Bøker av Joseph Schmidt

This subject has arguably sparked the greatest theological debate among Christians in history. It has an impact on how we understand salvation, Bible interpretation, evangelism, Christian living, the character of God, and other issues. This is a subject that every new believer needs to interact with because they'll be faced with it sooner or later. In this article we'll overview both positions and look at some of the Scripture each side uses for support. The article is meant to challenge, stir thinking, and encourage the reader in love to consider what the rest of Scripture has to say on this issue instead of simply the verses they know or what their church has taught them. As Proverbs 18:17 says, "The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him." If all we ever know is what we're told from the first person who told us, we feel pretty secure... at least until we begin reading the Bible for ourselves. I share the story of my own journey on this issue and what led me to begin studying and to look at the Bible in a way I never had before. I hope that whether or not you disagree with the conclusions I came to, that you'll allow God to speak through His Word as you consider seriously what it has to say on these matters, for His truth is the ultimate authority.*All proceeds go to support my wife and I as we are at seminary.

I was saved in a Non-denominational "Christian Church." After being there a few years, in 2006 I began to notice that the Christian Church movement primarily taught that water baptism was a part of how someone is saved. Though the church where I attended didn't believe this, they would fellowship with many who did. This troubled me so much that after speaking with the pastor, I had to find a new church home. Years later I met the woman who would be my wife who was also saved in this movement but who had never studied the issue of baptism. All she ever knew was what her church taught her. This study is the fruit of three months of my wife and I sitting down to work through what the Bible has to say on this subject. Do you know someone who believes that water baptism is a part of being saved or essential to being saved? Do you know someone who has turned this wonderful picturesque act of obedience for the believer into a means of saving grace? Groups that would hold to this view are; The Church of Christ, Roman Catholicism, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) to name a few. How do you respond biblically to the claims of these groups? They all point to God's Word for support but does it really teach that water baptism has an effect on our salvation? In this study we examine the major passages in the debate like 1 Peter 3:21 where we're told, "Baptism now saves you" and John 3:5 where Jesus says we must be "born of water and the Spirit." It also uses the Word of God to answer the questions, "What is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?" and "Is water baptism a work?" I hope you are blessed by this resource.*All proceeds go to support my wife and I as we are at seminary.

All those who truly desire to know God better will and must also desire to know His Word. Jesus prayed in John 17:17, "Sanctify them in truth. Your Word is truth." It was the desire of Jesus that all those who follow Him be sanctified by the very words of God. In this short book, I boil down the most helpful and practical principles I have learned from my biblical education so that any believer will have the tools they need to study the Bible for themselves. I also provide examples to illustrate the various principles discussed. Entire books have been written about each of the various parts of which I am going to discuss, but I worked hard to make this a concise resource that will set you on your path to knowing God's Word.