Wait...what?

This little gem popped up in my Youtube feed. I have no earthly idea why the YoutubeAI thought this was of interest to me. In a really weird way, it actually was interesting, but not for any of the reasons the AI (or the preacher himself likely) thought it would be. I will just post it here for teaching purposes. I in *NO WAY* agree with much of anything he says, but I think it's a perfect example of denominations which have gone so far down the rabbit hole of both taking Bible verses out of context and having ordinances and not sacraments. I also note that comments are turned off. Do with that as you will. But, here it is:

I won't bore you with a total synopsis of every thing this man says because, frankly, it's heretical. But, I do post it because it's a prime example of false doctrine. I don't say that to be mean or nasty. I certainly never label something as heresy in a flippant way or for purposes of hyperbole. Heresy is false teaching that is so bad and dangerous that if you get sucked into believing it, you risk giving up your seat in heaven in the hereafter. It's false teaching that is so false, it's teaching something contrary to Christ and is an enemy to Christ. That's a dangerous place to be. 

This gentleman, whom I have no idea who he is or where he is from other than "Shorewood Bible Church." I did some online research for you and discovered it's some sort of "Bible church" in or around Chicago, Illinois. He mentions about 3/4's of the way through the video that his church and the Quakers and Salvation Army are the only denominations who don't do water baptism. Interestingly, right after that, he says, "We're not like them...thank God." I found that a very interesting verbal aside as it smacked of the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican to me, but I'll let it pass. There are a few other denominations that don't do water baptism as well, but I will let that pass as well. Do with all that also as you will.

Again, I am not besmirching the gentleman. He seems a very nice elderly gentleman in a nice suit. I would have no problem sitting down and having a cup of coffee with this chap and chew the fat. I am sure he is a fine next door neighbor and upstanding citizen, but in terms of doctrine, he is teaching a very dangerous doctrine: that you do not need water baptism if you are a Christian. I have heard tell of churches that don't really believe in water baptism, but generally tend to go through with the ceremony, even if they don't believe the ceremony has any real power. Or, conversely, it has become a fad in some liberal Protestant denominations to redo the normal Trinitarian formula and instead of the traditional (and mandated by Christ) language of baptizing "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit," the baptize is some other weird kitschy formula like "in the name of the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer" or even more vacuous claptrap that ticks off the "stand up the Patriarchy and say no to God's Paternalism" checkbox, even as it completely invalidates the Baptism in the process. But, I digress into another stream of heresy.

I post this video clip as a prime example of just how dangerous some people can be if their personal interpretation of Scripture leads them to a level of arrogance that is contrary to the understanding of something as central as baptism that virtually no major stream of Christianity has ever really gone to. Quakers aren't really Trinitarian in any meaningful sense. They say they are, but if you try and pin them down on what the persons of the Trinity actually are or how it relates to anything, you get at best blank stares and at worst some form of Arianism. And then the Salvation Army has always been sort of a para-church organization that is a theological mess. They do believe in the Trinity and in "regeneration by the Holy Spirit, [and is] necessary to salvation." They don't really do sacraments like baptism per se (though officers can perform weddings that they do not believe are sacramental in nature). They started more as a revival Wesleyan-Holiness movement in London in the late 1800s. Exactly how much of the Salvation army sees itself as a stand alone denomination or as a para-church social ministry that complements a regular denomination attendance is unclear. (They have historical teaching documents that contradict each other.) Regardless, baptism is something that is not deemed important enough to have their officers actually do.

I have gone into the weeds and now return to the video at hand. This guy baldly and plainly is stating that you do not need water baptism and that, in fact, his church does not do baptisms full stop. I don't believe I have ever heard someone who self professes as a "Bible believing church" to be so open and honest about the fact of not doing baptisms at all, ever. His reasoning is very odd. He jumps back and forth in various books of the Bible quickly to, for lack of a better term, "proof text," which always makes me suspicious. I find it more helpful to look closely at one or two Biblical texts in more detail and not Scripture hop like a fast talking used car salesman.

In his defense, he does make some interesting points about the various types of Baptism that the Bible does discuss. There's the baptism of the Holy Spirit. There are also Baptismal prototype stories and allusions that foreshadow the fullness of Baptism in the Old Testament like Noah and the Flood or Moses taking the Israelites through the Red Sea that he glosses over or conveniently ignores entirely. But, he does make a valid point that not all baptisms in the Bible are water baptisms.

That, however, does not negate the necessity of water baptism. I find that a very spurious argument, and, frankly, a very dangerous one. It both presumes a sort of Baptismal agnosticism-that we can't know if the Great Commission meant water baptism when it said, "Go and baptize..." but also presumes a sort of arrogance "but I really know that it did not mean water baptism, ergo, we won't do baptisms at all, ever."     

So, just be aware. There are people out there telling their flocks they don't need baptism, despite the very clear last instructions of Jesus before his Ascension (not to mention all the other clear allusions to water baptism in the New Testament). Even if I was not sure what Baptism accomplished precisely (whether a regeneration against Original Sin) or some sort of ceremonial public affirmation of a Confession of Faith (i.e. giving your heart to Jesus in the sinner's prayer or what have you), God has ordained it for some specific purpose.

To arrogantly say you know better than both Scripture and the general consensus of the whole Christian Church aside from a few fringe outliers, is putting the immortal souls of your flock into a very dangerous situation. This is why this is heresy. If Baptism is necessary for Salvation, even as a remote possibility of Divine commandment, and you are telling people not to and you won't ever do that in your church, that's a very dangerous place to be as a pastor or Christian leader.

Just be aware. People like this exist. Don't be fooled by a polite older gentleman in a suit. Salvation isn't a joke, and the Sacraments are real.