Basic 5 point outline taken from Denver Sizemore’s Book, 13 Lessons in Christian Doctrine. College Press.
Baptism, What’s That About?
Matthew 28:18-20
Intro.
Well, as I have been stating over the past couple of weeks, we are leading up to what is going to be a Baptism Sunday. We are now 3 weeks away from that day. I know there are quite a few of you out here today that have had a lot of questions concerning this issue.
- Should I be baptized or not?
- What is so significant about it?
- Is it essential for my salvation?
Well, I will be answering those questions a little more in depth next week. Next week I will be offering an answer to the question:
- Why should I be baptized?
Today, we are going to take a brief overview of what baptism is all about. I will cover things like the authority behind it, the method of Biblical baptism, and what it signifies through symbolism. So let’s begin.
Baptism is a very significant part of the Christian faith through our relationship to the Lord Jesus Christ. Over the years, the idea of baptism has been manipulated and changed by men in order to meet their own personal agendas. Trying to please people rather than God. Because of these distortions of the true Biblical approach to baptism, many divisions have risen up in the church and among brothers & sisters in Christ. I do not believe that this is what the Lord had intended when this sacred act of obedience was first instituted. As Christians we must seek the truth by turning to God’s Word, the Holy Bible and allowing God’s Spirit to be our guide to discovering the truth of this controversial issue.
First, let us look at the AUTHORITY behind baptism.
After Jesus was resurrected from the dead, He made many appearances to many people. Upon one of His final appearances, Jesus gave some last instructions to the eleven disciples.
Mt 28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
Mt 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Mt 28:20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Jesus gave the command that His disciples go out and baptize and He said that it needs to be done in the name of the Father & the Son & the Holy Spirit. The expression “in the name of” also means “by the authority of…”
For example, if a police officer arrests a criminal “in the name of the law”, he does it by the authority of the law. So the act of baptism was authorized by the name of the Holy Trinity. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. There is no higher authority than this.
Secondly, lets us look at the METHOD or action of baptism.
The method of baptism has been an issue that has gone through much discussion throughout the years. What is done, physically speaking when a person gets baptized? We will find that the New Testament gives us a pretty clear answer to this.
The Bible teaches that the method/act of baptism requires 5 things:
A. Water
Ac 10:47 “Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water?
Mt 3:13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. (Jordan River = water)
B. Much Water
Jn 3:23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were constantly coming to be baptized.
C. Going to the Water
Mt 3:5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and
the whole region of the Jordan.
Mt 3:6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.
Ac 8:36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptized?”
Nowhere in the New Testament does it ever say that water was brought to the individual to be baptized.
D. Going Down Into the water
Ac 8:38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him.
Going down into the water is something that is required of both the person being baptized and the person who does the baptizing.
E. Coming Up Out of the water
Mk 1:10 As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.
Ac 8:39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing.
As we can see, from these New testament passages, the method/act of baptism requires water, and a lot of it. It also requires that the candidate to be baptized must go into the water, along with the one doing the baptizing. Afterward, they would come up out of the water. The point being made is that if Biblical baptism required only a few drops of water poured over the candidates head, these other requirements would be useless.
God created man and the world that He lives in. Man lives in a physical world and God has given physical acts and ordinances to teach spiritual truths. This is what baptism is about. It is not just a physical act, but an act which is filled with spiritual truth and meaning.
Thirdly, baptism displays a great deal of symbolism.
A. Baptism is a picture of a DEATH and a BURIAL.
Ro 6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?
Ro 6:2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
Ro 6:3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
Ro 6:4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Ro 6:5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.
When we commit ourselves to the Lordship of Christ, and take the next step in obedience by taking the step of baptism, we allow ourselves to go through the same thing He went through, symbolically. We walk around living but we are dead to sin. And when something is dead, their needs to be a funeral. A burial. When our body is lowered into the water, we stop breathing for just a moment. While being under water, engulfed by what is called the Watery Tomb, it is like being buried in a tomb. When we come out of the water, it is like being raised from the dead. Just like Christ experienced when God raised Him from the dead.
Next, baptism is a picture of a birth.
Jn 3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.
As Jesus talked with Nicodemus he made it a point to share with him the necessity of being born again. Nicodemus was confused at how a person can reenter the womb of their mother to be born again. Jesus was speaking of being born of water, and this is a reference to water baptism.
So there is a bit of symbolism that is associated with baptism.
Next, I want to take a look at the Biblical language.
Seeing as we are in the New Testament, we are going to be examining the Greek language. Here we will find our best proof for the definition of baptism.
The Greek word for baptism is:
Baptizo
It is defined as:
- dipping
- dunking
- plunging
- immersing
Two other methods that have been defined as baptism is that of sprinkling or pouring on of water on someone’s head. Most often, it is the head of a baby or child.
The Greek words for these two methods are completely different.
1. ekcheo – to pour out
2. rantizo – to sprinkle
Yet without fail, over & over again, the true Biblical definition of baptism is baptizo, to dip, dunk, plunge or immerse.
Finally, a quick look at the person to be baptized.
a. A person must be a BELIEVER in Jesus Christ.
Mk 16:16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
b. A person should be a PENITENT believer.
Ac 2:38 Peter replied, “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.
c. A person should make a public CONFESSION of Christ as their Lord and Savior.
Ro 10:9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Ro 10:10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
