The Baptism of Fire

These studies are designed for believers in Jesus Christ only. If you have exercised faith in Christ, then you are in the right place. If you have not, then you need to heed the words of our Lord, Who said, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten [or, uniquely-born] Son, so that every [one] believing [or, trusting] in Him shall not perish, but shall be have eternal life! For God did not send His Son into the world so that He should judge the world, but so that the world shall be saved through Him. The one believing [or, trusting] in Him is not judged, but the one not believing has already been judged, because he has not believed in the Name of the only-begotten [or, uniquely-born] Son of God." (John 3:16–18). "I am the Way and the Truth and the Life! No one comes to the Father except through [or, by means of] Me!" (John 14:6).

Every study of the Word of God ought to be preceded by a naming of your sins to God. This restores you to fellowship with God (1John 1:8–10). If we acknowledge our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1John 1:9). If there are people around, you would name these sins silently. If there is no one around, then it does not matter if you name them silently or whether you speak aloud.

Topics
Grace Bible Church's "The Baptism of Fire"	Additional notes	Bibliography and References
Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines
Chaff (graphic)	Winnowing (graphic)

Preface:	After doing a search on the internet, it appears that many Christian sources do not understand the baptism of fire, and most do not associate it with the pertinent parallels as found in Scripture. I only found one doctrinal site with this doctrine, and it lacked a clear definition. R. B. Thieme, Jr. taught this doctrine very similarly to what is found below.

What is being taught here is the baptism of fire. Since the Grace Bible Church of Baytown, TX did an excellent job putting this doctrine together, there is no need for me to reinvent the wheel.
Grace Bible Church's "The Baptism of Fire"
1.	Introduction: The Baptism of Fire is one of seven baptisms in the Bible. All Baptisms are divided into two

1)	Real – actual identification (4 out of 7 baptisms are REAL)

(1)	Moses – I Corinthians 10:2.

(2)	The Cross – Matthew 20:22.

(3)	Holy Spirit – Acts 1:5; I Corinthians 12:13.

(4)	Fire – Matthew 3:11,12.

2)	Ritual – an illustrative identification related to water (3 out of 7 baptisms are RITUAL)

(1)	Matthew 3:1-10 – John baptized with water.

(2)	John 1:25-33 – John baptized by water.

(3)	The baptism of Jesus – Matthew 3:13-17. Water here represents His objective to go to the cross. He agreed to go by the baptism and the ritual of it. The baptism of the believers during the first part of Church Age (Acts 2:38; 2:41; 8:36,38) represented Spirit (identification with Christ in death, burial resurrection.)

2.	The baptism of fire is the removal of all unbelievers from the earth at the end of the Tribulation.

3.	Scriptures that deal with Baptism of Fire: Matthew 3:11,12; Luke 3:16,17; 2Thessalonians 1:7-9. There is an analogy to the Baptism of Fire found in Matthew 24:36-41 (nothing to do with the Rapture.)

1)	The analogy goes to the days of Noah (vs. 37).

2)	The days of Noah and the 2nd Advent are paralleled (not Rapture).

3)	In the days of Noah unbelievers were removed from the world by the flood – Believers continued on the earth to start new civilization.

4)	In the 2nd Advent unbelievers are removed under the Baptism of Fire and believers remain to begin a new civilization (the Millennium).

5)	We have the post diluvian civilization beginning with Noah's day – the Millennium beginning after the Baptism of Fire. Note that it is the unbelievers who are saturated in water in Noah's day. The unbelievers are saturated by fire at the 2nd Advent. Vs. 40ff – analogy taken from days of Noah.

6)	Our passage, 2Sam. 23:6–7.

4.	Parables on Baptism of Fire:

1)	Matthew 13:24-30; 13:36-43 – wheat and tares.

(1)	Wheat are believers going into the Millennium.

(2)	Tares are the unbelievers cast out into fire.

2)	Matthew 13:47-50 – good and bad fish.

3)	Matthew 25:1-13 – the 10 virgins.

5.	Baptism of Fire is divided into two categories:

1)	Jews – Daniel 70th week (believers and unbelievers)

2)	Gentiles (believers and unbelievers) At the 2nd Advent the unbeliever Gentile cast out and unbeliever Jew cast into fire. The Jewish believer goes into Millennium and the Gentile believer goes into Millennium.

(1)	Ezek. 20:34-38 – Jewish baptisms of fire.

(2)	Matthew 25:31-46 – Gentile baptism of fire.

6.	The baptism of fire is the down payment on the lake of fire for the unbelievers of the tribulation.

1)	2Thess. 1:9 "everlasting destruction" – terrible agony – soul and body pain. . . .an agony which is so great that it goes on in the soul – cannot be annihilated – no loss of consciousness forever and

2)	In heaven there is perfect happiness in the strength of the Lord – Face to face with Him.

3)	In hell His happiness is excluded forever!
Additional notes (the weakness of the doctrine above is not going into the two passages which the baptism of fire is mentioned and exegeting them in context):

7.	Surprisingly enough, the Holman Christian Standard Bible does not quite get this. They write The phrase, "He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, and with fire," occurs twice in the New Testament (Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16). To be baptized with fire is certainly not to be taken literally (as some in the history of the church have taken it).1 The HCSB dictionary then describes this very much the way that we understand a baptism by fire, as simply the manifestation of God in Israel.1 However, John the Baptizer is clearly not referring back to the past, when God was with Israel as a fire, but is looking forward into the future. Fire, as they allege, is certainly used in association with purification; and fire is certainly associated with God's Presence (who will purify us all). However, it is also associated with judgment, mentioned by the HCSB dictionary, but then applying it to the sin of the believer. As noted in the doctrine above, it is clear that there will come a time of judgment in the end times, and this will cast all unbelievers off of the earth. Furthermore, we have a great many parables which deal with this judgment—and that judgment is the baptism of fire.

8.	John actually gives this interpretation himself: John answered them all, saying, "I baptize you with water, but He who is mightier than I is coming, the strap of Whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, to clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire."-Luke 3:15-17 (ESV; capitalized)

9.	We see John giving a similar interpretation in Matt. 3:10–12 "And already the axe is lying at the root of the trees, so that every tree which does not produce good fruit will quickly be hewn down and thrown into the fire. I indeed am baptizing you in water on a profession of repentance; but He who is coming after me is mightier than I: His sandals I am not worthy to carry for a moment; He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and in fire. His winnowing-shovel is in His hand, and He will make a thorough clearance of His threshing-floor, gathering His wheat into the storehouse, but burning up the chaff in unquenchable fire." (Weymouth NT)

1)	Believers produce good fruit; unbelievers do not produce any fruit, so the ax will be laid to the foot of the non-producing trees to take them down—that is the baptism of fire.

2)	Jesus goes into the storehouse with His winnowing-shovel, and He uses this shovel to separate the wheat from the chaff. The chaff (unbelievers) will be burn up with an unquenchable fire.

3)	The picture of chaff is from Scripture-for-
today blogspot; accessed May 2, 2014.

4)	Winnowing (graphic) is from el rectangulo en lamano, accessed May 2, 2014. The winnowed throws the grain and chaff up into the air, and the wind catches the chaff and blows it away. In the parables, this chaff is burned.

5)	Again, John interprets this passage for us.

10.	Jesus, without using the phrase baptism of fire, describes it again in John 15:5–6 I am the Vine, you are the branches. He who continues in Me and in whom I continue bears abundant fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. If any one does not continue in Me, he is like the unfruitful branch which is at once thrown away and then withers up. Such branches they gather up and throw into the fire and they are burned. (Weymouth NT; capitalized) Those who do not continue in Him, are unbelievers. Such are gathered up and thrown into the first to be burned.

11.	Additional references to this doctrine are found in Luke 12:49 17:29–30 Heb. 10:26–27 2Peter 3:7, 10

12.	1Cor. 3:13–15 is a reference to the purifying of the saints in the end times, where the works of the believer are burned up, but the believer is preserved (saved), yet so as through fire.
From http://www.gracebiblechurchbaytown.org/uploads/1/0/1/6/10165395/baptism_of_fire.pdf accessed April 24, 2014 with very little editing. However, this doctrine was begun without a proper definition.
Surprisingly enough, I did not find this doctrine among my normal sources, except for the Grace Bible Church in Baytown.
Bibliography and References
For similar and related information, see the doctrine of baptisms:

http://lakeeriebiblechurch.org/doctrine/html/Baptisms.htm

http://www.realtime.net/~wdoud/topics/baptism.html

http://gracebiblechurchwichita.org/?page_id=38

http://www.spokanebiblechurch.com/study/Bible%20Doctrines/baptisms.htm

http://www.he-ekklesia.org/doctrines/DOCTRINE%20OF%20BAPTISMS.DOC
Other references:

1 http://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/hbd/view.cgi?number=T678

http://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/1971/what-is-the-baptism-of-fire (the stack exchange)

http://www.keyway.ca/htm2003/20030405.htm (Wayne Blank, who did a credible job with this doctrine)

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