The Shepherd of Hermes (80-150 AD) in the Apostolic Fathers collection uses baptism as a metaphor of how God builds his church. Referring to the church as a “tower being built upon the waters out of shining square stones,” he says that each stone was “dragged from the deep” and “placed in the building just as they were” (Hermes Vision 3.2). Picking up the same metaphor, he later asks, “Why did the stones come up from the deep, and why were they put into the building?” The answer is, “It was necessary for them to come up through water in order to be made alive, for otherwise they could not enter the kingdom of God. . . So even those who had fallen asleep received the seal of the Son of God. . . The seal, therefore, is the water; so they go down into the water dead and they come up alive. . . they went down into the water, and came up again. . . this is why they came up with them and were fitted together with them [the Apostles] into the structure of the tower” (Parable 9.16). It is pretty obvious that the Shepherd viewed baptism as an immersion.
Baptism as Metaphor in the Shepherd of Hermes
Oct 11th, 2009 by admin
Is Christian Baptism Sacrament or Memorial?
Oct 8th, 2009 by admin
Is baptism sacrament or memorial? Obviously, it is a memorial. Jesus said, “Do this in remembrance of me.” But is it more than this? To answer correctly, we need to define a “sacrament.” If we mean something regenerating a soul and/or creating faith, then we deny it. But if we mean something strengthening faith as a means of sanctifying grace, then we affirm it. If we say simply that baptism is a sign and seal of the righteousness that we have by faith, then we believe that baptism is a sacrament.
As a sign, baptism points back at Christ’s death, which he called his “second baptism” and “the sign of Jonah.” Thus, even the memorial view should understand baptism to be a sign. But baptism is also a seal, I believe, according to Scripture. John the Baptist affirmed that “He who has received His witness has set his seal to this, that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure” (John 3:33-34). What is this “seal?”
Some understand it to be a person’s confession of belief in the truthfulness of Christ’s witness. This is interesting in light of the broader context. Seven times in the passage the word “witness” or “testimony” has been used. This verse says that a man who receives the witness or testimony “sets his seal” to this. While this confession-seal could just be only verbal assent, we need to recognize that people in this passage are being baptized (John 3:23). In Scripture, the confession of the Faith is always closely tied to baptism. Thus, it is legitimate to see this passage as affirming that baptism is both sign and seal of all the benefits gained by Christ’s death. Thus, baptism is a sacrament, sealing upon our hearts the benefits of Christ which came to us by faith alone.
What is Lutheran Baptism?
Oct 7th, 2009 by admin
What is Lutheran baptism? When you read Augsburg Confession, it appears that it is not much different than Roman baptism. Art 9.1-2 say, “Of Baptism [our churches] teach that it is necessary to salvation, and that through Baptism is offered the grace of God, and that children are to be baptized who, being offered to God through Baptism are received into God’s grace.” 9.3 adds, “They condemn the Anabaptists, who reject the baptism of children, and say that children are saved without Baptism.”
It has always seemed to Baptists (Reformed or Anabaptist) that Luther did not go far enough with the logic of his Reformation. For, if he was known for anything it was his doctrine of justification by faith alone. Yet, the Lutheran view of the sacraments is not merely that they confirm faith (all Reformed Protestants agreed with this), but that it “awakens” faith (13.1).
Without trying to blow down a strawman, it is difficult to separate this Lutheran baptism from Rome. In Rome, baptism clearly creates faith; in Lutheranism it awakens faith. Apparently, the difference is that in the latter, faith is asleep but extant. The Lutheran then believes that salvation comes through means, a chief of which is baptism as consecrated through the word. No wonder so many Lutherans grow up believing that they are saved by baptism alone.
As Reformed Baptists, we do believe that baptism is a sacrament—a sign and seal of the righteousness that we have by faith. But this is precisely why we do not baptize infants. I would not deny that an infant can be granted faith (John the Baptist leaping in the womb at the sound of Jesus?), but they cannot confess this faith; and since confessing the faith always goes hand in hand with baptism in the Scripture, we may not baptize infants. We also believe that baptism is necessary for salvation, but this baptism is not immersion in water, but Christ’s death-baptism applied at regeneration, i.e. the sprinkling of the heart to make it clean, and pouring out of the Holy Spirit at the moment of faith. Immersion in water baptism remains related, but separate. While it signifies what has happened to us at regeneration, its chief function is to ordain the Christian into the priesthood of the believer. It is as separate of an event from salvation as circumcision at the beginning of a priest’s life was from his baptism at age 30. Luther should have remembered his own words and applied them properly in Lutheran baptism, “All Christians are truly of the spiritual estate, and there is no difference among them except that of office… whoever comes out of the water of baptism can boast that he is already a consecrated priest,” because, “We are all consecrated as priests by baptism” (Luther’s Works, 44:127, 129).
Your Theological Baptism Immersion
Oct 2nd, 2009 by admin
This website is designed to be your own personal theological baptism immersion. If you just sprinkle yourself here and there with a line or two from a blog post here or there, you will never know the depths into which God has poured these spiritual waters. However, if you immerse yourself (this is not an endorsement of baptizing yourself in literal water!) in the things we are talking about, you may just find that newly charted waters are worth returning to, as you might if you discovered the fountain of youth. That’s not exactly the kind of argument we would make for baptism immersion in water, but it works with regard to our blog.
What About Mormon Baptism?
Sep 29th, 2009 by admin
Mormon.org has a short summary of Mormon baptism:
Jesus Christ taught that we must be baptised by immersion. He set the example Himself by being baptised to “fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15).
We are baptised for the remission of sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16). We are also baptised to become members of the Church of Jesus Christ, and to enter the kingdom of God (John 3:5).
Through the ordinance of baptism, we make a promise, called a covenant, with God. We promise to accept Christ, to become His followers, and to keep His commandments to the end of our lives. In return, our Heavenly Father promises to forgive our sins and let us return to live with Him, provided we keep our covenants.
This sounds so very Christian, doesn’t it? It is meant to. But don’t be fooled. As with all things Mormon, what they mean is very different than what the normal Christian means. This is most true when it comes to God. Who is this “God” that Mormons make a covenant with? According to Joseph Smith, the Father “was one as we are now, and is an exalted man like us. . . God himself, the Father of us all, dwelt on an earth” in a human body (Joseph Smith, History of the Church, vol. 6, p. 305). He was born the product of a sexual union with a previous god and goddess. Jesus, one of his sons, was too. In fact, Mormons teach that Jesus got married and had children! This is not the God of the Bible, and therefore Mormon baptism is not Christian baptism, but a deceptive baptism, meant to make you think you are being baptized as a Christian when in fact you are not.
The Red Sea Baptism
Sep 26th, 2009 by admin
Following is a recent sermon Doug preached on baptism from Exodus 14:19-21
For God Baptism is An Eternal Reality
Sep 22nd, 2009 by admin
For God baptism is an eternal reality. He did not make it up a mere 2,000 years ago with John the Baptist. Jewish sects were not the first to perform baptisms. Even the flood. . . even creation itself is but a mirror of baptism in heaven.
A lot of people can’t get their mind wrapped around this, because they think of baptism as exclusively redemptive in nature. That is, baptism is for forgiveness of sins, it shows a movement from death to life, so how can it have some kind of eternal reality in heaven? But this is not the correct way to approach the question.
It is difficult to get at this in a blog, but let me give you an introduction. Water, which always has ritualistic significance in these instances, is always a part of a biblical temple. For example, there was a laver outside of the Tabernacle. But the Scripture says that the Tabernacle was patterned after the heavenly tent (Hebrews 8:2, 5; 9:11, 23-24). Therefore, whatever Moses was told to create in the earthly Tabernacle has some corresponding reality in heaven. There is much that could be said here, but I want to leave you with this idea. If this is true, then it seems to me that our theology of baptism needs to begin in the heavenly realm, and change or adapt accordingly to the implications this might have. For example, if we think that baptism is only redemptive in nature, but understand that it is somehow signified in a heavenly counterpart, then we will see clearly that baptism is not only redemptive in nature. One implication of this might be that for God baptism shows forth his purity. God, who needs no redeeming, is rather himself the source of Living Waters. Another might be that before the throne of God there is a calm glassy sea, showing that in heaven the chaotic waters of the flood are calm, and that the sea is not a place of evil in heaven.
What About Kravitz Baptism?
Sep 19th, 2009 by admin
Lenny Kravitz’ Baptism.
Someone writing a blog about baptism ought to be up on how baptism finds its way into contemporary music. Lenny Kravitz writes a lot of spiritual music, including baptism. The self-proclaimed “Minister of Rock-n-Roll” sings about “The Resurrection,” and “The Other Side.” He’s “Calling All Angels,” as he waits for “someone, something to love.” He wants to “Believe,” but its belief in oneself. Yet, “the Son of God is in our face, offering us eternal grace… just put your faith in God and one day you’ll see it.”
Lenny is obviously searching. “I don’t want to look around, and be turned to stone. All my darkest days awoken, I’m looking for a new way. Lead me to a place wide open. I need a love that takes me higher. So high I’m never coming down. I don’t want to know emptiness. Take me down to the water. Wanna be baptized in your love.”
Lenny’s song “Baptism” may be the reason you found this page. But understand something. All of these lyrics are filled with Christian symbolism. I like a lot of Kravitz’ music. But he’s deeply confused. As Bono sang, “He still hasn’t found what he’s looking for.”
Maybe you like Lenny’s music simply for the artistry. He is a great musician! Or, maybe you like it because you resonate with his searching lyrics. But know this, there really is something more to life than always searching. Reaching the destination is possible, and the true meaning of baptism helps you understand that real peace can be found. But it means looking beyond, outside of yourself.
If you want to know more about the true meaning of baptism, I invite you to read more of our blog. I have written a book about baptism. This book was not written with Lenny Kravitz in mind. But when I started thinking about his song, I thought “Why not invite everyone to discover the thing that he sings about.”
Christians have fought over the meaning of baptism for centuries. But when it is understood properly, it becomes clear that God gives us a ceremony to initiate those who believe in his Son into the priesthood of the believer. You are welcome to join us in the conversation. Though I’m sure Lenny sings about a girl, it is possible to be baptized into something much deeper and longer lasting the love of another person: “Take my heart and wash away the fear. Let me baptized in your love.”
Baptism History
Sep 18th, 2009 by admin
Baptism history is a battle usually waged over things like mode of baptism (i.e. immersion, sprinkling, pouring/effusion) or recipients of baptism (i.e. professing believers or also their infants). The armies usually use church history to try and figure out who has the earliest tradition on their side. A more foundational argument would go to the Scripture first, and use tradition as a demonstration that one’s understanding of Scripture was part of the Apostolic tradition in the early church.
In my opinion, Baptists have done the best job at this, looking closely at the NT texts to identify who was being baptized (and who wasn’t) and how they were performing the rite. There have been many fine contributions showing that the early church agreed with these baptistic conclusions on immersion and the non-baptism of infants). Paedobaptists do not do as much work in actual baptismal texts for the simple reason that their arguments are sustained in other places (for example, a theology of infant baptism is not derived from any NT text, but from Abraham circumcising his infants). NT texts such as household baptisms or children coming to Jesus are then used as demonstration that one’s understanding of the covenant of grace (read “Abrahamic covenant”) was the same as the understanding of the NT.
It is not that I think it is wrong to place the OT as foundational to a theology of baptism, as many of my baptistic brethren argue. It is that I think it is misguided to root a practice of baptism in the practice of circumcision. Instead, baptism history should begin with the first baptism, in the creation event itself in Genesis 1. It should then proceed forward in time, looking at all the other baptisms in the OT. When this is done, it becomes clear very quickly why baptistic exegesis of NT baptismal passages are spot on. The NT practice was being informed by a good baptism history from the OT! If you want to learn more, we have a whole book dedicated to this subject called Waters of Creation.
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Baptized in Water
A Biblical Theology of Baptism
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