For a master copy of the outline, click here: Baptism
To Listen on YouTube, click here: Baptism and Its Five Biblical Qualifications
I. Definitions
1. Baptism - 1. The action or ceremony of baptizing; immersion of a person in water, or application of water by pouring or sprinkling, as a religious rite, symbolical of moral or spiritual purification or regeneration, and, as a Christian ordinance, betokening initiation into the Church.
2. Baptize - Etymology - [a. F. baptise-r, -izer (11th c.), ad. L. baptiza-re, ad. Gr. βaπτξειν ‘to immerse, bathe, wash, drench,’ in Christian use appropriated to the religious rite, f. βάπτειν to dip, plunge, bathe.] 1. trans. To immerse in water, or pour or sprinkle water upon, as a means of ceremonial purification, or in token of initiation into a religious society, especially into the Christian Church; to christen.
II. Baptism is a figure of our salvation by the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1Pe 3:21).
1. Baptism figures how Jesus saved us, by His death, burial, and resurrection (1Co 15:3-4 c/w Rom 6:3-5).
2. Baptism doesn't remove sin (the filth of the flesh) (1Pe 3:21).
3. Rather than giving a man a good conscience, baptism is the answer of a good conscience (1Pe 3:21).
A. One has to already have a good conscience to be baptized.
B. Those who are defiled and unbelieving have a defiled conscience (Tit 1:15).
III. Baptism is a commandment for every believer in Jesus Christ (Act 2:38; Act 10:48; Act 22:16) and to not do so is to reject the counsel of God (Luk 7:29-30).
IV. What constitutes a valid baptism?
1. For a baptism to be scriptural, it must have:
A. a proper administer.
B. a proper candidate.
C. a proper mode.
D. a proper belief.
E. a proper result.
2. A proper administrator.
A. The proper administrator (baptizer) for baptism is an ordained minister.
B. Jesus commissioned His disciples to preach the gospel and baptize (Mat 28:16-20).
C. The only people in the Bible that baptized were ordained ministers (apostles, prophets, evangelists, etc.)
D. Preachers/pastors/elders are authorized to baptize.
i. Elders/pastors are ordained ministers (2Ti 1:6; Tit 1:5).
ii. Pastors/elders are to do the work of an evangelist (2Ti 4:5).
iii. Evangelists baptize (Act 21:8 c/w Act 8:36-38).
iv. Pastors therefore baptize.
E. There is no commandment nor example in scripture of anyone besides ordained ministers baptizing.
i. Therefore no one besides an ordained minister can baptize.
ii. The argument from silence applies here (Heb 7:12-14).
3. A proper candidate.
A. The proper candidate (person to be baptized) for baptism is a penitent believing adult.
B. In order to be baptized, a person must show forth the fruits of repentance (Mat 3:5-8).
i. John's baptism was the baptism of repentance (Act 19:4).
ii. Repentance was/is necessary for baptism in the N.T. church (Act 2:38).
iii. This prevents babies from being baptized since they can't repent.
C. In order to be baptized, a person must also believe on Jesus Christ, that He is the Son of God (Act 8:36-38; Act 19:4).
i. When people in Samaria believed the gospel Philip preached, they were baptized, both men and women (not infants) (Act 8:12).
ii. Simon believed and was baptized (Act 8:13).
iii. Many Corinthians hearing believed and were baptized (Act 18:8).
iv. Belief and baptism go hand in hand (Mar 16:16).
D. This prevents infants or those too young to believe from being baptized.
4. A proper mode.
A. The proper mode of baptism is immersion in water.
B. The word "baptize" is a transliteration (the English word was created from the Greek word) of the Greek word "baptizo".
i. Baptizo (G907) - From a derivative of G911; to make whelmed (that is, fully wet); used only (in the New Testament) of ceremonial ablution, especially (technically) of the ordinance of Christian baptism: - baptist, baptize, wash.
ii. Bapto (G911) - A primary verb; to whelm, that is, cover wholly with a fluid; in the New Testament only in a qualified or specific sense, that is, (literally) to moisten (a part of one’s person), or (by implication) to stain (as with dye): - dip.
C. The English "baptize" has the same meaning as the Greek word "baptizo" because it IS the same word.
a. Baptize - Etymology - [a. F. baptise-r, -izer (11th c.), ad. L. baptiza-re, ad. Gr. βaπτξειν ‘to immerse, bathe, wash, drench,’ in Christian use appropriated to the religious rite, f. βάπτειν to dip, plunge, bathe.] 1. trans. To immerse in water, or pour or sprinkle water upon, as a means of ceremonial purification, or in token of initiation into a religious society, especially into the Christian Church; to christen.
b. Immerse - 1. trans. To dip or plunge into a liquid; to put overhead in water, etc.; spec. to baptize by immersion.
c. Since the word "baptize" means to immerse, it stands to reason that the proper mode of immersion is immersion.
d. To immerse in any other mode than immersion is not immersion.
e. To immerse by sprinkling or pouring water on someone's forehead is asinine doublespeak.
D. As was before proved, baptism is a figure of salvation in Christ (1Pe 3:21).
i. The gospel of our salvation is the story of how Jesus died, was buried, and rose again for our justification (1Co 15:3-4; Rom 4:25).
ii. In baptism we are symbolically buried with Christ (Rom 6:4; Col 2:12).
a. Immersion in water symbolized Christ's burial quite well as he was "in the heart of the earth" (Mat 12:40).
b. Christ's burial was not by sprinkling or pouring dirt on His forehead.
c. "Baptism" by sprinkling or pouring hardly symbolizes a burial.
iii. By baptism we are symbolically planted in the likeness of His death (Rom 6:5).
a. Planted - ppl. 1. Set in the ground, as a plant; fixed in the ground, set up, established, etc.; placed surreptitiously or misleadingly; hidden esp. so as to deceive the discoverer:
b. Plant - v. 1. a. trans. To set or place in the ground so that it may take root and grow
c. Jesus described planting as a corn of wheat falling into the ground (Joh 12:24).
d. To plant is to place something IN the ground, not to sprinkle a proportionally minute bit of dust on a seed (the equivalent to sprinkling water on someone's forehead to immerse them).
e. "Baptism" by sprinkling or pouring hardly symbolizes planting.
E. The Bible clearly shows that baptism was done by immersion which required much water and for people to be in the water.
i. John baptized in Aenon because there was MUCH water there (Joh 3:23).
a. Why would John need to be in a place where there was MUCH water to sprinkle a few drops on people's heads?
b. It's obvious much water was needed to immerse people.
ii. John baptized people IN Jordan, not BY Jordan (Mar 1:5).
a. Jesus, when He was baptized of John, went up straightway OUT OF the water (Mar 1:10).
b. Why would people be IN Jordan if John was sprinkling water on their heads?
iii. The Ethiopian eunuch asked what hindered him to be baptized when he and Phillip came to a certain water (Act 8:36).
a. Why would seeing a certain water (in other words a body of water of some type) prompt the eunuch to ask about being baptized if all that was needed was a couple of drops out of a canteen?
b. To be baptized, both he and Phillip went down INTO the water and came up OUT OF the water (Act 8:38-39).
c. Why get into the water to only sprinkle a couple of drops on his head?
5. A proper belief.
A. A confession of one's belief that Jesus Christ is the Son of God is a necessary requirement to be baptized (Act 8:36-38).
B. A confession that one is a sinner is also necessary to be baptized (Mar 1:5).
C. These two requirements prohibit infants and children who are too young to make these sincere confessions from being baptized.
6. A proper result.
A. The proper result of baptism is the addition of the baptized person to the membership of a local church.
B. The pattern of baptism resulting in being added to a church is found in Act 2:41.
i. Being added unto them was the result of being baptized.
ii. The them which they were added to is the church at Jerusalem which had about 120 members named on a role (Act 1:15) who were assembled together, all with one accord in one place (Act 2:1).
iii. It is obvious that they were added to the church because they continued from that time forward having church, which consisted of the apostles' doctrine (preaching) and fellowship, breaking of bread (communion), and prayers (Act 2:42).
iv. Just to clear up any misunderstanding of what they were added to, we are told that the Lord added to the church daily (Act 2:47).
C. When the preacher is baptizing a person in water which outwardly adds him to the church, the Holy Spirit is spiritually baptizing him into the body of Christ (1Co 12:13).
i. The body of Christ in context is the local church (1Co 12:14-27).
ii. This is the gift of the Holy Ghost (Act 2:38).
iii. Being made to drink into one Spirit (1Co 12:13) is receiving the gift of the Holy Ghost, which is what Jesus referred to when He said If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink (Joh 7:37-39).
