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What Is Baptism? A Biblical Explanation of 1 Peter 3:21
What are we saying when we are baptized? Discussions about baptism often focus on who should receive it or how much water should be used. Those are important questions, but they depend in part on a more basic question: What does baptism mean? If baptism includes a personal profession of faith and repentance, that has direct implications for whom we should baptize. One of the most helpful passages for answering that question is also one that can make Baptists uncomfortable. In 1 Peter 3:21, Peter says that baptism saves. Yet the explanation he gives helps us understand both the nature of baptism and the personal response it involves. Rather than avoiding this passage, we should pay close attention to how Peter defines his terms. Baptism and a Good Conscience Some scholars have identified 1 Peter 3:21 as the closest thing we have to a biblical definition of baptism.[1] Although Peter’s…
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The Baptism Debate: Understanding and Evaluating Reformed Infant Baptism
The majority of those who identify as Christians believe in infant baptism (also known as paedobaptism). Infant baptism is a major doctrinal belief for Catholics, Lutherans, Anglicans, and Reformed churches, such as Presbyterians. Yet, there is a strong contingent of Christians who reject infant baptism, arguing that only those who believe in Christ should be baptized (a position known as credobaptism). Given the fact that baptism is a core command within the church, this is an essential issue on which to have an opinion! This debate about baptism can sometimes get messy and confusing. Christians on both sides of the issue often do not understand their own position, let alone the opposing arguments. I wrote The Baptism Debate to help believers understand what baptism is and why infant baptism does not actually fulfill the biblical definition of baptism. Because Catholics and Lutherans have their own reasons for baptizing infants, I…
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Immersion in the Early Church Baptismal Practice
Those who argue for infant baptism often appeal to church history as evidence that infant baptism was a regular church practice. Although infant baptism was indeed practiced by the time we get to the end of the 3rd century, prior to that time there are significant questions regarding the regularity of the practice. Furthermore, although modern paedobaptists will often appeal to church history for defense of paedobaptism, they often ignore the early church testimony on the regularity of immersion. In other words, the early church sources are clear that immersion was the regular mode of baptism for those in the church, and deviations from that practice were viewed as exceptional. Immersion in the Didache One of the earliest sources we have on baptism is from the Didache (7:1–4). Although a lot could be said about the Didache, here I want to emphasize that this early church source emphasizes immersion. Consider…