Baptism According to the Bible
May 17, 2007
Baptism is a subject that most people are relatively familiar with. The vast majority of churches seem to incorporate it in some form or another, but the baptism that many people practice is not the same as the baptism that the Bible describes. The Bible indicates who is eligible for baptism, how it is performed, and what it accomplishes. In each case, what the Bible describes is often different from what is commonly done today. Each of us will have to decide whether to adhere to the baptism that God has laid out in His Word or to accept the baptism that men have tried to replace God’s plan with.
The Bible shows who is eligible for baptism by both statement and example. According to Mark 16:16, belief accompanies baptism. Acts 8:26-38 contains the story of a man named Philip preaching the gospel to a man from Ethiopia. When the man asked “what [hindered] him from being baptized,” Philip’s reply was, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” In other words, belief was a prerequisite to baptism. As recorded in Acts 16:30, a Philippian jailer asked what he had to do in order to be saved. The response he got was that he needed to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 16:31). After hearing the gospel, he was baptized later that night (Acts 16:33). The Bible shows that for a person to be baptized, he or she must make a conscious decision and believe in Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, this biblical standard has been abandoned by many who baptize infants that are certainly incapable of making this decision or believing in Jesus Christ.
A second element of baptism that the Bible defines is how the physical act of baptism is performed. The baptism of the Bible is a full immersion in water. When the man from Ethiopia was baptized by Philip, he “went down into the water” and then “came up out of the water” (Acts 8:38+39). This immersive baptism fits the image of a burial and resurrection, which baptism is symbolic of (Romans 6:4, Colossians 2:11-13). Even the definition of the word supports the fact that it is an immersion. The word “baptism” that is found in the Bible has been translated from the original word “baptizo.” Thayer’s Lexicon defines this word as “to dip repeatedly, to immerge, submerge.” Strong’s Dictionary similarly defines it as “to immerse, submerge; to make whelmed (i.e. fully wet).” A common practice today is to baptize by sprinkling, but this neither fits the definition of the word “baptism” nor follows the standard that is found in the Bible.
Finally, the Bible indicates what baptism accomplishes. 1st Peter 3:21 says, “There is also an antitype which now saves us " baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” As 1st Peter 3:21 states, we are saved by being baptized. Using a biblical example, the same conclusion must be drawn. Before the Philippian Jailer was baptized, he had asked the question “what must I do to be saved?” Even though many people today say differently, the Bible says that baptism saves.
The Bible’s definition of baptism " who it is for, how it is done, and what it accomplishes " is clearly different from that of many, or even most, people today. We each need to decide which definition to follow. If we are going to claim belief in the Bible, then we must follow the Bible’s standard and not a man-made tradition (Matthew 15:3-9, Colossians 2:8).
The Bible shows who is eligible for baptism by both statement and example. According to Mark 16:16, belief accompanies baptism. Acts 8:26-38 contains the story of a man named Philip preaching the gospel to a man from Ethiopia. When the man asked “what [hindered] him from being baptized,” Philip’s reply was, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” In other words, belief was a prerequisite to baptism. As recorded in Acts 16:30, a Philippian jailer asked what he had to do in order to be saved. The response he got was that he needed to “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 16:31). After hearing the gospel, he was baptized later that night (Acts 16:33). The Bible shows that for a person to be baptized, he or she must make a conscious decision and believe in Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, this biblical standard has been abandoned by many who baptize infants that are certainly incapable of making this decision or believing in Jesus Christ.
A second element of baptism that the Bible defines is how the physical act of baptism is performed. The baptism of the Bible is a full immersion in water. When the man from Ethiopia was baptized by Philip, he “went down into the water” and then “came up out of the water” (Acts 8:38+39). This immersive baptism fits the image of a burial and resurrection, which baptism is symbolic of (Romans 6:4, Colossians 2:11-13). Even the definition of the word supports the fact that it is an immersion. The word “baptism” that is found in the Bible has been translated from the original word “baptizo.” Thayer’s Lexicon defines this word as “to dip repeatedly, to immerge, submerge.” Strong’s Dictionary similarly defines it as “to immerse, submerge; to make whelmed (i.e. fully wet).” A common practice today is to baptize by sprinkling, but this neither fits the definition of the word “baptism” nor follows the standard that is found in the Bible.
Finally, the Bible indicates what baptism accomplishes. 1st Peter 3:21 says, “There is also an antitype which now saves us " baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” As 1st Peter 3:21 states, we are saved by being baptized. Using a biblical example, the same conclusion must be drawn. Before the Philippian Jailer was baptized, he had asked the question “what must I do to be saved?” Even though many people today say differently, the Bible says that baptism saves.
The Bible’s definition of baptism " who it is for, how it is done, and what it accomplishes " is clearly different from that of many, or even most, people today. We each need to decide which definition to follow. If we are going to claim belief in the Bible, then we must follow the Bible’s standard and not a man-made tradition (Matthew 15:3-9, Colossians 2:8).