Sacramental Theology: Theology of Baptism
The theology of baptism concerns how Christians understand and practice the sacrament of water and the Word. Baptism is a divine sign attached to the promise of the Gospel, yet it is also the first confession of the believer who trusts in Christ. As a sacrament, baptism is not merely a symbolic washing but a visible word in which God seals His promise of grace and the believer publicly identifies with the crucified and risen Lord.
This article approaches baptism from a credobaptist perspective—that baptism is rightly administered to those who have professed personal faith in Jesus Christ. At the same time, it acknowledges that many faithful Christians in other traditions baptize infants as covenant members. While respecting those differences, the credobaptist conviction emphasizes baptism as the believer’s response of faith and entry into the visible community of the redeemed.
1. Baptism as Sacrament and Promise
Though the term “sacrament” does not appear in the New Testament, the reality is present: visible signs joined to God’s invisible promises. Calvin called sacraments “seals” of God’s good will toward us, designed to strengthen weak faith. Baptism, then, is not an empty ritual but God’s appointed means of confirming His covenant word.
Promise: “The one who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16).
Sign: “Repent and be baptized… for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38).
Seal: “He saved us… by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5).
In speech-act terms, baptism is more than information; it is performative. God promises life in Christ; the believer confesses allegiance; the church welcomes a new disciple.
2. Baptism in the Life of Jesus
The Gospels place baptism in the drama of judgment, solidarity, and mission. John’s baptism called Israel to repentance before the day of the Lord (Matthew 3:2). Jesus entered those waters to stand with His people, and the Father declared: “This is my beloved Son” (Matthew 3:17). Later Jesus identified His cross as a baptism: “Are you able to… be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” (Mark 10:38).
Thus Christian baptism flows from Christ’s own: it anticipates death and resurrection, proclaims judgment satisfied at the cross, and announces the coming kingdom.
3. Pauline Themes of Baptism
Paul unfolds a rich theology of baptism that credobaptists emphasize as inseparably joined to faith.
Cleansing from sin — “You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 6:11).
Allegiance to Christ — “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).
Union with Christ — “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that… we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).
Eschatological hope — Baptism is a “pleading guilty” that anticipates judgment already borne by Christ (Colossians 2:14).
For Paul, baptism is never detached from faith. Believers “received the word” and “were baptized” (Acts 2:41). Baptism confirms what faith has already embraced.
4. Believer’s Baptism and the Covenant Community
Baptism is not only personal but corporate. To be baptized is to enter visibly into the body of Christ.
Membership: “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13).
Witness: Baptism testifies to the church and the world that a disciple belongs to Christ.
Discipleship: The Great Commission commands, “Make disciples… baptizing them… teaching them” (Matthew 28:19–20).
Credobaptists emphasize that discipleship precedes baptism. The church’s role is to baptize those who profess repentance and faith, then to nurture them in obedience.
5. Credobaptist and Paedobaptist
Though credobaptism was the practice of the early church, Christians have differed on the subject of baptism for much of history.
Paedobaptists see baptism as a covenantal sign for believers and their children, pointing to God’s prior grace and continuity with circumcision (Genesis 17; Acts 2:39).
Credobaptists affirm that baptism should follow a conscious confession of faith, emphasizing texts where repentance and belief precede baptism (Acts 8:36–37; Romans 10:9).
While the New Testament and the earliest testimonies of the church describe believers’ baptism, it is also recognized that both positions affirm the same Gospel and the same Lord. Baptism debates should not obscure the unity of the Spirit, even as churches remain persuaded of their convictions.
6. Baptism and the Christian Life
Baptism is not the end of faith but the beginning of lifelong discipleship.
Daily Cross: “Consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11).
Communion: Baptism leads to the Table, where the baptized continually renew covenant fellowship (Acts 2:42).
Mission: Baptized disciples are sent into the world as witnesses (Acts 1:8).
Hope: Baptism is a pledge of resurrection life: “If we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his” (Romans 6:5).
Baptism grounds believers in Christ’s story and equips them for perseverance until the last day.
Conclusion
The theology of baptism reveals it as God’s gracious sign and the believer’s confession. From Jesus’ own baptism to Paul’s teaching, Scripture portrays baptism as cleansing, allegiance, union, and hope—all joined to personal faith in Christ.
From a credobaptist position, baptism belongs to those who confess Jesus as Lord, visibly entering the covenant community by water and Word. Yet we acknowledge with respect that paedobaptist traditions, too, seek to uphold God’s promises in the sacrament. Despite differences, the unity of Christ remains.
Baptism is the starting point of Christian life, the sign of death and resurrection with Jesus, and the promise that those who pass through the waters will one day stand in glory before the throne of God.
Bible Verses on Baptism
Matthew 3:17 — “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Matthew 28:19 — “Baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
Mark 16:16 — “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.”
John 3:5 — “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
Acts 2:38 — “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ.”
Acts 8:36–37 — “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized? … I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
Romans 6:3–4 — “Baptized into Christ Jesus… raised… to walk in newness of life.”
1 Corinthians 12:13 — “In one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.”
Galatians 3:27 — “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
Colossians 2:12 — “Buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith.”
