House Church Talk - Baptising with water

[Bruce Woodford]

Hi Ted,
You wrote:"Brother Bruce, I am a little puzzled by your comment:That 
Christians meet in homes is certainly never commanded, but neither is water 
as the medium for baptism of believers! But there are more scriptural 
examples of the former than the latter!
I will have to agree that nowhere in the new testament have I read "Thou 
must use water for baptising believers", however there are several instances 
where water was the medium used, and I have noted no other medium being used 
such as wine or olive oil.  Although the Greek word baptizo means to dip, 
plunge, submerge or immerse, it does not specify water.  However in my 
limited studies, all instances of baptism that I have noted in the New 
Testament involved a body of water large enough to submerge a human body."

You then cited: Mat thew 3:13-16; Acts 10:47; Mark 1:8; John:1:26,33; and 
Acts 8:36-38

Then you concluded:"It appears that the frequent use of the word water, and 
no reference (to my knowledge) to the use of any other fluid medium for 
baptism, leaves little doubt in my mind that the Lord intended for us to use 
water. I humbly yeild to your greater knowledge of the scriptures.  Please 
enlighten me a little more for the basis of your statement so that I might 
have a better understanding."

O.K. but I think you have already explained pretty well where I was coming 
from!

Just as the medium of baptism is not mentioned in every case of baptism in 
scripture, the meeting place of Christians is not mentioned in every 
reference to church gatherings.

Just as water is often mentioned as the medium of baptisms performed by men, 
houses are often mentioned as the meeting place of churches when believers 
gather together.

You have also noted that for baptisms performed by men, no other medium but 
water is ever recorded in scripture.

But there are other venues for church gatherings mentioned in scripture: the 
temple court in Jerusalem, a school in Ephesus.  The reason why these larger 
venues were used is because there are two distinct kinds of church meetings 
in scripture:
(1)The most common kind of church meeting is the small group meeting 
together for personal, face-to-face interaction and mutual ministry one to 
another. This is the kind of gatherings that met in homes.
(2)The other kind of church meeting which was common in the first century 
but is almost non-existent today because of denominationalism and 
sectarianism, is the large city-wide "whole church together in one place" 
kind of gathering.

Both kinds are seen in Acts 2:46, but other examples of whole church 
gatherings in one place are found in Acts 6:1-7; Acts 15; Romans 16:23 and I 
Cor.14:23-40 (the regulations for whole church gatherings in one place)

Just as you have rightly concluded that there is little doubt that God 
intends people to be baptized in water, you can also conclude on the same 
basis that there is little doubt that God intends for churches (the small 
church gatherings in which believers  break bread, fellowship with one 
another, pray for one another, bear one another's burdens, provoke one 
another unto love and good works, exhort one another and edify one another 
etc) to gather in peoples' homes.

I hope this helps.

Your brother in Christ,
Bruce

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