Q&A

When should a person be baptized?

Baptism is not for children. But once a person is old enough to comprehend the meaning of baptism, when should his baptism occur? We have answered this question in our free booklet, “Baptism–A Requirement for Salvation,” beginning on page 24. We are quoting the relevant sections below. Following these quotes, we will also quote from the writings of the Worldwide Church of God, under its late human leader, Herbert W. Armstrong, to show that our position today is exactly identical with what had been taught under Mr. Armstrong.

In our free booklet, “Baptism–A Requirement for Salvation?“, the following is pointed out on pages 25-27, under, “When To Be Baptized”?

“Consideration for baptism requires an in-depth personal examination. It is not something to rush into. It is not a decision to be made based on emotions. We don’t simply “give our heart to the Lord.” We need to understand, repent and believe, as previously discussed. Why? Because baptism is a covenant—a contract—with God. Baptism represents an agreement that we make with God to obey Him—a promise to live by His requirements for the remainder of our lives. If we break that promise later, God certainly holds us accountable for doing so.

“God does require us to be baptized in order to receive His Holy Spirit. The question of whether or not to be baptized depends on whether or not a person is old enough to understand and believe in the gospel. This includes the following: an understanding of what sin is; the fact that the death penalty hangs over our heads because of our own sins; the fact that Christ died for us so that we can have forgiveness of our sins when we truly repent of them and accept His sacrifice as payment for our sins; the fact that we need to put our carnal nature into the watery grave, and leave it there; the fact that we can acquire God’s divine nature ONLY through the Holy Spirit dwelling in us; and the fact that we must be baptized in order to receive God’s power to be able to change the way we think, speak and act. If you can grasp the meaning of the aforementioned and genuinely believe these things, then we say, ‘yes, you ought to go ahead with baptism as soon as possible.’

“True, we must not rush into baptism. On the other hand, once we understand what sin is and have truly repented of our sins, and once we believe in the gospel message of Jesus Christ and all that it entails, we are to be baptized immediately. We must not make the mistake of lingering and avoiding our responsibility to be baptized. Thoughts and ideas can easily come into our mind to discourage us from doing so. You can be sure that these ideas DO NOT come from God.

“God WANTS us to be baptized. He COMMANDS us to be baptized. Satan, on the other hand, HATES nothing more than seeing one of “his children” leave him in order to place him- or herself under the government and rule of God. Satan will attempt to thwart our intentions by putting into our minds certain concepts, ideas and arguments in order to make us think that we should not get baptized—at least ‘not yet.’

“These diverting ideas come in different disguises. For instance, we may think that we don’t even need to be baptized because, after all, we are not such a bad person. Make no mistake, EVERYONE SINS, and EVERYONE MUST REPENT. Another argument might be that, if we are baptized now, then all the fun stops, so, let’s have our fun now and repent of it and get baptized later. A third line of reasoning may go this way: ‘I need to be perfect before I can get baptized. I am still trying to get rid of a particular bad habit or a sin and I don’t want to get baptized before I have got rid of it.’

“All of these arguments miss the entire point as to WHY we must get baptized. Perfection will not be achieved in this life based on our own strength. That is why we MUST HAVE GOD’S HOLY SPIRIT OF POWER to help us to overcome our problems. We must, of course, WANT to change. That means, we must not engage deliberately in wrong conduct, knowing that it is wrong. Our weakness and inability to overcome our bad habits only proves that we must get baptized and that we must receive God’s Holy Spirit to HELP us with our battle against our sins.

“If we reason that we don’t want to get baptized yet because we don’t want to miss the fun, then our concept of what ‘fun’ is must be corrected immediately. If baptism is a hurdle to us because we don’t want to give up ‘fun,’ then we are, indeed, missing the point. Perhaps we have a false concept of what it means to be a Christian. For instance, some teach that a Christian must not dance, watch television or movies, drink alcohol, or play cards. None of these prohibitions, however, are biblical. Rather, they are based on human traditions and simply constitute self-imposed religion. On the other hand, if baptism would be contrary to certain habitual actions of ‘fun,’ then our concept of ‘fun’ is contrary to God’s word—with or without baptism. Anyone, who KNOWS better, actually SINS by engaging in sinful ‘fun.’ When we know to do good and to avoid evil, and don’t live accordingly, we sin, whether baptized or not. As we explained before, SIN must be repented of BEFORE our baptism. To delay repentance is dangerous. God holds us accountable for what we know and what we do with the knowledge we have been given.

“When we examine the biblical record, we find that when people were ready for baptism, they were baptized immediately. They did not delay, nor did the ministers have the disciples go through time-consuming ‘courses’ of baptismal ‘requirements’ before they were willing to baptize the person.

“We find that on the day of Pentecost, 3,000 believers were baptized the same day when they heard Peter’s inspired sermon and were motivated to come to genuine repentance (Acts 2:41). We find that Philip immediately baptized the eunuch who had worshipped God in Jerusalem, and who was studying the Bible on his return to Ethiopia (Acts 8:35–38). Philip explained to him the Scriptures as they relate to Jesus and the eunuch was baptized within a few hours. Paul—formerly Saul—was baptized by Ananias within a few days of Paul’s encounter with Christ. Later, Paul described his experience with these words, ‘Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law…came to me; and he stood and said to me…“And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord”’ (Acts 22:12–16). Paul baptized the jailer and his household ‘the same hour of the night’ (Acts 16:33).

“When an adult person has genuinely repented and believes, he or she should be baptized without the necessity of prior laborious requirements. A person who has repented and believes and obeys the gospel, who believes in, and keeps the Sabbath and the Holy Days, who has shown fruits worthy of repentance in his or her life, who tithes and gives offerings according to God’s commandments, and who understands the future that God has in store for us, should get baptized. It is simply unconscionable to require of such a person—as some ministers have done—to first study a laborious Bible course or watch lengthy biblical videos that begin with a simple lesson as to whether or not ‘God’ exists!”

As will be seen from the following quotes, our position is exactly the same as the one that Mr. Armstrong taught.

In his Autobiography, Volume 1, Mr. Armstrong wrote about his own experience regarding his baptism in the hard cover edition on page 319, under “Begotten of God”:

“Finally the study of the subject of baptism was completed. There was no longer doubt. Peter had said: ‘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 Spirit’ (Acts 2:38). To Cornelius and his house, who already had received the Holy Spirit, Peter said: ‘Can any man forbid WATER, that these should not be baptized, which have received the H

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Do you teach that the Bible discourages or prohibits interracial marriages?

We do. It is important to understand what the Bible has to say about the subject of interracial marriages.

Let
us first of all explain that no ethnic group, race or color is superior
or better than another. The concept, as taught by Hitler and others,
that there exists a master race is simply demonic. This Satanic concept
was derived from the equally demonic concept of the Evolution Theory,
which holds that only the fittest animals survive and that those less
fit die out. Hitler, adopting racial theories taught by quite a few at
his time inside and outside Germany, applied the Evolution Theory to
man (after all, according to that abominable concept, man is just the
highest developed form of an animal). Hitler postulated that the
Germanic race was a superior master race to all other races. As

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Why do you teach that only members of God's Church, who have been properly baptized, should partake of the symbols of bread and wine during the annual New Testament Passover service?

The Church’s teaching is based on numerous principles and implications, as revealed in Scripture.

The Old Testament demands that no one who is uncircumcised is to participate at the Passover (Exodus 12:48). Even though physical circumcision is no longer a requirement for New Testament Christians, they are to be circumcised spiritually (Colossians 2:11-12; Romans 2:26-29). This can only occur through the indwelling Holy Spirit, which God gives us after proper baptism. And so, we read that Christ’s disciples had been baptized (even though, in the extraordinary case of the eleven apostles, they had not yet received the Holy Spirit–they would receive it, however, on the Day of Pentecost).

We explain this often-overlooked fact that the Twelve Apostles HAD been baptized prior to the Passover, on pages 4 and 5 of our booklet, “Baptism–A Requirement for Salvation“, under the section, “Were the Twelve Apostles Baptized?”: “… it does appear that some, if not most, of the apostles had been disciples of John the Baptist and had already been baptized by John—a baptism of repentance (compare Mark 1:4). As we discussed earlier, repentance is one of the necessary requirements for receiving God’s Holy Spirit, but it is not the only one. As such, the baptism of John—a baptism of repentance—was not sufficient to receive the Holy Spirit. Later, however, Jesus also baptized—through His disciples—as we read in John 3:22: ‘After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.’ John 4:1–3 adds: ‘Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.'”

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Do you teach a resurrection of the physical body?

It depends what is meant by that term. Also, we need to understand
that the Bible teaches a resurrection to immortal life and a
resurrection to a physical existence.

Regarding the resurrection
of those who died “in Christ,” that is, in whom God’s Holy Spirit
dwelled when they died, we read that they are resurrected with an
immortal SPIRITUAL body. God will raise them up to spiritual, immortal
and eternal life. God will not first resurrect their dead “physical
bodies” and then “change” them into spiritual bodies. Rather, God will
resurrect or raise the Christians with spiritual bodies, as the Bible
clearly indicates. We read the following, in 1 Corinthians 15:35-49,
about the “first” or “better” (Hebrews 11:35) resurrection to eternal
life:

“But someone will say, ‘How are the dead raised up? And
with what body do they come?’ Foolish one, what you sow is not made
alive unless it dies. And what you sow, you do NOT SOW THAT BODY THAT
SHALL BE, but mere grain–perhaps wheat or some other grain. But God
GIVES IT A BODY as He pleases, and to each seed its own body. All flesh
is not the same flesh… there are also celestial bodies and

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Why do you teach that the bread during the annual Passover ceremony has to be unleavened?

To answer this question, we need to describe the historical background briefly.

As we pointed out in the Q&A of Update #137, dated April 2, 2004, the Bible distinguishes between the Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread. Both are annual Feast days, to be kept once a year. The Passover is to be observed at the beginning of the 14th day of the first month (which month is called Abib or Nisan), according to the Hebrew calendar (Leviticus 23:5; Numbers 28:16). The First Day of Unleavened Bread is to be observed at the beginning of the 15th day of the first month, according to the Hebrew calendar (Leviticus 23:6; Numbers 28:17). It was during the Passover night–the night of the 14th day–that the death angel passed over the Israelites who were in their houses (hence the name, “Passover,”), while killing the firstborn of Egypt (Exodus 12:6-13). But it was on the 15th day–“on the day AFTER the Passover”; that is, one entire day LATER–that the Israelites went out of Egypt, and it is on THAT day (at the beginning of the 15th day of the first month) that we are to celebrate the Night To Be Much Observed (Exodus 12:42; Numbers 33:3). (Remember that according to the Hebrew calendar, days start and end with sunset.)

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Would you please explain the concept of "original sin" in light of Romans 5:12, 19?

Before analyzing the passage in Romans 5:12, 19, let us very briefly
discuss the concept of “original sin.” It was developed by Augustine,
based on a wrong translation of the Greek text in Romans 5. The
Broadman Bible Commentary points out, in Vol. 10, on page 195:
“Augustine, who knew very little Greek, followed the Latin
translation… and, on the basis of this mistranslation, developed his
doctrine of original sin, understood as inherited guilt, and the result
was a lurid picture of unbaptized infants in limbo. It is significant
that even Roman Catholic scholars, plagued most by this disaster, are
now saying bluntly the doctrine is not in Scripture.”

Simply put,
the concept of the original sin holds that we all “inherited” guilt or
transgression from Adam and Eve who “originally” sinned. According to
that concept, we inherited eternal death–which is the penalty for sin
(compare Romans 6:23)–even though we ourselves did nothing to deserve
this penalty. In other words, Adam and Eve’s original sin was somehow
arbitrarily transmitted to all, down to the last baby born before
Christ returns. From this UNBIBLICAL concept derived additional ideas,

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In the Q&A Update #237 the statement is made, "Otherwise, we would be eating and drinking 'judgment' to ourselves, which might result in sickness and death ([1 Corinthians 11] verses 29-30)." Does this mean that by taking the Lord's Sacrifice in an unworthy manner, the consequences might result in physical sickness and death? Are we not all unworthy?

It is true that we are all “unworthy” in comparison with God the Father and the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, but this is not what Paul is addressing. Rather, Paul speaks about the manner in which we partake of the Passover—and yes, if we partake of the Passover in an unworthy manner, and if we, especially, fail to discern the Body of Christ which was beaten for our healing from our sicknesses, then prolonged sickness and even death might be the consequence.

It is important to study the context of these verses as found in 1 Corinthians 11:17 through 34. Paul very emphatically corrected those in Corinth who had been treating the Passover in an irreverent and self-centered manner. He mentions that there were divisions within the Church (verses 18-19). Beginning with the early chapters of 1 Corinthians, Paul strongly warns against the divisions that were arising—especially those that were created by some members who focused on the personalities of various ministers (Compare 1 Corinthians 1:11-13; 3:1-23).

Continue reading "In the Q&A Update #237 the statement is made, "Otherwise, we would be eating and drinking 'judgment' to ourselves, which might result in sickness and death ([1 Corinthians 11] verses 29-30)." Does this mean that by taking the Lord's Sacrifice in an unworthy manner, the consequences might result in physical sickness and death? Are we not all unworthy?"

What is a True Christian?

Many have attempted to “define” who or what is a true Christian. However, far too often, a totally false explanation has been offered. For example, some would say that somebody is a Christian who is a
member of a “Christian” church. Others claim that one is a Christian if he or she believes in Jesus Christ. Still others state that one becomes a Christian if he or she is baptized into a Church organization,
perhaps even as an infant.

What is the Biblical truth on the matter? It is important that you understand, because otherwise you have
no immediate hope for your future. We read that there is no salvation in any other but in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12). In order to be saved, you must be a follower of Christ—a true Christian.

First of all, the word “Christian” is only used three times in Scripture, namely in Acts 11:26; Acts 26:28; and 1 Peter 4:16. In all these cases, the word applied to God’s disciples—true followers of Christ—who were innocent of evil doing and who had to be willing to suffer for Jesus Christ—as “Christians.”

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Does Revelation 3:14 teach that God the Father created Jesus Christ, and that Christ had a beginning?

The Bible teaches that God had no beginning, but that He has always
existed. We read that God created all things; that is, human beings,
animals and all physical things, as well as angelic beings and all
spiritual “things.” However, God is not just one Person, but a Family,
presently consisting of God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son. We
read that God created everything through Jesus Christ (Colossians
1:15-17)–proving that God the Father and Jesus Christ existed before
there was anything else. Hebrews 1:1-2 tells us that God the Father
created “the worlds” through His Son, Jesus Christ. John 1:1 says that
the “Word”–Jesus Christ (compare Revelation 19:13)–was “in the
beginning” with God and that the Word WAS God. John 1:3 tells us that

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Does it matter what a political leader does in private as long as he does his "public" job effectively?

In recent years, we have seen a spate of allegations and revelations
about the behavior of certain leading political figures and other high
profile leaders, both in the UK and the USA, as well as in Western
Europe. While this is not a new phenomenon, public attitudes seem to
have changed to a more liberal and tolerant, if not accepting approach.
This is because of moral and ethical barriers being lowered as society
adopts a much more permissive attitude.

We may recall that in the
US presidential election in the late 1990’s, the public re-elected
their President in spite of his behavior. As long as the President gave
the American people a good standard of living it didn’t matter, as one
commentator put it, “what happened after dark.”

America’s first

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