Why should it be done?
This is really the most important issue. What exactly does baptism do? Why is it important? Does baptism make someone a Christian? Does it actually have the power to save someone?
On these last two questions, the answer is no as our salvation is only by the sacrifice of Christ made for us on the cross. It is not by any work we do but wholly by grace through faith alone (Rom. 5:1; Ephesians 2:8-9).
Our baptism, however (as mentioned in part 1), is closely associated with our salvation and/or conversion experience. And baptism and the Lord’s Supper are meant to direct our faith toward Christ and assure us of the promises of the gospel (Rom. 6:3, Gal. 3:27, Heb. 9:12):
“The sacraments are visible holy signs and seals appointed by God… that by their use He may more fully declare and seal to us the promise of the Gospel, namely, that of [or by] free grace He grants us forgiveness of sins and everlasting life for the sake of the one sacrifice of Christ accomplished on the cross.”[1]
We’ve discussed in parts 2 and 3 how baptism is appropriately given to the infants and children of believers and is a sign and seal of the new covenant to both individuals and families. But what about for teens and adults?
For One Who is Baptized for the First Time[2] as a Teen or Adult, Baptism Does at Least Five Things:
- Baptism Shows Our Repentance– Repentance is a change of mind that is evidenced by a change of actions. When someone playing football or basketball finds out that they are running in the wrong direction, potentially scoring a touchdown or basket for the wrong team, what do they do? They turn around (hopefully!) and go the other direction. That is what repentance is all about. It means that we’re going in one direction away from God and then we turn around and go the other direction toward God. Repentance is choosing to get down off the throne of your life and allowing God to sit in the seat of authority. The concept of repentance is key in the book of Acts. The message of Peter on the day of Pentecost to a crowd of three thousand ethnic Jews was “Repent & be baptized for the forgiveness of sins…” (Acts 2:38). C.S. Lewis gave this great explanation of repentance: “Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement; he is a rebel who must lay down his arms … This process of surrender—this movement full speed astern—is what Christians call repentance. Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means killing part of yourself, undergoing a kind of death.”
- Baptism Identifies Our Allegiance– Someone has said, “If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” Sometimes those without convictions are compared to jellyfish. Jellyfish often get into trouble because they can’t swim well. If a big wave pushes them into a human, they are often killed. If a large fish decides to eat them, there is no way for jellyfish to get away. Jellyfish are merely tossed about in the water. Some people live their lives this way. They ask, “Is the truth really out there?” To any who feel lost, honestly seek answers, and are troubled by death, Jesus says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Jesus is saying here that he is worthy of our allegiance and if we want to connect with God we must come through him. Because he is the way, the truth, and the life, we don’t have to drift through life like Jellyfish; we can identify our allegiance. Again, that’s what baptism does for us; it identifies our allegiance with Jesus Christ, “the way, the truth, and the life …”
- Baptism Confirms God’s Favor– As humans, we’re all prone to self-doubt. At times we question the motives of our hearts. Even those who’ve grown up in Christian homes will wonder at times if God really loves them. Baptism is meant to be an important help in this matter. As Calvin taught, baptism is given for “the arousing, nourishing, and confirming of our faith…in this sacrament we received the knowledge and certainty of such gifts [cleansing & salvation].” He said, further, that we ought to “recall the memory of our baptism and fortify our mind with it, that we may always be sure and confident of the forgiveness of sins” and that the sacrament is meant to “fasten our minds upon Christ alone.” What we are saying in all this is that baptism can be a landmark, a kind of stake in the ground, and a public testimony of our trust in Christ alone.
- Baptism Pictures the Good News– The Apostle Paul says this: “Now let me remind you, dear brothers and sisters, of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then and still do now, for your faith is built on this wonderful message. And it is this Good News that saves you if you firmly believe it—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place. I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me—that Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, as the Scriptures said” (1 Cor. 15:1-4; see also Col. 2:12). Baptism is meant to signify union with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection. Although the mode of immersion isn’t necessary, immersion for many Christians is a beautiful reenactment of the greatest demonstration of love in history: the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ and the thorough washing away of sins (1 Pet. 3:21). Whatever mode is used, however, baptism is a public declaration that the sins of the world are washed away in the sacrifice of Christ! That’s Good News worth proclaiming!
- Baptism Shows Our Intent to Join God’s Family (Acts 2:41-42)- When we identify our allegiance with Christ, we’re also making a decision to become part of God’s people, the church. That’s why it’s natural for baptism to result in membership in a local church. And, often, teens or adults desiring to join are appropriately required to attend some kind of membership class or seminar.
[1] Heidelberg Catechism [450th Anniversary Edition], Question #66 (The Reformed Church, 2013), 68.
[2] For the question of whether someone who has just come to Christ should be re-baptized or not (if they have already been baptized as a child) see R.C. Sproul’s helpful answer in Now, That’s a Good Question! (Wheaton: Tyndale) 1996, 341-342.