What Is Baptism?
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Can you describe what baptism is?
During your time at Hope CDA, you may have seen some of your brothers get baptized. You have probably learned that it is a time where the person is taken under the water, then brought out of the water, representing their rebirth in Jesus.
While you may have seen it practiced, you may not fully appreciate the purpose of baptism.
What the Bible Says about Baptism
Baptism is one of the two “rituals” that are discussed in the New Testament (the other being the Lord’s Supper, often called communion). There are many instances in the New Testament where someone was baptized.
It starts with Jesus Himself. When Jesus was ready to begin His ministry, He started by being baptized (Matthew 3:13-17). This was performed by John the Baptist.
In Acts 2, the story is told of when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples. They then went into the streets and started proclaiming Jesus to all the people in Jerusalem. In acts 2:38, Peter declared, “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.”
In Acts 22, Paul is providing his testimony about how he came to Jesus. In verse 16, he reveals that he was told, “And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.”
The word baptism comes from the Greek word baptisma (βαπτιζω), which means to dip. This definition has great meeting, which we will discuss more later. For now, it is important to understand that people got baptized after accepting Jesus.
Why Does One Get Baptized?
Baptism is clearly something that is important. The three passages given above report that people got baptized after accepting Jesus, but there are dozens of other verses that speak to the concept of baptism.
In fact, baptism is not a New Testament concept. In Exodus 30:18, the Israelite people were told to make a basin of bronze that was used for washing. The Hebrew word is רָחַץ (raw-khats’), which means to wash or bath. In 2 Kings 5:14, the prophet Elisha tells Naaman to go to the Jordan River where he was to dip himself seven times. The word “dip” used here is טָבַל (taw-bal’), which means to dip or plunge. It is the Hebrew word that when translated into Greek is baptisma. The Israelite people had been following a form of baptism for centuries before Jesus came. This is why John the Baptist was already baptizing people before Jesus appeared to him. The people already knew it was a cleansing ritual.
Baptism is a ceremonial cleansing. It is a public representation of the work that God is doing in a person’s heart. It is also a public declaration by the Christian that he or she is committed to following Jesus.
To understand this concept more fully, we must first dispel with a common misconception related to baptism; that baptism is necessary for a person to be saved. This belief is referred to as Baptismal Regeneration. Many denominations teach this, and there is biblical support for the idea. Mark 16:16 declares that “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.” This would seem to make it clear that a person must be baptized to be saved.
However, the second part of Matthew 16:16 explains that “but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” It is the belief in Jesus that leads to salvation, not the baptism itself.
As part of this, many believe that baptism is necessary for the washing away of sins. This appears to be part of Paul’s testimony in Acts 22:16, where he was told to rise up and be baptized and “wash away your sins.” As a result of verses like this, many believe that baptism is necessary for a person’s sins to be washed away.
This is not the case either. There are many instances in the Bible where a person accepted Jesus and was not baptized, yet their sins were still washed away. This was true for the man who was crucified next to Jesus. Jesus told that man that he would be joining Jesus in paradise, and that man was never baptized. This means that baptism does not lead to the remission of sins – that is solely the work of Jesus on the cross.
Who Do You Follow?
Baptism is not necessary for salvation, but it is something we are commanded to do. Why is that? The answer is provided in the Bible. If you look at the instances where a person was baptized, you will find that these were public occurrences.
In Acts 22, we read about how Paul was testifying to his conversion to Christianity. Paul explained in verse 12 that Ananias came to him and restored his sight after he had been blinded by God. After doing so, Ananias told him to rise up and get baptized. Paul was told to go out and publicly declare his faith in Jesus by getting baptized.
This is at the heart of what baptism is all about. Baptism is not a means to have your sins forgiven or to earn salvation. Instead, it is a public declaration that one has forsaken his or her previous life and has now chosen to follow Jesus.
If you look at 1 Corinthians 10:1-4, you will receive a great metaphor that makes the concept of baptism a little clearer. Here, Paul writes, “1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.”
Paul uses the Israelite crossing of the Red Sea out of Egypt and into Sinai as a metaphor for baptism. This is a very interesting choice, but is a great description when one considers what this crossing meant to the Israelite people.
Think for a moment. What would it have meant to the Israelite people when they got to the other side of the Red Sea?
If you think about it for a moment, the answers begin to manifest. First, it would not have been easy to cross back over to Egypt. The Red Sea is quite deep and wide, and God was not going to repart the Red Sea to let them go back, so turning back around and going back to Egypt would not have been possible. It would have meant that the former life was gone, never to return.
This is the essence of what baptism is all about. It is the public declaration that one has turned away from his or her old ways, not returning to their own personal “Egypt.” When you choose to get baptized, you are declaring before the world that you are removing yourself from your former life, setting your pathway on a life dedicated to Jesus.
Should I Get Baptized?
Like salvation, baptism is a personal choice. No one can make a decision for you to get baptized. While some Christian denominations advocate infant or child baptisms, the Bible teaches that this is a personal decision that one makes to tell the entire world that he or she is dedicated to Jesus.
This is not intended to demean the beliefs of any specific denomination, but baptism is not essential for salvation. In addition, no one can make the choice for another. This is an individual choice.
Do you think you should be baptized?
What would it mean personally to you to be baptized?
What are the reasons why you would choose not to be baptized?
Are there other questions that you have related to baptism?
Are you ready to turn away from your old life and not go back?
Bible Passages for the Week:
Monday – Acts 2:38-41
Tuesday – Ephesians 4:4-6
Wednesday – Colossians 2:9-13
Thursday – 1 Peter 3:18-22
Friday – Matthew 28:19-20
Saturday – Pick a passage from Scripture that teaches you about pride.
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© 2024 Dr. Robert Pannier, Hope CDA, All Rights Reserved
