IV. When Should We Be Baptized? A. AFTER we are saved.
1. Mark 16:16 reveals that __________________ comes before being baptized.
2. According to Acts 8:12, when the people “________________ Philip preaching,” they were baptized.
3. In Acts 8:35-37, the eunuch was hindered from getting baptized until “thou ________________ with all of thine heart.”
B. AS SOON AS POSSIBLE after we are saved.
1. The people who believed Peter’s preaching in Acts 2:38-41 were baptized “the ________ day.” (vs. 41)
2. The eunuch, in Acts 8:35-37, was baptized at the first place where there was __________.
3. Acts 9:1-9;17,18 relates that Saul was saved, and __________ days later was baptized.
4. In Acts 10:43-48, Peter preaches a message and people repent and get saved. The first thing that Peter then says is, “Can any man forbid water, that these should not be ________________?” (vs.47)
5. The jailer in Acts 16:25-33 was saved and baptized “the same ________ of the night.”
Note: There is a common practice today of churches putting off the matter of baptizing new converts. They give various reasons for their delay (which is disobedience).
First, some churches believe that the new Christian
should not be baptized immediately — in case he did not
really repent (in case he was making a false profession
of faith). So they decide that it is better to have a
“trial period” before they baptize new converts.
Preachers advocating this view often mock churches who do baptize new converts as soon as possible. Some of them have scoffed, “Yea, they are afraid that their converts will not come back again, so they have to baptize them the same service!”
A church should carefully question and deal with people
who come forward, but it is a whole different matter to
scoff at a church for baptizing new converts the same
hour or day that they get saved. Carefully consider the
above verses again. The Scriptural example is to
baptize new converts as soon as possible.
To those groups who advocate waiting, the question then becomes, “How long does a new convert have to wait to sufficiently prove himself? A week? A month? A year? And who makes the decision that a person has waited long enough and is officially, without a doubt, born-again and worthy of baptism?”
What about people who make a profession of faith, and seem to faithfully live for God for a year; but then face trials for their faith and drop out of church? What about people that serve God with great enthusiasm for 2 or 3 years — active in church — leaders in
bringing others to church — but then in adversity, drop out of church altogether, and never darken a church door again?
What about Judas? It is thought that he was with Jesus for 3 1/2 years. None of the apostles knew that he was a lost man. When Jesus warned them that there was an imposter in the group, they each wondered about themselves — no one pointed the finger at Judas.
6. Matthew 26:20-22 says, “Now when the even was come, he sat down with the twelve. And as they did eat, he said, Verily I say unto you, that ______ of ______ shall betray me. And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it ___?”
Does this mean that you should not baptize a professing believeruntil he has been saved for at least 3 1/2 years?
What makes the purest church? The church that waits
the longest to baptize new converts? No, what that
makes is a disobedient church.
Note: Churches use the one statement of John the Baptist, and build their doctrine of baptism totally upon it (upon a misinterpretation of it), and then totally ignore the multitude of verses in the Book of Acts that deals with new converts and when they get baptized.
7. Matthew 3:5-9 says, “Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for ____________________: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.”
Note: John the Baptist was not teaching a waiting period before baptizing people at all — he was baptizing scores and scores of people right then and there. “Then went out to him Jerusalem, and ALL JUDAEA, and ALL THE REGION round about Jordan, AND WERE BAPTIZED OF HIM in Jordan, confessing their sins.”
In the case of the Pharisees and Sadducees who came
to be baptized, John refused to baptize them because
they refused to confess that they had any sin. John
baptized all who came “…confessing their sins.” It
was not that John the Baptist was advocating a
waiting period for them — quite to the contrary, he
was refusing to baptize them because they had no
clear confession of their sin and their need for the
Savior. If they would have shown thus, John would
have baptized them immediately — like he was
doing with everyone else who came.
Note: Now we come to a little different line of thinking among some people that advocate not immediately baptizing new converts.
This group teaches that a person should not get
baptized until he understands more about the decision
that he just made, and more about what baptism means.
This is technically called catechism. Does the Bible say that a person must be catechized before he can be baptized? Once again, the answer is “No.” The example of Scripture is that people were baptized as soon as possible after they were saved.
8. Acts 8:35-38 says, “Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth ____________ me to be ________________? And Philip said, If thou __________________ with all thine heart, thou ____________. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he ________________ him.”
Why do people make it harder
to get baptized than to get saved?
Note: It is here that we need to ask a question: “Is the decision to get baptized more important that the decision to get saved?” Of course not.
9. I Corinthians 1:17 says, “For Christ sent me not to ______________, but to ____________ the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.”
Note: Paul was not teaching that baptism is unimportant, but that the first and foremost calling is to preach the gospel. Unless people get saved, they are going to spend eternity in hell. Baptism cannot save. Baptism is only a picture of what has taken place inside a person’s life.
This group will not baptize children
who get saved, until they get older.
Question: How old does a person have to be to get saved? What did Jesus say? That you have to be 10 years old? Or 16 years old? Or 21 years old? What did He say?
10. Matthew 19:13,14 says, “Then were there brought unto him ____________ children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the __________________ _______________ them. But Jesus said, Suffer ____________ children, and forbid them not, to ________ unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”
11. Matthew 18:3,4 says, “And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be __________________, and become as ____________ children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Note: Jesus emphasized not only allowing children to come to Him, but little children.
If a child is old enough to get saved, then that child is
old enough to get baptized. If a church refuses to
baptize a child that has gotten saved, then that church
is a disobedient church. That church is guilty of causing
a child to go on in disobedience to the Lord.
12. Jesus gave His commission to the church in Matthew 28:18-20, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and __________ all nations, __________________ them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”
Note: If someone came to you and wanted to get saved, would you put them off until a later time? Would you say to that one, “I will not help you to understand what to do to be saved today, because I am not sure that you are really sincere yet. I must watch you for a period of time, and see if you really do have a repentant heart.”? That would not be a proper response at all.
And why do people make baptism more complex than
getting saved? A person need only realize that baptism
is a command of God, and that it pictures death to the old
life of sin, and resurrection to a new life lived for Jesus
Christ. If a person insists that the new convert needs
more knowledge than that to get baptized, then he is
saying that he knows more than God.
Illustration: If, on your first day at work, an alarm sounds and your foreman yells, “Fire! Follow me!”, what will you do? Stand there and demand some explanation first? How the fire started? Who started it? What type of material it was burning? How far away the fire station is? If any employee has ever lost his life in a fire there?
When a command is given, you do not stand there and ask foolish questions — you simply obey. There will be time later to learn the full extent of the fire.
The best thing to do now is obey the Bible. Many things
are made clearer as the Christian studies his Bible and
grows. The Christian’s greatest problem is not usually
so much a lack of Bible knowledge, (although there is
always much more to learn). The Christian’s biggest
problem is normally that he is not obeying what he
already knows he should be doing. Getting baptized
is the first command after salvation. That should be
reason enough to simply obey the Lord.
REVIEW:
1. Believing comes ____________ being baptized.
2. The people who believed Peter’s preaching were baptized the same ______.
3. Saul was baptized __________ days after he was saved.
4. The jailer was saved and baptized the same ________ of the night.
5. A person should get baptized as soon as __________________ after he gets saved.
6. In the case of the Pharisees and Sadducees who came to be baptized, John refused to baptize them because they refused to confess that they had any sin. John baptized all who came “…confessing their sins.” It was not that John the Baptist was advocating a waiting period for them — quite to the contrary, he was refusing to baptize them because they had no clear confession of their sin and their need for the Savior. If they would have shown thus, John would have baptized them ______________________ — like he was doing with ________________ ________ who came.
7. Does the Bible say that a person must be catechized before he can be baptized? Once again, the answer is “____.” The example of Scripture is that people were baptized as soon as ________________ after they were saved.
8. If a child is old enough to get saved, then that child is old enough to get ________________. If a church refuses to baptize a child that has gotten saved, then that church is a disobedient church. That church is guilty of causing a child to go on in disobedience to the Lord.
9. And why do people make baptism more complex than getting saved? A person need only realize that baptism is a ______________ of God, and that it pictures death to the old life of sin, and resurrection to a new life lived for Jesus Christ.
Chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, Final Test Liberty Bible Course Directory