Matthew 3:16–17; Matthew 28:18–20; Acts 2:41; Romans 6:4; Galatians 3:26–27
Water Baptism Explained
18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit, 19 in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, 20 because they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, saves you, not be means of a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience on the basis of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
Baptism doesn’t save you. So what does Paul mean?
Baptism is not what produces salvation. It “saves” us in that it first involves or reflects a heart decision: a pledge of loyalty to the risen Savior (“appeal” (eperotema). Verse 21 is best understood as a “pledge.”
Also in verse 21 Paul uses the word “conscience” (suneidesis). This does not refer to the inner voice of right and wrong. Rather, the word refers to “an attitude or decision that reflects one’s loyalty,” or “conscientiousness.”
Thus, Paul was saying baptism is a loyalty oath, a public avowal of who is on the Lord’s side in the cosmic war between good and evil. In addition to that, it is also a visceral reminder to the defeated fallen angels. Every baptism is a reiteration of their doom in the wake of the gospel and the kingdom of God. Early Christians understood the typology of this passage and its link back to the fallen angels of Genesis 6. Early baptismal formulas included a renunciation of Satan and his angels for this very reason.
Baptism was — and still is — spiritual warfare!
Baby Dedication
In the Bible, we see that Jesus’ parents dedicated him to the Lord (Luke 2:22–40), and he was later baptized as an adult (Matthew 3:16–17). At The Hope Center of Lower Brule, we follow the practices of Jesus Christ and dedicate our children to the Lord. At the time of age when our children understand their commitment to the Lord we baptize them by full immersion in water just like Jesus!
We understand that some churches practice “baptism of confirmation” for children. This ceremony is intended to be a commitment between the parents and God on behalf of the child. The parents promise to raise their child in the faith until the child is old enough to make his or her own personal confession of Christ. This custom began about 300 years after the Bible was completed and is different from the biblical examples of new believers being baptized to publicly profess their faith in Jesus.