by Steven Harper
Synopsis: Paul affirms that there is "one baptism" (Eph. 4:4), but how could this be since we read of many baptisms in the Bible? Also, what about the various "modes" ascribed to the term today?
Baptism is often a point of contention in religious discussion. Sometimes people do not even understand what it is. Before we can properly understand what baptism is, we must understand some fundamental truths recorded in God's written word, the Bible.
First, let us acknowledge there were multiple baptisms recorded in the New Testament; yet, at the same time, the apostle Paul wrote by divine inspiration, "There is. .. one baptism" (Eph. 4:4-5). In the immediate context, it should be clear that Paul was noting the "ones" who were a part of the system of faith established by God by which men could be called His people, live faithfully, and know something was awaiting them after a life of faithful service. In the minds of men, there are many false gods, but there is only One True God. While there may have been many "bodies" of individuals, there was only one body of believers who God recognized as true disciples that are saved from their sins. While there were multiple baptisms as recorded in the Bible, there was only one baptism by which men would be forgiven and brought into the body of believers. That is the baptism we will address in our present study, while distinguishing it from the baptisms that were noted, but were not a part of the system of faith for disciples, either then or now.
To find the "one baptism" meant by God, let us do a process of elimination to see which baptism it is not. The first baptism we will note is that of John the Baptist. By virtue of his name, we might think this is the one, and maybe even because John did a lot of baptizing (Mark 1:4-5). Yet, after the church was established on the day of Pentecost, and after the gospel message had been preached to the Gentiles, Paul met some disciples in Ephesus who had been baptized only into John's baptism. Upon hearing this, he pointed them to Jesus, as John intended. "When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus" (Acts 19:1-5). Paul did not believe that the baptism of John was the "one baptism" to which he referred when describing the essentials of Christian unity in Ephesians 4, and neither should we.
Others will argue that this "one baptism" is "Holy Spirit baptism," and they will cite something Jesus said in Acts 1:5: "John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now." Note something essential to understanding what Jesus meant when He made that promise: He was speaking not to you and me and all who would ever be disciples, but exclusively to the eleven apostles (Acts 1:2). He also said, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth" (Acts 1:8). In explaining His earlier words, Jesus told the apostles they would receive power when the Holy Spirit had come upon them, and that, with this power, they would go out and be witnesses to Him throughout the world.
The promise of Jesus was fulfilled—to the apostles—just a few days later in Jerusalem. After Matthias had been chosen to replace Judas (Acts 1:26), the very next thing we read is, "When the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place" (Acts 2:1)—"they" being the twelve apostles. The apostles "were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance" (Acts 2:4). The Spirit filled them, and they were able to speak in tongues (i.e., languages that were not their own). This "baptism of the Holy Spirit" enabled them to speak in various languages so they could teach the gospel message to all who were assembled in Jerusalem. The "baptism of the Holy Spirit" was never a sign one had been saved, but an enabling power to show and prove to the audience that the message was from God. Since this was promised by Jesus to a limited audience, we cannot insist all disciples must experience this; "Holy Spirit baptism" is not the "one baptism" of which Paul wrote.
Neither is this "one baptism" the strange practice of proxy baptism for the dead such as seen within the Mormon church. The eternal place of the one who is dead cannot be changed by any action of another here on earth, as demonstrated by the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). The "one baptism" is not infant baptism, either, for an infant has no intellectual capacity for belief—a prerequisite for this action (Mark 16:16).
No, the "one baptism" of which Paul wrote was and is an act of one who believes in Jesus as the Christ because he has heard or read the gospel, been convicted because of it (Rom. 10:17), and has acted on that conviction (Acts 8:35-39). If one trusts in God, that He will do what He promised, then in this baptism, God will raise that one up to share a relationship with Christ and make him spiritually alive in Christ, "having forgiven (him) all trespasses" (Col. 2:11-13). This baptism is an obedient response to the message of God by one who can comprehend that message, comprehend the meaning of sin, and understand the consequences of that sin. It is the beginning point of one's relationship with God and Christ, not a one-time act which tells the world that one has already been saved.
We might now ask what the proper mode of this "one baptism" is, especially since the dictionary defines baptize as "to immerse in water or sprinkle or pour water." Does it matter how one is baptized? Yes, it does. We should note, first, that the English word baptize is a transliteration of the Greek word baptizō, which means "to immerse, submerge" (Thayer). Some scholars think the King James translators avoided a literal translation because of current church practices, but whatever the case, God's word tells us that baptism involves an immersion. The story of the Ethiopian eunuch's conversion shows this to be true (Acts 8:38), as well as the place where John baptized (John 3:23). Sprinkling and pouring were introduced by men many years later, and these practices are without God's authority.
In summation, we may now answer the question of what baptism is: It is an action taken by one who has heard, and has been convicted by the gospel message. Recognizing that he is a sinner, he seeks forgiveness. He believes Jesus is the Christ, but he also believes God's word when it says, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned." He trusts that God will do the work of washing away his sins, made possible by the blood of Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:7), and he does not question why he must do this, or how it affects the forgiveness of his sins. He sees that when the gospel was first preached, and others were convicted, they were told, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins" (Acts 2:38), and he believes and obeys those words, too. Raised up from being immersed in water, he can walk in newness of life, having now been forgiven (Rom. 6:3-6). It is the point where God forgives and joins us together with Christ, now saved from sin.
Author Bio: Steven has worked with the Avenue N church of Christ in Rosenberg, TX, for four years. He and his wife, Anita, have four children. The church website is avenuenchurchofchrist.org. He can be reached at santee5@hotmail.com.
Image: Baptism in a remote jungle stream of Kalinga Province
