Sacri-what? Baptism

Lecture 2: Baptism

Last week we began a new locus of our course on the doctrine of the church. We introduced the subject of the sacraments or the ordinances administered by the church.

Today we want to look more closely at the practice of baptism.

When you look at the biblical data concerning baptism it is remarkable how much of the New Testament data speaks to the issue of baptism.

Just from the number of passages dealing with baptism in the New Testament, you could already infer that this is an extremely important practice in the New Testament church.

The New Testament, indeed, opens with the figure of John the Baptist on the scene, who is proclaiming a baptism of repentance and calling people to be baptized in the Jordan River.

Let’s look at Mark 1:4-5.

Mark 1:4–5 BSB

4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 People went out to him from all of Jerusalem and the countryside of Judea. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

So Jesus himself submitted to John’s baptism before the commencement of his own ministry.

Thereafter Jesus continued the practice of baptizing others, interestingly enough.

He, himself, was involved in carrying out a ministry of baptism.

We wouldn’t know this fact apart from a brief passage in the Gospel of John which John records in John 3:22-24.

John 3:22–24 BSB

22 After this, Jesus and His disciples went into the Judean countryside, where He spent some time with them and baptized. 23 Now John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because the water was plentiful there, and people kept coming to be baptized. 24 (For John had not yet been thrown into prison.)

Here Jesus is carrying out a ministry of baptism contemporaneously with John the Baptist.

John hadn’t yet been arrested, and Jesus is carrying out a similar ministry of baptizing people at the same time as John.

Turn over to John 4:1-3,

John 4:1–3 BSB

1 When Jesus realized that the Pharisees were aware He was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although it was not Jesus who baptized, but His disciples), 3 He left Judea and returned to Galilee.

Jesus’ ministry was becoming so successful that more people were coming to Jesus to be baptized than were coming to his cousin John.

John then adds this parenthetical comment, “(although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples).”

So he was apparently delegating the duty of baptizing to his disciples.

Then John says, “He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.”

Here, again, we see Jesus’ ministry of baptizing people, doing it through the

agency of his disciples whom he had called to follow him.

When we turn to the book of Acts following Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension, we discover that the practice of baptism did not disappear.

Baptism was not something that simply belonged to that early time of the earthly ministry of John and Jesus; rather, baptism typically accompanied conversion in the book of Acts.

When people came to Christian faith, they were baptized.

So the practice of baptism continued in the early church.

Look at Acts 2:37-38, 41.

This concerns persons who were converted through Peter’s preaching at the Feast of Pentecost.

Acts 2:37–38 BSB

37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and asked Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 2:41 BSB

41 Those who embraced his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to the believers that day.

So when people were convicted of the message of the Gospel, what they were supposed to do by way of response was to repent and be baptized in Jesus’ name.

Look at Acts 8:36-38.

This is the story of the conversion of the Ethiopian official who had been visiting Jerusalem and was on the way home, and Philip shares with him the Gospel.

Acts 8:36–38 BSB

36 As they traveled along the road and came to some water, the eunuch said, “Look, here is water! What is there to prevent me from being baptized?” 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.

The response of the Ethiopian eunuch to Philip’s sharing of the Gospel was to say, “Well, then baptize me now. Here’s water.”

And Philip does baptize him.

Turn over to Acts 9:19a.

Acts 9:19 BSB

19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. And he spent several days with the disciples in Damascus.

This is the story of the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, a Pharisee and the chief persecutor of the early Jesus movement in Jerusalem.

He sees a vision of Jesus on the Damascus Road which leaves him blind and helpless.

He goes into Damascus and a Christian named Ananias comes to meet Saul and to carry out the Lord’s instructions to Ananias.

We read in Acts 9:17ff:

Acts 9:17–18 BSB

17 So Ananias went to the house, and when he arrived, he placed his hands on Saul. “Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” 18 At that instant, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and his sight was restored. He got up and was baptized,

Again, the immediate response to his conversion is to submit to Christian baptism.

Turn over to Acts 10:45-48.

This is the story of Peter’s preaching to the household of a Roman centurion, Cornelius.

Acts 10:45–48 BSB

45 All the circumcised believers who had accompanied Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues and exalting God. Then Peter said, 47 “Can anyone withhold the water to baptize these people? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have!” 48 So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay for a few days.

For the first time the Gospel goes to Gentiles – not to other Jews, but to actual Roman persons.

These Gentiles, hearing the proclamation of the Gospel, received the Holy Spirit and Peter says, “Why not proceed then with baptism? Can anyone prevent me from baptizing them?”

No one can, so they are baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

This is the regular pattern over and over again in the book of Acts.

Christian conversion is accompanied by baptism in the name of Christ.

In Galatians 3:27, Paul says this,

Galatians 3:27 BSB

27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Look how closely baptism is linked with Christian conversion in that

sentence.

“As many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

I think for these New Testament Christians it would have been unthinkable for a person to say “I believe in Christ – I am a Christian” and yet not submit to Christian baptism.

That would have simply been incomprehensible.

As many of them as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Conversion and baptism went like hand in glove.

What then is the meaning of baptism?

Let’s just look at three New Testament passages that speak to the question of the meaning of baptism.

We’ll talk more about these later but I just want to get these passages out on the table at this time.

Romans 6:3–4 BSB

3 Or aren’t you aware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may walk in newness of life.

Colossians 2:12 BSB

12 And having been buried with Him in baptism, you were raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead.

In Romans, baptism is into the death of Christ with a view toward walking in

newness of life.

But here in Colossians, it makes it explicit that baptism is not only an identification with Christ’s death, it is also an identification with his resurrection.

He says that “

you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him.”

So in baptism we are identified not only with the death and crucifixion of Christ but also with his resurrection.

The final passage is 1 Peter 3:21.

1 Peter 3:21 BSB

21 And this water symbolizes the baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

Here Peter says that baptism serves us, not as an external washing, but rather it is an appeal to God for a clear conscience.

Those are three critical passages about the meaning of baptism in the New Testament.

What we will do next time is to begin to ask several probing theological questions about this biblical data with a view toward understanding the significance and the meaning of baptism.