There are some who flatly deny
that baptism is an ordinance of the New Testament Church; but their
ultra-dispensationalism is so obviously contrary to the scriptures that few
people accept their doctrine. However, there are many who ignorantly receive
three common, but fatal, errors about baptism. Such commonly received errors
must be exposed.
1. SACRAMENTALISM says
that, "Baptism is a means of grace." All papists and most protestants teach that baptism has at least some saving
efficacy. No one teaches salvation by baptism alone; but many teach that
baptism is a means by which God's saving grace comes to the soul. The whole
basis of infant sprinkling (It cannot rightly be called baptism.) is that
baptism does have some merit before God. Such doctrine is nowhere taught nor
implied in the Word of God.
2. LANDMARKISM teaches
that baptism can only be performed by the pastors of Landmark Baptist churches
and that by being baptized into one of their churches a person secures for himself
a higher rank, position, and reward in heaven. In other words, they would have
us to believe that while Christ is sufficient as our Savior, we must earn the
gifts of eternal glory by what we do. Though they would deny it, they make
baptism a sacrament, "a means of grace". Such doctrine is fatal.
Christ plus anything equals eternal damnation. Christ alone is our Savior and
our acceptance before God.
3. RITUALISM simply goes
through the motions of baptism as a matter of meaningless religious exercise,
without any knowledge of its meaning.
In truth, baptism is the answer of a good conscience
toward God. It is the believer's first act of obedience to Christ as Lord. And
it is a public, symbolic confession of our faith in Christ. Baptism has no
saving efficacy, but it is an essential point of the believer's obedience to
Christ. Only unsaved rebels willfully reject the commandments of the Lord. The
commandment of God is, "Repent and be baptised everyone
of you" (Acts