The Baptismal Formula

    What is the proper formula for baptism? Jesus instructed us to baptism “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,” but elsewhere the scriptures record believers were baptized “in the name of Jesus.” Are these contradictions? What name or names should be use in baptism?

    Understanding "in the NAME of"

    Mathew 28:19 is often quoted when discussing the baptismal formula, but rarely is Matthew 28:18, the preceding verse ever mentioned. And yet, verse 18 is important to understand in order to properly understand what Jesus said in verse 19. These two verses together read:

    • “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 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 28:18-19)
    By considering verse 18, we understand the reason Jesus was giving authority to His disciples to go forth and baptize, was because “all power” was given unto Jesus. By virtue of the fact Jesus had received this power, He then delegated to His disciples this power or authority, to go forth and to baptize. When the Bible uses the word “name” in such as reference as this, it often refers to authority.
    • “And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.” (Acts 9:14)
    • “And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this? “(Acts 4:7)

    Ellen White has also demonstrated in her writings that the phrase “in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost” (Matt 28:19) is a reference to “the authority of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”

    Many people read Matthew 28:19 and think that this verse is mentioning three names into which we are to be baptized. But the words Father, Son and Holy Spirit are not names, they are titles. The Father has a name, but it is not “Father.” The Son has a name but it is not “Son.” These are not names, nor does the verse state we are to be baptized into the “names” (plural), but into the “name,” (singular). By these verses and statements above we conclude that we are not baptized into the names of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit but that we are baptized under the authority of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the three divine agencies through which God works to save redeem man.

    How did the Seventh-day Adventist Pioneers Understand and Practice Matthew 28:19?

    Why Do So Many Scriptures Say We Are to Baptize in the Name of Jesus?

    If we take the Bible are our guide, we cannot come to any other conclusion except to understand the instruction of Jesus to baptize “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” does not contradict the records that appear where believers were baptized “in the name of Jesus.” Consider this statement from Sister White:

    In this statement Ellen White tells us the words Paul used in the baptism were the very words from the commission of Jesus. For she said Paul “repeated the Savior’s commission to his disciples” which she then quoted, “baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” In this same paragraph, she also wrote that “they were then baptized in the name of Jesus.” Is this a contradiction? No. Not when we understand that the baptism “in the name of Jesus” was distinguishing Jesus’ baptism from “John’s baptism.” There is no record anywhere in the scriptures of anyone using the words “in the name of Jesus” only when baptizing. All the Bible verses using “the name of Jesus” were references to the event, but are not references to the words of the baptismal formula themselves. And this above statement from Sister White shows us this is a correct understanding. She said Paul baptized the believers “in the name of Jesus,” that is, to differentiate their baptism from John’s baptism, but also that the very words Paul used at the baptism itself were the very words that Jesus gave “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”

    Is Matthew 28:19 a Catholic Corruption?

    When Seventh-day Adventists or other Christians embrace the understanding of the One True God and reject the doctrine of the trinity, it has become more and more common for them to also reject the baptismal formula “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” because it is perceived as a formula that supports of the doctrine of the trinity. When Matthew 28:19 is properly understood, it is evident that it is no a trinitarian verse nor does it in any way support the doctrine of the trinity. 
     
    If Jesus Word’s were in support of the doctrine of the trinity, the verse should read “in the names (plural) of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” But Jesus did not say “names,” he said “in the name,” showing that the word name in no way has any correlation to the number of person or persons, but as we saw above, the word “name” is a reference to the authority and power of God. Furthermore, if the purpose was to baptize into three names, there should be three names that follow, and not titles. The Father’s name is “Jehovah,” the Son’s name is Jesus, and the Holy Spirit’s name is not given anywhere in the Bible or in the writings of Ellen White, because the Holy Spirit is the presence and power of the Father and Son, as Jesus said “we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” (John 14:23)
     

    It is also important to note, that Matthew 28:19 does not say there are three gods, it does not say there are three persons in one God, it does not say they are three in one, it does not say they are co-eternal, co-equal or con-substantial, nor does it say the Holy Spirit is a third person, etc. None of the trinitarian concepts are expressed or mentioned or inculcated in Matthew 28:19. It simply mentions the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, but the mere mention of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit does not make the verses trinitarian any more than the gathering of the disciples on the first day of the week makes Sunday the new Sabbath. Matthew 28:19 is not a trinitarian verse, and Uriah Smith’s statement well illustrates how the non-trinitarian Seventh-day Adventists understood Matthew 28:19.

    Ellen White also writes:

    There are still some however that insist, with a show of Catholic quotes, that the Catholic church claims it added Matthew 28:19 into the Bible.

     

    “The basic form of our (Matthew 28:19 Trinitarian) profession of faith took shape during the course of the second and third centuries in connection with the ceremony of baptism. So far as its place of origin is concerned, the text (Matthew 28:19) came from the city of Rome.”
    Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI)
    Introduction to Christianity: 1968 edition, pp. 82, 83
    The problem with this quote from Ratzinger is that whoever added the parenthetical comments gave the incorrect context. For the statement is not made about Matthew 28:19, but about the Apostle’s Creed. Scrolling between page 82 and 83 of the book on the right, you will see the chapter is titled “The Ecclesiastical Form of Faith” and “Introductory remarks on the history and structure of the Apostles Creed.” So “profession of faith” here referred to, is not the text of Matthew 28:19, but the text concerning the Apostles Creed.
     
    On page 83 of this book, Raztinger does mention “the words of the risen Christ recorded in Matthew 28:19,” but it was not to say that the Catholic church altered the Bible verse, but to say it is the Apostle’s Creed which is “fundamentally based on the words of the risen Christ in Matthew 28:19.” What Ratzinger is saying, is that the Apostles Creed took some of its wording or inspiration for the formulation of the Apostles Creed from Jesus’ instructions in Matthew 28:19. This is not an admission of modifying or added Matthew 28:19, but is exactly the opposite, for it admits that the text already existed and that they are deriving from it inspiration with which to formulate the Apostles Creed. That this is the case is proved in the next sentence, “In accordance with this injuction (Matthew 28:19), three questions are put to the person to be baptized: ‘Do you believe in God the Father Almighty? Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God….? Do you believe in the Holy Spirit…?’ The person being baptized replies to each of these three questions with the word “Credo”—I believe—and then is each time immersed in the water.” – Introduction to Christianity, p83
     

    It is clear then, that what Ratzinger is saying, is that they inspiration for the formulation of the Apostles Creed which “took shape in the course of the second and third centuries” was “fundamentally based” on Jesus words in Matthew 28:19. The idea that this quotation from Ratzinger says that the Catholic Church added or in any way modified the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:19 is a falsehood and is simply not true.

    THE APOSTLE’S CREED:

    I believe in God,
    the Father almighty,
    Creator of heaven and earth,
    and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
    who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
    born of the Virgin Mary,
    suffered under Pontius Pilate,
    was crucified, died and was buried;
    he descended into hell;
    on the third day he rose again from the dead;
    he ascended into heaven,
    and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;
    from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

    I believe in the Holy Spirit,
    the holy catholic Church,
    the communion of saints,
    the forgiveness of sins,
    the resurrection of the body,
    and life everlasting.

    Amen.

    Let’s look at another quote from the Jerusalem Bible.

    See a PDF File of the 1966 Jerusalem Bible, p. 64

    There are a few things we may gather from this note that is used to substantiate that Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:19 came from the Catholic church.

    1. The author is not using conclusive language, but suggestive. He is suggests “It MAY” not is, but “may” be that this formula, so far as the fulness of its expression is concerned, is a reflection of the liturgical usage established later in the primitive community.” Here, Alexander Jones, the general editor of the Jerusalem Bible, suggests that maybe this formula in Matthew 28:19 came about from later usage from the liturgical, or catholic usage. There is no proof given, no extra-Biblical evidence to suggest this was the case, he is just postulating. His reasoning is that “in the name of Jesus” is used elsewhere, and so he is trying to wrestle with what her perceives is a contradiction.

    As we have seen, there is no contradiction. Baptismal events were said to have been “in the name of Jesus,” as to differentiate from the baptism of John, and we saw that the words Paul used for the baptismal formula were the words of Jesus Himself, “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” (Matthew 28:19) This statement from the Jerusalem Bible is not proof of anything other than the suggestive opinion of Alexander Jones, a Catholic scholar educated at “the Gregorian University, and the Biblical Institute at Rome.” (LibraryThing)

    What about this statement?

    • “It is doubted whether the explicit injunction of Matt. 28:19 can be accepted as uttered by Jesus. …But the Trinitarian formula in the mouth of Jesus is certainly unexpected.” — (A Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, J. Hastings, 1906, p. 170)

    We have already seen that Matthew 28:19 is not a trinitarian formula. So the author’s understanding is incorrect. If we are to base our understanding off of another man’s misunderstandings then we might well gather together a mass of quotes of man’s wisdom and take the most consistent assessment and call it ‘the truth.’ Obviously however, man’s wisdom is not our standard. Even though the supposed Catholic statements saying they modified or added Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:19 is lacking, let us imagine however, that we did find not one, but twenty, or fifty or a hundred statements from the Catholics saying conclusively that they added the text. Would that make it true? What is our authority? God forbid we should determine truth by what comes from the schools, the books and the priests of Antichrist! Rome is not our standard, the Bible is our standard, and we additionally do have the inspired words of Sister White.

     

    What did Ellen White Say About Matthew 28:19?

    Ellen White wrote:

    • “The Saviour said; ‘Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost… These are the words of ‘inspiration.’ You need not fear that you are making a mistake by believing fully in them.” (EGW, RH March 4, 1909)

    • “Christ gave his followers a positive promise that after his ascension he would send them His Spirit. ‘Go ye therefore,’ he said, ‘and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father [A PERSONAL GOD], and of the Son [A PERSONAL PRINCE AND SAVIOUR], and of the Holy Ghost [SENT from heaven to represent Christ]: 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 … there is no comforter like Christ, so tender and true. He is touched with the feelings of our infirmities. His Spirit speaks to the heart … The influence of the Holy Spirit is the life of Christ in the soul.” 
(Review and Herald, October 26, 1897, par. 9, 15)

    • “When I was baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, I was buried with Christ in the likeness of His death and raised in the likeness of His resurrection. I am pledged to consecrate my life to His service.” {Lt73-1901.}

    • “Every true Christian will say from the heart, When I was baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, I was buried in the likeness of Christ’s death, and raised in the likeness of His resurrection. I have taken a sacred vow to live in close communion with Christ. I am pledged to devote my life to His service.” (EGW, The Signs of the Times, February 12,  1902, par. eight)

    • “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; 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.” Just before He left them, Christ gave His disciples this promise of the Holy Spirit, and while the words were upon His lips, He ascended. {ST September 20, 1899, par. 1}

    • “Having received their commission from God and having the approbation of the church, they went forth baptizing in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and administering the ordinances of the Lord’s house, often waiting upon the saints by presenting them the emblems of the broken body and spilt blood of the crucified Saviour, to keep fresh in the memory of God’s beloved children His sufferings and death.” EW 100.2)

    • “The word which the Lord has given to me for our ministers and our churches is, ‘Go forward.’ ‘All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost…’” (EG White – TM 417.2)


    The scan of Ellen White’s original handwriting taken from Manuscript 21, 1905 shows that Ellen White on at least one occasion, had written “in the name of Jesus Christ” (underlined in red) and later crossed it out and wrote “in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.” (Underlined in Yellow)

    Given that Sister White was baptized “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost” and that she was shown that these words were upon the lips of Jesus, and that “these are the words of ‘inspiration'” and that “you need not fear that you are making a mistake by believing fully in them,” and that she was given these words from the Lord in instruction to our ministers and churches to baptize “in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost,” it is very clear that God has made it clear, that these words are from the Savior Himself, and that in following the formula of His own words, we are indeed carrying out the will and command of Jesus Christ.

    Is it Wrong to Still Baptize 'in the name of Jesus?'

    Let the principles contained in these statements of inspired counsel guide us in answering this question.

    • The question is often asked, “What difference does it make which day we keep for the Sabbath?” But it does make a difference; for the same principle is involved as was involved in Adam’s case. He was put to the same test. For he was to prove by obedience his loyalty to God or by disobedience to forfeit the right to the tree of life. Satan presented this same specious question. What difference does it make whether you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, or of any other tree of the garden? Adam’s sin consisted in doing the thing the Lord had forbidden him to do, and this opened the flood gates of woe on our world. We should carefully meditate upon the life of Christ, and desire to understand the reason why he came at all. We should search the Scriptures as Christ has enjoined upon us to do, that we may know those things that are testified of him. By searching we may find the virtues of obedience in contrast with the sinfulness of disobedience. “As by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous.” {ST April 17, 1893, par. 9}

    • Adam did not set his mind in defiance against God, nor did he in any way speak against God; he simply went directly contrary to His express command… No man can be happy and depart from God’s specified requirements, and set up a standard of his own which he decides he can safely follow. Then there would be a variety of standards to suit the different minds, and the government taken out of the Lord’s hands and human beings grasp the reins of government. The law of self is erected, the will of man is made supreme; and when the high and holy will of God is presented to be obeyed, respected, and honored the human will wants its own way … to do its own promptings, and there is a controversy between the human agent and the divine. (RC 56)
    The Bible has faithfully recorded the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:19, and God has again testified to this fact through His inspired messenger Ellen White. The Seventh-day Adventist pioneers in the first fifty years baptized according to Jesus words in Matthew 28:19 and even explained how they understood these words that was consistent with their non-trinitarian faith. If we are to return the Seventh-day Adventist faith of the first fifty years, then we shall follow the words of Jesus, and baptize according to His command, and the example of Ellen White and our Pioneers.