What kind of 'Spirit' was it, when those at Corinth were "By one Spirit" all baptized into one body?

BAPTIZED BY ONE SPIRIT INTNE BODY.

A TEXTUAL EXPOSITION of 1 COR. 12:13
by Forrest L. Keener

“For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.”

"This is a verse that has, through the years, received a huge amount of attention. I have read a great deal of material on the subject and even distributed a lot of tracts with which I am less than totally pleased. I will try, in this brief tract, to state what I feel is the extremely simple and pointed truth of this verse.

"May I say to begin with, I don’t think we need to be an exegetical or a translation expert to understand it; it is just not that complicated. It says precisely and simply what it seems to say.

"WHY THE COMPLICATED APPROACHES"

"I have read many discourses which approach this verse as if we needed some particular insight into great mysteries, or an ability to dig out very obscure interpretations of other Bible verses, to understand this one. These approaches normally lead to some “necessary implication” of a “universal body.”

"This wrong interpretation of 1 Cor. 12:13 “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit”,

"is supported by a wrong interpretation of Ephesians 4:3 and 4, “endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;” and in turn that wrong interpretation of Ephesians 4:3 and 4 is supported back by the same wrong interpretation of 1 Cor. 12:13.

"The fact of the matter is that neither of these verses so much as hints at any kind of a universal body. In fact, the words universal and body are so antagonistic to each other, that we should be forced into laughter, by merely hearing them so used.

"The word body always means something that is localized by a union and united by locality, while the word universal, as used in this respect, means something that is everywhere.

"Infinitude of locality always necessitates a spirit, as opposed to a body.

"Why the complication then? It is because of the carry-over of Catholicism, even through Protestantism, in so much of our “Christian Literature.”

"If it were not for the Catholic teaching that the “body of Christ” is literally the visible universal (Catholic) church,

"or the Protestant teaching that the “body of Christ” is literally the invisible universal (“Holy Catholic”) church, no such notion would ever exist among evangelical Christians.

"They certainly would not, in a million years, arrive at it,
merely by reading 1 Cor.12:13, Eph. 4:3,4, and Eph. 5:25-27.

"The fact is that to arrive at a universal church interpretation of these verses, a man must start with this Catholic presupposition and use these verses as proof texts to support it.

"I want to take each of the determinative words of 1 Cor.12:13 and show that this passage does not even suggest universalism. Then, I want to very briefly expound the verse in its simple contextual meaning.

see also: What kind of 'body' was it,
when the saints at Corinth were "baptized into one body"?

THE WORD “SPIRIT”.

“For by one SPIRIT are we all baptized into one body.” It has been argued by some, who realized the error of the Catholic interpretation, that the Spirit here was “a spirit of unity,” and should be translated as 'spirit', not 'Spirit'. Such a conclusion is not necessary, and I do not believe it is either accurate or logically justified.

"The 'Spirit' here is the 'Spirit' of the context.

As in verse 1 "Now concerning spiritual gifts", He is the Spirit that Generates spiritual gifts.

"He is the Spirit Who, according to verse 3, leads one to confess Christ,

"Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost."

"in verse 4, He is the Spirit Who bestows diversities of gifts,

"Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit."

and in verse 7 the Spirit manifests Himself for the overall profit of the church,

"But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal."

"He is the same Spirit who, in verse 8, gives the word of wisdom to one and the word of knowledge to another,

"For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom;
to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;"

and the Spirit Who in verses 9 and 10, gives gifts of faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, discerning of spirits, divers tongues, and interpretation

"To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

10 "To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:"

He is the same Spirit Who, in verse 11, Sovereignly divides gifts to men,
individually as it pleases Him,

"But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit,
dividing to every man severally as He will."

It is, by every contextual standard of interpretation the “Spirit” of the context
and thus, the Holy Spirit who is mentioned here, in I Corinthians 12:13,

“For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body,"
...

THE WORD “by”.

“For BY one Spirit are we all baptized into one body.” It is thought, by the universalist, that this word, if properly translated, forces us to believe that this verse has the Holy Spirit baptizing us into Christ literally, and thus the baptism could not be water baptism, and the body referred to could not be a local church.

"This is interpretation either by presupposition, or by panic, or some of both.

"The word "by" needs to carry no such meaning.

"It simply means we "are led by" the Holy Spirit to unite with that body (local church), exactly as we "are led by" the Spirit to confess Christ in verse 3,

"Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking "by" the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but "by" the Holy Ghost."

Another clincher is here: This is how Simeon, in Luke 2:27, came into the temple at the time of Christ’s dedication. “And he came "by" the Spirit into the temple: and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him after the custom of the law,“

Simeon came Supernaturally "by" the influence of, or the leadership of, the Holy Spirit.

“For "by" one Spirit are we all baptized into one body,"

“For "by" the Supernatural influence of,
or the leadership of, the "one" Holy "Spirit are we all baptized into one body,"

see: What kind of 'body' was it,
when the saints at Corinth were "baptized into one body"?

 

Jesus baptized His current church members in Jerusalem, some of whom John the Baptist was talking to, with The Holy Spirit.

Jesus immersed, or baptized' His ekklesia/ local church with The Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, once and for all time.

The Holy Spirit is never said to be the One that does the baptizing of anything, anywhere, anytime.