Why Rebaptism?
The man’s life was over . . . the last funeral dirge was sung. . . . His lifeless body had been carefully placed in the oak casket - and before burial, the casket was sealed shut.
We certainly would not like to imagine that there could be any chance that anyone with any trace of life would be in such a situation. Thankfully, it is the general custom around the world that only dead people are buried. Thankfully, it is only dead people that are stuck in sealed coffins.
There is a spiritual parallel to this. In the sealing message in the book of Revelation, God only seals dead people - not physically dead people, but rather people who have died to selfishness and sin.
Jesus explained, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal” (John 12:24, 25).
“The seed buried in the ground produces fruit, and in turn this is planted. Thus the harvest is multiplied. So the death of Christ on the cross of Calvary will bear fruit unto eternal life. The contemplation of this sacrifice will be the glory of those who, as the fruit of it, will live through the eternal ages.
“The grain of wheat that preserves its own life can produce no fruit. It abides alone. Christ could, if He chose, save Himself from death. But should He do this, He must abide alone. He could bring no sons and daughters to God. Only by yielding up His life could He impart life to humanity. Only by falling into the ground to die could He become the seed of that vast harvest - the great multitude that out of every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, are redeemed to God.
“With this truth Christ connects the lesson of self-sacrifice that all should learn: ‘He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.’ All who would bring forth fruit as workers together with Christ must first fall into the ground and die. The life must be cast into the furrow of the world’s need. Self-love, self-interest, must perish. And the law of self-sacrifice is the law of self-preservation. The husbandman preserves his grain by casting it away. So in human life. To give is to live. The life that will be preserved is the life that is freely given in service to God and man. Those who for Christ’s sake sacrifice their life in this world will keep it unto life eternal.
“The life spent on self is like the grain that is eaten. It disappears, but there is no increase. A man may gather all he can for self; he may live and think and plan for self; but his life passes away, and he has nothing. The law of self-serving is the law of self-destruction.”1
There are certain vital signs that show that a person is alive and well; for example, doctors check to see that blood pressure, temperature, and respiration are within the normal range characteristic of human life.
Likewise in the spiritual realm, the “old self” which is supposed to be dead, may be demonstrating evidence of vitality. Remember him or her? He or she is that person you used to be before your conversion to Christ. What are his or her characteristics? The Bible names a few examples, but they are not always exactly the same in everyone’s case. Different people have different weaknesses. What are yours? Many people do not like to think about these matters, because the human heart “is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked,” so we all like to think that we are just fine the way we are. But if we ask God to show us ourselves, He graciously, tactfully will do so. Then we need to put that part of our experience to death.
“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. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin” (Romans 6:4-7).
There are three strong indicators that the “old self” of a person is still rearing its ugly head. The Bible speaks in 1 John 2:16 of “the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.” Whenever we fall into temptation in any of these areas, it is evidence that the old man is still alive. In the case of the third problem, the “pride of life,” spiritual recovery is especially challenging because the person is usually unaware of the problem.
These three problems are also depicted in Matthew 4:1-10. They can be summarized as appetite, love of the world, and presumption. These were the three temptations presented before Christ in an attempt to entice Him to sin. Thankfully, through divine strength, our Lord and Master steadfastly resisted the bait.
There was a moment in history when it appears as if that there may have only been one true follower of Christ on earth - at least as far as actions are concerned. Only one living sermon. Who was it? When was it? Please consider the following:
The Lamb of God had just been verbally abused, spat upon in the face, and whipped until the skin on His back was nearly in shreds. It was now the morning after He had been kept awake all night by the unspeakably cruel mistreatment at the hands of men whom He had come to save. He had answered them back with no angry retort, no self-justifying explanation. He had remained silent.
Now a huge, heavy wooden cross was thrust upon His back, and He was expected to carry that tremendous weight in this weakened physical state. So He submissively did for a while but then started to collapse under the magnitude of the burden. Why - because He had not spent His days as a good enough health reformer? Hopefully, we know better. But it should cause us to prayerfully examine our attitude when similar misfortunes befall our comrades made in God’s own image.
Now before Jesus stand members of the mainline ecclesiastical organization: Priests and rulers of the great religious order called into existence by God Himself. They are jeering at this pitiful Man of sorrows acquainted with grief. They mock the scene; they ridicule His outward appearance.
What about the brave, noble reformers who had separated somewhat from that dead formalism to follow the Master? These had courageously faced opposition to pursue a unique education from this Rabbi of Galilee. There were twelve of them who had even been specifically ordained to receive the privilege of special 24-hour-a-day instruction by the great Teacher Himself. He had informed them in advance that this exact scene was going to occur. Evidently now they either had forgotten or had just plain refused to believe Him in the first place. . . . After all, it couldn’t be true, they thought - there was no way they could think such a thing - it was too contrary to their bold imaginings of a posh new kingdom where they were going to lead out.
Why didn’t perhaps three of those big, burly fishermen grab hold of that wooden cross - perhaps one at each side and another at the back, the way men normally have the decency to do as pallbearers in a funeral procession? No, no, . . . they didn’t want to step forward just at this time. They were still in the same mood as they had been the night before when “they all forsook him, and fled” (Mark 14:50).
One solitary man, however, was compelled to help. He must have had that rare, beautiful gift - the gift of “helps” which, in the list in 1 Corinthians 12:28, comes right after “gifts of healings” and ahead of “governments.” An unpleasant task was, as it were, “dumped upon” him. But like the Master Himself, he did not refuse it. We do not read of this man before in Scripture, neither after. We just know that his name is Simon and that he was from Cyrene. The Bible speaks of him in Matthew 27:32. The Spirit of Prophecy provides a few more details about the scene:
“The crowd that followed the Saviour to Calvary taunted and reviled Him because He could not carry the wooden cross. They all saw the weak and staggering steps of Christ, but compassion did not reveal itself in the hearts of those who had advanced from one step to another in their abuse and torture of the Son of God. . . .
“A stranger, Simon, a Cyrenian, coming to the city from the country, hears the crowd pass the taunts and ribaldry; he hears the contemptuous repetition, ‘Make way for the King of the Jews.’ He stops in astonishment at the scene, and as he expresses his compassion in words and deeds, they seize him and compel him to lift the cross which is too heavy for Christ to bear. . . . That wooden cross borne by him to Calvary was the means of Simon taking upon himself the cross of Christ from choice, to ever cheerfully stand beneath its burden. His compulsory companionship with Christ in bearing His cross to Calvary, in beholding the sad and dreadful work and the spectators beneath the cross, was the means of drawing his heart to Jesus. Every word from the lips of Christ was graven upon his soul. . . . And the heart of Simon believed.”2
“And the heart of Simon believed.” How beautiful! We know the story very well - most of us have read about this also in The Desire of Ages. But have we really applied its significance to our individual lives? At that moment, it seemed as if there was only one Christian - only one to step forward in Christ’s behalf, only one to take action at the golden moment. Perhaps Simon was not really the only Christian in heart at that moment - but he certainly does quietly shine as one who did not refuse to accept the cross of Christ. He stands out as one who took action. And that was quite unique at this particular moment.
At the golden moment, are you and I like Simon the Cyrenian? What is that golden moment, anyway? The golden moment in this case is the crisis moment - the time when it feels as if absolutely everyone you know appears to be doubting. It may not actually be true that they are doubting - you cannot know their hearts - but circumstances are such that to you it may feel like it. For some reason, it is as if everyone is paralyzed with fear. Everyone seems to be trying to save his or her life as if it were in jeopardy - and it may not just be their physical life - maybe it is their only high reputation or standing among people. This is the same kind of attitude the disciples had when they were waiting for someone else to perform the act of footwashing. But Jesus says, “Whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it” (Luke 9:24).
Right now, at this moment in history, the world is scheduled (actually overdue) to be enlightened with the glory of God through people who are to reflect the image of Jesus fully (Revelation 18:1; Early Writings, p. 85). Prophetic vision shows these people seeking out strangers to talk with them about salvation. Is this always convenient? No, often our conscience tells us to do this right at the worst possible time. It is always comfortable? No, it is usually a pretty awkward idea - the enemy tempts us to assume that it’s not our talent. (That’s right - it’s not our talent - it’s God’s. We’re just to be His agents.) Is it always easy? No - this is the big problem: It crosses against self.
“The talents of the humble cottager are needed in the house-to-house labor and can accomplish more in this work than brilliant gifts.
“A thousand doors of usefulness are open before us. . . . Selfishness and self-indulgence bar the way.
“Church members, let the light shine forth. Let your voices be heard in humble prayer, in witness against intemperance, the folly, and the amusements of this world, and in the proclamation of the truth for this time. Your voice, your influence, your time - all these are gifts from God and are to be used in winning souls to Christ.
“Visit your neighbors and show an interest in the salvation of their souls. Arouse every spiritual energy to action. Tell those whom you visit that the end of all things is at hand. The Lord Jesus Christ will open the door of their hearts and will make upon their minds lasting impressions.
“Strive to arouse men and women from their spiritual insensibility. Tell them how you found Jesus and how blessed you have been since you gained an experience in His service. Tell them what blessing comes to you as you sit at the feet of Jesus and learn precious lessons from His word. Tell them of the gladness and joy that there is in the Christian life. Your warm, fervent words will convince them that you have found the pearl of great price. Let your cheerful, encouraging words show that you have certainly found the higher way. This is genuine missionary work, and as it is done, many will awake as from a dream.
“Even while engaged in their daily employment, God’s people can lead others to Christ. And while doing this they will have the precious assurance that the Saviour is close beside them. They need not think that they are left to depend on their own feeble efforts. Christ will give them words to speak that will refresh and encourage and strengthen poor, struggling souls who are in darkness.”3
No, we are not saved by works, no matter how zealous our activity. But if we are not working, it is a symptom that something is seriously wrong - our condition is like the nameless, impotent man at the pool of Bethesda (in John 5:1-9). Obviously something was wrong with this man. He had been lying around paralyzed for 38 years. He could not even manage to drag himself to the hydrotherapy pool nearby. Surely he might have been able to come up with a ton of legitimate excuses not to pick up his bed and walk when Christ commanded him to do so. Remember, for 38 years he had been completely immobile. Any physical therapist can assure you that extreme atrophy of the muscles had certainly set in. But instead, this man decided to go ahead and do it - to go ahead and take action on what Christ told him to do. And immediately the Lord supplied the “talent.”
If we do not feel that doing some form of missionary work is our talent, then maybe we need a new born-again experience. As mentioned, no, it is not our talent. It is God’s talent.
“Talents that are not needed are not bestowed. Supposing that the talent is small. God has a place for it, and that one talent, if faithfully used, will do the very work God designs that it should do.”4
Does the world need to be enlightened? Yes. Is God willing to bestow the talent to do it? Yes. He’s waiting for empty vessels - dead vessels - willing to be used. The obstacle was mentioned earlier in an explanation from the Spirit of Prophecy: “Selfishness and self-indulgence bar the way.”
Remember, “every true disciple is born into the kingdom of God as a missionary. He who drinks of the living water becomes a fountain of life. The receiver becomes a giver.”5
“It is not merely the ministers who are missionaries; every soul who has given himself to God is a missionary. Everyone ought to feel that he is under obligation to God to win souls to Christ.”6
To feel that we are “under obligation” is not always comfortable. But if we are dead to self, it really doesn’t matter whether it’s comfortable or not, does it?