A gracEmail reader writes, "I was baptized at age 16 in a Church of Christ. I am now attending a Baptist Church. I am enjoying the fellowship of these good Christians, but have not joined their church because I would have to be rebaptized. I do not think it is necessary for me to do so. I have found no scriptures supporting being rebaptized. Could you please give me your thoughts on this?" *** The only example of rebaptism in the Bible involves some "disciples" whom Paul encountered at Ephesus (Acts 19:1-7). These people (12 men, also perhaps some women) had received "John's baptism," an … [Read more...]
GOD, NOT FORMULA, THE KEY
A gracEmail reader writes that he has been a Christian for some time but has recently been concerned by a relative's comments. That relative says that his baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is inadequate, and that he should be baptized "in the name of Jesus Christ." He also wonders if he should go to his relative's church, where people prophesy and speak in tongues. Can I offer any comment? * * * The New Testament speaks of being baptized into the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19) and also in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38; 10:48). Neither of … [Read more...]
EMERGENCY BAPTISM NO PROBLEM
A visitor to this website writes: "I had a friend who was dying with cancer, who was paralyzed and hooked up to tubes. She had never been baptized but she wanted to be. Given her immobility, a Church of Christ minister baptized her by pouring water over her head. She died shortly afterward. I feel responsible for the baptism and agonize in fear that it wasn't acceptable to God because it was not immersion." * * * I am persuaded that immersion is the biblical form of baptism, that it best represents the meaning of the Greek word baptizo and that it most vividly portrays the gospel … [Read more...]
BAPTISM’S MANY MODES
A gracEmail subscriber asks, "Does water baptism in the New Testament involve sprinkling, pouring or immersion?" * * * As New Testament writers describe the process of conversion, they include in the picture all three of the actions that you mention. Jesus himself ordained water baptism as the principal visible expression of faith for the person who believes in him. Indeed, gospel baptism is significant, for it sign-ifies many blessings which the believer enjoys freely by God's grace. One blessing is the forgiveness of sins and a clean conscience before God, which Scripture pictures as … [Read more...]
WHAT ARE SACRAMENTS?
A gracEmail subscriber asks the meaning of the term "sacrament" and whether the notion is consistent with the New Testament and the gospel. * * * A "sacrament" is a physical act involving physical elements through which God regularly bestows spiritual grace. Protestants generally recognize two sacraments: baptism and the Lord's Supper. Roman Catholics include five more: confirmation, matrimony, holy orders, penance and healing anointing. In classic Christian theology, a sacrament must have been instituted by Jesus himself and commanded by him to be perpetuated. The Bible … [Read more...]
HOW DOES BAPTISM WASH AWAY SINS?
"How," inquires a correspondent, "do you explain the command given to Saul of Tarsus to 'Arise, and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord' (Acts 22:16)?" * * * The context of this passage suggests that Saul experienced a cleansing subjectively in his own conscience. At the time these words were spoken to him, Saul of Tarsus was a man heavily weighted with guilt, spiritually convicted of enormous crime against the Risen Christ, physically blind and completely bereft of hope. Ananias' words would come as a great relief to him -- to think that he could be … [Read more...]
UNUSUAL TEXTS ABOUT BAPTISM
A reader asks concerning three unusual passages involving baptism. What about baptism for the dead (I Cor. 15:29-30)? What of the Samaritans who believed and were baptized but did not receive the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:5-24)? And what of the 12 disciples of John the Baptist whom Paul required to be rebaptized, who then spoke with tongues and prophesied (Acts 19:1-7)? * * * BAPTISM FOR THE DEAD. No one knows for sure exactly what Paul is talking about in 1 Corinthians 15:29-30, but it seems that someone at Corinth was practicing baptism for those who had died already. Paul is arguing for the … [Read more...]
BAPTISM — SIGN & SEAL
The minister of a large Church of Christ asks, upon reading Romans 4:10-11, whether baptism, like circumcision in this passage, is a "sign" and "seal" of righteousness which we have by faith even before we are baptized. * * * Some Jews in Paul's day valued circumcision so highly that they expected God to bless them merely because they had undergone this physical ordinance. Others expected God's favor because they were Abraham's descendants, a fact of which their circumcision always reminded them. Paul's point here is that God declared Abraham righteous by faith many years before he gave … [Read more...]
APPEAL FOR A GOOD CONSCIENCE
A gracEmail subscriber asks what Peter means when he speaks of baptism as "the pledge of a good conscience toward God" (1 Pet. 3:21). * * * The Greek word translated "pledge" in this verse only appears here in the New Testament. Earlier in classical Greek and in the Greek Old Testament, the word meant an "inquiry," "question," or "demand." Later in secular Greek, it refers to formal pleadings filed with a court. I think the better translation here is "an appeal to God for a good conscience." If that is correct, Peter says that by baptism the believer formally requests a … [Read more...]
GOOD REASON TO BE BAPTIZED
A gracEmail subscriber writes: "If we are saved by being believers, what is the use in being baptized?" * * * We are not saved by being believers, we are saved by God's grace -- and we can only trust him for that (Eph. 3:24). We don't merit any of God's kindness. It is not a 50/50 proposition -- as if half were deserved and half were a gift -- or even 99/1. God's favor and forgiveness are totally undeserved, unmerited, unearned. We cannot rely one whit on our own ability to please God by our performance, our obedience, our efforts, our knowledge or even our good intentions. We can only trust … [Read more...]