No. 54. April 2002

 

THE GOSPEL IN WATER

 

       By “the gospel in water” I am not referring to “water salvation,” if there is any such thing, or if there is anyone who believes such a thing. Neither am I suggesting that there is any efficacy or power in water itself. In the one context where the apostle Paul refers to people in Noah’s day being saved by (or through) water, and then saying “baptism now saves us,” he also says, “not the removal of filth from the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God” (1 Pet. 3:21).

 

       That last phrase gets at what I mean by “the gospel in water.” Baptism does not clean or purify the outer man. But something happens in baptism that saves or regenerates the inner man. In baptism one demonstrates that he or she has a good conscience before God. A good conscience or sincerity is the basis of one’s acceptance before God. In submitting to the ordinance of baptism one demonstrates sincerity of faith.

 

       Immersion in water   as the bath that God has ordained   is the gospel in water in that in this act one is not only obeying the gospel but also reenacting the gospel. Paul makes this clear in Rom. 6:3-6 where he describes baptism as symbolic of the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

 

       Notice the facts as the apostle lists them: (1) As many as are baptized into Christ are baptized into his death (verse 3); (2) We are buried in baptism just as Christ was buried in a tomb (verse 4); (3) As Christ was raised from the grave of the tomb we are raised from the grave of water (verse 4); (4) As Christ was raised to a new life we are raised to a new life (verse 4); Baptism unites us to Christ in the likeness both of his death and his resurrection (verse 5).

 

       This is what we witness in the beautiful miracle of baptism. It is the gospel proclaimed in a watery act. Just as Christ died, the one being baptized dies. As Christ was buried in a tomb, the one being immersed is buried in water. As Christ was raised from a tomb, the one being baptized is raised from a watery grave.

 

       In 1 Cor. 15:3-4 the apostle names these three facts   the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ   as the gospel. In Rom. 6:3-5 he shows that these facts of the gospel are depicted in the immersion of the believer. Baptism is therefore the gospel in water.

 

       The gospel in water appears in some impressive contexts. Such as 1 John 5:6: “This is He who came by water and blood   Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth.”

 

       This is a reference to both our Lord’s baptism and his death and resurrection. The Spirit bore witness to both. Jesus “came”   or began his ministry   by being immersed. It was at this time that the Spirit came upon him, and it was the occasion on which he was proclaimed God’s son.

 

       James MacKnight, the renowned Scottish scholar of yesteryear (Presbyterian), is helpful here: “The coming of Jesus Christ, here spoken of, is his coming into public life, attested or proved to be the Christ and Son of God. Jesus came thus attested, first, by means of his baptism in water; secondly, by means of his blood or death, followed by his resurrection. The proof of water is mentioned before the proof of blood, because his baptism was prior to his death.”

 

       The writer of Hebrews sees the gospel in water in still a different way: “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” (Hebrews 10:22). MacKnight says about this verse what seems evident, that “our bodies washed in pure water” refers to our being cleansed “with the clean water of baptism, whereby we professed our faith in Christ as our only High priest.”

 

       He thinks the writer is alluding to the practice of the High Priest washing at the laver in the tabernacle before entering the Holy Place, as in Leviticus 16:4. So we are washed at the laver of baptism before entering the house of God, the church.

 

       The symbol of washing, particularly in terms of cleansing the soul or purifying the inner-person, is frequently mentioned in the New Testament. It is usually, if not always, in reference to baptism, and is still another way to see the gospel in water.

 

       1 Corinthians 6: 11 is especially impressive. After naming those who will not inherit the kingdom of God, such as fornicators, idolaters, homosexuals, sodomites, thieves, covetous, drunkards, and revilers, the apostle Paul makes this remarkable statement: “Such were some of you, but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and in the Spirit of our God.”

 

       Those of us who are eager to point out that homosexuals and sodomites are here put in the same class with fornicators and thieves, are to notice that there are other interesting sins listed. Covetousness or greed gets close to where we all live, as well as reviling (or slandering as some versions render it). Greed and slander are placed alongside sodomy!

 

       What a witness this community of faith was to the sea of pagan debauchery that surrounded it! Some in the congregation had practiced the gross sins named by the apostle. “But,” the apostle says. Three “buts” appear in one verse. Some had been fornicators, but. . . Some had been practicing homosexuals, but . . . Some had been misers and cheats. but … The “buts” introduce God’s grace.

 

       “Such were some of you, but you were washed.” They responded to God’ s grace by being immersed. Again, we see the gospel in water.

 

       We may conclude that the washing, sanctification, and justification took place at the same time. When they were baptized they were set apart or made holy (sanctification); when they were made holy they were justified (or made right with God). It was all by grace, responded to by being washed in “the bath of regeneration.”

 

       That last metaphor does not appear in 1 Corinthians 6: 11, but it is mentioned in Titus 3:5 where we learn still more about the gospel in water.

 

       In Titus 3:4 the apostle refers to the time when “the kindness and love of God our Savior toward man appeared,” and goes on to say in verse 5: “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit.”

 

       While it was God’s grace and mercy that saved us, it was through the washing of regeneration,” or “the bath of regeneration,” as it could be rendered, that God did it. The bath, or immersion, is not itself regeneration, but the washing of regeneration. In the act of baptism the process of being saved or sanctified is consummated. All this is by the power of the Spirit.

 

       There are still other references to washing, which we will not treat in detail, such as Eph. 5:26 where the church is referred to as having been cleansed “by the washing of water by the word.” By “the word” the apostle refers to the preaching of the gospel, and by “washing of water” he refers to believers’ immersion. Again, the gospel in water.

 

       In Acts 22: 16 where Saul of Tarsus. in the process of being saved, is told to “Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins.” We all surely realize that it is God’s grace that saves us by the blood of Christ, but we are also to see that there is a symbolic connection between baptism and the washing away of sins.

 

       All this implies a new life in Christ. When in Colossians 3:1 the apostle says, “If then you were raised with Christ”   that is, raised from the watery grave of baptism like Christ was raised from the tomb   then “seek those things that are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.”

 

       He goes on to say, “For you died”   when you were buried in baptism   “and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” He goes on to identify that life with Christ in terms of tender mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long suffering (verse 12). This is the gospel manifest in the life of the church.

 

       The gospel is, of course, manifest in still other ways. There is the gospel in the word proclaimed. There is the gospel in the Scriptures. There is the gospel in bread and wine of the Lord’s supper. There is the gospel as reflected in the lives of believers.

 

       But they are all related in one way or another to the gospel in water. That helps us to understand why when Jesus was asked about the new birth, he used such unique language as, “Unless one be born of water and of the Spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).

 

       The symbol of water in reference to salvation continues to be present to the very end of the biblical record. In Rev. 22: 17 the call goes out: “The Spirit and the bride say ‘Come!’ And let him who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.”   Leroy

 

 

 

THE CURRENT CRISIS IN THE ROMAN CHURCH

 

       Perhaps more than at any other time in modem history the Roman Catholic Church is in crisis, a moral one. Even though moral and not doctrinal, the crisis may well go to the heart of Roman Catholic theology, particularly its doctrines of the authority of the church and celibacy of the clergy. I will say more of this later.

 

       Hundreds of priests in some 23 nations are involved in what one report described as “one of the Roman Catholic Church’s biggest crises in modem history: a series of youth-sex-abuse cases among priests.” Numerous adults are now revealing how they were abused when children by priests they trusted and deemed to be infallible. Abuse of nuns by priests is also a charge in some nations.

 

       There are scores of cases all across the United States, and they keep turning up. The diocese in Bridgeport, Conn. last year paid out $15 million to settle claims against six priests. One priest is accused of raping 130 children over 30 years. Even bishops and cardinals are implicated, in some instances for sexual abuse itself and in others for protecting other offenders. In such instances crimes are committed that entail prison terms.

 

       It has been financially costly. Some $400 million has already been paid out to settle victims’ claims. It is estimated that a like amount has been paid out in hush money. World wide the cost may go as high as $1 billion. The crimes against children are compounded by the fact that it has been a common practice for church authorities to protect the guilty by transferring them from parish to parish, and by paying out millions to victims for them to keep quiet about it all. This is the kind of gross injustice that the prophets cried out against, such as “Hear now you rulers in the house of Israel, is it not for you to know justice? You who hate good and love evil, who strip the skin from My people, and flesh from their bones” (Micah 3: 1-2).

 

       The crisis reaches far beyond the United States. There are thousands of sex-abuse cases in Canada alone. In France 30 priests have already been convicted in the courts. In Ireland the church has paid $110 million to 3,000 victims. In the pope’s native Poland there are accusations against an archbishop. There are similar cases in Mexico. In Africa there is an international campaign to end violence against women, and the Vatican has been asked to address the problem of “the widespread abuse of nuns by priests.”

 

       We know, of course, that such criminal behavior occurs among all churches. We had a case only this year in a Protestant church near our home. Unlike most of the instances above, the minister went to prison for his crimes. There was no blanket of secrecy and no attempted coverup. The church itself cooperated in pressing charges in a court of law.

 

       Whether we live in glass houses or not, it does not help solve the problem to throw stones. My point herein is not to condemn. It is rather a time for soul-searching, and a time to ask some hard questions, especially on the part of the Roman Catholic hierarchy. This crisis is so widespread and so long-standing, going back at least for decades, that it cannot be dismissed as a problem created by a few wayward priests.

 

       Some brave souls in the Roman church have raised the question that this crisis has made inevitable, Is celibacy necessary to the priesthood? They also point to what appears to be a psychological fact, that the celibate life is so unnatural that it makes otherwise normal men lust after children. Just as a forced celibate life, such as imprisonment, leads normal men to lust after each other. To put it another way, if the offending priests had married in their youth as most ministers do, they may not have become pedophiles.

 

       It is the case, of course, that some priests have no problem with their vow of celibacy, but they appear to be in the minority in that celibacy is not a gift to all. Many, if not most, have a problem with celibacy in one way or another. It sometimes leads to alcoholism. It is a revealing statistic that more than half of pedophiles are also alcoholics.

 

       The Roman church might look to the Orthodox Church for an answer, a church older than itself, and one that has celibacy as part of its tradition. But the Orthodox do not make celibacy necessary to priesthood, and most Orthodox priests are married. But they must marry before they are ordained as priests, for once priests they cannot marry. And if a priest’s wife dies, he cannot remarry. That is based on the biblical mandate of “married only once” in 1 Tim. 3:2.

 

       When I was a guest of the Orthodox Church in Armenia a few years back, a deacon, who was also a professor in the seminary, told me he would remain a deacon until he married, and would then be ordained as a priest. Considering their interpretation of 1 Tim. 3:2, which is probably correct, they are well advised to marry a woman with promise of longevity!

 

       But the Orthodox do have the vow of celibacy for those who deem themselves so gifted. And only celibates can be bishops. The bishops, of course, are a tiny minority. Most priests are married and have families, as in the case of most Protestant ministers.

 

       The Roman church, with its dubious doctrine of “forbidding to marry” (1 Tim. 4:3), makes no such distinction. To be a priest it is necessary to take the vow of celibacy. The vow of poverty is optional, but not celibacy.

 

       So, if I were among the prelates wrestling with the question of why the present crisis in the Roman church, I would put this question on the table: Why do our brothers in the Orthodox Church not have our problem?

 

       Could it be because they allow their priests to marry, and make celibacy optional?

 

       Moreover, there is no evidence that celibacy is of a higher spiritual order. Experience has taught the church just the opposite, that a married man with family life is better equipped to shepherd God’s family than a single man. It should not be lost on the church that the Bible mandates marriage and family for the highest order in a congregation of believers, the work of presbyters or bishops (l Tim. 3:2-4).

 

       There is no biblical support for celibacy, except as an option for those who are so gifted. Marriage is in fact highly extolled in Scripture, even by such presumed celibates as Jesus, John, and Paul. I say “presumed” because we do not know for sure that John and Paul were not married earlier in life. As for Jesus, one scholar wrote a challenging book on Was Jesus Married?

 

       The author made a convincing case that since among the Jews marriage was so universal, and being single virtually nonexistent, that Jesus, being the loyal Jew that he was, was also married. After all, he was 30 years old before he launched out on his mission.

 

       But I do not take that position. I accept the church’s standing tradition that Jesus was single, even if Scripture never says he was. But I will say, after reading said book, that should I learn when I get to heaven that Jesus was indeed married during his early pilgrimage, I will be neither surprised nor disappointed! Our revulsion to the suggestion that Jesus may have been married is one more indication of how we have been influenced by the dogma of the spiritual superiority of celibacy.

 

       If the Messiah was indeed married, it would be one more instance of his “being tempted in all points as we are” (Heb. 4: 15)!!! What is certain is that our Lord’s marital state had no bearing on the quality of his spirituality.

 

       The Roman church’s problem may also be related to its view of authority. I have observed in the several testimonies I have heard on TV from sexually abused children, now adults, that they had an abnormal, exaggerated concept of priests as infallible. The priest, like the Roman Catholic Church as a whole. is not to be questioned. So, if he invites you to his bed and does crazy things, it must be all right since he is a priest.

 

       When people are conditioned from childhood to ask no questions when it comes to the authority of the church, it is understandable that children make easy prey. If indeed in issues relative to “morals and dogma” the church cannot be wrong, a mere child or a teenager is not likely to say no to a priest or bishop even when his or her better angels are urging otherwise.

 

       Again, Scripture is not on the side of the Roman church in this regard. The apostles, from whom pope and clergy claim to get their authority, urged the disciples to follow them only as they followed Christ (1 Cor. 11:1). And Jesus himself, when referring to the absolute authority Gentile kings exercised over their subjects, insisted, “It shall not be so among you” (Mt.20:26).

 

       Nor is common sense and human dignity on the side of Rome’s view of authority. If a person cannot think for himself, and be free to say no in response to the demands of his own conscience, he or she is less than a person.  Leroy

 

 

Between Us . . .

 

       Ouida and I are full of travel plans for Spring. On April 21 I will speak at the Living Word Chapel in Oracle, Arizona where old friend Bob Cannon is the pastor. It is an independent church with no denominational affiliation. On same trip we will be with Curt and Sue Burton in nearby Tucson, also longtime friends. With them we will drive to El Paso to visit with Woodrow Wilson, and I will speak at the Downtown Church of Christ where Woodrow has ministered for many years. We will go across the border to Juarez to be with Victor and Gloria Richards, who have had a fruitful ministry in Mexico for over 40 years. I last visited with them in 1975. Ouida and I knew Vic and Gloria before they were married.

 

       Without Ouida I will be with the Pennyrile Church of Christ, 4915 Hanson Rd.. Madisonville, Kentucky on May 5-6. I will address the congregation three times on Sunday. May 5. On Monday, May 6, we will have an all-day study of the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives today.

 

       We will be with the Greater Portland Church of Christ in Portland, Maine, May 9-11. After an informal gathering on Friday night, there will be “A Day of Stone-Campbell History with Leroy Garrett” on May 11. On Lord’s day I will address the Greater Portland congregation. On May 19 I will speak to the Brookline Church of Christ in Brookline, Mass. This will be a special blessing for us in that it is the congregation we knew and loved when we were at Harvard over 50 years ago.

 

       On Wednesday, June 12, I will take part in a series of mid-week studies un spirituality at the Pitman Creek Church of Christ in Plano, Texas, near Dallas. My subject will be “Spirituality and Holiness in the Restoration Movement.”

 

       July 18-20 I will take part in the Christian Scholars Conference at Oklahoma Christian University. My subject will be a survey of Restoration history.

 

       The ACU Press continues to produce challenging books appropriate to the changing climate in Churches of Christ. The books are in fact reflective of the changing scene. Two new titles are especially recommended. God’s Holy Fire: The Nature and Function of Scripture is the work of Kenneth Cukrowski, Mark Hamilton, and James Thompson. It is a kind of introduction to Bible study in that it looks at Scripture as a whole and then in its parts. $16 postpaid. The other title, Renewing God’s People: A Concise History of Churches of Christ. To those of us who have taken many hundreds of pages to write our history, this volume is a bit embarrassing in that it gets so much said in only 145 pages. $16 postpaid.

 

       Two new titles from New Leaf Books also address the transition that we are going through. Participating in God’s Life: Two Crossroads for Churches of Christ by Leonard Allen and Danny Swick, $17 postpaid; Trusting Women: The Way of Women in Churches of Christ. edited by Billy Silvey, is unique that it is written by women, 19 of them in fact. $16 postpaid.