One of the minister's goals in preparing for Sabbath morning is to coordinate the various elements of the service so they direct the congregation's attention where it belongs.
In this, our second sermon of the series Church Ordinances, we come to a ceremony Jesus included in his final instructions to the disciples, just before his ascension. It is also a practice central to Roman Catholic theology, which holds that God administers His grace through seven practices, called sacraments, practices the Roman Church officially adopted in 1439. Through baptism, which the Church generally administers to infants, God supposedly regenerates the child, thereby enabling him to enter heaven upon death (after a period in Purgatory). Protestants, especially Baptists, have not found most sacraments supported by scripture, especially the Catholic doctrine of baptismal regeneration. Nevertheless, they have identified some of these practices as possessing relevance for the church today, although not as sacraments but as commandments for believers. While the exact number of these ordinances varies slightly, the primary criterion is that Jesus advocated them for his followers. The two ordinances common to all Baptists are The Disciple's Baptism (i.e., immersion), our topic this morning, and The Savior's Banquet (i.e., communion), which we will consider next time. German Seventh Day Baptists add a third, The Children's Blessing, which we examined last time.
The Church did not invent baptism but continued this common practice from Judaism. It is a means of ceremonial cleansing for a variety of contaminants, from childbirth to contact with a corpse. Baptism also cleanses gentile converts from the defilement of idolatry- because all who did not worship the true God worshiped idols. (Atheism did not become popular until the nineteenth century.) Because the need for baptism can occur more than once in a person's life, baptism, as such, is a repeatable act,1 and it remains so among Orthodox Jews today.
The apostle Paul, writing to the church in Rome, uses baptism to illustrate two benefits of a relationship with God:
I. The Associations of Baptism (Rom 6:3)2
How many of you have a Giant Eagle or Weis card? Keep your hands up. When you made application for the card—apart from your name, address, and phone number— how many remember what other information you had to give? If that was a while ago, you probably do not remember. It makes no difference to you at this point. All that matters is that you have the card to give the cashier to get your discount...and the more you buy the more discount you get!
Some of Paul's readers are treating God's grace like a grocery store card. They have forgotten what was on the application and think that the more they sin the more grace they will get. Recalling their baptism, Paul reminds them of their original application and of what it signifies for them now, a significance it retains for you as well.3 First...
God...
Is baptism necessary for salvation? ...No. God accomplishes that by grace through faith, apart from anything you might do. As the thief on the cross illustrates, those who are not baptized can still get to heaven. Nevertheless, his case is the exception, not the rule. Baptism should follow repentance and faith. It is what Jesus instructed the apostles to do: "make disciples of all nations, baptizing them" (Matt 28:19). Therefore, those who are serious about their relationship with God should not postpone it. Having said that, I do not want to give the impression that baptism should automatically or immediately follow a profession of faith.
I knew a young woman who put off baptism for several years, because she understood it to be a turning point, a public declaration of her faith and of her intention to live henceforth for God. Her dilemma was that she still had things she wanted to do or thought she might want to do, things contrary to this commitment. After some discussion, she decided to go ahead with her baptism. Unfortunately, she also decided to pursue those things that were contrary to this commitment. In so doing, she violated her pledge to God and rendered her baptism meaningless.
Baptism is not something you should undertake lightly, yet neither is it something you should postpone until you have tasted what God forbids. That is a dangerous game, one you are guaranteed to lose. As the apostle Paul says...
These two associations of baptism look to what God has done for you in the
past. Yet this ordinance is relevant for more than just the past, and Paul goes on to explain...
II. The Implications of Baptism (Rom 6:4)
Because Linda and I live some distance from family in NY and a greater distance from family in AZ, we do not see them as often as we like. Still, we appreciate the ability to speak with them whenever we like by phone, and we can look forward to the opportunity we will have to see them in the future.
Your relationship with the Father in heaven is similar. You should appreciate the ability to speak with Him whenever you like by prayer, and you can look forward to the opportunity you will have to see Him in the future—what Paul calls "the hope of the glory of God" (Rom 5:2).
The new life you begin when you rise from the water is emblematic of what will follow another resurrection, when you will see "the glory of the Father" who gave you life. That is the first implication of baptism. It confirms your desire for the future. Second...
Baptism is an ordinance of the church because Jesus commanded it for his followers. It is not to be undertaken lightly, but neither should it be avoided. If you are serious about your relationship with God and have not been baptized, here is your invitation. If you were baptized but did not get serious with God until later, you can do it over and do it right. Either way, come see me, and we will arrange an opportunity for you to demonstrate your association with the person and passion of Jesus, and to confirm your desire for the future as well as your duty for the present.
A preacher was winding up his temperance sermon with great fervor. "If I had all the beer in the world," he cried, "I'd take it and throw it in the river." The congregation responded with a resounding, "Amen!" "And if I had all the wine in the world," the preacher continued, "I'd take it and throw it in the river." Again, the congregation cried, "Amen!" "And if I had all the whiskey and demon rum in the world, I'd take it all and throw it in the river." Yet again, the congregation cried, "Amen!" When the preacher sat down, a deacon stood up and said. "For our closing hymn, turn to page 126 and sing together... We Shall Gather at the River."Although, it is usually best to coordinate the various elements of the service, I will not be suggesting this morning that we throw anything into the river. I do want us to consider another use for water, one that Jesus advocated, and that is The Disciple's Baptism.
In this, our second sermon of the series Church Ordinances, we come to a ceremony Jesus included in his final instructions to the disciples, just before his ascension. It is also a practice central to Roman Catholic theology, which holds that God administers His grace through seven practices, called sacraments, practices the Roman Church officially adopted in 1439. Through baptism, which the Church generally administers to infants, God supposedly regenerates the child, thereby enabling him to enter heaven upon death (after a period in Purgatory). Protestants, especially Baptists, have not found most sacraments supported by scripture, especially the Catholic doctrine of baptismal regeneration. Nevertheless, they have identified some of these practices as possessing relevance for the church today, although not as sacraments but as commandments for believers. While the exact number of these ordinances varies slightly, the primary criterion is that Jesus advocated them for his followers. The two ordinances common to all Baptists are The Disciple's Baptism (i.e., immersion), our topic this morning, and The Savior's Banquet (i.e., communion), which we will consider next time. German Seventh Day Baptists add a third, The Children's Blessing, which we examined last time.
The Church did not invent baptism but continued this common practice from Judaism. It is a means of ceremonial cleansing for a variety of contaminants, from childbirth to contact with a corpse. Baptism also cleanses gentile converts from the defilement of idolatry- because all who did not worship the true God worshiped idols. (Atheism did not become popular until the nineteenth century.) Because the need for baptism can occur more than once in a person's life, baptism, as such, is a repeatable act,1 and it remains so among Orthodox Jews today.
The apostle Paul, writing to the church in Rome, uses baptism to illustrate two benefits of a relationship with God:
- Baptism illustrates the immediate effect of that relationship, which is spiritual cleansing from sin, and
- Baptism illustrates the ultimate benefit of that relationship, which is physical resurrection from death.
- He could have forgiven our sins and still regarded us as His enemies, but He did not.
- He could have accepted us as friends and still allowed our existence to end at physical death, but He does not.
- He could have granted us eternal life and still kept us from enjoying the glory of His presence, but He will not.
- We have justification by God, and
- We enjoy peace with God, and
- We receive life from God, and
- We will see the glory of God.
Rom 6:1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?Paul addresses the false notion some people have that if God's response to sin is grace, then continued sin on our part will elicit continued grace on His part, allowing a person to live as he pleases without concern for the consequences. The modern version is the attitude that "I have my ticket to heaven, so I can live as I want on earth." Paul disabuses any of his readers who hold that assumption and issues a corrective based first on...
I. The Associations of Baptism (Rom 6:3)2
Rom 6:3 Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?Harkening back to when the believers in Rome made their profession of faith, Paul explains the significance of what might have seemed to them an empty formality. Baptism is not just something one does upon becoming a Christian and then forgets as time passes. This simple act marks the formation of a special relationship.
How many of you have a Giant Eagle or Weis card? Keep your hands up. When you made application for the card—apart from your name, address, and phone number— how many remember what other information you had to give? If that was a while ago, you probably do not remember. It makes no difference to you at this point. All that matters is that you have the card to give the cashier to get your discount...and the more you buy the more discount you get!
Some of Paul's readers are treating God's grace like a grocery store card. They have forgotten what was on the application and think that the more they sin the more grace they will get. Recalling their baptism, Paul reminds them of their original application and of what it signifies for them now, a significance it retains for you as well.3 First...
A. It connects you to the person of Christ.As I mentioned before, there were different occasions when baptism was necessary. To mark the distinction of this act for new converts, proselyte baptism was "in the name of Jesus."4 At Pentecost, for example, when those who heard Peter's sermon asked, "What shall we do?"5
Acts 2:38a Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus...for the forgiveness of your sins.Whether or not this phrase was actually part of the baptismal formula, it was clear to candidates that, by this act, they were identifying with the savior. So, Paul says in Rom 6, we "were baptized into Christ Jesus." "[B]aptism has to do with a decisive personal relationship between the individual believer and Christ" (Cranfield 1975 1:301). Absent that relationship, the act is an empty ritual. Accompanying that relationship, baptism marks the turning point in our lives when
God...
Col 1:13 ...rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.That is the first association of baptism. It connects you to the person of Christ. Second...
B. It connects you to the passion of Christ.Although after the first century, the gentile church adopted varying forms of baptism, such as pouring (effusion) or sprinkling (aspersion) water on the candidate's head, the only form among Jews, including Jewish believers in Jesus, was (and is) immersion. Paul alludes to that form here when he speaks figuratively about being "baptized into [Jesus] death [and being] buried with him through baptism into death." The apostle's point is not that in baptism a person is mystically reenacting Jesus' death or that through this ceremony the believer is magically "transported out of the temporal and material world into an eternal and [ethereal]" world (Cranfield 1975 1:302). Paul simply means that the believer's baptism models the savior's burial and attests the acceptance of Jesus' atoning work on the cross.6
I need no other argument, I need no other plea,That is the second association of baptism. It connects you to the passion of Christ.
it is enough that Jesus died,
and that he died for me.
(Lidie H. Edmunds, My Faith Has Found a Resting Place, chorus)
Is baptism necessary for salvation? ...No. God accomplishes that by grace through faith, apart from anything you might do. As the thief on the cross illustrates, those who are not baptized can still get to heaven. Nevertheless, his case is the exception, not the rule. Baptism should follow repentance and faith. It is what Jesus instructed the apostles to do: "make disciples of all nations, baptizing them" (Matt 28:19). Therefore, those who are serious about their relationship with God should not postpone it. Having said that, I do not want to give the impression that baptism should automatically or immediately follow a profession of faith.
I knew a young woman who put off baptism for several years, because she understood it to be a turning point, a public declaration of her faith and of her intention to live henceforth for God. Her dilemma was that she still had things she wanted to do or thought she might want to do, things contrary to this commitment. After some discussion, she decided to go ahead with her baptism. Unfortunately, she also decided to pursue those things that were contrary to this commitment. In so doing, she violated her pledge to God and rendered her baptism meaningless.
Baptism is not something you should undertake lightly, yet neither is it something you should postpone until you have tasted what God forbids. That is a dangerous game, one you are guaranteed to lose. As the apostle Paul says...
Gal 6:7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.For those here who have been baptized, the question is: Are you living your association with the person and passion of Christ? For those here who have not been baptized, the question is: If you are serious about your association with Christ, what are you waiting for?
These two associations of baptism look to what God has done for you in the
past. Yet this ordinance is relevant for more than just the past, and Paul goes on to explain...
II. The Implications of Baptism (Rom 6:4)
Rom 6:4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.Paul challenges his readers to look beyond the ceremonial purification it accomplishes and to notice how baptism marks a relationship to Jesus that repairs the damage of sin. You have a new lease on life, and understanding two ramifications of baptism can help you to make the most of this new opportunity. First...
A. It confirms your desire for the future.Paul says that, "just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life."7 The quickening agent in both cases, for Jesus and for us, is the glory of God.8 While experiencing God's glory has never been a problem for Jesus,9 it has eluded us. As Paul says in Rom 3,
Rom 3:23 ...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,That changes radically when God saves us, for then, as Paul says in Rom 5,
Rom 5:2b ... we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.What we lost through sin, He will restore.... Are you looking forward to that?
Because Linda and I live some distance from family in NY and a greater distance from family in AZ, we do not see them as often as we like. Still, we appreciate the ability to speak with them whenever we like by phone, and we can look forward to the opportunity we will have to see them in the future.
Your relationship with the Father in heaven is similar. You should appreciate the ability to speak with Him whenever you like by prayer, and you can look forward to the opportunity you will have to see Him in the future—what Paul calls "the hope of the glory of God" (Rom 5:2).
The new life you begin when you rise from the water is emblematic of what will follow another resurrection, when you will see "the glory of the Father" who gave you life. That is the first implication of baptism. It confirms your desire for the future. Second...
B. It confirms your duty for the present.Although Paul has been noting how baptism signifies what God has done—by identifying us with Jesus, by declaring that we have received atonement for our sins, and by encouraging us with the prospect of seeing God's glory—the apostle now returns to answer the question that began this discussion. "Given what God has done for us, how shall we then live?" ...He expects you to forsake your old life that you "may live a new life."10 That is the second implication of baptism. It confirms your duty for the present, as you serve the one who gave his life for you.
Baptism is an ordinance of the church because Jesus commanded it for his followers. It is not to be undertaken lightly, but neither should it be avoided. If you are serious about your relationship with God and have not been baptized, here is your invitation. If you were baptized but did not get serious with God until later, you can do it over and do it right. Either way, come see me, and we will arrange an opportunity for you to demonstrate your association with the person and passion of Jesus, and to confirm your desire for the future as well as your duty for the present.
For the bibliography and endnotes, see the pdf here.
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Jim Skaggs