Understanding Water Baptism
The Bible states that water baptism is a significant moment by which a repented Christian joins in with Christ's suffering, death, and resurrection wholeheartedly. A person's public confession of redemption and belief in Jesus Christ through water baptism serves as a visible sign of an internal act of acceptance of Christ's salvation.
The Greek word "baptizo," which means" to immerse or plunge," is where the English word "baptism" originates. Therefore, to baptize anything is to immerse it entirely in water. According to the Bible, being baptized in water entails totally submerging the person before lifting them back up again.
What is the Significance of Water Baptism?
When someone is baptized into Christ, you just become a new person in your soul, not in your physical body. Until the Resurrection, the human body will remain subject to corruption (John 6:39–40), but a part of you will be transformed.
The blood of Jesus washes your heart pure, and the Holy Spirit quickens your true spirit. Your capacity to interact with God, understand His voice, adore and obey Him, conquer sin, and live out your salvation by faith has been restored.
During water baptism, we demonstrate that our new body is resurrected by the Spirit and brought to life by faith in Jesus Christ by being extricated from the water.
We pledge to live righteously since the Lord Jesus has become our new master, not by following our old habits and behaviors but by the power of the Holy Spirit residing within us and enabling us to live a new life in Jesus Christ.
"But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you" (Romans 8:11).
Is Baptism Needed for Salvation?
According to the Bible, baptism is required for salvation, but it's not a water immersion baptism. To be saved, a man must be immersed in the spirit of Christ as proof of repentance.
"For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." (Galatians 3:27).
When a person repents and establishes faith in Jesus Christ, the person is "buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead" (Colossians 2:12).
Many individuals believe that being baptized in water is a requirement for salvation. This is untrue, though. You see, salvation depends on trust in Jesus Christ.
Water baptism is merely a visible expression of God's purification work in a person's heart; therefore, it is unimportant in the absence of a previous spiritual baptism into Jesus Christ. Water baptism is solely an acknowledgement of God's purification exercise in a person's heart and isn't the same as becoming "baptized" into Christ.
Assume that you've got a relative who accepts Jesus as Savior today but perishes in a vehicle accident tomorrow to demonstrate this argument. Was your relative saved even if they were never able to undergo water baptism? Yes, it is the answer.
The individual was baptized into Christ through faith. The same is evident for the criminal who died on the cross and was saved due to his being baptized into Jesus Christ by faith (see Luke 23:43). Thus, we can see that salvation is not brought about by ceremony but by faith in Jesus Christ.
In the Old Testament, believers were redeemed by their trust in the arrival of the Savior of the world, not by offering animals as sacrifice. In the same vein, neither water baptism nor being submerged in it are necessary for salvation. The only thing necessary for salvation is a person's trust in Jesus Christ.
The normal water used during baptism will not be able to cleanse off sin, similar to how the blood of bulls and goats could not effectively remove sin (Hebrews 10:4). Salvation is accomplished by being spiritually baptized into Christ since the blood of the Lamb (Jesus) is required to cleanse the sins of the world.
"To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood" (Revelation 1:5).
The apostle Paul explained to the Jewish Christians in the New Testament that the practice of circumcision was not a need for salvation (Acts 15). Since the Jews believed that the Gentile worshippers should adhere to Moses' requirement of circumcision, this comment sparked some contentious debates. However, Paul, however, clarified that it is faith, not an external practice, that purifies a person's heart. He said,
"But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved in the same manner as they" (Acts 15:11), and the speech of Paul's convinced the Jews.
The Bible says, "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water" (Hebrews 10:22).
It would be foolish of us to take this passage's reference to "clean water" to indicate that there are no pollutants in a river or a religious baptistry. Instead, the reference to "clean water" here is figurative and alludes to the time when Israelite clerics had to bathe with water before performing their duties in the Temple (Exodus 30:17-21). You see, individuals who engage in God's holiness must have a pure heart and clean hands.
"Who may ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who may stand in His holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, nor sworn deceitfully," (Psalm 24:3–4).
Believers are cleansed and sanctified "with the washing of water by the word" (Ephesians 5:26). Jesus reaffirmed this truth by saying, "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you" (John 15:3).
Ezekiel compares the spiritual purification of a person's heart to the sprinkling of water as a way to further emphasize this concept. God said,
"For I will take you from among the nations,... and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will 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 put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them," (Ezekiel 36:24–27).
Certainly, a spiritual baptism that occurs in our hearts is the purifying act of God, leading to salvation. God calls everyone to Himself; we respond by confessing our sins and trusting in Jesus Christ; God forgives and cleanses us of all sin; and, finally, our righteous attitude toward God keeps us alive.
"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," (1 Peter 3:21).
We therefore have the prospect of redemption because of Christ's resurrection since, as Paul explained, if Christ were not raised from the dead, then our faith would be in futility (1 Corinthians 15:14).
Is Water Baptism Necessary?
We'll make it clear that water baptism is necessary so the reader doesn't get the wrong idea. A repented Christian believer should endeavor to be baptized in water as their first act of obedience in living out their beliefs because the Bible requires it.
The spiritual fact, in accordance with their commitment, is that their old man is buried in Christ Jesus, and their new man is resurrected in Christ Jesus, and it is further practiced by water baptism.
"Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Romans 6:6).
But the truth that water baptism is a process continues to be true. It was referred to as a "meet for repentance" by John the Baptist (Matthew 3:8; Acts 26:20).
In other words, water baptism is an act that someone who has repented should perform. So that nobody can glory, Ephesians 2:8–9 explains that we have been saved by God's grace, through faith, and not by works.
Saying that an individual is saved by "water baptism" means excluding anyone who has previously been saved just before passing away, and anyone who cannot physically be submerged in water. Such a belief obviously conflicts with Scripture.
The Bible declares that only by faith can one be saved. The evidence of such salvation is demonstrated through water baptism.
Who Should Be Water Baptized?
Only people who truly believed in Jesus and confessed their sins should be baptized in water. An example of this biblical truth is recorded in Acts 8:36–38;
"Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, 'See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?' Then Philip said, 'If you believe with all your heart, you may.' And he answered and said, 'I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.' So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him."
In the New Testament Christianity, Jesus' followers were baptized to publicly declare their complete devotion to him, no matter what. Given that many of them were subjected to harsh suffering, for a Christian during the early century, this meant associating with Christ even till death.
Examples of Baptism
John's Baptism
To clear the path for the Messiah, John the Baptist arrived and preached repentance baptism. Anyone who adhered to John's teaching demonstrated their conversion and trust through baptism in water.
"John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Then all the land of Judea and those from Jerusalem went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins." (Mark 1:4-5).
John the Baptist also baptized Jesus Christ, which the bible stated was for the "fulfillment of all righteousness," (Matthew 3:15).
Jesus' baptism not only served as an example for His believers but also served as a public announcement that He was renouncing His previous life as a carpenter and was beginning the work for which He had come. According to Matthew 3:11, He was the promised Messiah who would be baptized in the Holy Spirit and with fire. At His baptism, the Holy Spirit descended in all of His fulness (Acts 10:38).
Apostles' Baptism
The disciples in the New Testament taught repentance and baptized new converts in water in a manner similar to that of John the Baptist, but their message was more profound. They now talked about Christ's suffering, death, and resurrection as well as the Pentecostal power of the Holy Spirit. Many instances of Christians getting baptized in water and receiving the Holy Spirit are recorded in the book of Acts.
"Can anyone forbid water that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" (Acts 10:47).
Water baptism thereby proclaims us as new beings in Christ. By diving into the water, we demonstrate that our old man has died to our sinful nature and has been buried through faith in Christ. We are now free of our former master, Satan, because we now have Jesus Christ as our new Master.