Week 2 - Being Baptized
Being a Christian means Being baptized
WHAT WE DISCUSSED ON SUNDAY IN REDEMPTION YOUTH
Sunday we continued answering, “What does it mean to be a Christian?” by considering the second facet of what it means to be a Christian: being baptized. To help us understand why baptism is so central to being a Christian we looked at Colossians 2:8-14 and recited New City Catechism questions and answers 44 and 45. The following is a summary of the discussion that followed.
If you have been baptized, why were you baptized?
Of the students who have been baptized, they all said they were baptized for one of two reasons. Either they were baptized because they were taught that is what a Christian is supposed to do to publicly profess their faith in Jesus, or they were baptized as an infant in a different church tradition. For most of us who have been baptized, we likely fit into one of these categories. And yet, the Bible offers a more robust reason for us to be baptized than we may be aware.
So, what is baptism and why does it matter?
The New City Catechism tells us that baptism “is the washing with water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; it signifies and seals our adoption into Christ, our cleansing from sin, and our commitment to belong to the Lord and to his church” (NCC, Q44). But what does this really mean? And what does it mean that baptism “signifies and seals our adoption into Christ”?
Colossians 2:8-14 helps us to understand the deeper meaning of baptism. Paul writes, “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.”
In Col. 2:8-14, Paul is combating a claim made by some Jewish Christians that for a person to be a true Christian they had to be circumcised. The rationale for this claim originates in Genesis 17. There, God made a covenant with Abraham that he would bless him, make his name great, make him the father of many nations, and use him to bless the whole world. God then told Abraham to circumcise himself and every male in his family and community as a sign and seal of God’s covenant. Because of this, circumcision became the physical identifying mark that one was a member of God’s covenant community and that God would use them to bring blessing and redemption to the whole world.
The issue with circumcision, however, was that it became exclusionary and unnecessary after Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. It was exclusionary because it was only available to Jewish men (or men invited into Jewish community). And it was unnecessary because it signified God’s promise to Abraham to bring redemption and blessing to the whole world through his lineage, which was fulfilled in Jesus. In other words, circumcision was being used to unnecessarily exclude people from following Jesus.
Knowing all of this, Paul then says that it is not circumcision but baptism which represents that someone is a follower of Jesus, a member of his church, and one God will use to bring his blessing to the rest of the world. Basically, baptism becomes the new circumcision. Like circumcision, baptism becomes the physical sign both of God’s fulfilled promise to redeem the world, as well as the physical seal that we have died and been raised to new life in Christ. And yet, unlike circumcision, baptism is available to all people—male and female, Jew and Gentile, slave and free. We should thus understand baptism as the physical, outward display of our identity and community. For in baptism we take on the identity of Christ and become grafted into his community—the Church.
What if someone doesn’t get baptized? Are they then not a Christian?
Though baptism is a sign and seal of our oneness with Jesus, it does not save us. Think of it like this: if we were to go to a Prospect high school football game on a Friday night to see the marching band perform at halftime, how would we know who is a member of the band? Well, we would know their identity because of the uniform they wear, because of their ability to play their instrument, and because they march in unison with the rest of the band. Now imagine watching this same band and seeing someone marching without the band uniform on. They still are playing an instrument and are marching in unison with the rest of the band, but they don’t really belong—and likely would be asked to leave the field—because they are not wearing the uniform that identifies them as a band member. Baptism functions similarly to this. It is the external representation of what is true internally. Like a band uniform (or like circumcision before), baptism identifies us with Christ and his people. Therefore, though baptism does not save us, it is through baptism that we put on physically what is already true of us spiritually.
HOW TO CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION AT HOME
If your child has not been baptized, this week is a great opportunity to ask them what they think about getting baptized. Take a moment to ask them what they thought about the baptism conversation from Youth on Sunday and if they are interested in getting baptized. If they say yes, please send me an email HERE so I can help make that happen! If they say no, that is okay. Give them time, but try and figure out what might be holding them back. Also, if you are a parent and have not been baptized but would like to be, I would love to help you take that step.
As a note: if you are not sure how to have this conversation with your child and would like help, or if you have follow up questions I would . You can email me at the link above to setup time to talk. Please know I am praying for you and your conversations at home!