Baptism at the bridge church
Click link to listen to sermon: Baptized into Christ Jesus (Romans 6:3-5)
Illustration
• In an article discussing the spiritual blessings we have in Christ, Michael Horton tells the story of a Cuban spy named Salvador. Salvador was sent to Miami as a (deep cover agent) in order to learn military secrets from the United States government. However, Cuban nationalists with whom Salvador associated incognito eventually led the clever spy to renounce his loyalties to Castro. As a result, Salvador turned himself in to the United States government and they offered assylum, protection, and a new identity. The government masterminded a “murder” of Salvador so Castro’s officials would assume the death of their spy, and once this plan was carried out Salvador was issued new documents, a new name, and a new life” (Michael Horton).
• This story points to the salvation and newness of life that we have when we’re baptized into Christ Jesus!
Introduction
• Paul speaks of this in when he writes in Romans 6:3–5, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.”
• Christian salvation means being buried with Christ by baptism into His death and being united with Him in a resurrection like his.
• Whether you’re considering baptism or you’ve been baptised already, reflecting on baptism brings us deeper into the reality that it conveys.
1. What baptism signifies
1.1. Jesus’ baptism helps us understand His mission
A. Matthew 3:13–15 “Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he consented.”
• This was unexpected (even for John the Baptist!) because John’s baptism was “a sign of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Chester).
• Yet Jesus is the eternal Son of God with no sin. Why was it necessary?
• God created us in His image with the goal that we would know Him and abide in His love.
• But sin separates us from God bringing spiritual death and an eternity apart from Him (Isaiah 59:2; Rom 6:23).
• Father God took the initiative in sending Christ to save us from our sins (Mt. 1:21).
• To achieve this meant the Eternal Son had to take on flesh and be “counted as if he were a sinner” to bear our burden and die on the cross as our representative (Vern Poythress).
• We see this in Hebrews 2:14-17 where we read, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery… Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”
• Jesus’ baptism signifies his identification with sinful humanity and points to His substitutionary death on the cross.
B. It is only in Christ that we are rescued from sin and reconciled to God and this is received by faith (Gal. 1:3-4; 2:15-21; 2 Cor. 5:17-21).
• Ephesians 2:4–8 “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ… by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God.”
1.2. Baptism speaks of the believers union with Christ
A. Paul writes in Colossians 2:12–14, “You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”
• Through Christ’s death and resurrection, and our union with Him through faith and repentance (which baptism represents), we are made “alive together with Him” through the forgiveness of sins and the enabling of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 3:13-14).
• Baptism demonstrates that our old (autonomous) self has died and was buried with Christ and our life is now “hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 2:12; 3:3; Gal. 2:20).
• We are so identified with Christ that Paul says, “I no longer live, but Christ lives in me” (our lives are bound up in His).
• One of the early church fathers (Cyril of Jerusalem) referred to the waters of baptism as a tomb and a womb.
• Baptism is an outward expression of an inward reality: a public confession of faith and repentance and our union with Christ.
B. As a result of our union with Christ our sins are forgiven and our “record of debt” has been been nailed to the cross.
• “Baptism is like a wedding. Imagine a poor slave girl marrying a prince: he takes her debts and covers them; she receives his status. Jesus lived the life we should have lived and died the death that we deserve to die.” (Chester)
• Our baptism into Christ also means we are adopted as God’s own children and we receive the Father’s approval in Christ (
• Paul tells us that this all happens “through faith in the powerful working of God” (Col 2:12; 1:29; Gal 2:16; Eph 2:8).
1.3. Baptism into Christ means cleansing from sin and salvation (Acts 2:38)
• Peter likens baptism to Noah and the ark, which was brought safely through the waters of judgment.
• 1 Peter 3:20–21 “The ark was brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
• Baptism by immersion into water speaks of the cleansing of sin that comes through faith and repentance.
1.4. Baptism means that we now belong to Jesus bringing the expectation to follow Him as Lord.
• Included in Paul’s most extensive teaching on our baptism into Christ he writes in Romans 6:6, 11-13, “Our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin… So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions… but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life.”
• And because of our union with Christ we are now “one spirit with Him” and we must deny ourselves and glorify Him as Lord of all (Mark 8:34-38).
• 1 Corinthians 6:15–20 “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? …he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him… your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.”
• Jesus now lives in us (we no longer have an autonomous existence) and we seek to live in a way that pleases Him.
• We do this not to earn His acceptance but out of our love for Him and the desire to grow into deeper communion with Him.
• Christ is formed in us through spiritual disciplines such as Bible-reading, prayer and involvement in the local church (Gal 4:19).
• Our union with Christ doesn’t mean we will never sin but “sin and death no longer rule over our lives.”
• “John Murray has given us an excellent illustration of the relationship of the imperative to the indicative. He wrote, “To say to the slave who has not been emancipated, ‘Do not behave as a slave’ is to mock his enslavement. But to say the same to the slave who has been set free is the necessary appeal to put into effect the privileges and rights of his liberation” (Jerry Bridges).
• When we fail a life of repentance means turning from sin and following Jesus (2 Peter 1:3; Col. 1:29).
1.5. Through our baptism we are initiated into the body of Christ
• 1 Corinthians 12:13 “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”
• Baptism isn’t individualistic, but through the Spirit we are baptised into the body of Christ and are part of God’s family.
• Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are both “boundary markers” of those who belong to the church.
• It’s been said that “Baptism is like a naming ceremony. It’s a sign that God is our Father” (Chester).
• “God sent his Son so that we could become part of his family (If we are united with Christ, then we are also united with his people, the church). And God sent the Spirit of his Son so we could know that we are part of his family. The Spirit assures us of God’s fatherly love” (Chester).
1.6. Baptism anticipates God’s end-time kingdom reign
• When Jesus was baptised, and later at His “baptism” at the cross, it was a manifestation of heaven being torn open and the Triune God breaking in to bring salvation.
• When we are baptised into Christ we participate in the expansion of God’s kingdom with power through the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
1.7. Baptism “exhibits” the good news of the gospel
• “As the preaching of the Word makes the gospel audible, so the sacraments make it visible, and God stirs up faith by both means” (J. I. Packer)
• Baptism is “a neon light flashing ‘Gospel, Gospel, Gospel.’” When the church practices baptism, she testifies to the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and signifies the sinner’s union with Christ in all he did and accomplished on our behalf” (Thabiti Anyabwile)
• Baptism is a witness and testimony to those who don’t know Christ and baptism continues to speak to those already baptised.
• It provides the opportunity to “meditate on it’s blessings” which strengthens our faith and expectation for sharing in the life of Christ.
2. Baptism is BOTH something we do and something God does
2.1. It’s through faith we are baptized into Christ
• Colossians 2:12 “You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.”
• Believers baptism by immersion expresses several things:
• First, in baptism we confess that at a specific point in time Jesus literally died, was buried, and rose again-conquering death once and for all, and offering real life to all who would have it.
• Through faith and repentance our lives are united to Christ’s as we identify with His death, burial and resurrection (which is conveyed in baptism).
• In baptism we also “repent of the sins that separate us from God,” renouncing the devil, his works and “rebellion against God” (appealing to God to deliver us from enemy oppression).
• We promise to live as a disciple of Christ and to follow Him as Lord through His grace and the power of the Holy Spirit (Col. 1:29).
2.2. Baptism is also something God does
A. God is present with us in baptism
“The sacrament is not just our doing something in God’s presence; it is his doing something for us. He really is there, acting… the sacraments are locations of God’s presence… our growth comes through the presence of Christ by His Spirit dealing with us personally” (John Frame)
• This means that baptism isn’t significant because of any power in itself, but because God has set it apart as a means through which we encounter Christ by the Spirit through faith (Letham).
“The sacraments do not as such contain or confer grace, but they are employed by the Spirit to direct us to the living Christ, the fount and source of all grace. Grace is not a created power that can be controlled… but it is the living Christ himself reaching out to us through sacramental acts” (Donald G. Bloesch)
• God works through baptism to bring us into the reality it signifies.
• In other words, it’s because God really is present in baptism that we should expect to meet with Him and receive the benefits of our union with Christ through baptism (this includes deliverance from enemy oppression).
› Our obedience in baptism brings God’s blessing and strengthens our faith.
B. Baptism is also a seal of God’s ownership
• Baptism is more than what we do/say in response to the gospel but in baptism the Father marks us as belonging to Him.
• Baptism has been likened to “a legal document like title deeds (with a wax imprint that marked a document as official). The deeds remain parchment and wax. They are not the property itself. But they are not merely parchment and wax…”
• “The person who receives the deeds receives the property; yet on one important condition; he must be the duly qualified person to receive them, otherwise the deeds convey nothing to him. So the sacraments convey eternal life by way of promise to those (and only to those) who perceive and believe that promise” (John Stott)
3. Baptism was instituted by Christ for His church
3.1. Jesus commands Christians to be baptized as part of His Great Commission
• Matthew 28:19–20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
• Baptism marks the start of discipleship as we follow Jesus.
• And Jesus calls those who have been baptised in Him to participate in His mission to make disciples through the power of His Spirit.
3.2. The NT church baptised those who responded to the gospel
• After Peter preached the gospel at Pentecost we read in Acts 2:37–38, “Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
3.3. Baptism immediately followed the hearers reception of the gospel
• A few verses later we see that there was no delay between conversion and baptism, Acts 2:41 “So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”
• This happens repeatedly throughout the book of Acts.
• Examples include: Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9:18), Cornelius and those with him (Acts 10:47–48), the Ethiopian Eunich (Acts 8:38), Lydia (Acts 16:14–15), the Philippian jailer and all his family (Acts 16:33).
• The NT assumes that baptism marks the beginning of the Christian life—spiritual rebirth and baptism go together (Rom 6:4).
Galatians 3:26–27 “…for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
3.4. What about children? (Can my children be baptised?)
• Absolutely, as long as they understand what they are doing.
• But children must wait until they are old enough to make a profession of faith that is their own.
• At the Bridge Church we do not baptise infants but we have a dedication service to pray for and consecrate the child to the Lord.
• During this time the parents and the congregation make promises to nurture in child in the ways of the Lord and pray for them.
Have you responded to Jesus’ call to be baptised?
• I’ll repeat Peter’s words after preaching the gospel at Pentecost… Acts 2:37–38 “Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
• If you’ve responded to the gospel of Jesus Christ through faith and repentance and have chosen to follow Jesus as a disciple then I would say, like Peter, that obedience to Christ in baptism is an appropriate next step.
• Baptism isn’t reserved for mature Christians, but it marks the start of the Christian life and our union with Christ.
Reflection questions
1. How does Jesus’ baptism help us understand the problem of sin and His redemptive mission? (Read Matthew 1:21, 3:13-15, Romans 6:23, Hebrews 2:14-17—See 1.1.A. and 1.3.)
2. How do we receive the rescue from sin and reconciliation with God that Jesus’ baptism reveals? Can we contribute in any way to our salvation? (Read Ephesians 2:4-8—See 1.1.B. and 2.1.)
3. How does baptism speak of our union with Christ and what is the significance? How does the story of Salvador illustrate this? (Read Romans 6:3-5—See 1.2.)
4. How can we be saved from God’s judgment? Does our baptism into Christ bring confidence that God will give us eternal life? (Read Colossians 2:12–14, 1 Peter 3:20-21—See 1.2. and 1.3.)
5. How should baptism affect the way we live, our daily choices and spiritual warfare? How does the illustration by John Murray speak to our ongoing fight against sin? When is it most difficult for you to follow Jesus? What steps can you take to grow as a disciple? (Read Romans 6:6, 11-13, 1 Corinthians 6:15–20—See1.4. and 2.1.)
6. What does Galatians 3:26-28 say about who can become part of God’s family how this is possible? How does baptism relate to our connection with the church? (Read 1 Corinthians 12:13—See1.5.)
7. What is our role in baptism and why is it important? (Read Colossians 2:12, Acts 2:37–41—See2.1., 3.1., 3.2. and 3.3)
8. What does God do when we are baptised and what confidence does this give for the Christian life and overcoming enemy oppression? (Read 1 Corinthians 10:1-4, 16, 2 Kings 5:10-15—See2.2.A. and 2.2.B.)
For further teaching about how God takes action to rescue us click link to listen to sermon: Rend the heavens and come down (Mark 1:9-11)