Water and Spirit: Two Baptisms

Baptized with Water

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John said, “I indeed baptized you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8). That one sentence names two baptisms, and the first is baptism with water.

John's baptism. John preached “a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins” (Mark 1:4). People were baptized in the Jordan, “confessing their sins” (Mark 1:5).

A sign of turning. The water showed that a person was turning away from sin and back to God. Forgiveness comes from God when we turn to Him. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (1 John 1:9).

Pointing ahead. John's baptism got people ready for Jesus. It pointed to Someone greater who would do what water never could.

Jesus' command. After He rose, Jesus told His followers to make disciples, “baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). Christians are baptized because Jesus said to.

Believe first. On the Day of Pentecost, “those who gladly received his word were baptized” (Acts 2:41). In the Bible, people believe in Jesus first, and then they are baptized.

A picture. Baptism is an outward picture of an inward change. Going under the water pictures dying to the old life. Coming up pictures rising to a new life with Jesus (Romans 6:4).

New life is real. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Baptism shows a change Jesus has already made.

Baptism does not save. Water cannot wash sin out of a heart. We are saved “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy” (Titus 3:5).

Saved by trusting. When a jailer asked how to be saved, Paul and Silas said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). The jailer believed, and then he was baptized.

Jesus was baptized too. Jesus did not need to turn from sin, but He was baptized to stand with sinners (Mark 1:9). When believers are baptized, they follow their Savior.

Telling everyone. Baptism is like telling the whole church, I belong to Jesus now. It is a happy day.

What to do. If you trust Jesus and have not been baptized, talk with your parents and your pastor about it. If you have been baptized, thank God for the new life it pictures.

Mark 1:8 sets two baptisms side by side. John's water baptism was real and commanded by God, but it was a sign. The Spirit baptism Jesus gives is the reality the sign pointed to.

John's baptism (1:4-5). It was “a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” The water did not remove sin. It marked people who were turning to God, who forgives. John's baptism prepared a people for the Lord.

A forward-looking sign. John's baptism could not give a new heart. It looked ahead to the One who would. Later, Jesus' disciples baptized people as a sign of following Him, and after His resurrection Jesus commanded baptism for all nations (Matthew 28:19).

The order in Acts. In Acts, people hear the gospel, believe and are then baptized: “those who gladly received his word were baptized” (Acts 2:41). The Ethiopian official believed and asked to be baptized (Acts 8:36-38). Baptism follows faith.

Acts 2:38. Peter said, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.” Repentance and faith receive forgiveness; baptism is the public step that goes with them. In Acts 10:43 Peter says that everyone who believes in Jesus receives forgiveness of sins.

Union with Christ. Romans 6:3-4 teaches that believers were buried with Christ and raised to walk in newness of life. Colossians 2:12 says the same. Baptism pictures that union: the old life ended at the cross, and a new life began.

Not by works. Titus 3:5 rules out every work as the ground of salvation, including religious ceremonies: “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us.” Baptism is obedience from a saved heart, not a payment for salvation.

Jesus' own baptism (1:9). Jesus was baptized not to confess sin but to stand with sinners. Christian baptism looks back to His death and resurrection. It is the believer's public way of saying, I belong to Him.

Assurance. A believer can know they belong to God because salvation rests on Christ's finished work, not on a ceremony. Jesus said, “he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life” (John 5:24).

Application. If you have trusted Christ, baptism is a joyful step of obedience and a testimony to others. Talk to your parents and a pastor about what it means and when you might take that step.

Baptized with the Holy Spirit

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John could only baptize with water. He said Jesus “will baptize you with the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8). Only God can give God's Spirit, so this is a promise only Jesus can keep.

Who is the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is God, a Person, not a force or a feeling. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit He (John 14:16-17).

An old promise. God said, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you” (Ezekiel 36:26). He promised, “I will put My Spirit within you” (Ezekiel 36:27).

Rivers of living water. Jesus said, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” Then the Bible explains, “But this He spoke concerning the Spirit” (John 7:38-39).

The Helper. Jesus promised, “I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever” (John 14:16). Abide means stay.

Pentecost. After Jesus rose and went back to heaven, His followers were together in Jerusalem. “There appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them” (Acts 2:3). The Holy Spirit had come, just as Jesus said.

For everyone who believes. Peter told the crowd that day, “you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). The Spirit lives in every believer, young or old.

God lives in you. “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you” (1 Corinthians 6:19). A Christian is never alone.

Power to tell others. Jesus said, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me” (Acts 1:8). A witness tells what they know about Jesus.

Fruit that grows. The Spirit changes us from the inside: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). Longsuffering means patient.

God's children. The Spirit helps us know we are God's children. We received “the Spirit of adoption” (Romans 8:15).

Our Teacher. “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things” (John 14:26). He helps you understand the Bible.

What to do. Ask the Holy Spirit each morning to help you love Jesus, obey Him and be brave enough to tell a friend about Him.

Water baptism is a picture. Spirit baptism is God Himself coming to live in His people. Mark 1:8 puts this promise in Jesus' hands, which is a claim that Jesus does what only God does.

The Spirit is a Person. Jesus calls the Spirit “He” (John 14:16-17; 16:13). The Spirit teaches, guides and helps. He is fully God, equal with the Father and the Son.

The promise (Ezekiel 36:26-27). God promised a new heart and His own Spirit within His people, so that they would walk in His ways. Water could never do that. Only God coming to live inside could.

Parakletos. In John 14:16 Jesus calls the Spirit “another Helper.” The Greek word is parakletos (say: pa-RAH-klay-tos), one called alongside to help. “Another” means one like Jesus Himself, who would stay with the disciples forever.

Not yet given (John 7:39). John explains that “the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” The Spirit was poured out after Jesus died, rose and returned to the Father.

Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4, 17-18). The Spirit came with the sound of wind and tongues as of fire. Peter explained it from Joel: “I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh.” Before Pentecost, Jesus had told His disciples they would soon be baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5).

Every believer. Acts 2:38 promises the gift of the Spirit to all who repent and believe. 1 Corinthians 6:19 says the believer's body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. No Christian is without Him.

Power with a purpose. Acts 1:8 links the Spirit's power with being witnesses. The Spirit also gives gifts to the church for building one another up, used in love and in order (1 Corinthians 12–14).

The Spirit of truth. Jesus said, “He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). The Spirit uses Scripture to teach believers and to point them to Jesus.

Fruit and assurance. Galatians 5:22-23 shows the Spirit's character growing in a believer. Romans 8:15 says believers received “the Spirit of adoption,” so they can come to God as Father.

Application. Depend on the Spirit, not on willpower alone. Pray each day for His help to obey Jesus and to speak about Him, and watch for His fruit growing over time.

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