Christian Baptism
We read of “baptism” in the New
Testament and we see it being practiced by a man named John: (John 3:23) “And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because
there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized.” Aenon was near
to Salim on the west side of
the
Can we just go out into the streets
and grab up everyone we are able to catch and baptize them? Certainly not;
Jesus instructed that they must be taught and then baptized: (Matt. 28:19) “Go ye
therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”
The phrase “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost
indicates that we have the authority not only of Jesus but also we have the
authority of God and of the Holy Spirit. I find the next verse to be interesting
also: (Matt. 28:20) “Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.
Amen. What has Jesus commanded? He commanded to “go teach and baptize!
If we don’t teach what Jesus has commanded we are unworthy servants! If we
don’t baptize as Jesus commanded we are again unworthy servants!
As already stated we baptize for the
remission of sin; We don’t baptize to make anyone a member of the church; as a
matter of fact no one can make anybody a member of the a church, this is
something that God Himself does: (Acts 2:47) “Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.” Don’t allow anyone to fool you by saying that baptism
makes you a member of a church; only God has the power and authority to make
you a member of the church. Does any local congregation have the right to vote
on a person as to whether or not they are a fit candidate to become a member? I
don’t know where you would find any such authority. Would this not be telling
God what He ought to do?
Before a person is a fit candidate for
baptism they must be willing to repent of their sins: (Acts 2:38) “Then
Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of
Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the
Holy Ghost.” When Peter
was asked by those whom he had convinced that they were sinners “what shall we
do” the first thing that came out of his mouth was “repent.” I doubt that there
was anyone on this Day of Pentecost who had any doubts as to whether or not
they needed to repent. Assuming that we believe that Jesus Christ is indeed the
Son of God there is one more thing that we must do; we must confess this before
others: (Rom. 10:9–10) “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth
the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from
the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10For with the heart
man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” Is it important that we make this good
confession? It certainly is if we want Jesus to confess us to His Father:(Matt. 10:32) “Whosoever
therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father
which is in heaven.”
Have you obeyed the commands of Jesus? If you haven’t you are not ready to face Jesus on the Day of Judgment.