If anyone has ever been acquainted with Christianity, he has surely noticed that the rite of baptism is present in this movement. Regardless of denomination, admission into church membership everywhere takes place through water baptism. But it is performed differently in different places. In some places there is sprinkling and anointing with water, in others pouring, and elsewhere complete immersion beneath the water.
What is baptism? Why is it necessary? What does it mean? Can one dispense with this rite and still have God’s blessings?
Baptism is the rite of dedicating a person to a special relationship with God. This act has a Heavenly origin and is a symbolic covenant with God, giving the right to special Divine blessings and indicating that the person spiritually belongs to the Lord.
Immersion in water is a symbol of death to sin and to this world, while coming out of the water is a symbol of resurrection unto Eternal Life.
Baptism is not salvation and does not grant it automatically. Salvation comes from Jesus Christ. But through water baptism I receive the right to salvation by faith in Jesus. It is the condition that cannot be bypassed in order to enter into a personal relationship with God and become part of the New Covenant with Him.
Before the beginning of Christ’s mission, the circumcision of a man’s foreskin served as the symbol of the Covenant with God. Women became partakers of this Covenant only by faith. The death of Christ abolished this rite.
By His example of being baptized by John, Jesus showed His attitude toward this act and called it all righteousness that must be fulfilled. In this way He established the symbol of entering into a special relationship with God.
Baptism is like a marriage ceremony. There is something very similar in it that reveals its meaning more fully. Water baptism is a marriage vow with Christ, in which I declare my desire to belong to God and to be His possession, while the Lord gives me the right to possess all the promised Heavenly blessings by virtue of my faith in Jesus Christ. It is a testimony to the entire visible and invisible world that our relationship is lawful and that God receives the full right to participate personally in my life—as a Spouse, as the Head of the Church, and as a Teacher. We enter into the closest relationship with God, and on the condition of faithfulness and obedience we develop our relationship, coming to know one another.
Without baptism I may also have a relationship with God, but not as with a lawful Spouse and Father, but as with the Creator Who loves and cares for all His creation, yet does not give it the right to Eternal Life.
Jesus said in John 3:5: “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.”
Every other way of establishing a relationship with God is unlawful and is not accepted from above, whatever people may call it. Christ Himself gave the example. He did not need the washing away of uncleanness, but He performed this rite, showing its necessity and fulfilling it on behalf of those who, because of various circumstances, would not be able to undergo it—for example, the thief on the cross or infants killed for the Name of Christ.
Baptism is considered acceptable at a conscious age, when a person understands what he is doing and assumes the obligations of faithfulness to God and His law. A child cannot understand this.
Just as there are certain age limits for entering into marriage, so a person’s age is also taken into account when admitting him to baptism.
Baptism is a symbol of death to sin and the world and the beginning of a new life for God. It has enormous significance in the spiritual world. Without this rite, God does not have the authority to intervene in a person’s life and form his character after His likeness. The forces of evil also watch to ensure that God does not violate a person’s freedom of choice and hinder people in every way from taking this step, suggesting to them that it is not so important and that God loves everyone. Yes, God loves everyone, but He can produce changes not in every heart, but only in the one who enters into a covenant with Him.
The new birth from the Spirit may take place before water baptism, and God begins to teach a person and lead him toward a decision about a serious relationship. It is like a man and a woman who, upon meeting each other, understand that they were created for a mutual relationship and are drawn to fellowship, through which they come to know each other better, and then decide to create a family so that they may always be together and never part. They declare their decision to the representatives of the local authorities and receive the right to become a family. Then they make a vow of faithfulness before God and receive His blessing upon their family life. They are pronounced husband and wife and receive full rights to one another before society and before Heaven. And God regards them as one whole, joining them in this union. All relationships outside marriage are recognized as fornication and rejected by Heaven as sinful.
Jesus desires to have a lawful relationship with His people.
Does it matter in which denomination I receive baptism? By entering this path, I acknowledge God as my Spouse, but the teaching of the church in which I will be baptized must meet God’s requirements and not contradict the Bible. I become part of this denomination, and God begins to act within this framework and cause me to grow. But when He calls me to Biblical obedience so that I may continue my growth and develop further, I am restricted by the teaching of the church of which I am a member and cannot step beyond these boundaries or leave this framework; otherwise, I risk being expelled and rejected from this community. Yet I am bound there by traditions, family and friendly ties, and the many experiences of spiritual formation that I have seen and lived through. My growth stops, and I begin to become established in what I have chosen.
And if my church’s teaching is based upon false doctrine, I begin to regard this lie as truth and defend it with human arguments. And who will help me break free from this circle of life?
Jesus taught: “And ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make you free.” The Lord truly sets us free.
In the time of Christ, baptism took place where there was much water, so that a person could enter it and be completely immersed. Sprinkling or pouring does not correspond to the spirit of the Bible and cannot be accepted as the fulfillment of all righteousness, although someone may call it baptism.
This step of faith through complete immersion must be taken with an understanding of what and into Whom I am being baptized.
I was baptized three times. The first time I was a little over one year old, and I did not consent to it. The second time I was baptized by faith in Jesus, understanding what I was doing, and I was very happy about this event and consider it to have been the right step. But when I began to learn the truth, I realized that the movement in which I was did not live according to the Truth and covered its sins with supernatural powers that manifested themselves in its ministry. I left that congregation and began to educate myself. God showed me that He has a people whose teaching is consistent with the entire Bible, and after lengthy study I decided to become part of this people by receiving baptism again, joining my life with those who base their faith upon Scripture rather than feelings or tradition. And God is leading me further and revealing a more excellent way.
Love is the reward for faithfulness that all who desire to know the truth and live in it will receive.
Homework 221
In the light of our lesson, please read Matthew 3:13–15; 21:25; 28:19–20; Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 16:30–33; 22:16; Romans 6:1–6; Galatians 3:27; 5:6; Colossians 2:12–13; 1 Peter 3:20–21; and Ephesians 4:5. What did you understand from this lesson? Why is the rite of water baptism so important for salvation? Is it possible to be a member of several denominations at the same time through baptism in those churches? Is this consistent with Scripture? Does baptism save me? If so, from what? If I do not understand the meaning of baptism, will performing this act from a wrong motive bring me under condemnation? Are you personally acquainted with this rite in your own life? Into what were you baptized? Must baptism always be understood? Matthew 3:14–15. What should I do if I love Jesus but believe that baptism is unnecessary for me? Is it possible to enter the Kingdom of Heaven while bypassing this rule? Give examples.