"Then
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse
you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you a new
heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of
your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you
and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do
them”.
Water baptism is a precious testimony of the work of God in salvation. It
shows how true believers are cleansed from their sin and unrighteousness, are
purified by the power of the Spirit, and are brought into fellowship with God
through Christ. Baptism remains a controversial subject among Christians
today, and yet it is clearly an important part of the New Testament church.
Though this pamphlet will not deal in depth with all the various beliefs
surrounding this ordinance, we will try to briefly present our understanding
of baptism to help us to appreciate its relationship to the covenant of grace
and our redemption.
A SACRAMENT:
A sacrament, as
defined by The Westminster Confession, “is
a sign and seal of the covenant of grace. This covenant is the plan of
salvation revealed to fallen mankind, which promises eternal life and
fellowship with God to all who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for their
salvation.
God was
pleased to give His people various signs (or "pictures") throughout
Scripture to visibly represent His work in redemption. The water in baptism
represents God's purifying work in our hearts and lives by washing us clean
from our iniquities.” The
first passage above, in Ezekiel promises this work, not just by outwardly
washing our bodies, but also by inwardly changing our disposition to sin (1
Peter 3.21). This is indeed a gracious and amazing promise!
MEANING:
When Adam disobeyed God in the covenant of works and fell, he brought
physical and spiritual death to himself and all his progeny. Fellowship was
broken between God and His creatures, and all men were born in sin and were
rebellious towards God (Romans 3: 9-18).
Yet God was gracious - He revealed His plan of salvation
in the covenant of grace. The Lord promised that He would reconcile sinners to
Himself through a Redeemer, and this plan would include changing the hearts of
His people from rebellion to faith, and from depravity to obedience. The Lord
even now promises that all who come to trust in Christ will have their sins
atoned for in Christ and will be imputed with His righteousness.
Baptism
represents this radical change of heart as His Spirit brings the sinners to
faith, repentance, and obedience through the processes of regeneration and
sanctification. "He saved us, not on
the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His
mercy, by the washing of regeneration and the renewing by the Holy Spirit,
whom He poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being
justified through His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of
eternal life." (Titus 3.5-7)
Justified
through His grace... Is there a sweeter phrase in the human tongue to the ear
of a despairing sinner? Not only does God promise to remove the evil from our
hearts, He promises to clear us from the guilt of our sin through the blood of
His Son. Baptism reflects this as well:
"Arise and be baptized, and
wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord." (Acts
22.16) Though water baptism does not save, it is
meant to picture God's cleansing work in and for us. The sign itself will not
justify you before God; rather, it points to the covenant of grace, which does
save and justify.
These
two aspects of our salvation were also present in the Old Testament, as God
applied redemption through the covenant of grace to His people before Christ
came. However, instead of using baptism as the sign of the covenant, He used
circumcision. We know that Abraham was told to be circumcised and to
circumcise his children as a sign of this covenant (Genesis
17: 10-11). Yet circumcision was more than just a
ritual, it had a much deeper meaning as well. Circumcision was not only an
outward ceremony, but it also pictured an inner spiritual significance. ”For
he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is
outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is
of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from
men, but from God." (Romans
2: 28-29)
Moses
and the prophets alluded to this circumcision of the heart in many places as
well. In Deuteronomy 30: 6, Moses
tells the people, "Moreover the Lord
your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love
the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you may
live." This change of heart closely
parallels the promise given in the passage in Ezekiel
36 (above), with the exception that Moses spoke of circumcision, while
Ezekiel spoke of being sprinkled with water. The apostle Paul seems to tie
these ceremonies together in
Colossians 2: 11-12: "In Him you were also circumcised with a
circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh by
the circumcision of Christ; 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."
APPLICATION:
Through faith we are given Christ
and His benefits. Again, it is not the sign of the covenant that saves,
whether circumcision or baptism; we are saved only by grace alone through
faith alone in Christ alone. The outward signs of the covenant are meant to
picture the inward work of God in redemption, whether it is through the
removal of the fleshly "foreskin" of the heart in the Old Testament
by circumcision, or by the washing of regeneration and the cleansing of our
fleshly hearts through baptism in the New Testament.
As
God's Spirit was poured out on the Jews and Gentiles in the New Testament,
many were baptized to represent God's work within them. The apostles were
given the charge to spread the Gospel to all nations, and as people were
brought into the church, to baptize them with water in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Though
controversial, we believe that the sign of the covenant was to be applied to
believers as they came into the church and to their children. Our
understanding for this practice of infant baptism is based upon the following:
- the
covenant of grace extends through both testaments
- both
circumcision and baptism are signs of this covenant
- as
circumcision admitted Old Testament people into the church, so also does
baptism admit New Testament believers into the church
- though
different in outward ceremony, circumcision and baptism both represent the
same aspects of redemption (much the same as the Passover paralleled the
Lord's Supper)
- the
covenant sign was applied to adults, children and infants in a family
context in the Old Testament;
the New Testament seems to also carry this idea over, as whole
- households
were baptized and the apostles regularly spoke within a family context
(such as
1 Corinthians 7: 12-14)
Peter
seems to echo the promise given to Abraham in
Acts 2.39, "For the promise is for you and your children and
for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to
Himself." Notice that the promise is not
just limited to those who presently believe, but also to their children and to
those far off. In recognition of this promise we apply the sign of the
covenant to our children. And yet, this promise rests ultimately upon the
Lord's calling and election. Not all children of believers are automatically
saved, as the Biblical record shows, or are "all" who are far off
automatically saved either. Baptizing individuals outwardly, whether adults or
infants, does not save them; salvation depends upon the inner efficacy of the
Holy Spirit, the inward baptism of the heart, which is accomplished in
accordance with God's eternal decree of election.
Thus,
should an unbeliever (as an infant or as an adult) come to Christ after being
baptized, we would recognize that the work of the Lord, which their baptism
had signified, had indeed been accomplished in that person by His amazing
grace. We would not rebaptize that person, but would instead rejoice with
them.
MODE:
This sacrament is rightly administered when it is
accompanied by the teaching of God's Word, is applied by water, and is done in
the name of the Triune God. Though a minister of the Gospel should administer
it, the testimony which baptism represents ultimately rests upon God Himself,
not the minister. It is God's promise and His work that is signified in
baptism.
Water
is used to represent God's cleansing and purification of His people; however,
how the water was applied to people in the Bible is not entirely clear. Though
immersion is commonly practiced today and is an allowable form, we find little
Scriptural support for this specific mode. Generally we apply the water
through sprinkling or pouring. Sprinkling represents God's work in
purification and this mode can be seen throughout Scripture (Exodus
24: 8, Hebrews 9: 10-24, 1 Peter 1: 2). Pouring
represents God's work in sending out His Spirit to regenerate and sanctify
those that are His (Joel 2: 29, Zechariah 12:
10, Romans 5: 5).
With
all the diverse opinions and teachings on baptism, it may seem like the best
thing to do would be to ignore the doctrine altogether. It is true that the
issues involved are complex as they relate to the interpretation and
application of Scripture. Yet baptism is an essential part of the church, and
it is a topic worthy of our attention and study. This keeps us from following
rituals and ceremonies without understanding
But
more importantly, baptism should never eclipse the precious Gospel. Our faith
must be firmly founded upon Christ, for He promises,
"the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast
out." (John 6.37) As
we understand our sin and His grace, we may better appreciate the work God has
done to redeem us from condemnation!
...in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.