How about quoting the two verses preceding 20....18 & 19?
Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Matthew 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
The Great Commission involves two major tasks: Evangelism and discipleship.
The Gospel is to be proclaimed to every person; those who believe on Christ are to be baptized and trained. The Great Commission is to be fulfilled by the churches and is to result in the multiplication of churches as we see in the New Testament pattern as seen in the book of Acts.
Verse 20 alone does not teach that we are saved by being water baptized. Water (believer's) baptism is one of the two ordinances of the Church....the other one being the Lord's Supper. It is done AFTER a person BELIEVES demonstrating that person's identity with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection...NOT FOR salvation, but BECAUSE OF salvation. You twist the Scriptures and put the cart before the horse ....and this gives people a false assurance of salvation and sends those people to the devil's hell and ultimately to spend eternity in the lake of fire!
Okay, for how many times now? its been so many I forget?, Ill go over it again,
John the Baptizer tells us Jesus is the ONLY one who can baptize with the Holy Spirit :
Matthew 3:11 (NKJV)
[SUP]
11 [/SUP]I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.
He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
Now since Jesus is the only one that can baptize with the Holy Spirit, and John as well as all Christs disciples can baptize with water, as we see where Jesus commissioned it (as you quoted, what I quoted, how many times now) :
Matthew 28:19-20 (NKJV) [SUP]
19 [/SUP]
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [SUP]
20 [/SUP] teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age." Amen.
I know you like leaving the "baptizing" part out, but sorry we cannot, it is what Jesus told the disciples to do, He told them to "make disciples in all nations, BAPTIZING THEM",
Now note closely Jesus did not say "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, I will baptize them"
It is the disciples that are to baptize, not Jesus, the disciples can only baptize (like John the baptizer) with water.
Peter affirms that water baptism is the one salvific baptism of Eph 4:5 when he tells us that like in the days of Noah, like how water washed the world of sin, there is now an antitype (an antitype is like your face in a mirror, the same but opposite) he said there is now an antitype, now water washes our sins, and so you wont get confused thinking this is a washing like a bath, Peter emphasizes (not the removal of the filth of the flesh),
1 Peter 3:20-21 (NKJV) [SUP]
20 [/SUP] who formerly were disobedient, when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while
the ark was being prepared, in which a few,
that is, eight souls, were saved through water. [SUP]21 [/SUP] There is also an antitype which now saves us--baptism (
not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Even with Peter and the emphases that this is not just getting wet but a spiritual representation of the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord, putting you "into Christ", spiritually putting you in contact with the cleansing blood of Christ...
and you still don't get it (actually you all get it, but you have to reject it because you have to toss your baptist manuals, confessions of faith, or what ever man made doctrine you follow besides the bible)