Baptism: The Outward Witness
If you have believed on Jesus
Christ as your Lord and Saviour, your sins have been forgiven and you have
been saved from eternal condemnation (see Assurance of
Salvation). The next step in obedience to the Lord Jesus is to be
baptized...
"Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not
believe will be condemned." (Mark 16:16)
The Lord Jesus made clear that by believing one is saved (and
likewise by not believing one already stands condemned). Baptism does not save,
and has no value apart from prior saving faith in Christ - for example, infant
baptism (an infant or young child is not held accountable for sin) or
ritualistic baptism into a religion or denomination (without experiencing
spiritual regeneration in Christ) are man-made traditions, having no value in God's sight (the Bible gives no spiritual authority to these).
However, if you have been born again through faith in the saving power of Jesus' death and resurrection, nothing (except being at your deathbed at the time you accept
Jesus Christ) should hinder you from being baptized as soon as possible. Your
obedience to Jesus' command to be baptized is the outward sign that you have
wholeheartedly repented of your sins and believed upon Him...
"...in Him you have been made complete...having been buried with Him
in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in
the working of God, who raised Him from the dead." (Colossians 2:10,12)
"For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in
order that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but
made alive in the Spirit...
And corresponding to that, baptism now
saves you - not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a
good conscience - through the resurrection of Jesus Christ..." (1Peter
3:18,21)
Baptism is not the physical washing away of your sins. Your sins were
completely washed away by the once-and-for-all shed blood of the Lord
Jesus Christ when you accepted Him as your Saviour:
"...how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit
offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works
to serve the living God?" (Hebrews 9:14)
"Since therefore, brethren, we have confidence to enter the holy place by
the blood of Jesus...let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of
faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our body
washed with pure water"
(Hebrews 10:19,22)
"He saved us...by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the
Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our
Savior..." (Titus 3:5,6)
"Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things
passed away; behold, new things have come" (2Corinthians 5:17)
When you first believed, you received the inward witness of the Holy
Spirit (see Assurance of
Salvation). Baptism is the outward witness that your sins have been
forgiven and your conscience has been washed clean by the blood of Jesus Christ.
"Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into
death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the
Father, so we too might walk in newness of life...knowing this, that our old
self was crucified with Him, that our body of sin might be made powerless, that
we should not longer be slaves to sin...For the death that He died, He died to
sin, once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider
yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus." (Romans
6:4,6,10-11)
Just as Jesus was raised from the dead unto eternal life, so baptism
testifies that your old life died with Christ, and through faith in Him you are
raised to a new "resurrection life". By receiving baptism you are professing
that you have died to sin and are pledging a good conscience before God, and
thus the start of a new life in Jesus Christ.
The early disciples were baptized by complete immersion (just as the
Lord Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist) immediately following their new
faith in Christ, regardless of any previous baptisms. They were baptized in the
name of the Lord Jesus. Although the Holy Spirit had enlightened them when they
believed on the Lord Jesus, many received the baptism of the Holy Spirit (with
manifestations of spiritual gifts) by the laying on of hands by the apostles:
"...Paul...found some disciples, and he said to them, 'Did you
receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?'
And they said to him, 'No, we
have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.'
And he said, 'Into what
then were you baptized?'
And they said, 'Into John's baptism.'
And Paul
said, 'John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to
believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.' And when they heard
this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had
laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking
with tongues and prophesying."
(Acts 19:1-6)
If you have not been baptized since you were born again in Christ, or if your
baptism did not involve full immersion, express to your born again Christian pastor that you would like to be biblically baptized...
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