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Christian Water Baptism
Why Do Christians Baptize in Water?

What is the purpose of Christian water baptism?

Every Christian denomination has its opinion on the matter. In order to assess those opinions historically, we really need to get ourselves in the right frame of mind.

My son Noah's baptism at age 17

A Water Baptism Story

The evangelist's eyes swept the horizon. Nothing.

This is where the Lord had told him to wait, he reminded himself. He wasn't going to let doubt creep in.

He wiped sweat from his brow and even from his eyelashes. Unlike deserts in the yet undiscovered new world, Israeli deserts are humid due to warm, moist air blowing over from the Persian Gulf.

Then he saw it. A caravan moving slowly at an angle away from him. He ran towards it, unsure exactly what he was supposed to do.

As he got closer, he saw a large and beautifully adorned chariot drawn by four horses. In it sat a large, dark eunuch, obviously of some importance. He recognized the insignias as Ethiopian.

"Go to that chariot," Philip heard the Lord whisper in his heart.

The Apostle Philip as represented at St. Isaac Cathedral in St. Petersburg, Russia

He obeyed immediately.

As Philip approached, he heard someone reading as the eunuch listened in his chair. As he came alongside the chariot, watched carefully by guards with large swords and equally large muscles with which to brandish them, he realized that it was Isaiah that was being read.

Quietly, a guard pointed in Philip's direction, and the eunuch turned.

Philip didn't hesitate. "Do you understand what is being read to you?"

The eunuch took note of the sweating traveler. He smiled and motioned for Philip to climb into the chariot with him.

You know the rest of this story. Philip explained that Isaiah 53 referred to Jesus, the Christ of God, and he showed him many other prophecies which told that the Christ would suffer, die, rise from the dead, and send the Holy Spirit to those who believe in him.

As they finally came upon water in the midst of that desert, the eunuch asked if he could be baptized.

He did?

Why?

Would you have mentioned baptism in explaining prophecies about Christ?

I think it is fair to say that Philip thought water baptism somewhat more important than the average Evangelical.

Water Baptism in Christian History
and in the Scriptures

The historical and Biblical record on the purpose of water baptism is remarkably clear and simple.

I am going to show you two things ...

• The purpose of water baptism was clear and unchanged from the time of the apostles until after the Protestant Reformation.
• The purpose of water baptism is just as clear and consistent in Scripture

Then I'm going to explain two things (thinking many of my readers are Evangelical) ...

• Why the historical view should not be offensive to Evangelicals
• Why and how Evangelicals confuse themselves on this issue

Clarity and Consistency about Water Baptism in Christian History

An excellent example of the clarity was a comment I read in a book by David Bercot.

1709 depiction of Peter baptizing Cornelius by Francesco Trevisani

Bercot noted that most Evangelicals do not believe that John 3:5 is a reference to baptism. John 3:5 says that unless a person is "born of water and the Spirit" he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Since Evangelicals generally believe that water baptism is a public testimony having nothing to do with salvation, they usually see the water in that verse as referring to our physical birth.

Bercot's comment on this is notable.

"If Jesus," he says, "didn't mean water baptism in this verse, then he is a terrible communicator because everyone without exception for the next 1600 years thought he did."

Example:
John 3:5 in Church History

Justin Martyr is a great example of this. After saying that new converts were "brought by us where there is water and regenerated in the same way that we were regenerated," he adds, "For Christ also said, 'Unless you are born again, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven'" (First Apology 61).

There, Justin ties not only John 3:5, but even John 3:3 to baptism!

That is the earliest known reference to John 3:5. The next is just as clear, and it is from one of the most respected 2nd-century Christians. Irenaeus was taught by Polycarp, who knew the apostle John, then later became a missionary to barbarians of the tribe of Gaul.

About 30 years after Justin, he wrote ...

I could show you dozens more passages like this. From the very earliest days of the church, Christians consistently spoke of baptism in this way.

Of course, the question for all of us from an Evangelical background is whether what they said is Scriptural.

What Do the Scriptures Say About Water Baptism?

Much of the doctrinal controversies between churches boil down to a matter of interpretation.

Not on water baptism. These verses interpret themselves. Ignoring John 3:5, which we've already looked at, here's the more important ones:

Mark 16:16

He that believes and is baptized shall be saved; he that does not believe will be condemned.

Acts 2:38

Repent and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 16:33

And [the Philippian jailer] took [Paul and Silas] at the same hour of the night and washed their wounds. Then he and his [household] were all baptized immediately.

Acts 22:16

What are you waiting for? Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord

Romans 6:3

Don't you know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ were baptized into his death?

1 Cor. 12:13

For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body.

Galatians 3:27

For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Colossians 2:11-12

In [Christ] you are also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, putting off the the body of sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ, buried with him in baptism, in which you are also raised in him by faith in the working of God, who has raised him from the dead.

1 Peter 3:20-21

The patience of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few—that is, eight—souls were saved by water. This is a figure of baptism, which saves us now—not by washing dirt from the flesh, but by a request to God for [or from] a good conscience, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

I simply cannot imagine how these verses can be interpreted any way but the obvious one, especially combined with the universal testimony of every early Christian writer on the subject.

There's not one deviant voice—among anyone we'd want to call a Christian—for 1600 years!

But I know what really matters to us as Evangelicals—the crucial, core issue ...

What you really want to know is if baptism is tied to being born again, to the forgiveness of sins, to entering Christ, to salvation, and to spiritual circumcision, then does this mean that anyone who is not baptized is not saved?

Does This Mean That Anyone Not Baptized Is Not Saved?

No.

At the very least, we have to admit there is some room for exceptions. The thief on the cross was saved without being baptized.

Waiting to Baptize in Early Christianity

In the Book of Acts, we find that the apostles didn't wait any time to baptize. The Philippian jailer was baptized in the middle of the night even though Paul could have sent him to the small church he'd already started and which is mentioned the next day (Acts 16:40).

However, from the very earliest Christian writings after the New Testament, we find at least a couple days of fasting prescribed before baptism. It appears that the church was frustrated with people who were baptized, then fell away, and they were looking for some additional commitment.

From The Didache or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, around A.D. 100:

Later that time would expand to a week, and by the early 3rd century it was common to do all baptisms on Passover every year, when Christians celebrated the death of Christ. (The resurrection was celebrated every Sunday; no kneeling or fasting were allowed because it was a day of rejoicing—Tertullian, De Corona 3, c. A.D. 210.)

If a person was killed while they were awaiting baptism, the early Christians referred to it as a baptism in blood, and they believed that the person would be saved.

Thus, the same tradition that verifies baptism for the remission of sins also allows for salvation apart from baptism in special cases.

Why We Cannot Condemn Those Baptized the "Wrong" Way

Please note that we who are Evangelicals claim to be followers of Scripture. Thus, the only appropriate response to the things written on this page is for us to abandon our incorrect view and stop saying that baptism is merely a public testimony.

It is not a public testimony. Paul baptized the Philippian jailer in the middle of the night, apart from the church, with only his own family present. Scripture teaches that it is the place where our sins are forgiven, where we are joined to Christ, and thus, where we are born again. (In fact, there's little doubt that the "washing of regeneration"—or "rebirth"—in Titus 3:5 is a reference to baptism.)

However, from a Scriptural standpoint and from experience with God, it seems ludicrous to suggest that so many modern followers of Christ do not have their sins forgiven because they were taught a wrong view of baptism and they prayed a sinner's prayer in its place.

1. Baptism is a request to God, not a magical potion.

Peter calls baptism a request to God for (or from) a good conscience (1 Pet. 3:21). It is not a magical potion.

When a person believes, he makes an initial act of faith. Today, most Evangelicals have replaced baptism with a "sinner's prayer," which has no Scriptural precedent whatsoever. Baptism was what the apostles prescribed as an initial act of faith.

As a result, because it was the initial act of faith, it was the place where sins were washed away.

That is why Ananias told Paul, "Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16). Baptism was Paul's sinner's prayer that day, and Ananias knew that.

On the other hand, God has always made exceptions. Cornelius was an exception, for example. Peter didn't know that it was acceptable to baptize Gentiles, and had he not seen God pour the Holy Spirit out on Cornelius, he would never have baptized him (Acts 10:47).

Exceptions should not cancel out the norm, but they should be taken into account ...

2. God has always been a God of exceptions.

It would be impossible to list all the exceptions God has endorsed, but let's take a shot at listing some:

• Although many kings were commended for repenting of offering sacrifices on high places, and the Law prescribes sacrificing only at the temple or tabernacle, God sent Saul to be anointed as king by Samuel while Samuel was offering sacrifices on a high place (1 Sam. 9:11ff). He also ordered David, who was not a priest, to offer sacrifices on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite (2 Sam. 24:18).
• The Scriptures commend Joseph as a good man for disobeying the Law and not having Mary stoned when he thought she had slept with some other man before their marriage (Matt. 1:19 with Deut. 22:20-22).
• Similarly, Jesus chose not to enforce the Law in the matter of the woman caught in adultery (Jn. 8:3-11).

Anyone who has read the entire Bible knows how often God seems not to enforce his own laws. On what possible basis, for example, could someone as unrighteous as Samson end up as judge of Israel?

So would the God we find in Scripture strictly enforce the need for a person to get wet in order to forgive their sins? Is that anything like the God we know?

3. Faith is at the heart of salvation.

We have seen that there are plenty of Scriptures, as well as historic, unanimous testimony by primitive Christians, that tie baptism to salvation; however, is it possible to miss the fact that it is faith that really matters?

Abraham is said to be the father of faith. He is never said to be the father of baptism.

Faith, belief, and believing are mentioned 267 times in the letters of the apostles. Baptism or baptize is used just 15 times.

Thus, I make no apologies for suggesting that God has forgiven the sins of those who have faith but who have received a wrong teaching about baptism from misguided Evangelicals like us.

Again, I want to emphasize that if we are Evangelicals—Bible believers, as we claim—then we ought to return to Biblical belief and practice and quit being misguided. (See below.)

4. A Christian is known by his life, not his baptism

The letter we know as 1 John was written "that we may know we have eternal life."

What tests does he give us to know whether we have eternal life?

Over and over John says we can test ourselves by whether we keep God's commands (2:3-4), love (4:7), and have the witness of the Spirit (3:24).

John uses terms of certainty like "everyone" repeatedly.

• Everyone that loves is born of God (4:7).
• In this way we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.
• He that practices righteousness is righteous, just as [Christ] is righteous ... In this the children of God and the children of the devil are apparent: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is he that does not love his brother.

How Did We Get Baptism So Wrong?

The answer to this question is a lot easier than you might think.

Martin Luther—who did not get baptism wrong but maintained a Catholic understanding of baptism till his death—was delivered from his torturous conscience by the preaching of faith from Johann Staupitz.

Martin Luther is easily the most influential historical figure among Evangelicals.

From Martin Luther, Protestants gained a strong emphasis on faith.

That emphasis on faith has become so strong in the modern age that many Evangelicals are willing to interpret any subject using Scriptures on faith. That is especially true of baptism.

Most Evangelicals develop their teaching about baptism from Scriptures on faith. If they do address any verses that actually mention baptism, it's just to explain them away.

Anyone who simply looks at the verses on baptism—for example, as they are listed above on this page—will be struck by how consistent and clear they are.

Most Evangelicals never do that.

Instead, any time someone says the things I'm saying on this page—even if they do it the way I am doing it, by simply quoting verses—is met with verses and comments about faith. Unknowingly, Evangelicals that believe in the public testimony version of baptism usually ignore pretty much every verse on baptism in the New Testament unless they are explaining them away.

It's a very sad state of affairs.

But one we can correct!