Wednesday, March 02, 2005
Baptism Discussion Continues
Jollyblogger continues his multi-part discussion of infant baptism, answering the gauntlet thrown down by Adrian Warnock. It's good stuff, and I recommend it.
Based on the lack of traffic or links that my post on the subject produced, I must assume that when it comes to this topic I am considered naive. Megan who started this whole thing at Half Pint House has been kind enough to leave a thank you comment, and there is one other trackback, but that is about it.
So, I went researching a little. Recall my main point:
My heart was; however, gladdened when I ran into this piece from John Piper, someone I believe respected by all in the conversation.
Based on the lack of traffic or links that my post on the subject produced, I must assume that when it comes to this topic I am considered naive. Megan who started this whole thing at Half Pint House has been kind enough to leave a thank you comment, and there is one other trackback, but that is about it.
So, I went researching a little. Recall my main point:
Becoming a Christian, saying 'yes' to Jesus, saying the sinners prayer, or in "Adrianspeak," responding to the simple gospel is the beginning of a journey, not it's end. I believe that it is absolutely necessary to publicly announce the beginning of that journey. Baptism is that announcement...But, because I believe baptism is about us, and not about Him, if it grants assurance to parents and or the congregation, then I am all for it.Granted, not a theological treatise by any stretch, but I thought concise and to the point.
My heart was; however, gladdened when I ran into this piece from John Piper, someone I believe respected by all in the conversation.
What is Baptism?Piper does not directly address the question of infant baptism, but he does sound a lot like me. Maybe I am not so naive after all.
Now this is fundamentally important in our understanding of what baptism is in the New Testament. James Dunn is right I think when he says that "1 Peter 3:21 is the nearest approach to a definition of baptism that the New Testament affords" (Baptism in the Holy Spirit, p. 219). What is baptism? Baptism is a symbolic expression of the heart's "appeal to God." Baptism is a calling on God. It is a way of saying to God with our whole body, "I trust you to take me into Christ like Noah was taken into the ark, and to make Jesus the substitute for my sins and to bring me through these waters of death and judgment into new and everlasting life through the resurrection of Jesus my Lord."
This is what God is calling you to do. You do not save yourself. God saves you through the work of Christ. But you receive that salvation through calling on the name of the Lord, by trusting him. And it is God's will all over the world and in every culture - no matter how simple or how sophisticated - that this appeal to God be expressed in baptism. "Lord, I am entering the ark of Christ! Save me as I pass through the waters of death!"(emphasis mine)
