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Baptism

  • David Stephenson
  • May 18, 2009
  • Series: Theology

Summary: We baptize believers and their children because both were included in the old covenant and received the sign of circumcision. In the new covenant, the sign was changed to baptism, but the recipients remained the same.

Although the baptism of infants has been practiced by the majority of Christians throughout the history of the world, it is no longer practiced by the majority of evangelical churches in the Southern part of the United States. This brief explanation of infant baptism may be of help to you if you are visiting with us or have questions about our practice of this Sacrament. While baptism is extremely important and should not be neglected, it is not necessary for salvation (thief on the cross) nor does baptism guarantee salvation. There are three parts of a valid baptism; water, Trinitarian formula (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) and that the baptism is performed under the authority of a Gospel believing church.

What is the meaning of baptism? We believe baptism is the outward sign of the New Covenant, just as circumcision was the external sign of the Old Covenant. Covenants have always been at the heart of the way that God relates to his people usually through a representative (God and Adam, God and Abraham, God and Moses, God and David, God and Jesus). These covenants contained oaths, vows, stipulations, and usually a sign and a seal that solemnized the covenant promise. For example, the rainbow was a sign of the promise made by God to Noah and his family (like a signet ring from a King in Esther 3:10). There is a continuation between the promises of the Old Covenant and the New Covenant (Luke 1:55) and we believe baptism replaces circumcision as the sign and seal of the Covenant of Grace (Col. 2).

Baptism is primarily a sign and seal of the Covenant of Grace and the promise of redemption. It is a sign of the promise of God that all who believe will be saved through faith in Jesus Christ. How were people in the Old Testament saved? Old Testament believers were saved by grace through faith just like their New Testament counterparts (Romans 3:21-4:25). As R.C. Sproul wrote, “Abraham, who was called after he was an adult and after he had professed his faith, was circumcised. Whatever else circumcision represented, it represented his faith. In the case of adult converts to Israel, those from the outside could only be circumcised after they had made a profession of faith. Israel practiced believer’s circumcision for those who came into Israel from paganism, but the Israelite children received the sign of their faith in infancy, before they had faith…(circumcision and baptism) are not identical but there are important parallels. The sign of faith does not communicate faith. The sign of God’s promise does not guarantee the fulfillment of the promise. What is guaranteed is God’s promise to all who believe. That is why we give the sign to adults and also the to children of believers, just as they did in the Old Testament…Baptism is not a sign of the child’s faith; it is a sign of what the child will receive by faith. It is a sign of God’s promise, which is received by faith.” We know for certain that circumcision was applied to both adults and children (Genesis 17:12) in the Old Testament as a sign of faith. In some instances, the sign was applied before faith and some instances it was applied after faith. An important question to consider is if your objections to infant baptism (i.e. “baptism would be more meaningful if the person receiving baptism remembers their baptism”) would be considered valid when considering how circumcision was practiced in the Old Testament. Hopefully, this gives you a brief explanation of the meaning of baptism and addresses who should be baptized.

You may have further questions as to the mode of baptism you observe today. We normally practice pouring or sprinkling while immersion is also permitted when practical. We would contend that nowhere in the New Testament is immersion explicitly commanded or practiced. The Greek word for baptize by itself does not command immersion as it is used in other places in Scripture to simply mean “to wash” or to “cleanse” (Luke 11:38). It is also commonly assumed that Jesus was immersed, but one needs to carefully read the text about what it says and doesn’t say. Many children’s Bibles have pictures of Jesus being immersed under the water, but in fact the earliest pictures of the baptism of Jesus from the 2nd century show John the Baptist pouring the water over Jesus. We certainly want to be careful determining the mode of baptism from the early history of the church, but it can be helpful. Sprinkling and pouring are rooted in Old Testament ceremonies and prophesies (Isaiah 52:15; Ezekiel 36:25) and the practices (Acts 9:11; 10:25; 16:32-35) and imagery (Hebrews 10:22; 12:24; Romans 5:5) of the New Testament.

There are around 12 baptisms recorded in the New Testament and none explicitly state who (other than “households”, which may or may not have included infants and children) was baptized or how they were baptized. However, much can be understood by careful studies of each of these passages (not done in this brief synopsis). Some people will point to the symbolism of the burial with Christ as a reason for immersion. While this may be helpful, let us remember that Jesus was buried “above” ground in a tomb that is very different from our contemporary American practices. There are many other points of emphasis to be discussed such as what Paul means by infants of one believer being holy (I Cor. 7:14), Jesus blessing the children (Luke 18:15), promises given to children (Acts 2:39) and others. However, these examples are not discussed here (please don’t hesitate to ask further questions). There is no clear command or prohibition in the New Testament for infant baptism. But, since infants were included in the covenant thousands of years before the coming of the New Covenant with Jesus, would there not be some question as to why they were now excluded, particularly as the New Covenant is even portrayed more broadly in Scripture (Jeremiah 31)? To summarize, the mandate to include infants is rooted in the Covenant from the Old Testament (made with Abraham) and the mandate to apply baptism comes from the New Covenant in the New Testament.

Let us remember that Christians who practice infant baptism or believer’s only baptism do so because they believe it is what God desires. Christians with these differing views are each trying to please God. Humility, patience and dialogue built on the authority of Scripture should remain preeminent in our discussions and fellowships. Most reformed evangelicals believe adult church members should profess faith before receiving baptism. Likewise, most reformed evangelicals nurture their children in the Christian faith by either a dedication or an infant baptism and the children are brought up to love the Lord and to place their faith in Jesus Christ. May God pour out His Sprit so that we may understand his Word.