awakening, spiritual--Becoming conscious of the things of Spirit, or God.

B

Baal worship--Putting nature before God in earth, air, and water; giving the substance of mind and body to the things of sense. It is a form of idolatry. "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" (Exod. 20:3).

babe--Metaphysically, a new state of consciousness; innocent and childlike.

babe in Christ--One whose face is turned toward the light, but who has not yet come into a deep understanding of Truth.

baptism--The spiritual cleansing of the mind. Typifies the cleansing power and work of Spirit that redeems men from sin. It is the first step in the realization of Truth. When the baptizing power of the word is poured on a center in consciousness, it dissolves all material thought, and through this cleansing, purifying process, the individual is prepared to see and to discern spiritually.

The two baptisms, those of John and Jesus, represent the two common steps in spiritual development, denial and affirmation, or the dropping of the old and laying hold of the new. In the first baptism, that of John, through the power of the word, the sense man is erased from consciousness, and the mind is purged and made ready for the second baptism, that of Jesus. In the second baptism, the creative law of divine affirmation, set into action by supreme Mind, lights its fires at the center of man's being, and when thus kindled raises soul and body to a high degree of purity. This process is known as regeneration.

baptism, Pentecostal--The great initial outpouring of