"Make Your Mark for Christ in 2010"

Baptism

Do I have to be baptized in order to be saved?

The answer is 'no'

Most religions in the world have some form of baptism as part of their doctrine.  And the differences in their beliefs vary widely.  So what does God's Word say about baptism?

1.  Baptism is an act of obedience.

Jesus set the example for us.  His baptism was an act of submission...

Matthew 3
13  Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
14  But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?
15  And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

Jesus desired to be baptized in order to fulfill all righteousness.  In other words Jesus wanted to accomplish every thing that His Father commanded Him to do.  He was submissive.

When we read about His baptism in the book of Mark we see that God the Father was pleased with this act of obedience...

Mark 1
9  And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.
10  And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
11  And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

We are commanded to be baptized, our submission is pleasing to God and Jesus set the example for us.

We see this example of obedience also in the book of Acts...

  • The Ethiopian eunuch - Acts 8:36-39
  • The apostle Paul - Acts 9:18
  • The Philippian jailer and his house - Acts 16:25-33
In all of those examples, the believers submitted to baptism as the first act of obedience after getting saved.

But is there a purpose that God has for commanding us to do this...

2.  Baptism is a public testimony of a new converts faith.

Whenever anyone turns to Jesus for salvation they are reborn as a new creature.  The bible says that their old nature is killed.  The bible refers to this as the "old man" being crucified.

Romans 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

When I was saved I was baptized into the death of Jesus...

Romans 6:3  Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

And just as Jesus was resurrected from the dead, so I have been saved to walk in a newness of life...

Romans 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

So when a new believer submits to baptism they are picturing what has occurred to them from their salvation.  Buried under the water and raise to life out of the water.  It is a public testimony of what God has done for us.  We died to our old life and have been reborn into God's family and now walk in a newness of life.

3.  Baptism is not a requirement of salvation.

Is baptism necessary in order to get to Heaven?  The answer is 'no'.  The only requirement to get to Heaven is to be born into God's family.  That happens when we recognize our need of a savior, recognize that Jesus is the only one who can save us, and call upon Him for that salvation.  Baptism then is the first act of obedience after we have been saved.  The example of this is seen in the salvation and baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts chapter 8.

Philip had encountered the Ethiopian eunuch and was teaching him about Jesus and how to be saved.  Then the eunuch asked "what doth hinder me to be baptized?".  Philip's answer was that the only condition for baptism was belief.  And belief is the only requirement of salvation.  So Phillip is telling the eunuch that if he is saved then he may be baptized.


Acts 8
35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
36  And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
37  And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
38  And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.

The biblical example then is believing on Jesus for salvation followed by baptism.  Another example of this is a man named Crispus and his family...

Acts 18:8  And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized.

4.  Baptism is an important part of spiritual growth.

We do not get saved by any works of our own, whether that be baptism or any other good works.  The Lord Jesus did all of the work needed to bring about our salvation.  And now that we are saved and have the assurance of going to Heaven, God desires us to respond back to Him in loving obedience to the love that He has shown us.  God has a plan for our lives.  He saved us with this plan in mind...

Ephesians 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

So God has a plan for our lives, and He created us in such a way that we will find true happiness when we walk in this plan.  We discover this plan as we walk with Him.  We obey the things that we know that He desires us to accomplish, and then as we spend time in the bible His Holy Spirit reveals to us more details about the plan that God has for us.  That plan will be different for each of us, however some of the details will be the same.  One of those is baptism.  A new believer will not likely know much about God's plan for their life.  But they can know that the first thing that God wants them to do is baptism.  That makes baptism essential for spiritual growth.

Jesus made it clear that He reveals Himself to those who are obedient to Him.

John 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

Baptism then is not a requirement of salvation, but is essential for spiritual growth.  We cannot expect God to reveal Himself to us if we are not obedient, and the first act of that obedience is baptism.

At New Hope we love to see people who have been saved to follow Jesus in baptism.