Baptismal blessings

This Sunday we have a baptism planned and as always it will be good to see these people submit to the Lord in this ordinance of the church.  The symbolism in baptism is superb and we as Baptists are quite right to insist on the importance of the mode or how it’s to be done. Some want to tweak the mode by sprinkling, pouring or even immersing three times in what’s called trine immersion (once for each Person of the Trinity), but the mode prescribed in Romans 6, “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.” (vs.4) is the only way the Bible shows baptism to be done.  And why?  It not only shows the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord but our own identification with Him in these when we were saved.

If you have been saved already and after that biblically immersed or baptized (as believers also did in Acts 2:41) there are some things to still reflect upon whenever you witness someone else’s baptism in your church.  One, there was a great, great price paid for you to even be able to be saved, namely, the death of Jesus Christ (which death confirms His love for YOU).  Two, there was clearly a penalty paid in this death and His burial for three days demonstrated this as well.   There can be no remission of sins without death, the holiness of God demands appropriate payment for our sins. So, the ransom payment has been made  for YOU ! And three, His resurrection provided for us the evidence that He is Who He claims, for death cannot hold the God-Man ! And it insures one day that we too shall rise after death to receive our glorified body just as He did and when you were saved you were given a foretaste of this with a spiritual or risen perspective, or as Paul wrote, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. . .” (2Cor.5:17).  Each day, with His help, we can become more like Him !!

As an older Christian it’s easy to get a little calloused when observing the ordinances of the church (baptism and the Lord’s Supper). But the next time you see someone baptized, be glad they have taken a step of obedience, yes, but also be glad you have a Savior Who loves you deeply and demonstrated this convincingly so that you could become better, that you could become like Him !   Let the next baptism you witness reassure you of His love and rejuvenate your commitment to Him too ! Remember, those new folks getting baptized are also looking at you to set the pace too !!