One In Jesus

Reliance on baptism

Of course, the role of baptism in bringing converts into Christian community is not all that happens in baptism. There are many other blessings associated with baptism.

There’s forgiveness of sins and the indwelling of Spirit —

(Act 2:38 ESV) 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Newness of life, resurrection — Continue reading →

Boasting

Because we’re boastful people, we rarely hear lessons on the theology of boasting. But the scriptures say a lot on the subject.

(Jer 9:23-24 ESV) 23 Thus says the LORD: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, 24 but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”

(Rom 3:27-28 ESV) 27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law. Continue reading →

“Not because of works”

Taking “washing” or “bath” in Titus 3:5 as a reference to baptism creates a theological problem for some, because Paul has just said — in the very same sentence — “he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness.” And to many, baptism is a work and therefore cannot be necessary to salvation.

Of course, Paul seems to think otherwise. This is the same apostle who wrote —

(Gal 3:25-27 ESV) 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Evidently Paul doesn’t read his own stuff, because he persists in associating baptism with salvation — and he does this smack dab in the middle of discussions denying that we are saved by works and forbidding any such teaching! So what on earth could he be thinking? Continue reading →

I saved this passage for late in the discussion because I wanted to share this story near the end. You see, when I was law school (and woolly mammoths ruled the earth), the leaders of my church asked for volunteers to sit in the hospital with a former elder. He was dying from a lung condition, could barely breathe, had little time left to live, and needed to be watched 24/7. I was young and could stay up late in those days, and so I volunteered.

Now, I’d just graduated from Lipscomb and my head was filled all sorts of contradictory things. I’d learned a few elements of grace from Harvey Floyd in his class on Romans, but I’d also taken courses that made it clear that grace is limited to the nearly perfect. I was trying to sort it all out while also learning about torts, contracts, and easements.

So one evening, I sat with a dying man who’d been an elder decades earlier — a man I figured would be filled with legalism and terrified of the death that was sure to come soon. After all, the doctrine we’d all been taught was something like: “We aren’t sure anyone is going to have doctrine perfect enough to be saved, but we’re certain we’ll be first in line to find out!” Yes, my North Alabama theology was of very little comfort at all. I was there out of duty and dreading the experience. Continue reading →

(1Pe 3:18-22 ESV) 18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,  19 in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison,  20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water.  21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,  22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.

This is a famously controversial passage. I’ve always wanted to look more closely at v. 19 (“in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison”), but we’re here to talk about baptism. It’s not really all that hard. Well, the baptism parts aren’t that hard. V. 19 is a little more challenging. Continue reading →

One more poll —

[poll id=”4″]

In the last poll, nearly no readers were willing to damn someone because his baptism was because of sins already forgiven, that is, the typical Southern Baptist teaching. No one selected “Ignorance of God’s law is no excuse,” even though that is taught by many Church of Christ preachers.

As before, many readers took that position that the question is answered in scripture and so the answer is unknowable. But the great majority found Baptist baptism effective. Of course, the Baptists immerse.

This new poll deals with pouring rather than immersion. Assume the convert studied the question closely and concluded that pouring works. Indeed, he looked up the definition of “baptism” in several dictionaries, and they said that “baptism” includes pouring. He figured that the scriptures spoke of the “outpouring” of the Spirit in association with water baptism, and so pouring makes sense. And, of course, the use of bodies of water to water baptize also is consistent with the need to have enough water to pour.

Of course, our convert made the mistake of using English dictionaries instead of Greek dictionaries. Is he damned despite his penitence and faith in Jesus?