Repentance
God is a Spirit (John 4:24), and He is holy. Thus the Bible often refers to God by the terms Holy Ghost and Holy Spirit. Biblical salvation is that a person can go from being a sinner (separated from God) to being a Christian. The Holy Spirit dwells inside the believer! It is an experience. God’s Spirit provides the power to live a new life, and thus identifies with the resurrection of Jesus. It is an act of God upon the believer who receives, through faith, the gift promised in the Word of God. Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Jesus then explained what this new birth is: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:1-4; 2:38).
Water Baptism in Jesus Name
Proper baptism—being immersed in water with the name of Jesus invoked aloud—is an essential step in becoming a Christian. After Jesus was crucified, His followers buried Him in a borrowed tomb. Once a believer has repented—become dead to sin—he is to bury the old lifestyle through water baptism. This step identifies with the burial of Jesus. The Bible says, “We are buried with him [Jesus] by baptism” (Romans 6:4). Baptism is an act of faith on the part of both the church and the believer. “Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan, and were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins” (Matthew 3:5-6). “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). “In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead” (Colossians 2:11-12; Acts 2:38).
Holy Spirit Baptism
God is a Spirit (John 4:24), and He is holy. Thus the Bible often refers to God by the terms Holy Ghost and Holy Spirit. Biblical salvation is that a person can go from being a sinner (separated from God) to being a Christian. The Holy Spirit dwells inside the believer! It is an experience. God’s Spirit provides the power to live a new life, and thus identifies with the resurrection of Jesus. It is an act of God upon the believer who receives, through faith, the gift promised in the Word of God. Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). Jesus then explained what this new birth is: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:1-4; 2:38).
