“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:” –Matthew 3:11
God never wanted sin for mankind, no more than a good father would want evil for his children. God’s desire towards us has always been righteous, good, and virtuous. It was always holiness; we were created in His likeness, holiness was the call of His heart toward the creation that he loved so much. Today, right now, in this present world, we have a clear path to holiness. God has made a way if we choose to walk it.
After Moses led the children of Egypt across the Red Sea, they then found themselves in the wilderness. The idea was to lead them into Canaan and it was to be the dwelling place of God’s people. If you are sanctified you live in a spiritual Canaan. A land of hills and valleys, a land of battles to fight and win, but always and forever a good land, that is yours, and as long as you obey God you will thrive and have victory in this land. Canaan land was the final destination but once again there was a body of water to cross. A second baptism they would have to be tried in; the Jordan River. THIS crossing would be similar to the first but with some differences. One of which that I would like to call your attention to is the instruction God gave to the priest. The Levites were Israelite priest and it was their job to perform the religious service for God. They were the “go between” when it came to God and his people and they were instructed to lift the Ark of the Covenant (where the Spirit of God rested) and carry it into the Jordan waters. God said that when they dipped their feet in the water; the Jordan would stand up on a heap and the people would cross while the priest stood in the mist of the Jordan. Remember, the priest were the go between the people and God, also, the ark was where the Spirit of God rested. They had to go in first and they had to remain in the midst of the Jordan for the people to cross over; they, the priest and the ark, controlled the Jordan tide. So…..what does all this mean for you and me?
Jesus Christ was our great high priest and the mediator of the new covenant. He was baptized of John and coming up from the waters the Spirit descended like a dove and REMAINED on him when a voice from heaven came saying “this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” Canaan was the dwelling place of God’s people and the Jordan River was the gulf that separated them. Though you leave Egypt and your sins washed away. There is still a Jordan tide of carnality to cross, and Jesus Christ is the high priest, the ark, and the only one that can stand in the mist of the waters of carnality to roll back the tide so you and I can cross over into Canaan land.
The baptism of the Holy Ghost is mightier than that of repentance. The Holy Ghost was sent in the name of Christ, he defeated carnality and he makes a way for us to cross over back into full fellowship with God; back into the land promised to us from the beginning. We can be made anew, made into His likeness and image. “We can be holy and without blame before him in love.” When the Israelites walked out into the Jordan, they were trusting in the power of God manifested in the ark and the priest; they were in that to hold back the waters of death. They chose to trust in that. When you come out of Egypt, you beg and believe God; and when you go into Canaan, you trust and commit to Him. This baptism is Christ’s and Christ’s alone: he bought it, brought it, lived it, preached it; and MADE a way, by which you and I could obtain it.
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