Foundations of our Faith: Believer's Baptism
Part 3 - Understanding the Methodical pattern of Baptism
“The ideas of making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them are not easily separated. As D. A. Carson writes, “baptizing and teaching are not the means of making disciples … they characterize it.”1
When something is methodical, it carefully follows a prescribed sequence. Scripture clearly presents baptism as the subsequent step to repentance from sin and believing in Christ, and precedes involvement in the church. Baptism is such a powerful experience because it captures the richness of the the work of Christ, and His work in me. Baptism is often referred to as representative of the whole experience. (A synecdoche: Rom 6:1–4; Gal 3:26–27; Col 2:11–12; 1 Pet 3:21). As we examine our practice of Baptism, we need to expand the experience into its component parts, so we see the value of the whole. As we compare it to the methodical pattern we see in the Scriptures, we will find confidence that the experience of our baptism reflects a reality of genuine transformation by the Gospel of Christ. There is ample evidence to establish this:
Factor #3 - Methodology
Was My Baptism Biblically Methodical?
Hearing the Gospel
The hearing of the gospel must be the first component and cannot be assumed. Baptism has no meaning apart from the Gospel. We see this with undeniable clarity: "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God" (Romans 10:17, ESV). Lydia's conversion is described this way in Acts 16:14, "One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, … The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul's message ... And after she was baptized." Hearing and enlightening, with the assumption of assent is essential. This gives the rich foundation for the experience.
Belief and Repentance
As with Lydia, Philip’s preaching of the Gospel was met with faith. "But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women" (Acts 8:12, ESV). Repentance and faith are two sides of the same coin. Jut like Phillip, Peter did not imply that faith was not required when he said, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins" (Acts 2:38, ESV). Faith and repentance are the same motion of turning from something (sin) and turning to someone (Christ). This repentance/death, and faith/resurrection give the skeletal structure for my experience.
Confession of Faith
We know clearly that "If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9, ESV), but this is also witnessed in the Ethiopian eunuch's experience. As he traveled, he read from Isaiah and asked Philip to explain the passage. After Philip proclaimed the good news about Jesus, the eunuch confessed his faith. Acts 8:37 states, "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.'" This outward acknowledgment of the inward reality of enlightenment and faith is where conversion is punctuated. Where there is no outward confession, the biblical pattern is lost.
Baptism
For Earlier Baptist leaders, like B.H. Carrol, a valid baptism, would have these marks
“(1) the proper authority, the church, administers it; (2) the proper subject is the penitent believer; (3) the proper act is immersion; and (4) the proper design is symbolic, with no trace of baptismal regeneration. Salvation precedes baptism, not vice versa.”2
We can't underplay the clear command of the Great Commission: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them..." (Matthew 28:19, ESV). Once disciples are made, the inseparable command is to baptize them. The Book of Acts recounts the immediate baptism of the Philippian jailer after his belief, and the assumed belief of his household, "At that hour of the night, the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized."
To speak of baptism was to speak of the entire conversion experience, and as we walk through the examples in the text, the rhythm of the experience is clearly demonstrated. The examination of my practice should look arefully at my experience so as not to be fooled. As Spurgeon said,
“A man who knows that he is saved by believing in Christ does not, when he is baptized, lift his baptism into a saving ordinance. In fact, he is the very best protester against that mistake, because he holds that he has no right to be baptized until he is saved.”
I have to ask myself, “was I baptized before I was converted”, or “does my experience follow the methodology God has revealed?” “Was I baptized as an infant, or even before I really understood the Gospel?” “Was my conversion lacking clarity that causes me to struggle even to this very day?”
(Part 3 Coming Soon, also see Part 1, Part 2)
Discussion Questions:
What does D. A. Carson mean when he says that "baptizing and teaching are not the means of making disciples … they characterize it"?
Why is the hearing of the gospel considered the first step in the methodical pattern?
In Acts 8:12, how does the passage describe the relationship between belief and baptism?
How does the passage in Acts 2:38 connect faith and repentance in the context of baptism?
According to Romans 10:9, what is the significance of declaring "Jesus is Lord" and believing in the heart for salvation?
In Acts 8:37, how does the Ethiopian eunuch express his confession of faith before being baptized?
Why is baptism emphasized in the Great Commission, and how does it relate to making disciples, according to Matthew 28:19?
Provide an example from the Book of Acts that illustrates the immediate connection between belief and baptism.
Explain the concept of synecdoche as it is used in relation to baptism, citing examples from the passage (Rom 6:1–4; Gal 3:26–27; Col 2:11–12; 1 Pet 3:21).
According to Spurgeon, why does a person who knows they are saved by believing in Christ not consider baptism a saving ordinance?
https://theologyalongtheway.org/2019/07/16/baptism-and-nt-patterns/#_ftn2
Timothy George and David S. Dockery, eds., Theologians of the Baptist Tradition (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001), 175.