One In Jesus

It’s hard to deny the sacramental character of baptism as taught in the Churches of Christ. Although Zwingli taught “external things are nothing. They avail nothing for salvation,” the Churches of Christ have always taught that baptism is the event during which salvation occurs.

Interestingly, even though the Churches of Christ often cite the European Anabaptists as evidence that the Church of Christ pre-existed Stone and Campbell, Hicks points out that the Anabaptists followed Zwingli’s view. Even though they insisted on adult immersion, they saw a convert’s coming to faith as the moment of salvation. Continue reading →

“Sacramentalist” just sounds kind of cool, doesn’t it? Lots of alliteration and sibilance. But it’s not a word you hear much in Church of Christ circles. We’ve been accused by many of teaching baptism as a sacrament. We usually figure that’s a Catholic thing and so deny the accusation. But things are changing.

In this quarter’s Restoration Quarterly, John Mark Hicks argues for taking a frankly sacramental view of the Lord’s Supper, baptism, and the Lord’s Day — following Alexander Campbell and, no coincidence, three excellent books he’s authored or co-authored: Come to the Table: Revisioning the Lord’s Supper; Down in the River to Pray: Revisioning Baptism as God’s Transforming Work; and A Gathered People: Revisioning the Assembly as Transforming Encounter.

Well, Hicks is one of our few truly interesting theologians, and so I want to spend a little time considering what he has to say. Continue reading →