Being Baptised

When it comes to Christians being baptised, I have seen varying levels of emphasis.  The common extremes are problematic, that it is necessary for salvation or because it is not required for salvation it is unnecessary!  The Gospel is clear the salvation of sinners is by grace through faith in Jesus alone, and baptism is necessary for obedience.  Jesus commanded His disciples to proclaim His death by receiving communion together and also said in Matthew 28:19-20:  "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, ²⁰ 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." Amen."  Both receiving communion and being baptised in water are symbolic of what Jesus has accomplished for us, outward acts pointing to Christ's inner works.

John the Baptist came baptising in water, and his baptism was one of repentance.  Jesus was baptised by John not on account of sin but to "fulfill all righteousness" and provided an example His disciples were to follow.  When Jesus was baptised and the Holy Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove, it revealed to John, Israel and the world He was the promised Messiah (John 1:32-34).  Being baptised in water is more than a ceremony or public declaration, for it identifies people as followers of Jesus.  In our modern day the public aspects of this act of obedience can become a hindrance to actually doing it because baptisms can become complicated, scheduled social events that bear little resemblance to the Christian practice observed in the book of Acts.

As I leaf through the pages of Acts, being baptised was the first baby step of faith a believer took after repenting and trusting in Jesus as Saviour.  There were no sign-ups, classes to complete or hoops to jump through.  Quite simply, baptism was something done right away--and it was something church leaders and those being born again desired and were happy to do without delay.  Here are some examples in the book of Acts:

• 3,000 people were baptised on the Day of Pentecost in Jerusalem in Acts 2:41:  "Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them."

• The Ethiopian Eunuch met by Philip in Acts 8:36-37:  "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?" ³⁷ 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."

• Saul of Tarsus after his conversion in Acts 9:18:  "Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized."

• Cornelius and his household after the Holy Spirit came upon them in Acts 10:47-48:  "Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" ⁴⁸ And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then they asked him to stay a few days."

• Lydia and her household were baptised after believing in Acts 16:14-15:  "Now a certain woman named Lydia heard us. She was a seller of purple from the city of Thyatira, who worshiped God. The Lord opened her heart to heed the things spoken by Paul. ¹⁵ And when she and her household were baptized, she begged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay." So she persuaded us."

• The Philippian jailer and his household in Acts 16:30-33:  "And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" ³¹ So they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." ³² Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. ³³ And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized."

• About 12 men in Ephesus were baptised in the name of Jesus who previously had been baptised by John in Acts 19:4-5:  "Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus." ⁵ When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus."

This pattern we observe in the New Testament of born again Christians being baptised immediately has not always been a practice in modern churches.  There are differences in the way people are baptised and where is considered acceptable, but the most important thing is we obey our Saviour to make disciples and baptise believers in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things Jesus has commanded us.  Baptism is a good first step of obedience to Jesus and should not be reduced to an afterthought or based on how we feel.  Paul wrote baptism illustrates how we have been raised with Christ and the profound change He has made in our lives going forward in Romans 6:3-4:  "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? ⁴ Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."