Celebrating Baptism

INTRODUCTION:

This morning we’re taking a break from our journey in the book of Revelation and we’re starting a new series entitled .

Sometimes we get so busy going to church and serving in church that it can be easy to forget what the local church even IS.

Why did Jesus create the local church and what does a healthy local church look like?

Consider this definition from the BFM2K.

“A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers, associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel; observing the two ordinances of Christ, governed by His laws, exercising the gifts, rights, and privileges invested in them by His Word, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth.”

That’s a long and wordy definition of the church but it’s a good one. This morning, we’re going to look specifically at one of the two ordinances mentioned in that definition and it’s the ordinance of Baptism.

Today is a special day because we have several individuals who have chosen to be baptized.

In addition to these baptisms we are also going to invite any of you to also consider being baptized in obedience to the command of Jesus. We’re going to try and take away as many of those excuses as we can so you can be obedient to the command of Jesus.

What Is Baptism

So what is baptism anyway? Have you ever attempted a definition? It’s actually an important thing to know about.

I was reading this week about Saint Patrick and his baptism of King Angus - the High King of Munster in Ireland. The king had consented to be baptized by during the ceremony Patrick accidentally pierced through the foot of the king with his crozier (sharp decorative rod carried by bishops). The kings foot was bleeding profusely through the baptism but he just thought it was part of the ceremony so he went along with it.

Is that really what baptism is? We should probably know! You don’t want somebody stabbing your foot if you can help it.

A Definition

There’s a lot of them out there. Here’s my take.

Baptism is the bodily immersion of a believer into water to affirm and portray their union with Christ and commitment to His Lordship.

Each of those words are important.

First baptism involves the physical body being immersed in literal water. I want to try and show you other approaches to baptism don’t really fit the biblical definition of what is is.

Second, baptism is only given to believing men and women. It’s for believers and NOT for babies because babies do not yet have the mental faculties for exercising repentance and faith in the Gospel.

Thirdly, baptism is a symbolic act in that it affirms and portrays a person’s union with Christ. There is a spiritual baptism done by Christ when we repent of sin and believe in him. But water baptism comes AFTER that salvation experience as a symbolic expression.

Finally, baptism is a public confession of one’s faith in Jesus as their savior and their Lord. It is an act of public obedience to the command of Christ, their Lord.

This morning I want to answer four different questions about baptism: the who, when, how and why.

Paul’s Baptism

There are so many different passages that we could go to in order to study baptism but this morning I want to turn to the book of Acts to examine the baptism of Saul.

To give you a bit of context Saul was someone who acted as a chief persecutor of Christians in the first century. He hated them. Saw them as a heretical sect of Judaism and wanted to wipe the movement off the map.

Then, one day, as he traveling to do just that he encounters Jesus Christ - risen from the dead - on the road to Damascus. What do you think you would do if you met Jesus on a walk and he confronted you on your sin and need for a savior? Well that’s what happened with Saul.

So Paul spends the next three days at a house in Damascus, praying to God and seeing a vision about a man named Ananias who will come and help him regain his sight.

In God’s providence, that’s exactly what happens. We pick our text up in Acts 9:13. The Lord has just called Ananias to go to Paul and share Christ with him so he could be saved and baptized. Ananias, as you might imagine, had a few concerns.

Acts 9:13–18 (CSB)

13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard from many people about this man, how much harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 14 And he has authority here from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”

15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for this man is my chosen instrument to take my name to Gentiles, kings, and Israelites. 16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”

17 Ananias went and entered the house. He placed his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road you were traveling, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

18 At once something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he got up and was baptized.

A Priority For Believers

One of the things that stands out to me about Paul’s baptism is that is was the very FIRST thing he does upon receiving salvation.

Remember, Paul had not been eating or drinking for THREE DAYS at this point. I don’t know if you’ve ever gone even one day without water but it’s not easy. He was wrestling with God, struggling with blindness, dealing with his guilt and shame for persecuting the church.

Then, the moment the scales fall from his eyes - the first FIRST thing he says is, “I need to be baptized.” Not, give me a drink of water. Not I’m really hungry thank you Lord for this food. It was baptism.

Baptism is the FIRST PRIORITY for believers. It’s a really BIG deal. It’s important.

I know there may be some of you here who maybe don’t see it as that big of a deal but I want to try and show you that it is. It’s true baptism doesn’t SAVE you but it is one of TWO ordinances that Christ gave to his church and it is something specifically commanded by Christ for every person who believes.

What I’d like us to do this morning is show from this text WHY it’s a big deal and why YOU should be baptized. But before we get to the WHY I first want to answer three other questions from this text. Those are the WHO of Baptism, the WHEN of baptism, the HOW of baptism and finally the WHY.

BAPTISM: WHO & WHEN

Let’s start with the question of WHO and WHEN. They are really wrapped up together because the answer to the first powerfully shapes the answer to the second.

Whether here in Acts 9 or any other example in the New Testament, Baptism should only be performed AFTER a person repents and believes in the Lord Jesus Christ.

There are others of you who were maybe baptized as a child because of your parents decision or the faith tradition you grew up in. You didn’t really have much of a say in that baptism and your parents were doing what they believed was the RIGHT thing to do.

In that case, your baptism came BEFORE your conversion. I want to try and show you that’s not the biblical model.

My Presbyterian and reformed friends who practice infant baptism do so because they’re connecting with an Old Testament practice of circumcision that was given to EVERY Jew as a sign of the covenant.

Baptism is a sign of the NEW covenant so the thinking is it also can be applied to babies just as circumcision was.

For Those Who Believe

Here’s my problem with that based on the Bible. Granting that baptism is the sign of the new covenant, why would you separate the sign from the reality?

In the New Testament, the sign of the covenant is for those who believe. It’s a sign that points to FAITH.

Why would you point individuals to a union with Christ through faith that isn’t yet present in the life of that individual? At best it’s confusing.

Baptism is a symbol of someone’s union with Christ by grace through faith. Babies are not yet old enough to exercise that kind of faith therefore they should not participate the symbolic act.

I could take you to example after example in the book of Acts and you’ll see the same pattern:

Peter’s Sermon “repent and be baptized.” (Acts 2:38)

Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:35-36, 38-39)

Lydia’s Conversion and Baptism (Acts 16:14-15)

The Philippian Jailor (Acts 16:30-34)

On and on we could go. In each of these instances there was repentance and faith FIRST then Baptism.

Household Baptism?

Some appeal to the “households” being baptized in the book of Acts as evidence for infant baptism.

First, it says “children” not “infants.”

Secondly, it suggests in each instance that the household exercised saving faith in Jesus Christ BEFORE getting baptized.

In the New Testament baptism is for believers NOT for babies.

Become a Christian. Trust Christ. Repent and be saved. THEN get baptized. Baptism comes AFTER salvation not before.

The How & Why of Baptism

Now that we have an idea of who should be baptized and when it should happen I want us to look at the questions of how and the questions of why.

Remember in our definition of baptism we said that baptism was the “bodily immersion” of a believer into water.

By Immersion

So Baptism, according to the Scripture, is by immersion after conversion.

Why do I say that? There are several reasons.

First, the Greek word for baptism - baptizo - means “to immerse.”

Josephus used it to describe sinking ships,

Plutarch used it to talk about being over your ears in debt.

Plato used it to described dunking a cloth in wine to dye it out.

Never not one time is this word used in the New Testament or other Greek literature to describe sprinkling or wiping or any other form of baptism that we sometimes see today. The word means immersion.

Secondly, the model of baptism in the New Testament was by immersion.

Jesus, as an adult was baptized and his baptism was by immersion.

John the Baptist did his baptisms “in Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water there.” (John 3:23) Why plenty of water? Because it’s by immersion!

The Ethiopian was baptized by immersion under water. How do we know? Because they went DOWN into the water and came UP out of the water. (Acts 8:36-39) If sprinkling would’ve done the trick they would’ve had that in the chariot.

Finally, the theological meaning of baptism suggests that it should be by immersion. We’ll talk about that in just a few minutes.

A Symbolic Act

So the who of baptism is believers. The when of baptism is after their conversion. The HOW of baptism is by immersion. But what about the WHY?

Why is it ONLY for believers AFTER their conversion and by IMMERSION?

Let’s go back to our definition of baptism.

Baptism is the bodily immersion of a believer into water to affirm and portray their union with Christ and commitment to His Lordship

Notice that purpose statement: “to affirm and portray their union with Christ and commitment to His Lordship.”

Baptism affirms and portrays. In other words it’s a symbol.

The reason the Bible prescribes baptism in this particular way is because Jesus designed baptism to be a SYMBOL of our salvation.

Not only does it symbolize salvation in the broadest sense of Jesus atoning for our sins through his death on the cross. It’s also a symbol of our personal salvation when when we die to sin (repentance) and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ becoming new creations (faith)

Baptism Doesn’t Save

This is important because there are some who teach that baptism is something more than a symbol. Some even wrongly teach baptismal regeneration.

This is the idea that God waits to save you until AFTER your baptized. That’s not how the Bible describes baptism. And that’s not how the Bible describes salvation.

The Bible clearly teaches that we are saved by GRACE through FAITH. (Eph 2:8)

“Whosoever BELIEVES in Him will not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Salvation is a work of God from beginning to end and a GIFT from God, not a result of works or acts of obedience - even the obedience of Baptism.

Baptism Isn’t The Gospel

VERY IMPORTANT: Baptism doesn’t save you. Jesus does.

VERY IMPORTANT: Baptism isn’t the Gospel. Jesus is.

So it’s very important we not confuse the symbol with the substance.

There’s actually an interesting passage in 1 Corinthians 1:17 wherein Paul separates the two.

1 Corinthians 1:17 (CSB)

17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ will not be emptied of its effect.

Notice how Paul separates the Gospel and baptism. They are two distinct things.

The GOSPEL is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes. Baptism is not the power of God for salvation.

Baptism doesn’t save. Baptism SYMBOLIZES that JESUS SAVES.

How does Jesus save? He saves you by his grace through your faith in the Gospel.

The Gospel is the good news that Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners.

What is the Gospel?

The Gospel is the announcement that we are spiritually dead and helplessly separated from the God who loves us and who made us.

As our creator he has every right to tell us how we should live but instead of desiring God and submitting to his commands we have a heart bent away from God and towards living life how WE want to live.

God loves us. He created us. He desires for us to live an abundant life. But our sin has separated us from his presence and there’s nothing we or anyone else can do to fix that problem.

That’s why our heavenly Father sent his one and only son into the World. Jesus lived a sinless life of loving obedience to God the Father.

He lived the life we were supposed to live but he didn’t stop there. He also willingly laid down his life and was crucified on a Roman cross as an atoning sacrifice for our sin.

The Bible teaches that the wages of our sin is death. Not just physical death when we die but spiritual death and separation from God eternally in a place called hell. Because God loves us he sent Jesus to suffer that hell in his own body on the cross.

It wasn’t just that Jesus physically died. He spiritually absorbed the wrath of God on that cross and experienced the penalty of sin FOR US. In our place. As our substitute.

When we say “the blood of Jesus cleanses us from our sin” we mean that our sins are forgiven because Jesus paid the price.

The Evidence & The Invitation

The way we know that payment was sufficient is because three days later God raised Jesus from the DEAD! He stamped the receipt. Paid. In. Full. The power and penalty of our sin has been BROKEN. The sting of sin and death has been REMOVED.

Now, anybody who would repent of their sin and put their trust in Jesus - trusting that he died for THEIR sins and that he can save THEIR soul - it doesn’t matter who you are or what you’ve done ANYBODY who calls on the name of the Lord WILL BE SAVED.

That’s the Gospel! That’s the power of God unto salvation.

Baptism is a symbol of that Gospel. Think of it as theological symbolism. Just like the Lord’s Supper. (body = suffering on the cross, wine = blood shed for sin)

Jesus gave us Baptism and the Lord Supper so that we could be reminded of and personally participate in the truth of the Gospel.

Romans 6:4 (CSB)

4 Therefore we were buried with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in newness of life.

We go “under” the water as a symbol of Christ death on the cross and burial in the grave. We die to our sin. We die to that old way of life. Then we come up out of the water as a symbol of our new life in Christ. Filled with the Holy Spirit. Empowered to live a new life in Christ.

Even when we do baptisms today you’ll hear me say when somebody goes under “buried with Christ through baptism… raised to walk in newness of life.”

Baptism is an outward sign of an inward change that only Jesus can bring. Have you experience that change in your life?

Summary and Conclusion

So as we bring this message to a close I want to review our definition one more time.

Baptism is the bodily immersion of a believer into water to affirm and portray their union with Christ and commitment to His Lordship.

Let me ask you a question. Do you need to be baptized? If so, today is your day.

I know there are people in this room who need to take this step. In fact, there are people in this room who have ALREADY made that decision and they’re going to join you in this decision so that you don’t have to go all by yourself.

Excuses Excuses

I know some of you are thinking, “I really need to be baptized but I just can’t do it today…” You’ve got some excuses.

What are some of these excuses? We don’t have the time to cover all of them but you can imagine some. (fear, ignorance and indecision.)

Fear of What People Will Think

I think the number one reason why so many people - especially adults - don’t get baptized is because of their fear around what other people are going to think.

They end up persuading themselves… “Salvation is a personal decision. It’s about my relationship with Jesus. That’s private. Why do I have to be publically baptized for everybody to see?”

Answer: There’s no such thing as a secret follower of Jesus in the New Testament. Jesus called people to respond to him PUBLICLY.

Matthew 10:32–33 (CSB)

32 “Therefore, everyone who will acknowledge me before others, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever denies me before others, I will also deny him before my Father in heaven.

Luke 9:26 (CSB)

26 For whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and that of the Father and the holy angels.

You cannot consider yourself a Christian if you’re unwilling to publically confess Jesus as Lord!

It’s Been Too Long

Another common excuse - related to the first - especially for adults is “it’s been too long.”

For them, they think, “I’ve been a Christian for over 1 or 2 decades now. It’s been SO LONG after my conversion that baptism really wouldn’t be that big a deal to me or to God.”

Well, you may be right, it might not feel as meaningful as when you were first saved. But you’ll never really know. You’re letting a potential disappointment keep you from present day obedience to the command of Christ.

The passage of time doesn’t make Jesus’ command any less binding! You know what Jesus would say? “Better late than never!” (Matt 21:28-32)

You say, “Yeah but getting baptized now will be an admission that I should’ve done it all those years ago...” Answer: that’s the definition of living the Christian life. Repentance and faith.... agreeing with God about what needs to happen. It’s okay!

I’ve Already Been Baptized

The third most common excuse is “I’ve already been baptized.”

Maybe you were baptized as a baby because of the decisions of your parents. Maybe you feel like getting baptized today would discredit or dishonor their decision when you were young.

Answer: You’re parents made that decision because of their DESIRE that you’d one day in the future confess Christ as Lord and walk in obedience to his commands. If, as an adult, it’s that very faith that leads you to now be baptized in a biblical way. You’re completing the desire your parents had in getting you baptized in the first place. It’s not discrediting or dishonoring. It’s completing their joy.

If you were baptized when you were younger but don’t feel like you were genuinely saved or knew the Lord then it can be tempting to just apply that prior confession of faith to this new found relationship you have with the Lord. But that’s not the biblical order for baptism. Your first baptism wasn’t a “sign” of the covenant because there was nothing for that sign to point to. If the inner reality is there NOW then NOW is the time for the sign to be applied.

Here’s the point: anxiety and fear, apathy and indecision those are all powerful motivation for disobeying what you know to be a clear command of Christ. STOP allowing those things to steal the joy of complete surrender and total obedience to Christ.

Christ Will Help You!

Today is the day. Just like the Ethiopian asked Philip, “Here’s water, what keeps me from being baptized.” (Acts 8:36)

That’s my question to you this morning.

If you’re not a Christian then you can be come one in this moment. You admit to God that you’re a sinner separated from his presence and condemned and in need of a savior. If you confess your sins and repent and turn to Christ for salvation then you can be baptized. All you need to do is call on the name of the Lord.

It can be as simple as a prayer right there where you sit right now - “Lord I need you. Please forgive me. Please save me. I confess Jesus as my savior and Lord.” That’s the only requirement you need to be baptized. Not a cleaned up life. Not doctrinal knowledge. Not seminary education.

All you need is a heart that fully trusts in Jesus for salvation and a heart surrendered to his will to be baptized.

Here’s the thing. I’ve you’ve been delaying your baptism because of anxiety or fear, take heat. Jesus promises that he will give you the courage and the words that you need to say in the moment you’re afraid you won’t have them. (Matthew 10:19-20) How much more will the Holy Spirit give you the strength you need to publically confess your faith in Jesus Christ?

Every Christian has been commanded to be baptized. Are you ready to act on that command?