Family Immersing

We all bring a lot of what I call baggage with us out of the Christianity churches that we were raised in. A lot of the things that we believe now are beliefs that we picked up there....

To start with, in Ezekiel Chapter 4,  We are told that the house of Israel will go in to a place among Gentiles and will eat their defiled bread for Three hundred and ninety Days.

(390 Years)

 Ezek 4:12  And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight.

Ezek 4:13  And Yahweh said, even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them.

The way I see this prophecy, the remnant of Israel will live in a place not their own and eat their spiritual bread, (Scriptural/Doctrinal Teaching) mixed with mans dung (Man’s Rationale/Teaching).

The first English settlement on this continent was James Town in what is now called Virginia. Established in the year 1607, I don’t think it coincidence that James means Jacob, who was the father of  the nation of Israel.

This being said, I wonder just how much of man’s dung that we still have with us in our walk with Yahweh, now that he has revealed his name to us.

One thing that I think we have been missing on in our thought process is the fact that the early believers, including the Apostle Paul and those that traveled with him, in taking the name of Yahshua to the gentiles, believed that immersing the whole household of those that became believers was appropriate thinking. We find in the 10^th Chapter of Acts that Cornelius called together many people and kinsmen to hear the Apostle Peter:

  Acts 10:24  And the morrow after they entered into Caesarea. And Cornelius waited for them, and had called together his kinsmen and near friends.---  

Acts 10:27  And as he talked with him, he went in, and found many that were come together.

There were many friends and family gathered at the home of Cornelius that day.  Including his own Household. The word household means any one living in the house or under the rule of a certain person. This would include spouse, children, in-laws, grandchildren, parents, or servants and their children. This man Cornelius was a very powerful and wealthy Roman who even commanded a large company of soldiers. It would be hard to believe that there were not at least a few children there, but as we are not specifically told in the account, we can only surmise who was there. What is specifically told, however, is that ALL who were there were filled with the Holy Spirit and were all immersed.

Acts 10:44  While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all them which heard the word.  

Then we come to the statement that the Apostle Paul made in the first letter to the Corinthian assembly when he was talking about who he had immersed:

1 Cor. 1:14 I thank Yahweh that I baptized none of you, but Crispus and Gaius;

15 Lest any should say that I had baptized in mine own name.

16 And I baptized also the household of Stephanas: besides, I know not whether I baptized any other.

Here Paul states plainly that he immersed the whole household of Stephanas.

Again, we do not know who all this may have included, but again this was a man who ruled a household, and someone in whom the Apostle had great confidence as is proven in:

1 Cor 16:15  I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)

16 That ye submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth with us,    and laboureth.

17 I am glad of the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus: for that      which was lacking on your part they have supplied.

18 For they have refreshed my spirit and yours: therefore acknowledge ye them that are such. 

Then we come to the 16^th chapter of Acts where the Apostles came to Philippi, and on the Sabbath they meet some women at a river, and one woman had her understanding opened and she became a believer. Her and her household.

Acts 16:13 And on the Sabbath we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was wont to be made; and we sat down, and spake unto the women which resorted thither.

14 And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped El, heard us: whose heart Yahweh opened, that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul.

15 And when she was baptized, and her household, she besought us, saying, If ye have judged me to be faithful to Yahweh, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.

Here, we have what appears to be a single head of a household, as no husband is mentioned. It is possible she was a widow, but the fact remains that there were others living in her household, and when she believed, the Apostles immersed them as well. Can there be any doubt that there probably were children involved here?

Then, a little later in the same chapter after the Apostles were put in prison, Yahweh shook the whole prison where they were and opened the stocks that they were locked up in. Then the keeper of the prison became a believer:

Acts 16:27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking out of his sleep and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled.

28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here.

29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas,

30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?

31 And they said, Believe on the Master Yahshua, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

32 And they spake unto him the word of Yahweh, and to all that were in his house.

33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.

Here, we have a man who is making a living keeping the jail and being responsible for those that were put in it for any reason, and he had a family. A man of great authority with many in his house, which would include servants and their families, and probably children.

Then, we can go back to Chapter 10, where we are given a good example of a type of immersing which took place under Moses authority, placed upon him by Yahweh:

1 Cor 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;

4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Messiah.

Question! Did the children Pass through the Sea, or were they made to walk around? 

Can anyone say that this Spiritual Immersing did not include whole families?

Let’s look at Colossians Chapter 2: 

Col 2:10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

11 in whom also ye are with circumcised the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Messiah

12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of Yahweh, who hath raised him from the dead.

Clearly, the Apostle is telling these Gentile people that they are circumcised “With out hands” in their baptism, and if Baptism is the circumcision of the Gentiles (buried and raised is the act of Baptism), then we must look to the circumcision of Israel as well,

Lev 12:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean.

3 And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

Question! How much did the child have to know about what was happening to him? Who made the decision to obey the law and have circumcision done? 

This was a family decision and the head of the house made the decisions for the whole household.

I think of the time that Joshua was giving instructions to the children of Israel and he said:

Josh 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve Yahweh, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the els which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the els of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh. 

When Joshua said this I don’t think he took a vote. I know that today in comparison, the family structure that Yahweh set up in the beginning has completely fallen apart. It is apparent in this society that the women and children rule the homes today with rare exception. That being recognized does not excuse us who have been called, and brought out of the dung that we were raised in (rationale of man), from being able to accept the truth of the scriptures and obey them and not what we have been led to believe.

One thing that has always come up and a thing that causes most people to fear to even think about accepting this truth, is the fact that the Catholic Church is the only one that promotes the need for children baptism. A ritual, which is a counterfeit baptism, that has nothing to do with the commandment of Yahshua. I believe it to be another one of Satan’s counterfeits to scare the people of Yahweh away from a more excellent truth. Counterfeit, or parallel truths are one of Satans favorite devices which work well for him in many things.

Understand this, I do not say that we should baptize children if they were to come as individuals and say that they want to be immersed, but when it is a family thing and the head of the family has made the decision, the scriptures are clear...

Lastly, Yahshua said:

Mark 10:13  And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them.

14 But when Yahshua saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of Yahweh.

15 Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of Yahweh as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

I ask you! How can a little child come to Yahshua today?

Can you tell me any way that any one can come to Him except he be immersed in the name of Yahshua?

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

D.W. “Buddy” Arthur

Assembly of Yahshua

Interlachen, Fl.

http://www.assemblyofyahshua.com/