Understanding Baptism in the New Testament Church

In much of the so-called evangelical church there is a general neglect of baptism, both in practice and understanding.  There are even some denominations that have gone so far as to do away with what Christ commanded.  In many others, baptism has been reduced to little more than an initiation ritual into church membership.   It has become almost completely detached from salvation in both doctrine and practice.  It has become largely optional.

I was raised in a lutheran home, but after Jesus delivered me from the depths of sin as a young man I realized that the churches I had been raised in were dead and few if any there knew the Lord. Eventually I gave in to the Holy Spirit and was baptized at a Baptist church.

For years I accepted the baptist conception of baptism as a testimony to having already been saved, as it fit my experience. If there is one thing I can testify to is that I was not regenerate before I met the Lord. At least in my case infant baptism DID NOT effect regeneration. Looking back I see that I was totally dead in trespasses and sins, and selfish to the core. And when I became a pastor I taught the typical evangelical/baptist view of baptism.

But there were doubts creeping in. First of all, prompted by the Spirit I began to research the Jewish roots of baptism, wanting to understand what it meant to the people of Israel is Jesus' day. Secondly, I was uncomfortable having to explain away such clear statements in Scripture such as:

"Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38)

"Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name." (Acts 22:16)

"Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life."
(Romans 6:4,5)

"For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit." (1 Corinthians 12:13) together with "one Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Ephesians 4:5)

"For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." (Galatians 3:27)

"And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you-- not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience-- through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 3:21)

and of course:

"He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned." (Mark 16:16)

"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19) "In the name of" clearly inferring that the person baptizing is acting with the authority of God.

And it was the consistent practice in the New Testament to immediately baptize a person who came to faith in Christ.

As a pastor I take my responsibility to teach the truth of the Word of God seriously. A doctor may play around with therapies and prescriptions, but a pastor had better get it right. He is dealing with the eternal destiny of people. Woe to the man that preaches what he is taught by men rather than what he is taught by the Spirit and the Word.

These scriptures just do not fit comfortably into the evangelical/baptist theology of baptism as merely a testimony of salvation. And if your theology does not rest comfortably in all the scriptures have to say, there is a problem with your theology.

Then again there is the problem of Church history. All the records we have from the church fathers of the first two centuries seem to equate baptism with salvation. And we have the development of the practice of infant baptism from the end of the second century, demonstrating near universal belief that baptism was essential to salvation. Why is there no tradition prior to that of some Anabaptists of the Reformation that baptism is merely a testimony to salvation rather than an act or sacrament intimately connected with being saved.

Baptism did not begin with John the Baptist.  In fact, it was the final act of conversion of the Gentile becoming a Jew.  All male converts had to be circumcised, but all converts, male and female, had to be baptized.  This is why the Jewish authorities sent a delegation down to John to find out why he was baptizing.   You see, John was baptizing Jews!  He was in effect, saying, Jews needed to be converted also, it was not enough to be born Jewish according to the flesh.  John was calling the best of the Jews a "brood of vipers" and asking "how shall you enter the kingdom of heaven?"  John used baptism as a symbol and act of repentance, a turning away from dead religion and a plea to God to make them new and holy.   And "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus." Baptism was conversion from Moses to the coming Messiah.

So what did the Jews of Jesus' day believe about the proselyte and Jewish baptism?
[see Conversion of Gentiles Volume I Judaism in the First Centuries of the Christian Era by George Foot Moore, Harvard University Press, 1927]

1. During times when it was difficult to be a Jew, proselytes were often highly regarded because they had left their gods, their nations, their families, indeed their lives, to join themselves to the God of Israel.

2. The proselyte has entered into the Covenant

3. The proselyte has become equally a 'son of the Covenant' with the one born a Jew

4. At the moment of reception his is legal status (before God) is like that of a new born child

5. The proselyte takes upon himself the 'yoke' of the commandment

6. The proselyte not only become a member of the Jewish 'church' but has been naturalized into citizenship in the Jewish nation

For the Jews, baptism of a gentile proselyte symbolized a new birth."  He has past from darkness to light and from death to life.  He had entered into the Covenant of God and had begun a new life.  It also marked his death to his old life.  He was no longer a gentile.  He was now dead to his past.  It was likely that his family would disown him since he had publicly rejected their gods, their values, and their culture.  Even if they did not disown them, through baptism he had largely disowned them.  They could never again occupy the place they once held in his life.

This understanding of the baptism of converts does much to explain the biblical record and use of baptism. These concepts permeate the writings of the Apostles. It explains why the Jewish authorities sent representatives to find out why John the Baptist was baptizing. For he was baptizing Jews, not Gentiles. In effect he was preaching that "the flesh profits nothing," Jews must repent and be converted just like Gentiles. It explains why Jesus connected "born of water and the Spirit" in His discourse with Nicodemus. It also and most importantly links Jesus' command to baptize with the New Covenant: forgiveness, new birth, and the Gift of the Holy Spirit. (see Jeremiah 31:31-34, Ezekiel 36:24-29 etc.)

So, we may confidently say, the New Testament baptism comes directly for the practice of baptizing proselytes into the covenant of the Law. Therefore, as would have been clearly understood by Jesus' contemporaries, baptism into Christ was identification with Him and seen as entrance into the New Covenant, which included the promise of forgiveness, a new heart, a new spirit, the indwelling of the Spirit of God, and the personal knowledge of God (which includes eternal life, according to Jesus -John 17:3).

But let us return and examine the ministry of John the Baptist, who was sent by God to prepare the way for the Messiah. As the material above reveals, baptism did not originate with John, but was part of the Jewish religious practice of his day. What was unique about John's baptism was he applied it to Jews, and it was a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

"John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." (Mark 1:4, also Luke 3:3)

"As for me, I baptize you with water for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, and I am not fit to remove His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. (Matthew 3:11)

It is important to note that for repentance can be translated as upon repentance, as in "and they were being baptized by him in the Jordan River, as they confessed their sins" (Matthew 3:6) and John refused to baptize the Pharisees and Sadducees demanding they first "bring forth fruit in keeping with repentance" (Matthew 3:8)

But it was also a baptism for repentance, to prepare the hearts of the people for the coming of the Messiah as we see:

And when all the people and the tax-gatherers heard this, they acknowledged God's justice, having been baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God's purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John. (luke 7:29,30)

Most people do not understand how radical the message of John was and why it was mostly the sinners that came to be baptized. As we have already noted, John was baptizing Jews, not Gentiles, thereby proclaiming that the covenant of circumcision did not make one acceptable to God. It was not sufficient to be a descendent of Abraham, acceptance of God was not racial or communal, but individual. John preached a person's life must produce fruit in keeping with repentance, ritual and rote doesn't cut it with God. Please note that John's baptism destroys the idea that infant baptism saves, for his baptism denies the power of circumcision to save. A person must repent and be baptized, no one can do it for you, it is an act of faith.

"Therefore bring forth fruits in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham for our father,' for I say to you that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham." (Luke 3:8)

Secondly, John preaches a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Here we find the reason that the sinners were coming to John. Under the Law of Moses the sacrifices could only atone for sins committed in ignorance. There was no forgiveness for deliberate sin. There was no sacrifice a jewish prostitute, or a tax collector could offer to God that would effect forgiveness. These people under the Law were cut off from the covenant, and without hope. John came with an offer of pardon to ALL who would repent.

Thirdly, John preached the one who would come after him, namely Jesus Christ. In fact, it was Jesus who would provide an offering that would atone for all sin, committed in ignorance or not. John is the herald of the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He marks the end of the covenant of the law and proclaims the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. (John 1:29,36) And he is the friend of the Bridegroom (John 3:29).

Fourthly, John baptized by commission of God. "And I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, 'He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.' (John 1:33) We see this also the the Great Commission of Matthew 28, "baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit." A person is baptized by an agent empowered by God to do so. A person cannot baptize himself. Nor is the Roman Catholic teaching true that anyone, even an unbeliever, can baptize in case of necessity. As for the traditional baptist/evangelical understanding of baptism as a testimony of a salvation that has already taken place, we must ask: If it is a testimony, why cannot a person baptize himself? And what does "baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit" then mean?

Moreover, because John introduces the pervasive New Testament theme of the Bride (Church/Christian) and Bridegroom (Jesus), and the fact that Paul says Christians are betrothed to Christ Jesus; we can confidently say that the New Covenant is a covenant of marriage, and baptism corresponds to the marriage vows. In fact the scriptures say the Holy Spirit is given as a pledge (like a wedding ring) of that covenant which will be fully consummated when the Bridegroom return to claim His Bride.

Let us now go on to baptism as practiced in the Church after (and on) Pentecost.

Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?"
"Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:37,38)

Peter had preach Christ, Christ crucified, and Christ risen from the dead. The Holy Spirit convicted the hearts of his hearers and they cried out "what shall we do?"

And then Peter DID NOT SAY, " say this prayer after me, "Lord, I confess I am a sinner, I believe Jesus died for me, thank you that I'm saved, eternally secure, and going to heaven, Amen"

But he DID SAY, "Repent, and let each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38)

And Ananias did say to Paul, "Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name."
(Acts 22:16, Acts 9:18)

And when Philip went down to Samaria preaching Christ the scriptures record: "But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike."
(Acts 8:12)

And when God sent Philip down to preach Christ to the Ethiopian Eunuch,"the eunuch *said, 'Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?'" (Acts 8:36) Did this man come up with this on his own, or did Philip preach baptism as the means of commitment to Christ and the New Covenant?

When Peter when to the house of Cornelius and preached Christ to the Gentiles for the first time, and they received his message and were filled with the Holy Spirit: "he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ." (Acts 10:48)

When Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, believe the preaching of Paul, He baptized her and her household. (Acts 16:15)

When the Phillipian Jailer cried out: "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
[Paul and Silas] responded, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you shall be saved, you and your household." And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his house. And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all his household. (Acts 16:31-33)

When Paul preached Christ in Corinth, "Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord with all his household, and many of the Corinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized." (Acts 18:8)

When Paul encountered some disciples of John, he said to them, "'John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.' And when they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus." (Acts 19:4,5)


And finally, but not exhaustively, Peter states: " And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you-- not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience-- through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 3:21).

On repentance

Peter said, "repent and be baptized..." The word translated as repent literally means change of mind. He does not say "repent of your sins" but simple "repent." This mean change you mind about sin, and about your own self righteousness. It means to stop arguing with God and believe what He says. It means to see your self as God sees you: a sinner, rotten through and through, hell bound and without excuse. It means to throw yourself at the foot of the cross with no hope but the mercy and grace of God.

Infant baptism

In regard to the issue of infant baptism: there is no evidence that it was practiced in the first 150 years of the Church. If it was part of the teaching of the Apostles we surely would have expected a clear record of it in the New Testament. In two cases Paul mentions entire households being baptized (the household of Lydia and that of the Phillipian Jailer), and from this an argument is made that infants must have been baptized. Yet at least in the case of the Jailer we know this is not true for the scriptures say: "having believed in God with his whole household." (Acts 16:34) Infants don't believe. And speculation on the presence of infants in any household is just that: speculation.

However, Paul makes a remark in his 1st letter to the Corinthians that completely refutes infant baptism:

For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband; for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy. (1 Corinthians 7:14)

Though Paul is not speaking of baptism but the problem of a believer being married to an unbeliever, his teaching bears decisively on infant baptism. Note he says that the unbelieving spouse and the the children are held in a special relationship with God by virtue of their relationship with the believer. If the Church practiced infant baptism, Paul would not have made this argument in regard to the children for they would have been holy (set apart to God) by virtue of their baptism rather than through their parent.

Baptism without faith is worthless

Baptism is an act of faith, an act of commitment to Christ, a voluntary response to the call of God in the Gospel to enter into the New Covenant with Jesus. Baptism for any other reason, such as: pleasing family or friends, social acceptance, business contacts, or as part of a manmade plan to earn God's favor renders baptism null and void. For God looks on the motives of the heart, not just on outward actions.

Clearly both faith and baptism are bound together in entering into a saving relationship with Christ; a relationship the Bible calls the New Covenant. The difficulty is that so many have heard that faith is merely believing that Jesus died for our sins. This is what the Catholic church calls assensus, regarding in the mind the claims of the Gospel as being true. This is the beginnings of faith, but not a sufficient faith to save. The greek word translated as faith also signifies commitment and faithfulness. It was used of contracts and covenants, including marriage. In baptism we move beyond mere believing into commitment and covenant. We enter into the New Covenant which Christ bought for us with His own blood and bind ourselves together with in in a new creation. We take Him not only as Lord and Savior, but also as our Husband. In baptism we promise to love, honor, and obey. In baptism, we are set apart to Him alone. And He gives us His abiding presence in the Holy Spirit as proof that we are His and He will return to take us to be with Him forever.

The Church has no right to change what Christ has commanded. Preachers cannot replace the call to repant and be baptized, with an "altar call" and a "sinner's prayer" because is is more convenient than baptism. I have no doubt that multitudes who have not been biblically baptized have still been saved, for God often takes our ignorance into account, but at what cost? Like the Sabbath, baptism was ordained for the good of man. How many have fallen away from Christ because some preacher was too lazy or too committed to his tradition and denomination to obey Jesus Christ? How many are in hell because some pastor told them they were saved, born again, and eternally secure because they merely believed Jesus died for their sins?

There are many who call me "heretic" because I call for the same thing Jesus demanded: commitment. And that is the purpose of baptism: an act of commitment to Jesus Christ, ordained by God, and witnessed by the angels of heaven. It is the wedding vows of the Bride and Bridegroom. Many men of God have been burned at the stake or drowned in rivers for this very "heresy." You may choose to follow Billy Graham, Rick Warren, or some other popular preacher and trust in their more convenient and less costly version of the gospel, but as for me, I'll take my stand with Jesus and the Apostles.