248. PREPARING FOR CHRIST

"He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved".

This final stage of our Sunday School lessons has emphasised more than in any other stage, the call for baptism. That call was made to thousands in the first century as the apostles presented the good news of the Kingdom to both receptive and hostile audiences. Their faithful and often courageous preaching found a response in the hearts of many in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and into the uttermost parts of the earth. Let us now see what was accomplished by that all important act of baptism.

Romans 6

WHAT IS BAPTISM?

The English word "baptise" comes from a Greek word "baptiso" which means "to dip" or "to plunge" and was an everyday term to describe the dyeing of a garment by immersing it in a dyeing fluid so as to create a change of colour in the garment.

By baptism a believer of that Gospel once taught by the apostles submits to a simple yet humbling act of great significance. His or her immersion comes as the final step after a good confession of faith whereby sins are washed away and the believer rises up from the waters leaving behind the old way of life and steps forward determined to glorify God in their new way of life. There is therefore a profound change, just as in the garment dyed in the old dyeing trade. Without that necessary belief and change of ways the person would not have been baptised but simply immersed. It is also obvious that the act of infant sprinkling practised by the churches is not in accordance with what the apostles taught and practised. An infant has no knowledge nor any understanding of the Gospel or of the significance of a changed way of life by baptism. Their sprinkling is also not in accordance with the complete immersion expected of believers.

BAPTISM ESSENTIAL TO SALVATION

When the people heard and believed the gospel taught by Peter on the day of Pentecost, they were moved to confess their repentance and cry out, "what shall we do?" The answer was "be baptised"! And about 3,000 people obeyed that answer. When the Samaritans believed the things concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptised, both men and women. The believing Ethiopian eunuch saw "a certain water" and said "see here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptised? And Philip said, if thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest" (Acts 8:36, 37). We are then told that the chariot stopped, they both went down into the water and the eunuch was baptised. They came up out of the water indicating that a full immersion had taken place. The Ethiopian eunuch now had a firm belief and understanding of the Kingdom and of the necessity for the sacrifice of Christ in God's plan of salvation, he was now baptised into Christ and we saw him go on his way rejoicing in his new transformed way of life.

Cornelius was told that despite his many good works there was one important thing that he lacked. He was a devout man, one who feared God, who gave much alms to the people, who always prayed to God — and yet, something was missing! The churches today would say that that man was deserving of salvation — but Peter was sent to show him what he must yet do. Cornelius and his household had heard of the gospel (Acts 10:36-38) and had gathered to hear "all things that are commanded thee of God" (v.33). Upon Peter's teaching of the gospel of the Kingdom and the salvation accomplished in the death and resurrection of the Son of God and upon the sign of the Holy Spirit sent by God, Peter could see that no man could "forbid water" (v.47). He "commanded them to be baptised in the name of the Lord" (v.48).

Jesus taught Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, that a man must be born of water (baptism) before he can enter the Kingdom of God (John 3:5). He sent forth his apostles with the commission to "preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved" (Mark 16:16). If the Lord himself saw the necessity for his own baptism to "fulfil all righteousness", how much more necessary it is for us to be baptised, who certainly cannot claim to be sinless and free from transgression, as He could! Like Jesus, we must acknowledge that all flesh is grass, that God was right to impose death for sin and that God has the right to lay down the conditions for His acceptance of us.

Those conditions of acceptance were demonstrated to Adam and Eve and Israel under the Law of Moses.

PRINCIPLES SHOWN IN EDEN.

When Adam and Eve sinned, God provided coats of skins to cover their shame and nakedness. He had rejected their own attempt to cover themselves with figleaves (Gen. 3:7). If God was going to accept them, to reconcile them, then it had to be on His own conditions. And those conditions involved the "shedding of blood" to provide their covering. We are later told that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins (Heb. 9:22). So the life of an animal was given in order that Adam and Eve could find acceptance with God. They couldn't save themselves. It was God's own providing and as coats of skins it was a complete covering.

PRINCIPLES SHOWN IN THE LAW OF MOSES.

The Israelite under the Law was shown in a very graphic way that only by the shedding of blood could there be remission of sins. His sins were covered if he brought an animal free from any blemishes, placed his hand upon the head of the animal, witnessed it being slain and realised that the life of the animal was given as a sacrifice for his own sins. He would realise that "the wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23) and he himself was deserving of death were it not for God's provision for a sin covering.

THE SACRIFICE OF CHRIST.

God has appointed a new means of reconciliation. He has appointed the shedding of the blood of His Son, as a perfect, unblemished offering, as the means for us to obtain the forgiveness of sins. The Lord Jesus Christ was the spotless "Lamb of God", foreshadowed in Eden and in the Law, through whom our sins may be covered (Isa. 53:7). It was the one, perfect offering, to take away the sins of the world, securing the ultimate salvation of all the faithful, of all ages. Since God has decreed that this is the only way for sinful man to be forgiven of his sins and have a hope of eternal life, it is vital for us to submit to His appointment. This requires us to undergo a symbolic death, burial and resurrection in the waters of baptism, just like the actual sacrifice of Christ. Our baptism is patterned on his experiences and from that time on our life "in Christ" should also be patterned on his life.

THE PREPARATION FOR BAPTISM.

The simple yet vitally important act of baptism is "the answer of a good conscience towards God". That conscience develops from instruction in the fundamentals of the Gospel. The person who becomes aware of their need for salvation carefully studies these first principles of the Apostolic Faith so that he or she may have a proper grasp of the Truth and the new life that follows baptism. We require this of a candidate for baptism because of the confusion, error and liberal thinking concerning this means of salvation that exists in Christendom today. But this requirement is also made because of the example of the apostles recorded in the Word of God, when care was exercised to ensure that repentance and belief were both present before baptism. With our willingness to comply with Christ's command and the instruction of the apostles must come a thorough appreciation of the Truth to which we commit ourselves. That Truth must be grasped, loved and nurtured as a rock-solid foundation upon which we can build our lives. Such a life long commitment will see us witness for the Truth, building up of the Faith in the ecclesias and in a personal readiness for our Lord's return.

CHRIST THE PATTERN (Romans 6).

The apostle Paul shows that baptism is a symbolic burial following the pattern of Christ's death. It is a burial or a putting to death of sin and its habits. The old way of life which was a slave to sin is discontinued and left behind as the believer rises from the water to a "newness of life".

So that what can be described as a negative action in cutting off a service to sin becomes a positive action of service to God. Paul compares this newness of life to Christ's resurrection (Rom. 6:4; Col. 3:1). The baptised person "lives unto God" by rejecting the re-entry of sin and shows a desire to glorify God by putting into practice in daily life the characteristics which are of God and which were shown in the sinless life of Jesus Christ.

Baptism changes our allegiances. To be identified with Christ is not a part-time profession but rather it is for life! The baptised person is responsible to God since he or she has been bought with "the precious blood of Christ" and as such there is a life long commitment to God and Christ as our Redeemer. To be baptised is to enter a position of grace and privilege. With baptism comes access to God in prayer through the mediator Christ, and fellowship with the Brotherhood of Christ throughout the world.

The act of baptism is therefore the most important step made in a person's life. As God's appointment it should not be entered lightly or without recognition of its responsibilities.

REFERENCE LIBRARY:

"Elpis Israel" (J. Thomas)—pp. 53, 135, 188-209

"Key to the Understanding of the Scriptures" (H. P. Mansfield)—Lesson 7

"Christendom Astray" (R. Roberts)—Lecture 17

"Christadelphian Instructor", questions 62, 63

PARAGRAPH QUESTIONS:

1. What is baptism?

2. How essential is baptism for salvation? Your answer should include examples from the times of the apostles.

3. Show how Christ was the one, perfect offering fulfilling the types demonstrated in Eden and in the Law.

4. How can we prepare for baptism?

ESSAY QUESTIONS:

1. Why must we be baptised?

2. What are the important steps that must be taken:

1. prior to baptism?

2. after baptism?