Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? (Romans 6:3)
After His death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus met with His disciples to give them instructions. He told them that all authority had been given to Him in heaven and earth, therefore they were to make disciples of all the nations “baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:18–19). Since Jesus was THE Authority, we know that He was not giving His apostles suggestions, or a request. This was a clear command from the Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36).
This section of scripture is known as “The Great Commission.” Many people do not realize that these are commands from the Lord. He told the apostles to teach the disciples to observe all that He had commanded. The command to baptize is one that often gets pushed to the, “I’ll get to that later” list. Why is that?
What is baptism? True, Christian[1] baptism is one of two ordinances of the church. The other is The Lord’s Supper, also known as The Lord’s Table, and Communion. Baptism is a ceremony where a believer is completely immersed in water by another believer. This then requires a large enough volume of water to completely submerge the person. Some believers have been baptized in frigid oceans, others in Jacuzzi’s. The point is complete immersion; not sprinkling, dabbing, wiping, etc. Baptism identifies you with Jesus Christ.
Through baptism we are united with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4–7). The book of The Acts of the Apostles shows that new believers were baptized immediately. They were eager to obey the One who died that we might live forever (Acts 2:38–41; Acts 8:36–38; Acts 9:17–18; Acts 16:33).
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SUMMARY • Jesus commanded His apostles to make disciples and baptize them
• Baptism is not something to be put on the “do when convenient” list
• Baptism unites believers with Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection
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FOOTNOTES
A Christian is a person who hears the Gospel of the kingdom of God, believes that message, repents of his sin, and is therefore declared righteous by God (Mark 1:14-15; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4; Romans 10:1-10). ↑
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RBG Devotional 10–1: The Buried: United Through Baptism Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org. 24-Jun-21, 05:40 |