Several discussion have been raised about the essence of Baptism in salvation. While some have said without baptism a man cannot make Heaven, others have argued that a man can make Heaven even without baptism, as long as he has satisfied the condition of believing and confessing Jesus Christ.
The doctrine of Baptism is a necessary knowledge and one of the foundational knowledges a believer should have, but unfortunately, we’re hardly exposed to such teachings that plant us fully in the faith of Christ. Most of the things we know about this topic are scrambles of opinions we pick from different places, so there’s usually no certainty. Therefore, the aim of this discussion is to give an introduction and to invite Believers into further search.
The word “Baptism” simply means being immersed.
Baptism happens in the presence of 3 items:
1. The Subject= the person being immersed
2. The Medium= the substance in which the subject is immersed
3. The Baptizer= the person immersing the subject into the medium
There are different types of Baptism and the only difference between all the form is an a result of a change of the 3 items mentioned above. Usually the subject is always a person, but sometimes the Baptizer and medium change.
Classes of Baptism
According to Scriptures, there are 4 major types of Baptism and their classification is based on the medium:
1. Baptism of Water
2. Baptism into the Body
3. Baptism of the Holy Spirit
4. Baptism of Fire
This discussion will focus on Water Baptism, other classes will be discussed in the future.
Baptism of Water
We have 4 subdivisions under water baptism according to their appearance in scripture:
1. Moses’ Baptism
1st Corinthians 10:2 “And were all baptized UNTO Moses in the cloud and in the sea;“(KJV)
This Baptism was done UNTO Moses, the Israelites were Baptized into Moses and it took place in the presence of two mediums: cloud (which was God’s presence that went before them) and the sea (water).
Let’s check how Amplified version wrote it:
“And all [of them] were baptized into Moses [into his safekeeping as their leader] in the cloud and in the sea;“.
Here’s a new revelation of why the Israelites had to pass through the red sea in the presence of the cloud; it was more than just crossing the sea, there was a Baptism taking place without their awareness. But as already seen, this sort of Baptism isn’t relevant to the New Covenant Believer.
2. John’s Baptism
This is the form of water baptism we’re most familiar with but without proper understanding of its purpose and functions. Let’s listen to what John himself said about the purpose of his Baptism.
Matthew 3:11 “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:“.
John here said 3 things.
1. He Baptized with water unto repentance = to make men repent and prepare their hearts to receive Jesus when He comes. This is why even his message was about repentance, “repent for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.
2. He noted that Jesus was mightier than him, and that Jesus will come after him.
3. That there are other types of Baptism which are not of water, but one of them is of the Holy Spirit, and another of Fire.
Again, John’s Baptism wasn’t an assurance into heaven, it was to prepare the hearts of men to receive Jesus. So for a man who has ready received Jesus, this sort of Baptism isn’t relevant to him anymore.
3. Baptism of the Disciples
This is the one that shocked me. I never knew the Disciples of Jesus did baptism when He was alive. But first I’d like you to know that some of the Disciples of Jesus (Andrew, Philip and James) were first the disciples of John the Baptist. It was after John announced Jesus publicly that they left John and started following Jesus. They already knew John’s type of Baptism but were yet to know the Baptism of the Holy Spirit and that of Fire.
John 3:22-36 captured the full story. Also check John 4:1-2 (it’ll show that it wasn’t Jesus that was doing the Baptism, it was His Disciples)
This Baptism was also similar to that John and it is also not relevant to the Believer.
4. Baptism of the Believers
This is the type of Baptism Jesus Christ commanded His disciples to perform, hence, it is the type of water baptism that is relevant to the Believer. Those who partake are those who have already accepted Jesus as their Lord and Saviour; hence, it should be done in the Name of the Father, the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19).
Then the early Christians later went on to Baptizing in the name of JESUS (Acts 2:38), which is a compendium of the 3 Godheads (Colossians 2:9-10).
The part that raise the idea that without Baptism a man will not make Heaven is in first part of Mark 16:16 which says:
Mark 16:16a “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved;…”
However the second part of that same verse already points out that it is not who misses Baptism that’ll be condemned, but condemnation is for him that doesn’t believe in Jesus Christ.
Mark 16:16b “but he that believeth not shall be damned“.
It shows that even if a man goes through Baptism, if he doesn’t believe in Jesus, he’ll not be saved. The condition for salvation is to believe in Jesus (also see Romans 10:9-10 & John 3:18).
But the aspect of the Baptism that makes it important for Believers, is that it prepares you for the reception of the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:38 Peter said, “…Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost“.
So the relevance of this Baptism is not to bring salvation to an unbeliever. In fact, it is meant for a believer and it is to prepare him for the reception of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Though it not a must, this type of water baptism is necessary for every believer.