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The following are several frequently
asked questions along with answers regarding the baptism and its place in God's
plan for man's salvation. This
list is not meant to be exhaustive but represents many of the common questions that
are asked. Like everything else, we invite you to study your Bible to
learn all that you can about the Lord's Church. If you have additional
questions about baptism,
e-mail us and we will be glad to answer.
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1.
Question: I have always understood that a person is saved through
his or her faith and baptism is for church membership. Is
this not true?
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Answer: Actually part of the question is
true; baptism does add a person's name to the church. The problem is, in God's mind and
purposes, there is only one church. The church is described in the Bible as
the Body of Christ. Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:4 "There is
one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;". Many people
are confused by the idea of denominationalism, which is foreign to the teaching of
the New Testament. A person cannot be saved without being part of His
church.
It is
true that a person must have Faith in order to be saved but this must be an active faith. This does not mean that a person's
own works save them. It means that an active faith causes a person to accept
that which God has freely given away; salvation. In order to accept
salvation, a person must do what God demands. This includes baptism. Paul
explained this in Colossians 2:10 "And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all
principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made
without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision
of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the
faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. And you,
being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened
together with him, having
forgiven you all trespasses;". So it is
true that a person is saved by faith but only by the kind of faith that will cause an individual
to be obedient to God and to seek entrance into His church.
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2.
Question: I have been baptized before, for membership into another
church. Do I have to be baptized again?
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Answer: It is not important whether or not
you are satisfied with your former
baptism. What is important is whether
or not God is satisfied with your baptism. In the book of Acts, we have the following account of
the Apostle Paul confronting individuals who had been baptized for
incorrect reasons. "And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul
having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain
disciples, He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye
believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any
Holy Ghost. And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And
they said, Unto John's baptism. Then said Paul, John verily baptized
with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him
which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard
this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus." [Acts 19: 1-5]
If any type of baptism is acceptable to God, then it could even be argued that a person that
dives into a swimming pool has been baptized. According to Paul, this is not
the case. Even the people at
Ephesus, who in all sincerity had been baptized
according to the teachings of John the Baptist, were re-baptized in order to be
pleasing to God. We are to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission
of our sins.
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3.
Question: The Bible says that we are saved "By grace through faith"
and baptism is a work. Isn't grace sufficient to save
us?
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Answer: Grace is quite sufficient to save us and
indeed it is by God's grace that we are saved. This is because that we, as mere
men, can do nothing to warrant or to force God to offer us salvation. God has
chosen to offer us salvation by His love and grace toward us. But grace, though
not earned, has to be reached out for. It has to be taken. Baptism is
100% by grace and is part of an active faith that accepts that which has been freely given.
Baptism is not some work concocted by man to circumvent God's plan of grace.
Baptism is where an active faith contacts the blood of Christ offered by
the grace of God. Paul wrote in Romans 6:3-4 "Know ye not,
that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we
are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up
from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness
of life.". Yes Grace is sufficient to save us and God's grace does save us.
God's plan of salvation for man is part of His grace and baptism is part of His
plan.
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4.
Question: How about my parents? They were never baptized.
If I am baptized then I am admitting that they were or are lost.
Is this true?
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Answer: This question is very emotionally
charged for most people which is understood given the love and bond that exists between
parents and children. From the earliest of times, God has never caused a
child to be responsible for the sins of a parent; nor a parent the sins of a child.
The prophet Ezekiel through inspiration wrote "The
soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the
father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him,
and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him." [Ezekiel 18:20]
In other words, God intends that a person be responsible for their own actions, not those
of others. Paul wrote to the Philippians reminding them to
"...work out your own salvation with fear and trembling."
[Philippians 2:12] So it
makes no difference what parents do or don't do. God does not wish a child to be lost
because of the actions of his or her parents any more than He wants a parents to be lost
due to the actions of a
child. Every person is responsible for
themselves. God
instituted family relationships on earth for man in order that man's life on earth might be made easier. Indeed, there is no
better life to be had than to enjoy a close family relationship. It brings,
love, peace, stability, happiness, warmth, and a sense of belonging into a person's life.
But life in Heaven will be different. Jesus taught that will be no marriage
relationship in Heaven. In
Mark 12:25 we find "For when they
shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which
are in heaven.". Members of the church often refer to each other as
brothers or sisters. This simply signifies that we are brothers and sisters in
regards to our relationship to God through Christ. This is not only true on
earth but it also looks forward to Heaven. This should not lessen our feelings for
our family but it helps us to understand family relationships within the great scheme
of God's plans. Jesus
said in Matthew 10:37 "He that loveth father or mother
more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter
more than me is not worthy of me.". Jesus did not mean that we should not
love our parents or our children. Far from it, Jesus expects us to love our family.
What Jesus was teaching was simply for us to not give preference to family members
over Him. When we give Jesus the place in our heart that He deserves and
demands, then actions by family members will not have any bearing on our
decision to put on Christ through baptism.
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New Antioch Church of Christ