Q: What is Baptism?

First off, baptism means immersion. I am assuming this because the only example we have of the actual mechanics of it in the Bible is John baptizing people in the river. "River" there would kinda suggest immersion. It's hard to imagine how you might sprinkle someone with a river. But on the other hand, baptism is a sort of fulfillment of biblical typology and symbolism. And the Old Testament is way short of any kind of immersion imagery, and chock full of sprinkling and dabbing. Sprinkling of blood; sprinkling of ashes, spinkling of oil... In the Old Testament, it's is only a form of "marking" - specifically of identifying or distinguishing. The blood was dabbed on the doorposts of the house as an identifying mark - a signal to the destroyer that he was to pass over (ie, passover) this house while on his rounds about Egypt. The blood was sprinkled on the altar and on the people.

I think the only uses of "immersion" in the Old Testament are likely going to come in various forms of death and the grave. Which I think is very revealing and a strong argument in favour of immersion. It symbolized your resurrection from the dead, after all.

For that reason, as far as I'm concerned, a sprinkle is every bit as good as a dunk. It has to do with your heart more than anything else. You can completely FAKE a baptism, even a baptism by immersion. And you can be completely genuine in your profession of faith and yet fail to be baptised at all for simple lack of water or access to it. (I see a eunuch in a chariot by a river and a guy hanging on a cross next to Jesus). I can't see where it matters. Let's face it, how many rivers in Israel at that time were even deep enough for it? IF you could find one at all. Lots of rivers are little more than ankle deep. (I see John the Baptist jumping up and down on your chest trying to get you UNDER the water, or rolling you around like a log trying to make sure he get's every side of you wet. ;-)

Talk about immersion is kinda moot if your river is 6 inches deep at the time you "got saved" or if you were nailed to a tree 15 feet away from and right in plain site of a thirty foot deep river.


Secondly, baptism is purely symbolic. It is an outward expression of an inward change. It is your first, public, expression of faith. And failure to be baptised in no way says anything at all about what you believe (except maybe what you believe about baptism). Lots and lots of people died in Christ without ever being baptised. And they will be "raised again on the last day" or "with him in paradise."

The only baptism I'm aware of that is or was absolutely necessary was Jesus Christ's baptism, and the only reason that was necessary was to fulfill a prophecy that was specifically about Him. ("John, we have to do this to fulfill prophecy, so get on with it...")

The one person solidly identified with baptism is of couse, John the Baptist. It's kinda where he got his nickname. But John, in speaking of Baptism said that his baptism was trivial, and the REAL baptist was coming after him, and that the REAL baptism was with the Holy Spirit and with "fire" (again, another reference to the Holy Spirit), NOT with water at all, whether with a sprinkle or a dunk.

And that's the real heart of the matter. Baptism means being baptised "IN Christ". It means to be immersed, I'll grant, but it means to be immersed IN JESUS. (That's why I prefer to think of it as immersion. I don't want a little sprinkle of Jesus. Dunk me under - several times!) Recall that Jesus said to Peter, "unless I wash you, you can have no part with me" - again alluding to the fact that baptism means to be immersed in Jesus Christ. To be filled with the Holy Spirit. To be "marked" and set aside and distinguished internally in your heart, and separated from the rest of the world. All this takes place immediately and completely the very instant a man's eyes, ears and heart are opened, and they see themselves in their true condition and they see Jesus Christ for who he truly is - their saviour. And when they believe it and trust in it, they are therein baptized in the Holy Spirit and Fire in that very instant! They are immediately filled with as much of the Holy Spirit as they ever will be - that is to say, completely!

Again, water baptism is symbolic. It's a work that takes place in the heart and mind of a believer. Not on his skin and clothes.


Q: Is baptism actually necessary?

A: The question is not "is it necessary?" The question is "why would you not WANT to be baptized?" Really! If you are sitting there having this conversation with yourself about whether or not you ought to be baptized, I think you aren't even qualified for it in the first place. And, (and this is just me personally), if it isn't your hope to be dunked so deep into Jesus Christ that you might DROWN, then I question your resolve and your so-called "faith." Seeing how great an ocean of grace and forgiveness is our Lord, who wouldn't want to be DRENCHED - utterly soaked, through and through, with that living water? How could you look at it and not want to go under that surface and never come up out of it? How could you stand there, dazzled by the brilliant light shining from it's liquid gold surface and say, "Gee, I really don't like getting wet. But, well, OK, I guess you could sprinkle a little bit of it on me... that wouldn't be too bad." My response: SIEZE ME BY THE SCRUFF OF MY NECK AND THROW ME IN THERE LORD! Chuck me in there head first, Lord!! Is that all you got??? blub blub blub.. Is that all you got????? Nope, there's still a dry spot here, Lord, better send me back in again! Let's find out how deep this water really is! (oops. Sorry, I'm having a good laugh writing that, but that's the scene as I see it!)


But really, If you are not absolutely certain, then I think you have yet to meet our Lord. Here's that wonderful water, like you've never seen before, and you're standing there sticking your toe in it and saying, "Ew!"???

That water isn't for you, my friend. Not yet, anyway.

No man who truly sees his sinful condition, and see the revealed holiness of God, and the true rightesousness of God in Jesus Christ, no such man will do anything but fall on his face glorifying God and despairing of any hope in themselves for salvation. The immediate consequence of revelation is belief, and the immediate consequence of belief is, inevitably, TRUST. And to those who put their trust in Jesus Christ, to them he says "you will be with me in paradise." And water doesn't enter into it.

The answer is that it's not that baptism is necessary, but that for the truly saved saints of God, it is unavoidable.