Water Baptism
There are four basic ingredients to becoming a Christ-follower:
1. Repent of sins.
2. Believe in the Lord Jesus.
3. Water Baptism (WB).
4. Receive the Holy Spirit.
While almost no Christian disagrees that a person must repent of their sins and believe in Jesus in order to be born again (become a Christian), WB can be a bit controversial in its purpose and application…
Common Misconceptions About WB
Prove Your Repentance
Repentance is a change of mind that we prove with our actions. WB is a bodily demonstration of a heart response to God.
This idea of evidence of actions is captured by John the Baptist when describing this new form of proving repentance.
Matthew 3 8 Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. 10b Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire. 11 “I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God.”
What? Who? How? Why? When?
As we discover WB, we want to answer a few questions…
#1 What Does WB Signify?
It is important to understand the meaning of WB.
#2 Who Was WB’d?
John the Baptist started his ministry by declaring that the Messiah had come. John was sent by God to get people cleaned up in preparation for the Messiah’s arrival.
Repentance & Forgiveness
Mark 1 4 This messenger was John the Baptist. He was in the wilderness and preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven.
Jesus Was Baptized
Jesus Himself submitted to WB as an act of obedience.
Matthew 3 15 “[WB] should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires. So John agreed to baptize Him.”
Disciples Were Baptized
Jesus made WB mandatory for all disciples as a sign of allegiance.
Matthew 28 18 “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.”
#3 How Was WB Done?
When it comes to how WB was done, there are both historical and modern day practices of what’s known as affusion = sprinkling water on the head. Is this biblical? We do not find a single example of sprinkling in NT.
John 3 23 John the Baptist was baptizing at Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there…
Meaning
Baptize = total immersion. It was an ordinary word in the Greek language that was used to describe the sinking of a ship, the dipping of a cup in a bowl of wine, or the soaking of cloth in dye.
Confession
Prior to WB, the person being baptized was also expected to confess the name of the Lord Jesus. This was also required of the baptizer.
#4 Why Was WB Done?
Why was WB done? In addition to repentance and forgiveness, the Apostle Paul tells us that when we are WB’d, we are identifying with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection.
Burial For The Dead
Romans 6 1 “...should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of His wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in [water] baptism, we joined Him in His death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by [water] baptism.
Note: the power of WB in the life of the believer in verse 4.
Resurrection For The Repentant
4b And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 5 Since we have been united with Him in His death, we will also be raised to life as He was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.
WB is not merely symbolic. This is what Christ does for us through WB! Our old sinful selves are dead, we are no longer slaves to sin, we are free from the power of sin, and we can now experience a new life in Christ.
Part Of The Good News
WB is also a critical part of the Good News of the Gospel.
Acts 8 35 So…Philip told [the Ethiopian eunuch] the Good News about Jesus. 36 As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?” 38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.
Received The Holy Spirit? Be Baptized
A similar thing takes place two chapters later in Acts 10. The Holy Spirit sends Peter to preach a message to the Gentiles at the home of a Gentile Roman officer, Cornelius. After preaching the Good News to them Peter concluded: Acts 10 34 “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. 35 In every nation He accepts those who fear Him and do what is right. 36 This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel—that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism.
[Peter goes on to share about Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, that Jesus is the Messiah, that everyone who believes will have their sins forgiven, and that those who believe should be baptized in water.]
44 Even as Peter was saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the message. 45 The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles, too. 46 For they heard them speaking in other tongues and praising God. Then Peter asked, 47 “Can anyone object to their being baptized, now that they have received the Holy Spirit just as we did?” 48 So he gave orders for them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
Even though they had already received the Holy Spirit, they were directed by Peter to be baptized in the name of the Lord.
#4 When Was WB Done?
Acts 2 38 “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
WB @ Freedom Church NW
Here is the current position of Freedom Church on WB…
Conclusion
For a repenting, believing person, water baptism was evidence to prove their repentance and belief…
Expectations On The Day Of Baptism
Questions To Be Prepared To Answer
APPENDIX
Baptized Again?
Should you be water baptized more than once? Only if you did not repent/believe prior to WB. If you fall along the way in your life with Christ, confess, repent, and continue to press forward by God’s grace. Some have believed it necessary to be WB’d again after walking away from God for a time in their life. If we were water baptized each time we sin, we would be getting baptized all the time. Baptism is a declaration that a believer is actively turning from sin and turning to God, and that that is an ongoing process in our lives. There is a story in the Bible (John 13) that might help illustrate this. On the night that Jesus was betrayed, Jesus washed the feet of the disciples. Peter insisted that Jesus should wash all of him. Jesus responded that only his feet needed to be washed. Jesus responded: “Peter, you’ve already had a bath. I only need to wash your feet.” Water baptism is our “bath.” But as we go through life, we inevitably pick up dirt along the way. Jesus just needs to “wash our feet” as we continue on our journey with Him. We would encourage people not to be baptized again. But we would also ask those seeking to be baptized again: “Have you been baptized as a repentant believer?”
Magic H2O?
It’s important to remember that WB is completely ineffective and worthless apart from faith associated with repentance and believing in Jesus. The water itself is powerless and not “magical”. “It is the power of God through human repentance and faith which enables the act of WB to be effective” - D Pawson.
Count The Cost
In Bible times, a person who converted from a pagan religion to follow Christ was baptized in order to signify conversion from worship of pagan gods to allegiance to Christ. WB was the means of making a personal/private decision public. By making a public confession and demonstration of WB to follow Christ, one knew that it could cost them their life. Those who refused to be water baptized were demonstrating they either were not repentant of their sin, they did not truly believe in Christ, or they were too afraid of the cost to forsake their former life and follow Jesus. So, in the minds of the apostles and early disciples, the idea of an un-baptized believer was unheard of. When a person claimed to believe in Christ, yet was ashamed to proclaim their faith in public, it indicated that they did not possess saving faith. We don’t find a single example of a Christian follower who was not baptized in water out of obedience to the biblical directive to do so!
Infant Baptism?
Throughout the New Testament, the Bible teaches that baptism is a public expression of worship symbolizing the new life we have when we make a decision to follow Jesus. In the Bible we see that Jesus’ parents dedicated Him to the Lord (Luke 2:22–40), and He was later baptized as an adult (Matthew 3:16–17). Some churches practice “baptism of confirmation” for children. This ceremony is intended to be a commitment between the parents and God in proxy of their child. The parents promise to raise their child in the faith until the child is old enough to make his or her own personal confession of Christ. This custom began about 300 years after the Bible was completed and is different from the biblical examples of new believers being baptized to publicly profess their faith in Jesus.
Every child can have a personal relationship with Jesus, and we encourage them to make a decision to follow Him. Our children are encouraged to not just learn about Jesus, but learn from Him by walking with Him in relationship every day. We advise parents to wait until their child is asking to be water baptized. This is usually a good indication that they are ready to be baptized and that it will be a spiritual milestone in their life. While younger children under the age of seven can have a relationship with Jesus, they will not necessarily remember or understand the significance of the event, so we encourage parents to wait for baptism until they are a little older. As you discern if your child is ready to be water baptized, here are some questions to ask your child.
The following answers show that your child understands…
1. When did you decide to follow Jesus? Your child should have a specific memory of when he or she understood what Jesus did, and that he or she needs Jesus in their life. It may have been at church, at home, or even a time when they were alone.
2. What does it mean to be water baptized? It means I’m following Jesus. It means I’m a Christian and I want to show the world. It’s a picture of what Jesus has done on the inside of me.
3. Why do you want to be water baptized? Because Jesus was baptized and he tells us to be baptized also. Because I’m a follower of Jesus and I want to serve Him.
Is Your Child Ready? If you believe your child understands what it means to be water baptized.
Is Your Child Not Ready? If you don’t feel your child understands what it means to be water baptized, it’s totally appropriate to wait. During this time, let your child observe water baptism and talk to them about what it means.
1. Repent of sins.
2. Believe in the Lord Jesus.
3. Water Baptism (WB).
4. Receive the Holy Spirit.
While almost no Christian disagrees that a person must repent of their sins and believe in Jesus in order to be born again (become a Christian), WB can be a bit controversial in its purpose and application…
Common Misconceptions About WB
- WB is something we do for Jesus vs something God does for us. It’s just a symbolic act.
- WB is basically a “wet witness” as a testimony to others.
- WB is optional for followers of Jesus.
- WB is salvific, meaning, you must be WB’d in order to be born again.
- WB is for everyone, including infants.
Prove Your Repentance
Repentance is a change of mind that we prove with our actions. WB is a bodily demonstration of a heart response to God.
This idea of evidence of actions is captured by John the Baptist when describing this new form of proving repentance.
Matthew 3 8 Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God. 10b Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire. 11 “I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God.”
- Baptize = to submerge, to immerse, to dip.
What? Who? How? Why? When?
As we discover WB, we want to answer a few questions…
#1 What Does WB Signify?
It is important to understand the meaning of WB.
- Obedience: WB is a mark of obedience to Christ.
- Mark of a Disciple. Followers of Jesus are to be baptized into the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
- Cleansing of Sin. Washing away of our sins following repentance.
- Identification. WB demonstrates we are identifying with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
- Death to Self. Marked the death and burial of our old, sinful life, coming up out of the water alive to God.
#2 Who Was WB’d?
John the Baptist started his ministry by declaring that the Messiah had come. John was sent by God to get people cleaned up in preparation for the Messiah’s arrival.
Repentance & Forgiveness
Mark 1 4 This messenger was John the Baptist. He was in the wilderness and preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven.
Jesus Was Baptized
Jesus Himself submitted to WB as an act of obedience.
Matthew 3 15 “[WB] should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires. So John agreed to baptize Him.”
Disciples Were Baptized
Jesus made WB mandatory for all disciples as a sign of allegiance.
Matthew 28 18 “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.”
#3 How Was WB Done?
When it comes to how WB was done, there are both historical and modern day practices of what’s known as affusion = sprinkling water on the head. Is this biblical? We do not find a single example of sprinkling in NT.
John 3 23 John the Baptist was baptizing at Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there…
Meaning
Baptize = total immersion. It was an ordinary word in the Greek language that was used to describe the sinking of a ship, the dipping of a cup in a bowl of wine, or the soaking of cloth in dye.
Confession
Prior to WB, the person being baptized was also expected to confess the name of the Lord Jesus. This was also required of the baptizer.
#4 Why Was WB Done?
Why was WB done? In addition to repentance and forgiveness, the Apostle Paul tells us that when we are WB’d, we are identifying with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection.
Burial For The Dead
Romans 6 1 “...should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of His wonderful grace? 2 Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? 3 Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in [water] baptism, we joined Him in His death? 4 For we died and were buried with Christ by [water] baptism.
Note: the power of WB in the life of the believer in verse 4.
Resurrection For The Repentant
4b And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. 5 Since we have been united with Him in His death, we will also be raised to life as He was. 6 We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. 7 For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin.
WB is not merely symbolic. This is what Christ does for us through WB! Our old sinful selves are dead, we are no longer slaves to sin, we are free from the power of sin, and we can now experience a new life in Christ.
Part Of The Good News
WB is also a critical part of the Good News of the Gospel.
Acts 8 35 So…Philip told [the Ethiopian eunuch] the Good News about Jesus. 36 As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?” 38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.
Received The Holy Spirit? Be Baptized
A similar thing takes place two chapters later in Acts 10. The Holy Spirit sends Peter to preach a message to the Gentiles at the home of a Gentile Roman officer, Cornelius. After preaching the Good News to them Peter concluded: Acts 10 34 “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. 35 In every nation He accepts those who fear Him and do what is right. 36 This is the message of Good News for the people of Israel—that there is peace with God through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. 37 You know what happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee, after John began preaching his message of baptism.
[Peter goes on to share about Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, that Jesus is the Messiah, that everyone who believes will have their sins forgiven, and that those who believe should be baptized in water.]
44 Even as Peter was saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who were listening to the message. 45 The Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles, too. 46 For they heard them speaking in other tongues and praising God. Then Peter asked, 47 “Can anyone object to their being baptized, now that they have received the Holy Spirit just as we did?” 48 So he gave orders for them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.
Even though they had already received the Holy Spirit, they were directed by Peter to be baptized in the name of the Lord.
#4 When Was WB Done?
Acts 2 38 “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
- When should WB happen in someone’s life? Soon after repentance and believing in Jesus as Lord.
- While WB is never self-administered, every person must respond to God individually to be baptized.
WB @ Freedom Church NW
Here is the current position of Freedom Church on WB…
- You must be a believer in Jesus Christ.
- You must have confessed your sins to God, and commit to walk out repentance by the grace of God.
- You must be able to articulate your faith and your personal decision to follow Jesus.
- You must be a minimum of 12-13 years old, the biblical age of responsibility.
Conclusion
For a repenting, believing person, water baptism was evidence to prove their repentance and belief…
- Jesus demonstrated and commanded it.
- The apostles practiced it and commanded it.
- Every NT believer responded to it.
- This is normative in the NT for every believer.
- WB is critical for the sanctified life of the disciple of Christ who is being saved.
Expectations On The Day Of Baptism
Questions To Be Prepared To Answer
- Do you declare that Jesus Christ is Lord of your life?
- Do you believe that Jesus Christ died for your sins and rose from the dead?
- Do you commit to serve Jesus by God’s grace and the power of the Holy Spirit with a clear conscience?
- Bring an extra set of clothes to change into.
- Wear modest pants/shorts and top (dark colors .
- Notify friends and family to attend and celebrate with you.
APPENDIX
Baptized Again?
Should you be water baptized more than once? Only if you did not repent/believe prior to WB. If you fall along the way in your life with Christ, confess, repent, and continue to press forward by God’s grace. Some have believed it necessary to be WB’d again after walking away from God for a time in their life. If we were water baptized each time we sin, we would be getting baptized all the time. Baptism is a declaration that a believer is actively turning from sin and turning to God, and that that is an ongoing process in our lives. There is a story in the Bible (John 13) that might help illustrate this. On the night that Jesus was betrayed, Jesus washed the feet of the disciples. Peter insisted that Jesus should wash all of him. Jesus responded that only his feet needed to be washed. Jesus responded: “Peter, you’ve already had a bath. I only need to wash your feet.” Water baptism is our “bath.” But as we go through life, we inevitably pick up dirt along the way. Jesus just needs to “wash our feet” as we continue on our journey with Him. We would encourage people not to be baptized again. But we would also ask those seeking to be baptized again: “Have you been baptized as a repentant believer?”
Magic H2O?
It’s important to remember that WB is completely ineffective and worthless apart from faith associated with repentance and believing in Jesus. The water itself is powerless and not “magical”. “It is the power of God through human repentance and faith which enables the act of WB to be effective” - D Pawson.
Count The Cost
In Bible times, a person who converted from a pagan religion to follow Christ was baptized in order to signify conversion from worship of pagan gods to allegiance to Christ. WB was the means of making a personal/private decision public. By making a public confession and demonstration of WB to follow Christ, one knew that it could cost them their life. Those who refused to be water baptized were demonstrating they either were not repentant of their sin, they did not truly believe in Christ, or they were too afraid of the cost to forsake their former life and follow Jesus. So, in the minds of the apostles and early disciples, the idea of an un-baptized believer was unheard of. When a person claimed to believe in Christ, yet was ashamed to proclaim their faith in public, it indicated that they did not possess saving faith. We don’t find a single example of a Christian follower who was not baptized in water out of obedience to the biblical directive to do so!
Infant Baptism?
Throughout the New Testament, the Bible teaches that baptism is a public expression of worship symbolizing the new life we have when we make a decision to follow Jesus. In the Bible we see that Jesus’ parents dedicated Him to the Lord (Luke 2:22–40), and He was later baptized as an adult (Matthew 3:16–17). Some churches practice “baptism of confirmation” for children. This ceremony is intended to be a commitment between the parents and God in proxy of their child. The parents promise to raise their child in the faith until the child is old enough to make his or her own personal confession of Christ. This custom began about 300 years after the Bible was completed and is different from the biblical examples of new believers being baptized to publicly profess their faith in Jesus.
Every child can have a personal relationship with Jesus, and we encourage them to make a decision to follow Him. Our children are encouraged to not just learn about Jesus, but learn from Him by walking with Him in relationship every day. We advise parents to wait until their child is asking to be water baptized. This is usually a good indication that they are ready to be baptized and that it will be a spiritual milestone in their life. While younger children under the age of seven can have a relationship with Jesus, they will not necessarily remember or understand the significance of the event, so we encourage parents to wait for baptism until they are a little older. As you discern if your child is ready to be water baptized, here are some questions to ask your child.
The following answers show that your child understands…
1. When did you decide to follow Jesus? Your child should have a specific memory of when he or she understood what Jesus did, and that he or she needs Jesus in their life. It may have been at church, at home, or even a time when they were alone.
2. What does it mean to be water baptized? It means I’m following Jesus. It means I’m a Christian and I want to show the world. It’s a picture of what Jesus has done on the inside of me.
3. Why do you want to be water baptized? Because Jesus was baptized and he tells us to be baptized also. Because I’m a follower of Jesus and I want to serve Him.
Is Your Child Ready? If you believe your child understands what it means to be water baptized.
Is Your Child Not Ready? If you don’t feel your child understands what it means to be water baptized, it’s totally appropriate to wait. During this time, let your child observe water baptism and talk to them about what it means.