WATER BAPTISM

Theme: “Jesus commands all believers to be baptized in water.  Salvation does not depend on this act; it is a public witness of what God has already done on the inside.”

Matthew 28:19:
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

All believers are to be baptized in water. Failure to do so is disobedience to a direct command given by the Lord Jesus Christ to the church.

The word baptism comes from a Greek word meaning “to immerse”. Thus, dribbling water on the forehead of an itty bitty baby is not Christian baptism.  If you were fake-baptized in this manner by a priest when you were a baby, you need to get real-baptized by immersion in water after confessing Christ as your Savior.  As a Bible example, the believers in Acts 19 had been baptized with John’s baptism but not with the New Testament baptism that is a testimony of Christ.  Paul then baptized them in the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 19:5).

If for some reason you were “sprinkled” after becoming a believer, I would recommend being immersed, since that is what Jesus commanded.

Baptism does not save you. Some people believe in the doctrine of “baptismal regeneration” – the idea that you are not saved until you are baptized in water. The Bible is very clear that this is not the case – salvation depends only upon confessing and receiving Jesus and believing that God raised Him from the dead.

Some churches teach that being sprinkled with water by a priest when you are a baby saves you. That is a total fabrication of man, the kind that voids what the Bible actually says.  There is no indication anywhere in the New Testament that being sprinkled by another man saves you.

If a group wants to perform such a ritual under the understanding that it is a baby dedication, that is their business, but they must not lead anyone to believe that the act will result in the baby’s salvation. I had it done to me when I was a baby, and I was an atheist through most of my teenage years.

Perhaps some of the confusion comes from another baptism command from the Lord, this one found in the last chapter of Mark’s gospel:

Mark 16:15-16:
And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”

This has led some to believe that “he who is not baptized will be condemned”.  But that statement is not implied.  Actually, nothing is said about a class of people who believe and are not baptized.  Those who believe and are baptized are saved. Those who do not believe are condemned.

It was assumed that if you were really a believer, you would give public testimony of your faith at a baptism service. There was really no allowance for being a “closet Christian” who didn’t tell anyone.  Jesus said you had to confess Him before men for Him to confess you.

Luke 12:8-9:
Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man will also confess before the angels of God.  But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.

Another Scripture that some have misunderstood is Acts 2:38:

Acts 2:38:
Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

The word for here is the Greek word eis, meaning “because of”.  They were to be baptized because of the fact that their sins were remitted because they were believers. Being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ does not forgive your sins – you receive forgiveness when you are born again. Some people have mistakenly interpreted this verse as saying, “Be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ in order to get the remission of sins.”  That is not what it says.

As an example in modern usage, someone might clap for joy. This means, we hope, that he is clapping because he is joyful, not in order to get joy.  (Unless, of course, he is believing the unscriptural song lyrics, “If you want joy you must clap for it.”)

Another Scripture that people have misinterpreted is 1 Corinthians 12:13:  “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body…”  People could read this as saying that baptism brought us into the body of Christ, i.e., saved us, but again this conclusion is unwarranted.  Being “baptized into the body of Christ” refers to being brought into the body of Christ and does not refer to baptism by water.  This is clear because this was done by the Spirit.  The Holy Spirit does not baptize anyone in water – man does in obedience to the command of the Lord!

A final Scripture that people could use to try to “prove” the baptism saves you is 1 Peter 3:21:  “There is also an antitype that now saves us – baptism…” First, this is comparing Noah’s flood and how Noah was saved to how we are saved, but you don’t have to get into that to disprove the argument.  Just finish the verse!  “There is also an antitype that now saves us – baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” One could argue that this is speaking of being baptized into Christ.

Baptism is only for believers. It is never appropriate to baptize someone who is not born again. You may safely assume based on the Scripture above that anyone who is unwilling to confess Christ before men is not a Christian and should not be baptized.
 

Proof from the Bible that baptism does not result in the new birth but is always to be subsequent to it.

The eunuch who was baptized in Acts 8 was a believer before he was baptized, and Philip made faith in Christ a condition of baptism:

Acts 8:36-38:
Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?”  Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down unto the water [again, we’re looking at immersion, not sprinkling, here], and he baptized [immersed] him.

The Gentiles at Cornelius’s house were definitely saved because they were filled with the Holy Spirit and started speaking in tongues.  They had not yet been baptized in water, but it was expected that they would be. If baptism saved them, they would not have been filled with the Holy Spirit before they were baptized! Note also that baptism was a command, not an option as far as Peter was concerned.

Acts 10:44-48:
While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word.  And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also.  For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.  Then Peter answered, “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then they asked him to stay a few days.
 

Question 10-1: My friend says that you must be baptized in the name of Jesus only, and that if you have been baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, you must be re-baptized in the name of Jesus only.  Is this true?

No.  The confusion arises from the fact that in Acts, there are references to being baptized in the name of the Lord or in the name of Jesus Christ, yet Jesus said to baptize in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This “in the name of” phrase generally means “by the authority of”.  It is not a formula for the exact words you must say when you baptize someone – if it were, Peter himself missed it because he did not baptize in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

I am not concerned which names were used, assuming it wasn’t Joseph Smith or Mary Baker Eddy or Buddha or something, and I don’t see where God gets nit-picky about it either. There are circles that get so hung up about it that they insist on re-baptism with the “right” words.  I see no need for this since the Lord was not that legalistic in Acts. If you were immersed in water as a witness of your Christian faith, there is no need to do it again.  It is unfortunate that some churches and denominations require re-baptism “their way”; one church in the Boston area has taught that unless they baptize you their way in their church, you are not saved.  This causes all kinds of unnecessary havoc.
 

Question 10-2: If you have been baptized in the name of Jesus only, must you be re-baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?

No, since it appears that only the name of Jesus was used in a couple places in Acts, and no one ever forced those believers to be re-baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
 

Question 10-3: Is it a sin to be baptized more than once?  If you are a backslider and come back, is it OK if you ask to be baptized again?

God has no problem with being re-baptized any more than He has with “renewing” your marriage vows, but there is no requirement for a person to be baptized more than once.  In the case of a backslider who has gone so far as to renounce the faith and then come back, it could serve as a good chance to witness to the public that he has again trusted Jesus Christ for his salvation.
 

Question 10-4: Must baptism be in a public place, or does it count if you are baptized in a private swimming pool, or even your bathtub?

Because of the purpose of baptism, i.e., a public witness and confession of faith in the Lord Jesus, it is probably best for baptism to be done in a public place.  However, baptism is valid whether it is in a bathtub or the ocean.  Baptistries in churches are private, not public, in that the unchurched would probably not just happen to be there, and baptism in a church tank is certainly accepted in the Christian world. We can’t really go to Scripture on this one because there were no baptismal tanks in Acts.
 

Question 10-5: Can you just baptize yourself in private?

No, there is no precedent for this in Scripture. Someone else always baptized the converts. Baptizing yourself leaves you without a witness that it was done (unless you make a video, I suppose) and defeats the purpose of making a confession of your faith before others.
 

Question 10-6: Brrrrrrr! It’s the middle of winter! Do they have to chop a hole in the ice and baptize me, or can we wait until the weather is warmer?

I don’t believe the Lord has a problem if you wait for warmer weather when it will not be physically dangerous and excruciatingly uncomfortable to be baptized.
 

Question 10-7: Can a layperson baptize me, or must it be done by an ordained minister?

The Book of Acts is silent on this issue, since they did not have “licensing” and “ordination” per se back then.  It is best to have a recognized minister do it, since otherwise it is possible that a minister at another church may not recognize your baptism as valid.
 

Question 10-8: Is it appropriate to invite people who are not Christians to a baptism service?

Absolutely!  Please do!  Sometimes they get saved as the Holy Spirit moves on them at such a time.

Question 10-9: What should people wear when they are being baptized?

Other than “nothing” or thongs or postage-stamp bikinis, pretty much whatever you’re comfortable in.  The Bibles does not specify dress for baptism; in most cases a modest bathing suit will do.  The Bible has nothing direct to say, but if you cause someone else to stumble, you’re sinning. So don’t wear deliberately “revealing” clothing designed to stir up lust.

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