A bible study on baptism by Leanna Mae

Hello and welcome. This is an introductory bible study on baptism. It’s taken from the book, The Subject of Salvation. Please feel welcome to ask questions in the comments, and I will try to reply to each one. This is also available in slideshow form and video on the bible study page.
 
Baptism is one of my favorite topics. If you are seeking on this topic, I invite you to study the scriptures and pray for understanding. Getting baptized is a beautiful experience. You can read the story of my own baptism here.
 
Let’s talk about baptism. We’ll start with the scriptures and then get into discussing what they mean.

Scriptures

I've chosen several scriptures to highlight. All of the verses regarding baptism are referenced in the image above.

(All scriptures in the text are American Standard Version.)

Matthew 28:19-20 Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.

 Mark 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that disbelieveth shall be condemned.

John 3:1-8 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: the same came unto him by night, and said to him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except one be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born anew. The wind bloweth where it will, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Acts 2:38 And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 2:41 They then that received his word were baptized: and there were added unto them in that day about three thousand souls.

Acts 8:12-17 But when they believed Philip preaching good tidings concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. And Simon also himself believed: and being baptized, he continued with Philip; and beholding signs and great miracles wrought, he was amazed.
Now when the apostles that were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit: for as yet it was fallen upon none of them: only they had been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

Acts 8:35-38 And Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this scripture, preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on the way, they came unto a certain water; and the eunuch saith, Behold, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they both went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.

Acts 10:44-48 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all them that heard the word. And they of the circumcision that believed were amazed, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Spirit. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid the water, that these should not be baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit as well as we? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

Acts 19:1-7 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper country came to Ephesus, and found certain disciples: and he said unto them, Did ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye believed? And they said unto him, Nay, we did not so much as hear whether the Holy Spirit was given. And he said, Into what then were ye baptized? And they said, Into John’s baptism. And Paul said, John baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people that they should believe on him that should come after him, that is, on Jesus. And when they heard this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. And they were in all about twelve men.

Acts 22:16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on his name.

Romans 6:3-8 Or are ye ignorant that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life. For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection; knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away, that so we should no longer be in bondage to sin; for he that hath died is justified from sin. But if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him;

Galatians 3:26-28 For ye are all sons of God, through faith, in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ did put on Christ. There can be neither Jew nor Greek, there can be neither bond nor free, there can be no male and female; for ye all are one man in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 4:5-6 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in all.

Speaking of the flood, 1 Peter 3:21 which also after a true likeness doth now save you, even baptism, not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the interrogation of a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ;

Elucidation of this topic

To elucidate is to explain or make something clear. We are interpreting the scriptures here piece by piece.

How did baptism start?
John the Baptist said he was baptizing for repentance, but one greater than him would come and baptize people with the Holy Spirit and with fire. Jesus was baptized. Jesus himself taught the disciples how to baptize. We learn from Acts 18:24-28 and Acts 19:1-7 that the baptism in the early Christian church that the disciples were practicing was different from John’s baptism. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism (Ephesians 4:5-6). There is only one correct way to baptize. There is a baptism with water and a baptism of the Holy Spirit.

What does baptism mean?
In baptism, we are buried with Christ into his death and we will be united in the likeness of his resurrection. Our old self is crucified with Christ so that sin will no longer enslave us. If we died with Christ, we will live with him (Romans 6:3-8). In baptism, we are buried with Jesus and raised with Jesus through our faith in God (Colossians 2:9-13). Baptism in Jesus’ name is for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). It washes our sins away (Acts 22:16).

Who gets baptized?
Only believers in Jesus were baptized. The bible only makes mention of people choosing baptism who were old enough to choose the faith. There is no mention of babies or young children being baptized.
 
In Acts chapter 19 verses 1 through 7 there were people that had been baptized into John’s baptism of repentance that Paul taught about the proper way to be baptized. They were then baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus and received the Holy Spirit. If a person has been baptized and it was not done properly, they should get baptized again.

When did people get baptized?
People got baptized immediately after or soon after they believed. Those who received the word were baptized (Acts 2:41). People got baptized both before and after receiving the Holy Spirit.

How did the early church baptize people?
A biblical baptism is one of being immersed and being raised up. The words baptize and baptism are Greek words. Baptize is a transliteration of the Greek word baptizo which means to immerse. The root word is bapto which means to dip. The ‘o’ was changed to an ‘e’ to give us our verb baptize; a verb is an action word. The noun form is the Greek word baptisma which is where we get our word baptism. There was no confusion or controversy on the meaning of this when it was written. No one baptized by sprinkling or pouring on water. The Greek-speaking people understood the instruction to be baptized is an instruction to be immersed (go fully under).

We can also see from the context of scriptures this is how they baptized. Jesus was baptized in a river and it talks about him coming up from the water. In Acts 8:35-38 it says they went down into the water. Romans 6:3-8 and Colossians 2:9-13 talk about being buried with Christ and being raised with him. To be buried, you go under. To be raised, you come up. A person being baptized needs to be fully immersed in the baptismal waters.

What name should you be baptized in?
A lot of churches baptize “in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit”. There are also churches that baptize “in the name of Jesus”. Are they both the same? Does it matter? Is one a valid baptism and another invalid? Is one way right and the other way wrong? What does the bible say?

Matthew 28:19 says to go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:38 we are taught to repent, be baptized in Jesus’ name for the forgiveness of sins, and that we will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:12-17 tells us about people who had been baptized in the name of Jesus, but still needed the Holy Spirit. In Acts 10:44-48 the Gentiles (non-Jews) received the Holy Spirit and Peter commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. In Acts 19:1-7 there were people who had been baptized into John’s baptism that Paul taught about the baptism we are supposed to have and they got baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 1:11-17 Paul asked the quarreling Corinthians if they were baptized in the name of Paul. After the Christian church began, every mention of a baptism that states the name it was done in says it was in the name of Jesus.

Jesus himself taught the disciples how to baptize. He made sure they had it right. Earlier in this book, I mentioned that all scripture is accurate. All of the New Testament is relevant for us. Matthew and Acts are equally accurate and relevant. Remember your interpretations of bible verses should never contradict other bible verses, but they should complement other verses. The way you interpret things should have bible verses all supporting each other. This is one of those subjects you really need to keep that in mind with. It is not a directive to listen to the instructions in Matthew or listen to the instructions in Acts. Matthew 28:19 and Acts 2:38 mean the same thing.

Some denominations say they baptize in the name of the trinity. That is not following the instructions given. Some denominations say when the bible says to baptize in the name of Jesus that is an abbreviation for “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. Why would God abbreviate that? Of all things, why abbreviate something so important? And how do you get J-e-s-u-s out of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? The interpretation that baptism in the name of Jesus is an abbreviation for baptism in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit is unbiblical. There are also denominations that say baptism in “Jesus’ name” only means in the authority of Jesus. You’re supposed to use the authority of Jesus’ name without actually saying his name?
 
To baptize “in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” is to baptize in God’s titles. What is God’s name?

If you were to hand me a pen and ask me to write down my name, I would write “Leanna”. I wouldn’t write “your name”. Likewise, if I asked you to write down God’s name, you would write “Jesus”. I doubt you would write “God’s name” on the paper.
If a man wanted to write a check to pay a debt, he has to sign his name on the check for it to be cashed. Would he sign “Father, Son, and Husband” or would he sign his name? Being a son and a husband and a father are his titles. What’s his name? It’s his name that pays the debt. 

The name of the Son is Jesus. Jesus tells us he has come in his Father’s name (John 5:43) and that the Father will send the Holy Spirit in his name (John 14:26). God’s name is Jesus. There is no other name by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12).

When we are instructed to be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we know that “the name” is JESUS. We are baptized into Christ. We are buried with Christ in baptism and raised in Christ. We need to be baptized in the name of who we are being buried with and raised with and saved by — Jesus. The bible says we need to be baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Is baptism necessary?
This is an important question. Some churches say yes. Some churches say no. What does the bible say? What does God say about it? If you believe and are baptized you will be saved, but if you do not believe you are condemned (Mark 16:16). You must be born again. You must be born of water and of the Spirit. Without being born again you cannot enter heaven (John 3:1-8). We are told to repent and then be baptized in Jesus’ name for the remission of sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). Baptism saves us by the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 3:21).
 
It doesn’t say it’s optional. It doesn’t say it’s symbolic. We are commanded to be baptized. It is cleansing. It washes our sins away. Baptism buries us with Christ and raises us with him. It is saving. It is essential.

Contemplation questions

1. What is baptism?
   
2. What does it mean to be baptized?
3. In the bible, who gets baptized?
4. In the bible, when do people get baptized?
5. Why does a person get baptized?
6. Do you have to be baptized?
7. What happens when somebody gets baptized?
8. Do you have to be immersed in the water (go fully under)?
9. What name should you be baptized in?
10. Are you baptized?
11. If yes, was it done according to the bible?
12. If not, are you going to be baptized the same way they did it in the bible?

Have you been baptized by immersion in the name of Jesus for the remission of your sins? If not, what are you waiting for? Find an Apostolic Pentecostal church (all of them baptize this way) and obey the scriptures. If you have already obeyed this, share the message and reach as many people as you can.