* Baptism is identification with the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Joan Boney ... apostle/prophet

When I was baptised, the minister lowered me into the water, the Holy Spirit said to me:

"This is like being buried with Christ."

When I came out of the water, the Holy Spirit said:

"This is like being raised with Christ."

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Baptism does not save us.

But is does help us fight our own flesh and the works of our flesh when we understand baptism.

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We keep our flesh crucified with Christ by praying and following the word brought by the Spirit of God in the form of a thought after prayer.

Paul said he kept his body "under" (under control) lest when he preached to others he would be a castaway.  I Corinthians 9

These are the works of the flesh:

Galatians 5:19-21   Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,  21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

It is the nature of man to do the works of the flesh ... When we are dead with Christ, we learn to reject the works of the flesh and go in the way of the Spirit.

Baptism is identification with the death and resurrection of Christ that we may serve God instead of serving the desires of our own flesh as we once did.

Romans 6:3-23    Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into His death?

Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

For if we have been planted together in the likeness of HIS death, we shall be also in the likeness of HIS resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with HIM, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

For he that is dead is freed from sin.

Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him:

Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over Him.

For in that HE died, HE died unto sin once: but in that HE liveth, HE liveth unto God.

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.

Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.

(Your flesh might like to tell someone off because of a perceived wrong done against you but that is just your flesh wanting to get even. We stop our flesh from doing what it wants to do for to do that thing would cause us to go into sin.  Now we reckon ourselves dead with Christ that we can now serve God doing as HE wills.  So we commit ourselves to God in prayer, asking HIM not to allow us to do that which our flesh wants to do.)

For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.

Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. 

I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

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After we are born again, we learn to make our own flesh suffer by refusing to obey those desires prompted by our own flesh.

Therefore we no longer do those sins we once did.

We consider ourselves to be buried with Christ (dead), and resurrected with Christ so we can now serve God instead of yielding to our own flesh.

If we are tempted we can ask God to help us not to do that thing our flesh wants to do.  We can ask God to help us not to say those things the flesh wants us to say.

And we know the following:

I Corinthians 10:13   There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

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