TEACHING:
BAPTISM
VineLife Network,
Inc.
In what has become
known as the Great Commission, the Bible records Jesus saying, “All authority
has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of
all the nations, baptizing them (Emphasis mine) in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I
have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
(Matthew 28:18-20, NIV).
When you obey Christ’s command to be baptized,
you identify with his death, burial and resurrection and publicly profess your
faith. (See Acts 2:38, 42; 8:12, 38, 39) This obedience to Jesus brings assurance
that your sins are washed away. Your commitment to Christ, his cause and his church
will grow. And baptism will be a meaningful spiritual blessing in your life, a
time you will always remember.
Baptism is a time to give great glory
and praise to God. It is a joyful celebration for the VineLife Community and an
opportunity to invite friends and family as a you outwardly confess your identification
with Him through baptism. Bring a friend and we’ll tell them about the new
life you’ve received in Christ!
Must I be baptized to receive
salvation?
Baptism
is important but it does not save us. The thief on the cross was not baptized
when Jesus said to him, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Lk.
23:43). Salvation occurs when saving faith is present in a person’s life
and God declares that our sins are forgiven and we are righteous in his sight.
This is called justification. We receive this peace and acceptance with God by
grace through faith in Christ, not by faith and some religious work on our part,
like baptism or circumcision (Eph. 2:8-10; Gal. 5:1-12).
Though not necessary
for salvation, baptism points to the heart of the gospel and makes us aware that
apart from God’s cleansing we are unclean and dead in our sin. Furthermore,
baptism is essential for full obedience to Jesus’ command that those who
believe in him should be baptized (Mt. 28:19; Acts 16:30-33).
Who
should be baptized?
The
only requirement for baptism is saving faith in Jesus Christ. All believers who
accept the message of the gospel and sincerely desire to follow Jesus should be
baptized (Acts 2:41; 8:12).
What does baptism mean and what will it
do for me?
Baptism
is a picture of spiritual regeneration and union with Christ. When saving faith
is present, baptism—first and foremost—is an outward and visible sign
of an inward and spiritual reality of union and friendship with Christ. It is
a sign and symbol of spiritual regeneration and reconciliation with Christ and
incorporation into Christ, his body (the Church), and his cause, (the Church’s
mission) (John 1:11-13; 3:18; James 1:17-18; 1 Peter 1:3-5; 23).
Going
under the water pictures Christ’s death. Coming up out of the water symbolizes
your identification with Christ’s resurrection. Your life is intertwined
and united with Christ’s life, death, burial and resurrection (Rom. 6:1-14;
2 Cor. 5:17; Col. 2:12). Your future is sealed with Christ and his kingdom.
Baptism is a picture of repentance and cleansing given through Christ.
The water is also
a symbolic sign and seal of the washing away of your sin by the regenerating,
cleansing power of the Person of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:4-7). Baptism is a profound
spiritual picture of passing through the waters of judgment safely, of dying and
rising with Christ, and having your sins totally washed away, showing that you
are now a child of God. And so God calls us to repent and empowers us to change
from the inside out by his grace.
Baptism is a sign of membership
in Christ’s Body, the worldwide Church.
Baptism
is a sign of initiation into the worldwide, global and historic Church. It pictures
our voluntary response to God’s sovereign redemptive work and demonstrates
that God has given us the grace to believe. When a person makes a credible profession
of faith, their baptism pictures their entrance into the instrument of God’s
kingdom on earth, the Church.
Baptism is a spiritual blessing that
empowers us for service.
Baptism
is a sign of the kingdom similar to the way a wedding ring is a sign of marriage.
A wedding ring does not unconditionally guarantee a loving marriage! And baptism
is not a magical rite that automatically brings down the power of the Spirit.
You cannot manipulate the Sovereign King. If a genuine profession of saving faith
is not present, baptism symbolizes nothing. Peter told Simon Magus that, though
baptized, he was still unbelieving and unregenerate in heart (Acts 8:13; 21-23).
Baptism, then, is meant to be a true representation of what it symbolizes.
Through baptism the Holy Spirit desires to fill and empower us afresh, manifesting
the presence of the kingdom. Those who truly belong to Christ are indwelled by
the Spirit (Rom. 8:9). And the Father is eager to reveal truth, give spiritual
gifts and spiritual grace from the exalted Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, to his children
(Rom. 12;6; 1 Cor. 2:10; 12:7; Eph. 4:11-12).
Jesus was “commissioned”
by the Father and the Holy Spirit for ministry at his baptism. Like him, we too
enter new dimensions of humble service when we are baptized. He calls us to serve
him in every area of life. So, bring an open heart eager to receive his blessing
so that you can be empowered to live an extraordinary life of service in ordinary
situations!
How should I be baptized?
The
New Testament models and assumes baptism by immersion. The Greek word baptizo
was a common word without special religious significance. It meant “to plunge,
dip, immerse, sink, drench, overwhelm”. John baptized in the river Jordan,
not beside it (Mk. 1:5). He “was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there
was much water there” (Jn. 3:23). When Jesus was baptized “he came up
out of the water” (Mk. 1:10). When Philip baptized the eunuch they came to
water near the road and, “he commanded the chariot to stop and they both
went down into the water. . . and he baptized him. And when they came up out of
the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught up Philip” (Acts 8:38-39).
We are wise however, to not make too much of the mode of immersion. Early
on in the life of the church a flexible attitude was adopted on this issue. The
early church took a practical approach. If there was not enough water for the
preferred mode of immersion, they poured water three times over the head (see
the Diadache 7.1-4, a 1st or 2nd century document that lacks the authority of—and
often contradicts—Holy Scripture, but is of historical interest). So, there
is no compelling reason to be overly rigid today, even though the normal mode
of immersion is preferable whenever possible.
Does VineLife encourage
baptizing infants?
We
do not encourage baptizing infants because we believe only those who make a sincere
and credible profession of faith should be baptized. We do not encourage parents
to push children into baptism as a rite of passage into adulthood or some kind
of church membership. We believe the family’s faith and the church community
can be powerful means of grace in the life of children through which they can
be nurtured to receive God’s covenant love.
It is impossible to
set an exact minimal age for baptism. But, on a case by case basis, the leadership
of each of our communities of faith will decide, with the parents, whether an
older child should be baptized based on their sincere confession of genuine faith
and spiritual regeneration and a desire to follow Christ.
Each person,
no matter their age, must search their own hearts and determine whether or not
he/she is a true believer. A true believer genuinely desires to follow Christ
and become more like him. Parents and spiritual leadership has the responsibility
to instruct each person and help them make a wise, heart-felt decision and to
determine whether it is appropriate for them to be baptized.
Is it
okay to be baptized as an adult if you were baptized as an infant?
There
is not one unambiguous example of an infant being baptized in Scripture. One enters
the kingdom by having saving faith and being born again, not by merely being born.
While the book of Acts depicts households being baptized, it also indicates the
presence of saving faith in Jesus. In Scripture, there is no description of infants
having saving faith.
Baptism is a sign of entrance into the worldwide
and historic Church. If you believe that you were merely dedicated as an infant
and not truly baptized, and if you believe that baptism is appropriate only for
those who make a credible profession of faith in Jesus Christ, then it is okay
to be baptized as an adult. It is not a rebaptism.
Do I have to say
anything in front of a group?
Another
important aspect of baptism is the public proclamation of your faith before the
faith community and your family and friends. Jesus calls us to boldly confess
him as Lord without shame or denial (Mt. 10:32-33; Mk. 8:38; Rom. 10:9; 1 John
2:23). This public confession should reflect your growing commitment to Christ,
his church, and his cause. It is also a statement of your heartfelt desire to
continue in fellowship with the people of God, and with the help of the Holy Spirit
to be a faithful disciple who makes diligent use of the means of grace (e.g.,
worship, prayer, bible study, giving and service).
Do you trust Christ
as your Lord and Savior?
Are
you ready to commit to grow in Christ-like maturity and humble service all the
days of your life? Do you understand what baptism means? Then it is time to be
baptized.
Before you are baptized, you may be asked ancient questions,
variations of which have been asked of millions of people for nearly 2,000 years:
• Question 1: “Do you believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker
of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord and King, and in
the Holy Spirit, the Giver of new life and grace?”
Answer: “I
do.”
• Question 2: “Do you renounce Satan and all his
works and all his ways?”
Answer: “I do.”
•
Question 3: “Do you confess your need for the forgiveness of sins and with
a humble heart put your hope in God’s mercy and your whole trust in Christ
as your Lord and Savior?
Answer: “I do.”
• Question
4: “And with his help, do you seek to follow him, becoming more like him
until you see him face to face?”
Answer: “With all my heart,
I do!”
The first question gives you a chance to say “no”
to the false belief that the universe is eternal or that it created itself and
“yes” to the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, who created everything
(including you) out of nothing and who sustains and rules everything that exists
(Gen. 1-2; Ps 33:6, 9; 148:5; John 1:1-3; Acts. 17:25; 28; Col. 1:15-16; Heb.
1:2-3; 2:10; 11:3).
The second question gives you an opportunity to publicly
proclaim the reality that God, as Paul wrote, “has rescued [you] from the
kingdom of darkness and brought [you] into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in
whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Col. 1:13-14). Your “Yes!”
affirms, along with true believers everywhere, that,
Once you were alienated
from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now
he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present
you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—if you continue
in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.
(1:21-23a; c.f., Rom. 5:10).
The third question is an opportunity to
confess your heartfelt trust that you are saved by grace alone, through faith
alone, in Christ alone who is both author and mediator of salvation (Mk. 16:15-16;
John 6:47; Eph. 2:8-10; Heb. 2:10; 7:25.
The fourth question is an opportunity
to publicly proclaim your sincere intent to “continue in your faith”
and grow in Christ-likeness and the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:16-26; Eph.
4:17-5:20; Phil. 2:1-18; 3:12-4:1; Col. 3; 1 Thess. 4:1-11; etc.)
•
Response: When from the heart you say, “Yes!” or “I do!” to
the above questions, the person (or persons) baptizing you will know that in your
heart you are a true Believer and ready for baptism. When you are baptized the
person baptizing you will say something like, “Because of your testimony
that Jesus is your Savior and Lord, and in obedience to our Lord’s command,
I now baptize you in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
Then you will be immersed under the water and brought back up again.
And don’t worry; they won’t hold you under too long!
As the
people of God celebrate your baptism, it is wise to linger in the water and pray
for more empowering or filling of the Holy Spirit and the imparting of his gifts
and graces so that you can serve him more effectively. Sometimes the Holy Spirit
will give a word of prophecy, wisdom or encouragement to you. Also, it is not
uncommon to see healing or the breaking of bondage to particular habits of sin
or powers of darkness in the process of baptism.
May God richly bless
you!
David L. Shirkey
