Dimensions of Baptism Biblical and Theological Studies

CROSS Spirit- and Water-Baptism 123

The reason for their unity is not far to seek: Christian baptism is 'in the

name of the Lord Jesus', to the crucified and exalted Redeemer, who has

sent to His Church the Spirit promised from the Father; and the Spirit He

sends is his Agent, communicating the benefits of His redemption. Not sur-

prisingly then the baptism 'to Christ' (eis Xpioxov), which Paul described

as a 'putting on' Christ, setting a man 'in Christ' (ev XpiOTcp, Gal. 3.27f),

is also said to be a baptism sv FTveunaTi—by the Spirit, in the Spirit,

bestowing the Spirit; for it is only by the Spirit that a man can be in the

Koinonia of Christ (Rom. 8.9)...^5

Elsewhere, Beasley-Murray sets the foundation of his discussion of the

relationship between Spirit- and water-baptism within a discussion of

baptism into Christ as signifying union with him in his redemptive actions

(Rom. 6.1-11 and Col. 2.12). '[E]ven if no utterance of Paul's had been

preserved in which he conjoined baptism with the gift of the Spirit, we

should have had to deduce it from the way he related baptism to Christ and

the redemptive event. For Christ and the Spirit cannot be divided. The

coming of the Spirit is as integral to redemption as the coming of Christ,

and there is no participation in redemption apart from the Spirit' (cf. Rom.

8.9 and 2 Cor. 3.17).^6 He responds to the suggestion of those who under-

stand 'baptism' in 12.13 figuratively as the baptism by the Spirit by reiter-

ating his contention that the verse is closely parallel to Gal. 3.27-28 where

baptism into Christ includes baptism into the body within which social

distinctions are abolished: 'It is extremely difficult to maintain that the

baptism that puts on Christ and the baptism in or by the Spirit that has this

identical effect are two different baptisms; they are obviously one.'^7 He

notes that Paul's thought in 12.13 'is unexpectedly reminiscent of Luke's

account on the great Day of Pentecost', contacts due 'not to any literary

relationship, but to the common knowledge that baptism had of early

Christian traditions'. The crowd at Pentecost were told to submit to a

conversion-baptism and that they would thereby receive the Spirit: 'The

language is quite different from Paul's in 1 Cor. 12.13, but the theology of

the Spirit is the same.' Further, the writer of Tit. 3.5 says that in the experi-

5. Beasley-Murray, Baptism, pp. 169-70. Thiselton, First Corinthians, p. 1001,
   also recognizes this connection with Gal. 3.27-28, following E. Best, One Body in
   Christ (London: SPCK, 1955), pp. 96-98.


6. G.R. Beasley-Murray, 'The Holy Spirit, Baptism, and the Body of Christ',
   RevExp 63 (1966), pp. 177-85 (178-79).


7. Beasley-Murray, 'Holy Spirit', p. 179. If this is accepted, then it is supported
   by the interpretation of 'one baptism' in Eph. 4.5 as 'conversion-initiation' which I
   argue for in my '"One Baptism'" article, see especially pp. 173-93.