The Meaning Of Baptism Series

Allow me to begin with a cute illustration. “The six-year-old grandson of Ruth Kirby told his mother that he had been baptized. Well, mom knew he hadn’t been formally baptized, so she probed a little further into the matter. She asked him to explain what he meant by ‘baptized.’ Little Blake then enlightened his mom, ‘Last night in the bathtub I put my face under the water and thought about Jesus’.”(1) Well, like little Blake, there are probably some people who have some misconceptions about what baptism is and what it means.

We often have some strange ideas about baptism. For some people, baptism is shrouded in such great mystery that they fear giving their lives to Jesus because they don’t want to go through with being baptized. For other people, baptism is believed to be what saves us, and there are still others who feel that baptism is something that a person cannot undergo until they come to the point where they are without sin. This morning, we are going to look at what the Bible has to say about baptism and see if we can clear up some of these misconceptions.(2)

Baptism is Exemplified (Matthew 3:13-17)

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?” 15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him. 16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Our basis for baptism is derived from how greatly the Bible stresses its importance; but before we look at this, we need to first address a somewhat puzzling matter. We read that when Jesus came to John to be baptized, that John was initially startled and reluctant to baptize Him.(3) Why? Well, because in John’s baptism there was a call to repentance leading to the forgiveness of sins, and John realized that Jesus did not stand in need of forgiveness.(4) In Hebrews 4:15, we read that Jesus “was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin,” and in 2 Corinthians 5:21, He is described as “Him who knew no sin.”

Jesus did not seek baptism in order to repent of any personal sins. It has been suggested that He appeared during this spiritually charged atmosphere, in order to connect with people on a spiritual level; to engage with His target audience, so He could teach them something about baptism. In submitting to baptism, Jesus identified Himself with the search of men for God.(5) He identified Himself with the people He came to save; and this connection opened His audience to receive some additional revelation about baptism, as He led by example.

Jesus set an example for us when He was baptized. He demonstrated that baptism is something that is important for all believers to undergo. We read in verse 15, that Jesus was baptized “for us to fulfill all righteousness.” The phrase “for us” may refer “either to John and Jesus, or to Jesus and the people with whom He associated Himself.”(6) This would mean that “for us” – those who call Jesus our Savior and Lord – “for us” to fulfill all righteousness, then we must follow through with baptism. This does not mean that baptism is for salvation. It means that it serves a righteous purpose in our life that cannot be fulfilled until we are baptized; and that righteous purpose will be explained toward the end of this message.

In verse 17, we see that after Jesus was baptized, the Lord was “well pleased” with Him. The phrase “this is my beloved son” (v. 17) is a quotation from Psalm 2:7. “Every Jew accepted this Psalm as [being] a description of the Messiah.”(7) The phrase “in whom I am well pleased” is a quotation from Isaiah 42:1, which is a description of the Suffering Servant. “So, in the baptism [of Jesus] there came . . . two certainties – the certainty that He was indeed the chosen One of God, and the certainty that the way in front of Him was the way of the Cross.”(8)

Part of baptism symbolizes the death and burial of our former life of sin. In Colossians 2:11, we read that we are to “[put] off the body of the sins of the flesh,” and “[be] buried with Him in baptism,” and in Luke 9:22-23, Jesus said that “the Son of Man must . . . be killed, and be raised the third day,” and that “if anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” Just as the Father was well-pleased with Jesus, who was willing to lay down His life for the sins of the world, God will be well-pleased with all who crucify the flesh and take up their cross and follow Christ; and He will be well-pleased when we follow Jesus’ example and submit to believers’ baptism.