.

Throughout the New Testament, scripture says people were baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, without mentioning the Father and Holy Spirit. It doesn’t say the Father and Holy Spirit were not named, but it doesn’t say they were.

We pray in Jesus’ name, not the name of the Father or Holy Spirit. We cast out demons in his name. We say we are the body of Christ, not the body of Yahweh. We say we are “in Christ.” This is strong support for baptizing in the name of Jesus Christ. It seems like pretty good authority.

It seems very clear that we should baptize in the name of Jesus Christ. It’s less clear that we should not mention the Father or Holy Spirit.

The question is interesting to me, because I was baptized by the Last Reformation, and they teach that you should be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, not the Trinity. I assumed they knew what they were doing, but then I read Matthew 28. I decided they were wrong. Now I think they’re right.

In addition to the numerous citations in the New Testament, they rely on Eusebius, an early Christian, to support their view. Eusebius is presumed to have seen very authentic versions of the gospels, and he has said that Jesus commanded his followers to make disciples in his name. Baptism is not mentioned. There is also a Hebrew translation of Matthew that omits the reference to the Trinity.

Problem: Eusebius quoted the version with the Trinitarian reference in at least one other work, so he clearly approved of it, unless his work was altered.

Problem: the Hebrew translation anti-Trinitarians rely on can’t be dated to anything close to the first centuries A.D.

TLR isn’t the only organization quibbling with the conventional text. The Black Hebrew Israelites and the Muslims object to it.

What’s the answer?

First of all, it’s a big mistake to fight over things like this. Obviously, God is not going to invalidate your baptism for mentioning the Father and Holy Spirit, and since Jesus Christ is one with them, and since we do all other things in his name, it certainly should be sufficient to name him only.

Poring over old books is a major error when it comes to interpreting the will of God. You may have to give them a certain amount of consideration, but if we believe the Holy Spirit speaks to us today and tells us things like where to live and which pair of socks to buy, surely we should expect him to resolve theological questions for us.

When you get too attached to books and opinions, it shows you’re getting distant from the Holy Spirit. God does not have opinions. He does not think argument is “healthy” or useful. God has the truth, and he delivers it to everyone with no inconsistencies.

Worshiping the opinions of men has destroyed the power of God’s people over and over. The Talmud damaged the Jews tremendously, and so has Catholic gossip and pantheism masquerading as revelation.

If study were the answer, Judaism and the church would never have fallen apart, right? There have been a tremendous number of able scholars, and they generally get essential things completely wrong.

Here’s something God just showed me. When we say someone has been baptized “in the name of Jesus Christ,” we’re not describing the type of baptism or what has happened to the person. We are describing the motivation and authority of the person PERFORMING the baptism.

If you heal in Jesus’ name, it means you are doing it with his authority. It doesn’t mean Jesus is doing it, or that only Jesus is God, or anything else. We have no problem accepting the idea that the Holy Spirit and angels heal when we lay hands on people. We don’t require Jesus to show up in person. We’re just using his authority, and the means is up to the Father.

If you pray in Jesus’ name, it doesn’t mean you pray to Jesus or that you pray only to Jesus. Jesus told us to approach the Father in prayer.

It follows, then, that when you say, “in the name of Jesus Christ” when you baptize, you’re just showing that you have his authority to baptize. You’re not relying on your authority, or the authority of angels, or the authority of the federal government, or the authority of the Rotary Club. You’re using inherited authority that was the property of Jesus Christ while he was on earth and now belongs to you.

The threshold question God would ask is, “Who authorized you to do this?” The answer is, “You did. You authorized Jesus Christ, and I inherited his authority.” This endorsement makes the transaction go through.

These things are clearly true, so it must be that when we baptize, we do it in the name of Jesus, just as we pray in his name and cast out spirits in his name. The cooperation of the Father and Holy Spirit are guaranteed because they are united in purpose with Jesus, so you don’t need to mention them expressly. They respect and honor his name.

“Jesus Christ” is shorthand for “Yehoshuah the Messiah,” and “messiah” means “anointed one.” “Anointed” means “given authority.” We have inherited his anointing, so we use his authority. Baptize in his name, and you baptize as though you were Jesus himself. You’re of the body, and you can join others to the body.

It’s not like “being baptized WITH the Holy Spirit,” which means having the Holy Spirit surround you and live inside you. When you’re baptized with the Holy Spirit, you’re not receiving his authority. You’re being baptized WITH or IN him. You become immersed in him and filled with him, as though he were water. You’re giving him authority in you. Not the same thing as being baptized (with water) into the royal family in the name of Jesus.

I hope TLR supporters and other Spirit-led Christians won’t get into a big stink over this issue. It’s a colossal pit we don’t need to fall into.

I’m very confident in the answer I have received.