John’s Baptism

Prepared his hearers for the
kingdom (Matt 3:1-3)

Fruit of repentance (Luke
7:30)

Purpose of God (Luke 7:30)

Forgiveness in prospect of
the Christ (Mk 1:4; Acts 19:4)
Ephesus Disciples

Believed strongly in the
Christ

Sincere God Seekers

Baptized into John’s baptism

Their baptism was still
invalid
Baptism = Immersion
βάπτω means to “to dip in or under”
(trans.): Hom. Od., 9, 392; Aesch.
Prom., 863: …The intens. [βαπτίζω
occurs in the sense of “to immerse”
(trans.) from the time of Hippocrates,
in Plato and esp. in later writers, a.
strictly, act. βαπτίζειν τὸ σκάφος, “to
sink the ship,”
Baptism = Immersion

Paul describes baptism as a “burial
in Christ” (Rom 6:4; Col 2:12)

When Christ was buried He was
placed in the “heart of the earth”
(Matt 12:40)

The action of baptism in the New
Testament was immersion
(Acts 8:38-39)
Water Baptism

“See here is water, what hinders me
from being baptized…”
(Acts 8:36, 38)

“Surely no one can refuse water for
these to be baptized…”
(Acts 10:47-48)

This cannot refer to Holy Spirit
baptism, water baptism is
commanded
Holy Spirit Baptism

Direct outpouring in a miraculous
way for confirmation and
empowerment

Miraculous gift, not a
commandment

Received by the Apostles and
Cornelius (Act 1:5; 11:15-17)

Baptism into Christ is never
described as Holy Spirit baptism
For Sinners

Baptism is for those seeking
forgiveness of sins (Mk 16:16;
Acts 2:38, 22:16)

Infants are not sinners and so do
not need baptism

The candidate must be convicted
of sin
For Sinners
 Required
for those who have
been taught the Gospel
 Baptism
must be preceded
by repentance
 Baptism
must be received by
a penitent believer in Christ
Express Purpose

Scripture expressly states
baptism is for forgiveness of sins

More than repeating words, the
candidate must understand the
purpose

This understanding must
precede baptism
Acts 2:38

“Repent and let each of you
be baptized” (NASB)

This emphasizes the need
for each individual to be
baptized

Repentance is active
baptism is passive
Argument
“The command to
repent is in the
second person plural
and the command to
be baptized is in the
third person
singular”
"Henry J. Cadbury, member of the
Revised Standard Version
Committee...has this to say... ‘The
grammar of the sentence in Acts 2:38
is perfectly regular and better Greek
than if the author had kept the second
person plural ‘baptize’ after using the
singular ‘each.’ I have no doubt that
another author would have written
‘Do ye repent,’ and ‘be ye baptized,’
each of you…”
Argument
“The command to
repent is in the
second person plural
and the command to
be baptized is in the
third person
singular”
Argument
” …But this writer seems to have
preferred the less loose construction…
I think that there would be no
essential difference in meaning.’
Whether you said ‘Do ye repent, and
be ye baptized each of you,’ or as it
stands exactly, there would be no
essential difference in meaning."
(Warren/Ballard Debate, p.164)
“The command to
repent is in the
second person plural
and the command to
be baptized is in the
third person
singular”
Acts 2:38

“remission of sins” modifies
both “baptism” and
“repentance”

The term “for” is not used in
a causal sense but indicates
purpose and literally means
“in order to” or “so as to
obtain”
Argument
“for the
remission of
sins” means
“because of the
remission of
sins”
Acts 2:38

“eis aphesin hamartion, to
obtain the forgiveness of sins”
(Thayer).

“eis is defined as expressing
‘purpose,’ with the sense of ‘in
order to,’ rendered the same
phrase: “for forgiveness of sins, so
that sins might be forgiven . . . Acts
2:38…” (BDAG)
Argument
‘for the
remission of
sins’ means
‘because of the
remission of
sins’
Acts 2:38

“… eis, in Acts 2:38, is designed to
indicate purpose”
(Exegetical Dictionary of the New
Testament, 1990, Vol. 1, 399).

– “the “causal” use of eis in Acts 2:38
(i.e., “because of” instead of “in order
to”) has been demonstrated to fail in
terms of linguistic evidence.”
(Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics p.
370).
Argument
‘for the
remission of
sins’ means
‘because of the
remission of
sins’
From the Heart
 Obedience
demands hearing
and submission (Heb 5:9)
 Obedience
is the natural
expression of saving faith
 Baptism
is described as
“obedience unto
righteousness” (Romans 6:16)
Added to His Church

In baptism we are not only saved
we are also added to His church

The Lord saves and adds
simultaneously

At the moment of baptism we are
incorporated into His body

We are not added to a
denominational body