I agree. The ordinance of Baptism was never meant as a substitution nor an added part of faith for salvation. It is done as a testimony for what has happened internally. Even the Jewish ordinance of "mikvahs", which were ceremonial washings, were outward acts. The acts, in and of themselves, were not what caused the cleansing, it represented purity and holiness. No outward act can ever be what effects the purification. According to
http://www.chabad.org/theJewishWoman/article_cdo/aid/1541/jewish/The-Mikvah.htm:
The mikvah as an institution is the victim of a popular misconception. Immersion in water is naturally associated with cleansing. To further complicate the issue, Jews historically were often barred by the authorities from using rivers in their cities for bathing. In response they built bathhouses, many with mikvahs in or near them. Together, these factors forged an inextricable link between the idea of mikvah and physical hygiene. But the mikvah never was a monthly substitute for a bath or shower. In fact, the Halachah stipulates that one must be scrupulously clean before immersing. To facilitate this requirement, preparation areas -- with baths and showers, shampoos, soaps, and other cleansing and beauty aids -- are a staple of the modern mikvah.
Hebrews 6:1,2 speaks of the "doctrine of baptisms" (plural). From http://www.scribd.com/doc/21641047/Baptism-or-Mikvah:
The water of immersion (mikvah) in Rabbinic literature was referred to as the womb of the world,and as a convert came out of the water it was considered a new birth separating him from the pagan world. His status was changed and he was referred to as "a little child just born" or "a child of one day".We see the Brit Kadasha (New Testament) using similar Jewish terms as "born anew," "new creation," and "born from above." In a similar way, Rabbinic literature uses the term "born again"to refer to at least 8 different occurrences, each of them a life changing experience:
•When a Gentile converts to become an Israelite (Hebrew).
•Immersion of repentance (John’s baptism), similar to the previous point.
•At age 13 when a Hebrew boy chooses to embrace God's covenant and be numbered with the believers.
•When an individual gets married.
•When an individual is crowned king
•As a disciple of a Teacher/Rabbi, you are immersed in his name to show that you follow him.
•When an individual becomes a Rabbi (Teacher).
•When an individual becomes the head of a rabbinical school.
The water is not used to remove any physical uncleanness, but rather as a symbolic spiritual cleansing and rebirth. The mikvah symbolizes moving from one state to another - from ritual impurity to ritual purity, from one phase of life to another.
When we respond to the message of the Gospel through repentance and faith, the ceremony of baptism is then done as a confirmation and testimony of the inward change. The ceremony, in and of itself, is not what imparts spiritual cleansing but the faith and trust of Jesus Christ by God's grace. Therefore, baptism is not what saves us nor does it cause the remission of sins, only the blood of Christ is able to do that.
Excellent comment. Actually, there are seven baptisms mentioned in the NT, eight if one counts mikvah ritual purification. And I do, when teaching baptisms.
Did you know that I read that for a woman (every month), she is actually to undo any hairdos or braids, right down to the roots, so that the immersion is quite complete?
Thanks for the extra detail!
I understand that a synagogue = "shul" must not only have a minyan of mature men, but also for the building a mikvah (with "living" water)? That's what I've been told --