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"Teaching All Nations"
It is written (Matthew 28:19-20
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen).This command speaks of "nations" or “Gentles,” and thus excludes the Jews, for it is distinctly declared of them that they should "not be reckoned among the nations" (Numbers 23:9
For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him: lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the nations.). Whereas, the Gospel of the Grace of God is preached today to the “Jew” and “Gentile” alike. The command speaks of "all nations," and it says, "make all nations disciples" or "Disciple all nations" as such: whereas this present Dispensation is eclectic, and it is individual “Jews” and “Gentiles” who are taken out of all nations.The word rendered "teach" in (verse 19) is not the same as "teaching"
in (verse 20). The former means to "make disciples": while the latter means to instruct the “individuals” who are thus made disciples. But neither of these terms is peculiar to the present Dispensation. Ministerial work today is, according to the “Church Epistles,” not to "disciple nations" or Gentiles, but to preach and proclaim the Gospel of the Grace of God to individuals, as lost sinner, that they maybe taken out not only from among the Jews, but from among the nations. It is to "preach the Word": and we are to do this the more earnestly because, as the days get darker, men will be less ready to "endure sound doctrine" ( 2 Timothy 4:1-4 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.).The command in (Matthew the 28th chapter) manifestly applies to a very different condition of things from that which is common to our experience.
The only ground for this command is that "all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth." For, while, in the Divine counsels, it can be said, "Thou hast put all things under his feet," yet, it is immediately added in (Hebrew 2:8
Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.). The reference given in the margin of (Matthew 28:18) fully bear this out. Not until the yet future opening scene in the coming Dispensation of Judgment will the gift of "all power" on the earth be formally made and received, and the Heavenly song burst forth, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power," (Revelation 5:12 Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.).But this is the only reason given for obedience to this command: "Go ye Therefore."
Moreover, certain definite days seem to be marked off: and this, at the end of the age, or of that Dispensation of the kingdom, when the proclamation of "the gospel of the kingdom" will again be made and accompanied by its companion ordinance of baptism.
The baptism will not be into the name of the One who was to come (as in the Gospels): not into the name of the One who had come and been rejected as in (the Acts of the Apostles): but into the Triune name of "the Father. and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." This will indeed be a work which will require "all power" in order to secure the submission of Jews and Mahommedans, as nations, to receive this baptism as the sign and token that they have acknowledged and submitted themselves to Christ, the Messiah, as their Lord and King.
This national work is that referred to in (Matthew 24:13-14
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.), i.e., the end of "the days" referred to in (Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.).This is the "end" here referred to in (Matthew 28:19-20,
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.).The whole of this Dispensation is leaped over, as it is done in (Isaiah 61:2
To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;). And many other passages.This command spoken of the Future, in a past Dispensation, entirely disregards this present interval and contemplates obedience to it as being carried out not in the Present, but in the Future Dispensation.
We have exactly the same phenomenon in (Matthew the 10th chapter). There the Lord commissions the Twelve for their immediate proclamation of the kingdom to Israel alone, as distinct from Gentiles (Matthew 10:1-15
And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give. Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat. And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence. And when ye come into an house, salute it. And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you. And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.). The Lord then passes on, and passes over this present Dispensation: and contemplates the yet future proclamation in which the heralds will be sent forth as "sheep among wolves." This Gospel of the kingdom is to be "for a testimony" to the nations (here rendered Gentiles) as well as to Israel: and we have the same promise made to the preachers in (Matthew 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.). As in (Matthew 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.). The words are exactly the same in both passages (in the Greek): "He that endure to the End, the same shall be saved," The command is continued in the next verse, (Matthew 10:23 But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come.:). "But when they persecute you in this city flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of Man be come."If this coming is to be the same as the destruction of Jerusalem (as general supposed) then it is perfectly certain that the Twelve could not have gone on proclaiming the kingdom as being "at hand" for nearly forty years after it had been rejected, and the King crucified!
Moreover, in the ministry of the Disciples as recorded in the Gospels, we have not the slightest hint of their going among "wolves," and of their being "persecuted," and "fleeing" from city to city. On the contrary, their ministry seems to have been most peaceful and peaceable: and they had no such report of trial and trouble to give the Master when they returned from their mission. On the contrary it was marked as having great success, (Luke 10:17-19
And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name. And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
).That mission must indeed have been very brief, for we gather from the Gospel record that they were with the Lord the greater part of his ministry.
And where did His promise to be "with" them "all the days" of that proclaiming and baptizing, find its fulfillment, if He were immediately going away, and about to send the Holy Spirit to be with them during His absence. When the promise is so strongly personal and definite it seems very forced to interpret that presence as being spiritual or delegated to the Holy Spirit. The pronoun (ego), I, is very emphatic: "And, behold, I, even I, am with you all the days, until the completion of the age (sunteleia or Dispensation)." (Revised Version, margin, until the consummation of the age.)
It seems clear, therefore, that the proclamation referred to in (Matthew 28:19-20
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.), is yet future: and that it is closely connected with the then imminent personal appearance and promised presence of the Son of Man.
From all this it is abundantly manifest that, to take a command which belongs to a Past and Future Dispensation and to interpret it as being operative during the whole of this Present Dispensation can lead only to difficulty and contradiction.
Indeed, the bringing of John`s baptism, which belonged to the Kingdom, into this present Church period has led to confusion and disruption. It has proved a bomb which has rent the visible Church into fragments.
It has led to controversies and divisions, and strife and contentions, which are today carried on with unabated vigor, and with the same bitterness as of old. It has led to the breaking up of the Church instead of its building up. It is the ordinance which has divided the Church instead of uniting it.
It is not passing strange that, if the command in (Matthew 28:19-20) really belongs to this Dispensation, the Apostles themselves, to whom the command was given, never once so interpreted it: and never once attempted to obey it?
The Lord had continued with them for forth days "speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God," (Acts 1:3
To whom also he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: ). One would have thought (judging from present day interpretation) that He spoke only of the thing pertaining to the Church, which according to the teaching of most Christians was set up, within ten days. But no! not a word was spoken about the Church. It was all about the kingdom. The Church of God was still kept a "great secret." It was "hid in God" (Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: ). It was not yet "made known unto the sons of men" (Ephesians 3:5 Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;). It had been "kept secret since the world began" (Romans 16:25 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,).The only question the Apostles asked was about the kingdom, not about the Church. They did not ask whether the kingdom was to be restored to Israel or not. They asked only as to the "time" when it was to be restored: whether it would be now, "at this time," or at some future time. They neither doubted nor questioned the fact of its restoration.
It is certainly very strange that Peter, who heard these words, should, within a few days, have stood up and said, "Repent and be baptized, everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ" (Acts 2:38
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.).It is impossible for us to suppose that Peter, and those who afterward baptized, should either forget of, or be disobedient to, the Lord`s command, within so few days of its having been given.
Having had direct teaching from the Lord Himself on these very subjects, surely we should see, in the immediately subsequent acts of the Apostles, the nature of the instructions they had received.
If we thus rightly divide this portion of the Word of truth, we find that all is truth. There is no confusion. No violence is done to the Word of God. this command of Christ is left untouched. There it stands, through all these centuries, in all its truth and power, waiting for the moment when it will be obeyed (as it has never yet been obeyed), and the promise fulfilled to the very letter.
The action of the disciples is left unimpaired. Their obedience is not called in question. We are not called upon to blame them, or to excuse them: to condemn them, or to defend them. They followed John the Baptist in their proclamation of the kingdom, and they continued to use the baptism with which he had baptized.
As long as the Divine offer of the kingdom made by Peter in (Acts 3:19-20
Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:), was open, baptism with material water was carried on, side by side, with the baptism with spiritual water (pneuma hagion) the Holy Spirit, which was administered by the laying on of hands. Compared (Acts 19:6 And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.): the one decreasing and the other increasing, on the principle of (John 3:30 He must increase, but I must decrease.).This coming change had been four times foretold (Matthew 3:11
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: Mark 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. Luke 3:16 John answered, saying unto them all, I indeed baptize you with water; but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to unloose: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire) and (Acts 1:5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.), and we see it taking place: but the change is not complete until the offer of the kingdom made in (Acts 3:19-20 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: ) was finally and formally closed and withdraw in (Acts 28:25-26 And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers, Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: ). Until then baptism with water was continued, though it was decreasing. And it is mention only in those Pauline Epistles written during that period (1Corinthians, and Romans the 6th chapter), but never again afterward. In the Epistles written after that solemn change it is never once referred to: but only the "one baptism" with (pneuma hagion), the Holy Spirit. In Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and the Pastoral Epistles there is no mention of any ordinances: except to emphasize the fact that they no longer exist, but are all done away in that completeness which is ours "in Christ."Ordinances that had to do with the flesh have no place in the Mystery or Secret which was revealed to Paul. There, all is Spiritual.
When the Mystery was revealed to Paul, and by him "made known to the sons of men," the Hebrew "doctrine of baptisms" was left behind with many other things, and the new doctrine of the "one baptism" with pneuma hagion, or with a spirit (instead of a material) medium, was brought in.
"Thus, while the Word of truth" is cleared of all confusion the "traditions of men" are torn up by the roots.
The churches today profess to take the Acts of the Apostles as their guide to church doctrine and practice (instead of the Epistles that were specially addressed to them as churches): yet they ignore its teaching as to that very ordinance which they all agree in treating as fundamental, though at the same time they differ so widely as to its administration (Dispensation).
They then wrest a command of Christ, given with reference to the totally different and Future Dispensation, and strive to obey it in this Present Dispensation in which it has no place.
They thus land themselves in an insurmountable difficulty: and erect barriers which effectually divide up the visible Church into hostile camps.
Failing to divide the Word of truth rightly, they get error instead of truth: and, believing they are obeying the Word of God, they are really only following the tradition of men.
For what is the state of the case historically?
From the Acts of the Apostles we know that they baptized only in the one name. We know also that for sometime this practice must have continued. We hear nothing of baptism in the Triune name till the time of Justin Marty (A.D. 114-165), and at the London Synod, called Augustine in 605, any other form of words was pronounced to be invalid. This was confirmed by Pope Zacharius (741-752).
On the other hand, we have evidence of the baptism in the one name in the days of Cyprian, for he condemns those who held that it was sufficient to say "in the name of Jesus Christ." But it as declared to be valid by the Council of Frejus, A.D. 792, and also by Pope Nicholas l, as late as (858-867).
So that there was evidently confusion of practice as well as of doctrine, down to a very late period.
Various explanations of this diversity are given, but they are all based only on reasoning and probability.
We can not believe that such a difference between the command in (Matthew the 28th chapter), and the practice of the Apostles in the Acts, can be accounted for on the ground that there is no difference between the use of the three names and the one. For in this case we may ask, What are words for? They are useless for the purpose of revelation, if in a simple and yet crucial case like this they do not mean what they say.
We could understand it better if the command had been to baptize in the one name, and the practice had been in the three names, for the greater would have included the less. But, How can the less include the greater? How can the one include the three? and In what respect would this differ from John`s baptism? If not, Why not? and Why should Peter`s baptism include the three, if John`s did not? The fact is, there is no real explanation of any kind. The actual conflict is between tradition and revelation.
Our choice lies between these two. We may disobey (2Timothy 2:15
Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.) and follow tradition with all its consequent confusion: or, we may rightly divide the Word of truth, and find clearness of vision and peace of mind.No question of infant baptism, or of sprinkling, pouring, or immersion, can arise where all is spiritual and Divine.
We must include the closing verses of Mark`s Gospel in considering the effect of rightly dividing the Word of truth, as it touches the question of baptism.
Here, again, the difficulties are great indeed, if those verses which refer to the kingdom and its proclamation in the yet Future Dispensation, be taken and read into the Present.
Some of those who do this, logically insist on the point that we ought to see these miraculous signs and gifts in the Church today: but, as we do not see them, it is concluded that there must be something wrong in the Christian lives of believers: and, hence it is urged that, an increase of holiness must be acquired by some means or other.
Some, who do not see these wonderful gifts and signs, conclude that the passage refers only to the past, and is now done away with.
While others, seeing the difficulty created, treat the whole passage as illegitimate, and regard it as a corruption of the text which ought to be removed.
These are the difficulties which result from reading the commands that refer to the Past and Future Dispensation into the Present: whereas, if we rightly divide them, all difficulties are at once removed.
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