Join us as Rabbi Schneider delves into the profound symbolism of water in scripture, tracing its significant role from the beginnings of Genesis to its connection with spiritual baptism. Discover how the Hebrew roots of baptism unveil deeper meanings, illuminating the true purpose of water as a symbol of life, cleansing, and rebirth. Recorded from the Holy Land, this episode invites you on a spiritual journey through the waters of the mikvah, leading to an encounter with the divine.
We’re talking about the mystical nature of water. The scriptures tell us, he that is baptized and believes in Jesus and repents shall be saved. So what is it that water symbolizes in scripture?
SPEAKER 01 :
From the very beginning when God’s Spirit moved over the surface of the deep, water has symbolized life, cleansing, and new beginnings. But is there another more mysterious element in all of creation? Well, hello and welcome to Discovering the Jewish Jesus. I’m your host, Dustin Roberts, and right now we’re going to join Rabbi Schneider as he reveals the mystical nature of water and the deeper meaning behind spiritual baptism. Our message comes from the Holy Land in Israel, and here’s Rabbi Schneider.
SPEAKER 03 :
The Holy Spirit is here, the same spirit that fell upon Yeshua, that fell upon Jesus when he was baptized in the waters of the mikvah. That same spirit, the Ruach HaKadosh, is here right now. Let’s pray that as we go into the waters of the baptism, we call it in Hebrew the waters of the mikvah, that you’re going to have an encounter with the living God, just as Jesus did when he went into the waters of the mikvah and came out and the spirit of the living God visibly descended upon him as a dove. And Jesus heard the father speak to him saying, you are my beloved son and in you I’m well pleased. So right now we just want to press in to go beyond just a ritual. to actually enter into an experience with the living God. Jesus received so much when he was baptized. Father God, in Yeshua’s name, right now, we just ask you to come. You said if we would ask you for your spirit, Father, that you would not give us a scorpion, that we should ask you for your spirit and that you would give him to us liberally and without reproach. And I know, Father God, these that are gathered here with me today, Father, they’re here anticipating, they’re here expecting. Some have come all the way over to the land of Israel, Father God, thinking first about being baptized here in Jesus’ name, in the same waters, King Jesus, that you were baptized in. So we come right now, Father God, with an anticipation of the presence of God. Father, I ask you right now to mark this moment in the lives of every son and daughter that’s about to be immersed, mikved, in the waters of baptism. In Jesus’ name, amen. You know, oftentimes, beloved ones, when we think about a baptism, we think about it traditionally as a Christian ritual or rite of passage. But did you know that baptism actually comes out of Judaism? In Judaism, we call it going into the waters of the mikvah. And we know that baptism was important even before people began to become baptized in Jesus’ name, because we read in the gospels about John the Baptist, who was baptizing in this very river, and how they were coming to John to be baptized, not in Jesus’ name yet. They didn’t know who Jesus was yet, but they were coming to John to be baptized for repentance. It was a baptism of repentance. But note that baptism was already happening in Israel before people began to become baptized into Jesus. And by understanding what baptism meant to the Jews before Jesus’ time, we can better understand and in a more full way understand what it means, beloved ones, to be baptized into Jesus. In other words, by understanding the Hebrew roots or the Jewish roots of baptism, we can more fully comprehend what it means to be baptized in Jesus’ name. So I want to begin with the very first book of the Bible. I want to go back to the book of Genesis, the very first chapter and the very first verses in the book of, we call in Hebrew, Beersheet, which means beginnings. We’re going to go to the book of Genesis, chapter number one. We’re talking about the mystical nature, get this now, of water. The scriptures tell us, he that is baptized and believes in Jesus and repents shall be saved. But it was a baptism of water. So what is it that water symbolizes in scripture? Once again, I’m going to the book of Genesis, to the book of Bereshit now, chapter number one. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. Now get this. The earth was formless and void, hear me now, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and hear me, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. So in the very beginning, all we have is God. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. In the beginning, all there was was Elohim, and the first thing that we see in scripture is the spirit of Elohim, the spirit of God, listen now, moving over the water. So what do we see at the very beginning of creation? We see the spirit of God and the water. That’s all there is. Listen again. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the spirit of Elohim, the spirit of God, get it, was moving over the surface of the water. So we go back to creation, all we see, the spirit of God and the water. Very important because we’re trying to comprehend what does it mean to be immersed in the water. Let’s continue on. Genesis 1, verse number 6. Then Elohim, then God said, let there be an expanse in the midst of the waters and let it separate, get it now, the waters from the water. So all we have at first is the spirit and water. And then the Spirit of the Lord speaks and he says, we’re going to separate the water. God made the expanse and separated the waters which were below the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse. Again, very beginning of creation. The Spirit of God is swirling. The Spirit of God is moving over the deep. The Spirit of God is moving. Elohim is moving over the waters. And then he separates the waters. Continuing on. Verse nine, then Elohim, then God said, let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place and let the dry land appear. So what did God do? God brought the water together and out of that water, he brought forth the earth. Listen again. Then God said, let the waters below the heavens be gathered into one place and let dry land appear. And it was so. God called the dry land earth and the gathering of the waters he called seas. So I want you to get this now. In the beginning, all we have is the Spirit of the Lord over the water. Then Father God separates the water through King Jesus, who’s the Word, because God created everything through the Word, who’s Jesus. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things that have been made came into being through him, through the Word. So the Father, through Jesus, separated separated the waters, and then out of the water that was below, listen now, he brought forth the dry land and it became earth. The birthplace of the world is water. The dry land appeared out of the water. In other words, oftentimes when we think of the earth, we think mostly of dry land. But in reality, the world, listen now, is two-thirds water. God separated the waters and he pulled the dry land out of the water, get this now, so that the water, listen, is the womb of creation. All there was in the beginning was the spirit and the water. Then God brought forth the dry land out of the water, hear me now, so that the water was the womb of creation. Everything came out of the water. The dry land appeared out of the water. Think about this now. The dry land is birthed from water. It’s important because it has relevance and meaning when we think about you going into the water today, which is the womb of creation, and you’re going to come out of that water, born again out of the water. Water is symbolic, beloved ones, of the spirit of the living God.
SPEAKER 01 :
You’re listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus with Rabbi Schneider, and he’ll be right back. But first, have you thought about the legacy you’ll leave when you’re no longer on this earth? Planning for the future, it’s an important step in walking with wisdom. So we’ve partnered with Freewill, a free online tool that makes creating a will simple, secure, and accessible to everyone. I’ve used it myself, and it’s really easy and efficient. And this tool, it also gives you the opportunity to make a lasting impact. And if you want to support this ministry, you can include a financial gift to us in your plans to help us share the love of Yeshua with generations to come. You can get started today at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. Just click on our resources and need a will tab. It’s completely free, whether you choose to give to this ministry or not. So check it out today. And for those of you who do choose to give, thank you so much. And now back to Rabbi with the second half of today’s lesson.
SPEAKER 03 :
As we continue, beloved ones, I want you to consider in Genesis chapter 2. God now creates man and he places man in Eden. Now listen what happens in Eden, verse number 10 of chapter 2. Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divided and became four rivers. Now a river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it divided and became four rivers. Hear me now. All of the water that has watered the earth was flowing out of Eden through this one river that was then divided into four other rivers, and all the water that’s flowing in rivers and channels, it begins in Eden. Now hear me. There is no new water. The water that you’re in right now, the water that I’m standing in, the water that we’re going to be baptized in, this water of the mitvah, hear me, it’s the same water that existed in Genesis chapter 1. This is the same water that the earth was formed out of. We hear that man is mostly water. This water that we’re in, this is the same water, beloved, that made Adam. No new water. You’re going back into the water that existed at the very beginning of creation. You’re going back into the womb of creation, and you’re going to come out of that water, reborn a new creation. Now, the Hebrew Bible was written in Hebrew because the God of creation was communicating to the Jewish people, to the Israelites. But when Jesus came, Father’s plan that he made to Abraham was fulfilled when God said to Abraham, Abraham, through your seed, all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. And so when Jesus came, Paul reveals to us that Jesus is that seed that God was proclaiming to Abraham, the seed that he blessed the world through, that Jesus is the seed. So now in the New Testament, Jesus has come and the time has come for Father to bless the entire world. Jesus is the seed that the blessing’s gonna come to the world through. So the New Testament now is written in Greek because Greek was the most common language of the ancient world of Jesus’ day. So we’re speaking of the Hebrew in the Hebrew Bible because Father God was communicating to the Jewish people, to the Hebrews. He spoke to them in their language. But when Jesus comes, it’s time for him to speak to all the world, and so the New Testament’s recorded in Greek because it was the most common language of the world. But the Greek baptismo in the original that we have is actually a derivative or comes from the concept of the Hebrew mikvah. This is so important that we find here in Israel that when we visit the ancient synagogues that existed during Jesus’ time, they would actually build the baptismal pool or the mikvah that held the water before they’d actually build the structure of the synagogue. so important this is why the scripture says he that believes and is baptized shall be saved because water is the womb of creation when you go into the water listen out your sins are buried water in order for to be a kosher baptismal in order for it to be a kosher baptism The water has to be connected to the earth. In other words, the baptismal tanks. I know when I was first saved, somebody asked me, were you baptized yet? I didn’t know anything about baptism. I just know Jesus appeared to me in a vision, revealed himself to me and saved me. Started telling everybody about it. And this preacher said to me, have you been baptized? I said, no. He brought me over to somebody’s house and baptized me in a bathtub. Okay? And a plastic bathtub, a fiberglass bathtub. That was great. But the best way, in terms of if you want to get all the concept right, is to be baptized in water that’s connected to the earth. Why? Because the water that’s connected to the earth has symbolic meaning in the sense that when we go under the water, our sins are buried. in the earth. Okay? When we go into the water, we’re going to immerse everybody today. We’re not going to sprinkle you, because a little dab won’t do you. The experience that we have in Jesus, a little sprinkle can’t communicate it. It’s a radical change, a radical baptism. So we go all the way under the water, symbolizing that our old life is covered. It’s passed away. Our sins are buried. And think about it. Who’s breathing when they go under the water? None of us are breathing. We stop breathing, like when you’re dead. We go under the water. We stop breathing, symbolizing the death to our old life, the passing of our old life, the bearing of our sins. We’ve died. The Bible says our lives are now hidden with Christ in God, that the old life has passed away. All things have become new. We’ve become a new creation. So we’re going to go under the water. Our sins are going to be buried in the earth, just as a man is buried in the earth when he dies. And then we’re going to come out of the water, raised as a new creation, alive now from the dead in Christ Jesus. I want to share with you a few other concepts taken from the Hebrew Bible that will make this point even fuller. When do we read or hear about baptism taking place in the Hebrew Bible? Well, we read in the Hebrew Bible that when someone was unclean, when a woman was unclean, what would she do? She would go into the waters of a mikvah, which is, again, the Hebrew equivalent of baptism. So we know that the baptism that we find rooted in the Hebrew Bible was tied into cleansing. When you go into the waters of the mikvah today, beloved ones, it’s a symbol of your sins being washed away. You coming out cleansed, blameless, holy before God in Christ Jesus. I want you to hear me when I say this. Don’t ever measure yourself by your sin. Because if you measure yourself by your sin, you can only rise as high as your sin. No, Jesus wiped your sin away and gave you a brand new standard by which to see yourself to, the standard of his righteousness. Your sin was buried and washed away. You’re no longer under it. You’ve been raised now to newness of life in his righteousness. So no matter what you’ve done in the past, don’t let that have any weight over you anymore. What you believe in, how you handle yourself, how you handle your children or your grandchildren, it doesn’t depend on who you are or what you’ve done. In Christ Jesus, you’ve got a new life. He now is the measuring stick by which you see yourself through. You’re righteous in him. We also read in the Hebrew Bible that when the high priest of Israel was installed, they bathed him with water from the top of his head to the bottom of his feet. It symbolized consecration. separation unto God. When you go into the water and come back out, beloved ones, it’s also a symbol for you of consecration. You are now wholly separated unto God. You’ve got a new destiny. You’ve got a new future. You’ve got a new identity. You’ve got a new purpose. You’ve got a destiny in Christ Jesus now. The apostle Paul said, it’s not that he’s attained it, but one thing he does is he presses on to lay a hold to the one that laid a hold of him when you come out of that water sin no more let no condemnation be over you and if you do sin as you’re striving after God praise God the Bible says if we sin we have an advocate with the Father Christ Jesus the righteous we confess our sin he cleanses us from all unrighteous and we keep on overcoming and we keep on pressing on it’s not an excuse to sin but it’s the recognition of that we’ve been made righteous in Christ and those that really are striving after him Those that really have a heart for Him, you’re always righteous in Him. And when we do fall, He cleanses us as soon as we confess it, and we just continue on up the mountain to higher and higher levels, amen, of victory in Him. Now, as we come to the end of the Bible, we also find water. We find water in the New Jerusalem, in the heavenly Jerusalem. We read about it in the last chapter of the New Testament, Revelation chapter 22. We have a description. of the Spirit of God being present in heaven, flowing from the throne of the Lord and from the Lamb. Hear the word of God. This is John speaking as he sees a vision of the New Jerusalem. Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from, get it now, the throne of God and of the Lamb. Now think about this. God places Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in the very beginning, right? And from that garden flowed a river that gave life to all creation. Now the same water that’s here today is the water that flowed through that Garden of Eden. We see similar symbolism in the city of New Jerusalem. There is a river that flowed clear as crystal coming from the throne of God and from the Lamb. Water is a symbol of life. Water is a life-giving force. And we are reconnected to the life of God today, get this now, through the waters of the mikvah. The waters of the mikvah symbolize the life of Jesus. Jesus said, he that believes in me, rivers of living what? Water shall flow from his innermost being. So when you go into the water today, I want you to experience and I want you to expect that you are being saturated, impregnated with the Holy Spirit. That your flesh is being zapped. with the Spirit of the living God, that the life of Jesus being supernaturally translated and transferred into you by faith as you go in, beloved ones, to the waters of baptism, to the waters of the mikvah. Now, as we come out of the waters of the mikvah, I want you to think about this. When Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River, the spirit of the living God visibly descended upon him as a dove, and then Jesus heard the voice of Father. And Father said to him this, you, he said to Yeshua, are my beloved son, and in you I am well pleased. You are my beloved Son, and I speak over every one of your lives today. In Jesus’ name, on behalf of the Father, each one of you is chosen. Each one of you is a beloved son. Each one is a beloved daughter. And God delights in you as He created you in His own image. And He sees His beauty in you. He sees Christ Jesus in you, the hope of glory. And He wants you to receive, as you come out of the waters of the mikvah today, beloved ones, He wants you to receive the affirmation, listen to me, of His love for you. that you are so precious to him, that you are a child of God. And even as the father said to Jesus, you are my beloved son, and in you I’m well pleased, he’s saying to each one of you today, you are my beloved child, and in you I am well pleased. Behold what manner of love the father has given unto you, that you are now a child of God. I don’t know about you, but for me, it seems like time keeps on going faster and faster and faster. Remember when we were little kids and it seemed like a summer was endless, like a whole lifetime was enveloped in a summer? Well, the older we get, it just seems like the years fly by. And so here we are, another year is coming to an end. As we come to the end of 2025, can I ask you humbly to give your very best love offering to the Lord through Discovering the Jewish Jesus? Because of you, beloved ones, millions of people are being reached through this ministry. In fact, I just received a testimony recently of a Jewish man that came to faith directly as a result of discovering the Jewish Jesus. And he’s just one of many Jewish people that are coming to the Lord. And not just Jews, but people from all over the world are coming to the Lord, beloved, because of your sowing financially into this ministry. Thank you for your love. Would you give your best offering right now? Thank you. I love you and shalom.
SPEAKER 01 :
Amen. Thank you, Rabbi. And friends, if the Lord is leading you to financially support Discovering the Jewish Jesus with an end of your offering or a gift of any amount, then please call us at 800-777-7835. You can also give online at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. It’s your faithful donations that enable us to reach people around the world who are being changed through the message of Messiah. And as we celebrate Hanukkah this week, which started on Sunday at sunset, and continues through Monday, December the 22nd at nightfall, we’re reminded that it’s a beautiful time to honor the Lord with your gifts and to stand with us as we reach Jewish people with the gospel. And when you become a brand new monthly partner, meaning a monthly gift, we have a special gift for you. we’ll send you a beautiful handcrafted shofar as our way to say thank you. Each one, it’s made in Israel and it serves as a powerful reminder of God’s call to awaken His people. You can display it in your home as a symbol of your commitment to this ministry and Jesus soon return. I know that I have one and when people see it for the first time, they’re regularly asking questions, wondering what it is and why it’s displayed. It’s a great conversation starter. to lead to sharing the gospel. So if you wanna become a brand new monthly partner and get your shofar, then visit discoveringthejewishjesus.com. And now here’s Rabbi Schneider to share God’s sacred blessing.
SPEAKER 03 :
In the book of Numbers chapter six, the Lord gave instructions to Moses and Aaron to speak this blessing over his people. And the Lord said, when you speak these words over my people, I will place my name on them and bless them. Receive the impartations of the Lord’s blessings.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yissa Yahweh, P’navei Lecha Ve’asem Lecha
SPEAKER 03 :
The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with His countenance. And the Lord give you, beloved one, His peace. God bless you and shalom.
SPEAKER 01 :
I’m your host, Dustin Roberts, and this program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. Join us again tomorrow when Rabbi Schneider explains how we can be overcoming temptation. That’s coming up Friday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
