“Living our Baptism”

Scripture: Acts 19:1-7

There is a United Methodist document in print with the name “By Water and the Spirit”. It was published in 1996 by the United Methodist General Board of Discipleship as a means to address the debate over the United Methodist understanding of baptism. Over the centuries, the issue of baptism - what is correct and valid, and what is not - has been considered, explained, debated, revised, denounced, and revised again, time after time after time. Denominational splits have occurred, at least in part, over this very issue, and still there is no universal agreement on its proper administration, and even on its significance.
People still come to the church to have their babies baptized, without having even a basic appreciation for what it’s all about, but they insist that it be “done” just the same. And the tragedy is that many pastors continue to accede to their wishes instead of taking the time to educate them in the ways of the Church.

And the struggle is nothing new - it began in the earliest days of the church and continues to today, and it will continue into the future. And so I’ve decided to use this time today to discuss some of the particulars of baptism in the context of our scripture for the day, and to try to dispel some of the myths.

Read Acts 19:1-3

The most basic tenants of faith – believing in Jesus Christ and receiving the Holy Spirit – didn’t seem to be all that important to some. The statement “Come and join the church – that’s all you need to do!” has apparently been around since Paul’s time, and is still popping up in some of our congregations. If there is no belief in the Spirit, how could a person possibly be a follower of Jesus Christ? Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35), and John told us that Christ will baptize with the Spirit (Mark 1:7-8). The Holy Spirit was one of his great gifts to us – that we would never be left alone, that when he left this world, he would send the Spirit – the Counselor – to convict us of sin and to lead us in righteousness (John 16:5-11).
And yet, these early disciples didn’t know that there even was a Holy Spirit. It makes you wonder just what they did believe!

And if that wasn’t enough, they felt that they had received John’s baptism, not that of God. Today, there is still a confusion over who and what is involved. In “By Water and the Spirit”, we read of the difference between a dedication and a baptism – it says, in part, that “in a dedication we make a gift of a life to God for God to accept, while in a sacrament [i.e. baptism]God offers the gift of God’s unfailing grace for us to accept.” Baptism isn’t our gift to God, and it isn’t one person’s gift [i.e. the pastor!] to another. Baptism isn’t from me any more than it was from John. Baptism is a gift from God.

But we still say “Rev. ‘X’ baptized me.” Think about it, though – isn’t a gift from God so much better than one from a human? Shouldn’t we vastly prefer that a gift of this magnitude and of this importance be one that is permanent? Remember that human gifts never last, but God’s always does. Which brings us to another issue – the nonrepeatability of baptism. Some denominations allow multiple baptisms, but United Methodism allows only one. We believe that since baptism is a gift from God, that one will always be sufficient. To believe otherwise is to imply that God didn’t get it right the first time. However, we will, from time to time, fail in living out our baptismal vows and we may wish to reaffirm our covenant, and that is permissible. But in that type of service, water is used in other ways than in the baptismal means.

Read Acts 19:4-7

Paul reaffirms the covenant that these men received, but he doesn’t place water on them again. He lays hands on them, and they discover, in a rather distinct way, just what the Holy Spirit is all about! They had received the significance of the water originally, but not that of the Holy Spirit.

So what is the significance of baptism, and what is it not? From “By Water and the Spirit” –“Baptism involves dying to sin, it is the newness of life, a union with Christ, the receiving of the Holy Spirit, and incorporation into Christ’s Church.” The water represents a cleansing, a rebirth, a renewing, but it isn’t the same as salvation. John Wesley said that “while baptism was neither essential to nor sufficient for salvation, it was the ‘ordinary means’ that God designated for applying the benefits of the work of Christ in human lives. … Without personal decision and commitment to Christ, the baptismal gift is rendered ineffective.” [from “By Water and the Spirit”] In other words, Wesley is warning us that going through the motions of baptism without taking the vows and obligations of it seriously, will result in our receiving the water, but not the Spirit. This is what had happened, I believe, to those 12 men in our text for this morning.

“By Water and the Spirit” tells us that “Baptism is a covenant, as well as a sacrament. A covenant involves promises and responsibilities of both parties; it is instituted through a special ceremony and expressed by a distinguishing sign.”
Do you remember the vows that are taken at both baptism and entry into membership in the United Methodist church? Just in case, here they are: [From “The United Methodist Book of Worship” and “The United Methodist Hymnal” (1989 ver.)]
1. “Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil power of this world, and repent of your sin?”
2. “Do you accept the freedom and power God gives you to resist evil, injustice, and oppression in whatever forms they present themselves?”
3. “Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Savior, put your whole trust in his grace, and promise to serve him as your Lord, in union with the church which Christ has opened to people of all ages, nations, and races?”
In essence, we are covenanting with God to turn away from the evils of the world and the sins that are in our lives, while admitting that we can only do so through the power that God brings to us. And in that, we also claim Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and that we trust solely in him for our eternal life. It’s interesting to note that we are also claiming our part in the Church Universal. In baptism, we are no longer a solitary individual, with our own means and agendas. We are to become part of the greater body – the Body of Christ – and promise to serve in the name of Jesus Christ with the entire Church.
And this last point is affirmed by the congregation when they confirm that they will love and encourage and mentor the individual, and will pray that he or she will become a true and full disciple of Jesus Christ.

Baptism is not something to take lightly, but I suspect that if people do, it is because they have not had the opportunity to understand the full significance of the sacrament. The 12 men in our text for today had gone for years under the mistaken understanding that they were fully baptized, but it was only when Paul took the time to minister to them that the reality of baptism finally came to them. As a congregation, and as a pastor, we all have the obligation to ensure that others are able to come to Christ through both baptism and personal decision.
Baptism can no longer be seen as existing in a moment in time, it can no longer be understood as a solitary and standalone act, it can no longer be “done and over with”. Our baptism must become a way of life for us, a new beginning.

In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus offers the Great Commission to his followers. “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
Make disciples of all nations – invite others to come and see who this marvelous Lord is and what he is about, without any screening or mandates or admission criteria.
Baptize them – not in the name of John the Baptist, and definitely not in the name of Bill Prentice, but in the name of our Triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
And then teach them to live in a Godly way, in the way that Jesus taught us to live.

We don’t come to our baptism in perfection and righteousness, but rather in need of Jesus’ perfecting act on Calvary and in the righteous life that he alone can offer.

We must live our Baptism, we must and claim our baptism, and we must share our baptism with others in the name of Jesus Christ.