Chapter 13.—15. For the Lord Jesus might, if He had so thought fit, have given the power of His baptism to some one or more of His chief servants, whom He had already made His friends, such as those to whom He says, "Henceforth I call you not servants, but friends;"1497
that, as
Aaron was shown to be the
priest by the
rod that budded,
1498
so in His
Church, when more and greater
miracles are performed, the
ministers of more excellent
holiness, and the dispensers of His
mysteries, might be made manifest by some sign, as those who alone ought to
baptize. But if this had been done, then though the
power of
baptizing were given them by the
Lord, yet it would necessarily be called their own
baptism, as in the case of the
baptism of John. And so
Paul gives thanks to
God that he
baptized none of those men who, as
though forgetting in whose name they had been
baptized, were for dividing themselves into
factions under the names of different individuals.
1499
For when
baptism is as valid at the
hands of a contemptible man as it was when given by an
apostle, it is recognized as the
baptism neither of this man nor of that, but of
Christ; as John bears witness that he
learned, in the case of the
Lord Himself, through the
appearance of the
dove. For in what other respect he said, "And I knew Him not," I cannot clearly see. For if he had not known Him in any sense, he could not have said to Him when He came to his
baptism, "I
have need to be
baptized of Thee."
1500
What is it, therefore, that he says, "I saw the Spirit descending from
heaven like a
dove, and it abode upon Him. And I knew Him not: but He that sent me to baptizewith
water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shall see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, the same is He which baptizeth with the Holy
Ghost?"
1501
The
dove clearly descended on Him after He was
baptized. But while He was yet coming to be
baptized, John had said, "I have need to be
baptized of Thee." He therefore already knew Him. What does he therefore mean by the words, "I knew Him not: but He that sent me to
baptize with
water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, the same is He which baptizeth with the Holy
Ghost," since this took place after He was
baptized, unless it were that he knew Him in respect of certain attributes, and in respect of others knew Him not? He knew Him, indeed, as the Son of
God, the Bridegroom, of whose fullness all should receive; but whereas of His fullness he himself had so received the
power of
baptizing that it should be called the
baptism of John, he did not know whether He would so give it to others also, or whether He would have His own
baptism in such
wise, that at whosesoever
hands it was given, whether by
a man that brought forth fruit a hundredfold, or sixtyfold, or thirtyfold, whether by the
wheat or by the chaff, it should be known to be of Him alone; and this he learned through the Spirit descending like a dove, and abiding on Him.
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