Have You Found Jesus Yet?
There's a story about a man
who once stumbled into a baptism service happening at a lake. Not sure what all
the fuss was about, he wandered closer to where the preacher stood in the
water.
The preacher noticed him and
shouted, "Are you ready to find Jesus?" The man wasn't sure what was
happening, but finding Jesus sounded like a good idea, so he called back,
"Yes, I want to find Jesus!"
The preacher motioned him
into the water, grabbed him by the shoulders, pinched his nose, and plunged him
under.
Dunk. "Have you found Jesus?"
"No."
Dunk. He held him a little longer. "Have you found Jesus?"
"No."
Dunk. He held him even longer. "Have you found Jesus yet?"
Gasping, the man asked: "No! Are you sure this is where he fell in?"
The joke works because
baptism, which seems like it should be simple, actually confuses a lot of
people.
Why Baptism Looks So Different Across Churches
Some churches baptize
infants; others refuse to. Some sprinkle or pour water over people; others
insist on full immersion. Some denominations, like the Quakers, have given up
on baptism altogether and don't perform it at all. So why the divide?
Christians come from a wide
range of faith backgrounds, and those backgrounds shape very different
expectations about baptism:
·
Former Catholics often remember a formal process—parents choosing
godparents, confirmation classes, and structured sacramental preparation.
·
Some non-denominational traditions treat it far less formally; a
few even practice "spontaneous baptisms."
·
Former Presbyterians are used to baptism happening early,
sometimes within days of birth.
·
Former Baptists come from a tradition that considers baptism so
important it became part of their denominational name.
Baptists got their name for
taking baptism very seriously! I once heard a story about a man who moved from
one Baptist church to another and brought along a certificate, signed by his
old church, verifying he had already been baptized. His new church still
required him to be re-baptized, explaining that the certificate documented an
"alien baptism.[1]
Ephesians 4:4–5
states, "There is… one Lord, one faith, one
baptism." One baptism…
Is that wishful thinking?
View One: Believer's Baptism
Believer's Baptism is the
interpretation held by Baptist churches and many non-denominational
congregations (including mine). It rests on two core convictions.
#1: Baptism is a symbol. It does not save a person, physically wash away
sin, or impart grace. Nothing mystical occurs in the water itself. Instead,
baptism is a ceremony that celebrates a person's faith in Jesus—still
mandatory, still meaningful, but symbolic rather than salvific.
#2: Baptism happens after salvation. Because it celebrates
something that has already happened in a person's heart, baptism comes after
someone is saved, not before or simultaneously with it.
Baptism as a Symbol of the Gospel
Romans 6:3–4 (ESV) explains:
"Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into
death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of
the Father, we too might walk in newness of life."
Baptism visually depicts the
gospel story. As a person stands in the water, their body forms the shape of a
cross. Going under the water pictures the death of Jesus; rising back up
pictures his resurrection. This is why, when I baptize someone, I have the
candidate take a cross-like stance and asks whether they have come to the cross
of Jesus seeking forgiveness. The candidate is then lowered into the water with
the words "buried with him in the likeness of his death," and raised
with the words "raised with him in the likeness of his resurrection."
Galatians 3:27 (CSB) adds:
"For those of you who were baptized into Christ have been clothed with
Christ." Cultures around the world mark ceremonies by "clothing"
someone with a symbol of a new identity—a ring at a wedding, a hood and tassel
at graduation, an insignia in the military, etc. A judge wears a robe, a doctor
a white coat, an officer a badge. Baptism doesn't come with a literal garment,
but it functions the same way: a public marker that someone has become a
Christian.
Historically, the early
church baptized people in the nude! Removing garments pictured putting off the “old
self.” Afterward, new believers put on white robes—a picture of putting on the “new
self”—along with sandals that kept their feet from touching bare ground. [2]
Baptism also initiates a
believer into a local church. 1 Corinthians 12:13 (ESV) states: "For in one Spirit we were
all baptized into one body…" One of the most common misconceptions about
baptism is treating it as a “you and God” moment. Baptism, however, is not
strictly vertical; it is also horizontal as a "you and God
and the church" moment.
At a marriage ceremony, you
are married into a family.
At a scout ceremony, you are invited into a troop.
At a military ceremony, you are commissioned into a band of brothers or
sisters.
Likewise, when you are
baptized, you are joining with a local church family.
Baptism Happens After Salvation
Several passages establish
this sequence. Matthew 28:19–20 (ESV) reads: "Go therefore and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them…" Grammatically, "make
disciples" is the main command in the Great Commission, while
"baptizing" and "teaching" are participles that describe
how that main command is carried out—becoming a disciple (namely, salvation)
comes first, with baptism and teaching following.
Acts 2:41 states that
"those who received his word were baptized," and Acts 8:12 describes
people believing the gospel and then being baptized. Belief comes first, baptism
second.
Several New Testament character
seem to have been saved with no baptism mentioned at all: the thief on the
cross (Luke 23:39–43), who died before he could be baptized; the sinful woman
(Luke 7:37–50), to whom Jesus said, "your sins are forgiven, your faith
has saved you"; the tax collector (Luke 18:13–14), who "went down to
his house justified"; the paralytic man (Mark 2:5), told "your sins
are forgiven"; and Zacchaeus (Luke 19:9), told "today salvation has
come."
View Two: Baptismal Regeneration
If you’ve ever seen the film
O Brother, Where Art Thou?, you’ll
remember this scene: Delmar and his buddies stumble into a river baptism in
progress. Delmar jumps into line; the preacher asks no questions and simply
dunks him. Delmar emerges from the water, wet and shouting, "The preacher
done warshed all my sins and transgressions!" Is that how baptism works? Does
it “warsh” away our sins?
Baptism
as Salvific
1 Peter 3:21 (ESV) states:
"Baptism… saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an
appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus
Christ…" This verse is frequently comes up as proof that the act of
baptism itself washes away sin. I would encourage you to read the verse more careful,
though. Peter goes on the state that baptism doesn't save—what baptism symbolizes is what saves.
Titus 3:5 speaks of God
saving "by the washing of regeneration," and John 3:5 states that
"unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom
of God." Those who practice Baptismal Regeneration interpret these water
references as confirming that baptism washes sin away or that new birth happens
through the water itself.
Baptism Happens with Salvation
Other passages seem to link
belief and baptism together. Matthew 3:5–6 describes people baptized in the
Jordan "confessing their sins." Acts 22:16 instructs, "be
baptized and wash away your sins." Mark 16:16 states, "Whoever
believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be
condemned."
Do these verses mean both
faith AND baptism are required for salvation? (My answer is no!) Here’s how I would
explain it: if someone says "grab your keys and shoes, let's go,"
that doesn't mean one needs both keys and shoes to start the car—it only take a
car key to start the car. But you should also bring along your shoes, right?
View Three: Sacramental Grace
This view can be the hardest
to grasp for those who didn't grow up in a Presbyterian, Lutheran, or similar
tradition. According to Sacramental Grace, baptism is a sacrament: it
doesn't save a person, but it is more than merely symbolic.
Something is actually accomplished in baptism—many would say it "imparts
grace."
The word
"sacrament" comes from a Latin term related to
"mystery"—the idea being that God mysteriously imparts grace through
the sacraments.
Why Some Churches Baptize Infants
Some Christians have been
practicing infant baptism ever since the early church era. But where do they
get this practice? Follow with me as I summarize four points:
First, Old Testament
believers joined God's covenant through circumcision. Romans 4:11 (CSB) explains
that Abraham "received the sign of circumcision as a seal of… faith,"
making him "the father of all who believe." In the Old Testament,
most people were born into God's covenant family; circumcision,
performed on infant boys just days after birth, physically marked them as
people of God.
Second, New Testament
baptism replaces Old Testament circumcision. Colossians 2:11–12 (NLT) states that
"Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful
nature," and that believers "were buried with Christ" in
baptism. Circumcision symbolized the cutting away of the sinful
nature; baptism, likewise, symbolizes the washing away of sin. Neither
ritual literally forgives sin, but both mark one as part of God's covenant family.
Third, baptism links New
Testament believers to Old Testament believers. Galatians 3:27–29 (NIV)
states that those baptized into Christ are "Abraham's seed, and heirs
according to the promise." Just as Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were
circumcised as signs of the covenant, Christ was baptized as a sign of the new
covenant, and believers today follow that same pattern.
Fourth, this explains why
entire "households" appear baptized together in the New Testament: Lydia and her household in
Acts 16:15, the Philippian jailer and his family in Acts 16:33, and the
household of Stephanas in 1 Corinthians 1:16. If baptism functions like
circumcision once did, it makes sense that entire families—including
infants—would be baptized together. (Pastors like me, who follow Believer’s
Baptism, would say there is no evidence that infants are baptized in these
passages. “Household” could refer to only adults in the family, or it could
easily be the case that everyone in these families was old enough to understand
salvation.)
Summary of the Three Views
1. Believer's Baptism — Baptism is a symbol that someone has already received
salvation; it follows a personal profession of faith.
2. Baptismal Regeneration — Baptism is salvific and happens simultaneously with
salvation.
3. Sacramental Grace — Baptism is a sacrament that imparts grace and typically
happens before salvation, often practiced as infant baptism.
For those already baptized, this comparison is meant to deepen your understanding of baptism, and appreciation for the wonderful Presbyterians, Lutherans, Anglicans, and Baptists (and so on) out there. They do baptism differently from us, but we’re on the same team and reading the same book.
1. Roger Olson, Water Works: Why Baptism is Essential, Christianity Today, July/August 2014.
2. Scott McCullar, "The Path of Membership in the Early Church," Faith and Mission 19, no. 3 (2002): 23.