Baptism

By Steve Atkerson
The objective of the previous article on baptism was to point out that the meaning of the Greek word baptizo is "immerse." As even the affusionist John Calvin admitted, "it is evident that the term 'baptism' means immerse, and that this was the form used by the primitive church" (Lectures in Systematic Theology, Thiessen, 425). numerous non-immersionists who define baptizo as submerge were quoted (though they discounted the need slavishly to copy the NT mode). Whatever one's conviction on the meaning of baptizo, I fully agree with Jon Zens that "the mode of baptism cannot become a point of division in the body of Christ. Each assembly must study the matter and be persuaded from the Word as to what they should do" (Searching Together, Vol. 15:3-4, p. 20).

Whatever the mode, what is the purpose of baptism? John the Baptist explicitly stated the purpose of his baptism when he said, "I baptize you with water for repentance" (Mt 3:11). Did John baptize them so that they could repent or because they already had repented? Was John's baptism a means to repentance or the result of repentance? In both English and Greek, "for" (eis) can refer to either an objective (I left "for" home) or a cause (I cried "for" joy). In Mt 3:11, "for" denotes a cause; John's baptism came because the baptisand had already repented. It was an outward sign of an inward act. For instance, when many of the Pharisees came to be baptized, John condemned them as a "brood of vipers" because they had not yet repented (Mt 3:7-10). Thus, when Luke wrote that John was "preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins" (3:3), he meant that John's baptism was symbolic of a person's repentance in order to be forgiven. It was not a "baptism for forgiveness" but rather a baptism that expressed "repentance for forgiveness." Incidentally, "repent" is from metanoia and means "a change of thinking." As such, it is a close parallel to faith; one never occurs without the other. John urged men to change their thinking about sin (Mt 3:6) and to believe in the one coming after him, that is, Jesus (Jn 1:6-9; Ac 19:4).

However, John's baptism was preparatory and, as such, was not a full Christian baptism. In Ac 19:1-7, Paul required those in Ephesus who had received only John's baptism to be re-baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. What then is the purpose of this Christian baptism? At the very least it serves as sort of a "rite of initiation" (New Testament Theology, D. Guthrie, 738) into the fellowship of those who have, like the baptisand, believed in Jesus (New Bible Dictionary, J. D. G. Dunn, 122). However, beyond its function as a mere rite of entry, there are certain other implications. I use the word "implications" because, as R. L. Dabney observed, there is "an absence of all set explanations of its meaning in the New Testament, and at the same time, of all appearance of surprise at its novelty" (Lectures in Systematic Theology, 759). This, Dabney believed, is because the meaning of baptism is rooted in Old Covenant ceremonial law and symbolizes purification from sins. The OT is replete with examples of ceremonial cleansings accomplished through the use of water (Nu 19:11-21; 31:21-24). Thus, the Jews were not surprised that John the Baptist used water graphically to portray repentance and forgiveness of sins (Mk 1:4). Further, water is nature's detergent, a cleansing agent well suited to the symbolism of purification. Notice how Ananias told Paul to "be baptized and wash your sins away . . ." (Ac 22:16), and that Peter associated baptism with forgiveness in Ac 2:38.

Perhaps the most telling purpose of water baptism is found in such passages as Mt 3:11: "I immerse (baptizo) you in water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I . . . . He will immerse (baptizo) you in the Holy Spirit . . ." Immersion into water also symbolizes our immersion into the Holy Spirit. In Ac 1:5 Jesus told his disciples, "John immersed (baptizo) in water, but in a few days you will be immersed (baptizo) in the Holy Spirit." This promised immersion into the Spirit began on the day of Pentecost. Peter quoted Joel's prediction that Yahweh would "pour out" (ekcheo) His Spirit on His people and declared it fulfilled (Ac 2:17,33). A similar declaration was made by Peter in Ac 11:15-17 when the Holy Spirit "came on" the Gentiles and he remembered what the Lord had said in Ac 1:5. Peter then asked, "Can anyone keep these people from being immersed in water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have" (Ac 10:47).

Since God promised to "pour out" (ekcheo, Ac 2:33: 10:45) His Spirit, wouldn't pouring water be a more fitting mode of baptism? Well perhaps, if it could be shown that baptizo ever meant "pour"; but there is no lexical evidence that it ever meant anything other than "immerse." Those who believe in pouring argue that Ac 1:5 (viewed in light of ekcheo in 2:33) is just such a case where baptizo means "pour out." But this is faulty reasoning. One might just as forcefully argue that ekcheo in Ac 2:33 really means "immerse" since it is paralleled with baptizo in Ac 10:44-48! A more likely explanation for ekcheo in Ac 2:33 is that, just as in the days of Noah when God opened the flood-gates of heaven and poured forth the waters resulting in the immersion of every living creature (except those with Noah), so at Pentecost God poured out the Holy Spirit resulting in the immersion of His people into the Spirit.

Based on Romans 6 some groups have contended that immersion into water portrays our spiritual death, burial and resurrection with Christ. Often repeated during baptism is the phrase, "buried with Him through baptism into death, we are raised to walk in newness of life." This, however, is not an appropriate association with immersion. First, notice the complete absence of the word "water" in Rom 6; the immersion of Rom 6 is "into his death" and refers to our spiritual baptism (the regenerating work of the Spirit wherein we are placed into Christ), not water baptism. Second, burials in the Roman world were typically in tombs that could be repeatedly accessed, not six feet under ground and covered with dirt. Water may portray a modern "liquid grave" but it is not like a Hebrew tomb (hewn above ground out of rock and sealed with a boulder).

Thus, immersion is an act that serves as a rite of initiation (or entry) into the fellowship of believers, and it symbolizes repentance, purification from sins and immersion into the Holy Spirit. Having observed what baptism is, it remains to examine what it is not; i.e., a means of salvation. Those who believe in baptismal regeneration teach that there is no forgiveness apart from baptism. Often quoted are Mt 16:16; Ac 2:38; 22:16; Rom 6:1-7; Tit 3:5; and 1 Pt 3:18-21. The essential problem with this view is the failure to see that baptism (like any other act of obedience) is not a means to salvation, it is the result of salvation. It is symbolic, not salvific. Admittedly one would wonder about the genuineness of someone claiming to believe in Christ yet refusing baptism; still the fact remains that baptism is a fruit, not the root. Interestingly, every group that believes in baptismal regeneration also holds to either a Pelagian or Arminian view of human nature and God's grace; as Dabney said, "These facts are too uniform for chance: they betray a causation" (Lectures, 742). The subject of baptismal regeneration will be the focus of the next article.