Matthew 3:1-6
The first time we see baptism in the entire Bible is in Matthew Chapter 3 that we just read. The first man to baptize anyone in the Bible is John the Baptist. John the Baptist wasn’t a pastor or a deacon. He was a prophet that led the way for Jesus Christ. He was six months older than Jesus Christ in the flesh.
Mary the mother of Jesus and Elisabeth the mother of John the Baptist were cousins. John the Baptist was born about 6 months before Jesus was born in the flesh. John the Baptist came preaching and baptizing in the wilderness. He’s the first to baptize.
John the Baptist Preached Before He Baptized
I want you to notice that John the Baptist preached before he baptized anyone.
Matthew 3:1-3
In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, 2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. 3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
Matthew 3:4-6
And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, 6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
We see that John the Baptist was preaching, “Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” John the Baptist preached repentance and then he baptized people. We’re going to see what this means today, but I also want you to notice that the people heard preaching, and then were baptized in the Jordan river, confessing their sins.
When we get baptized in water, we are confessing our sins. We are letting others know that we are sinners. We need a Savior. Jesus is that Savior. We believe Jesus can save us. He saved us. We believe in his death, burial, and resurrection.
Mark 1:4-5
John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. 5 And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins.
John the Baptist preached the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Was he preaching to repent of all your sin, to turn from all your sin, to stop sinning, and then get baptized in water so you can be saved? This is what many churches are teaching out there.
Look closely again in that first verse there. “Preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” The phrase baptism of repentance is in the Bible four times. Let’s look at those.
Mark 1:4
John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.
That’s the one we just saw.
Luke 3:3
And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins;
There’s another account of John the Baptist in the Gospel of Luke. It’s a parallel passage with Matthew and Mark. That’s the second occurrence of four. Here’s the third occurrence.
Acts 13:24
When John had first preached before his coming the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.
In this chapter, Acts Chapter 13, you’ll see Jesus Christ being preached. John the Baptist came to preach Jesus Christ as “THE” Savior of the world. Water baptism doesn’t save you. Repenting of all your sin or turning from your sin doesn’t save you. You need to know you’re a sinner that needs a Savior.
The Baptism of Repentance For The Remission of Sins
But let’s see exactly what John the Baptist was preaching. The fourth and last occurrence of the baptism of repentance tells us exactly what John the Baptist came preaching before he baptized anyone.
Acts 19:4-5
Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
There’s the definition of baptism of repentance right there. “Believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.”
You must hear the preaching of the Gospel, believe the Gospel, get saved by believing in Jesus Christ, and then get baptized in water after you’re already saved by Jesus Christ. Getting baptized in water doesn’t save you.
John the Baptist preached to believe in Jesus Christ to save you from your sins. Do you believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the world, can save you from all your sins? If you believe in Jesus, and not in yourself, your religion, or anything else, you are saved forever in that moment of believing.
God sent John the Baptist to preach the right things. He preached that Jesus is the Savior of the world.
John 1:29-31
The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. 30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me. 31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.
John preached that Jesus is the one that takes away the sin of the world. This would be qual to the remission of sins or removal of sins or taking away sins. You can’t take away your sin by getting baptized in water. Only Jesus can take away your sin. He does that once you believe in Him.
John the Baptist came baptizing with water so he could show Jesus Christ or manifest the Savior to Israel. He is there to make Jesus Christ known.
Baptism = A Picture of the Death, Burial, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Now, think about this, all of this was happening in Matthew Chapter 3, Mark Chapter 1, Luke Chapter 3, and John Chapter 1 long before Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and arose from the dead.
John the Baptist is preaching Jesus. When people believed his preaching, he was taking them, putting them under the water, and then bringing them up out of the water. What does that mean to them? Did they know why they were being baptized in water like that?
We know now that getting baptized in water is a picture of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ because the Bible gives us clues to that.
Colossians 2:11-13
In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
We are buried with him in baptism and risen with Jesus through faith.
Romans 6:4-6
Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
When we get baptized in water, we are announcing that we believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
We stand there in the water and dead in our sins. We aren’t actually dead. But we’re confessing that we’re a sinner when we get baptized. We go down into the water which is a picture of us being buried with Jesus Christ. And we come up out of the water as a picture of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We’re confessing that we believe in Jesus Christ and not in ourselves.
We are buried with him by baptism into death. We are raised to walk in newness of life. We should walk in newness of life. We are planted together in the likeness of his death. We shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. Our old man is crucified with him.
Baptism in Water is a Picture of Our Sins Being Washed Away
Once we come up out of that water, it’s a picture of us being clean from sin. Jesus already saved us from our sin when we believed, but this water baptism is a picture of our sins being washed away. We should now walk in the Spirit and henceforth, from now on, we should not serve sin.
We already know, before getting baptized in water, that we’re going to heaven. But please listen to this. Getting baptized in water is this first step of obedience you should take after being saved.
You do not want to serve sin any longer. Getting baptized in water is that first step in doing so.
Now, keep this is mind that the people John were baptizing didn’t know about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They didn’t know the reasons behind why they were standing there, being put under the water, and then being raised out of the water. They didn’t know about his death, burial, and resurrection.
John the Baptist came preaching to believe on the Lamb of God who taketh away the sin of the world who is Jesus Christ. He pointed people to Jesus Christ. He preached to repent. He was preaching for people to change their mind about what they thought was going to save them and believe in Jesus Christ only for salvation.
Most people believe their good life is going to save them. Same thing in the time of John the Baptist. The Jews thought that following the commandments would save them. He’s telling them no. Jesus is the only one who takes away your sins. You’re a sinner. You need a Savior. That Savior is Jesus Christ. Believe that Jesus can save you.
To set the example of getting baptized in water, Jesus got baptized in water by John the Baptist. We need to take a close look at how John the Baptist baptized Jesus Christ. We need to follow that example.
Matthew 3:13-15
Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.
Jesus chose John the Baptist to baptize him because he preached the truth. We call ourselves Baptist because we preach the truth of the Gospel and once someone is saved, we baptize them. Baptism in water doesn’t save you. Jesus saves you.
Matthew 3:16-17
And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Baptism means immersion or being fully submerged into something. Going deep into something. When you get baptized in water, you go down into the wtaer fully. You are fully surrounded by water. And then you come up out of the water quickly.
Go Fully Into The Water and Come Up Out of the Water
Jesus went down into the water fully and then he came straightway up out of the water. This pleased God the Father in heaven.
When you get baptized in water following the example of Jesus, this pelases God. We know John the Baptist was bpatizing. Jesus got baptized. His disciples were baptizing people. At Pentecost, in Acts Chapter 2, the fulfillment of the Feast of Weeks, we see Peter commanding the people to repent, and be baptized.
We know that Peter means to change your mind and believe in Jesus Christ. Repent for salvation means exactly that.
Acts 2:38
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Repent or change your mind and believe that Jesus is the Savior of the world. Once you believe, you’ve alreadt received remission of sins. Because you’ve believed, get baptized in water.
Acts 2:41
Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
They received the preaching from Peter that told them Jesus is the Savior. They received those words. They believed. Then they got baptized. Same thing that John the Baptist did. Same thing that we do. If you believe that getting baptized in water is saving you, you aren’t believing in Jesus Christ as “THE SAVIOR.”
The only requirement, just one requirement, to get baptized in water is to have believed in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. You must be saved. You must believe you have everlasting life that can’t be lost. Once you believe that Jesus saved you, then you get baptized.
Acts 8:12-13
But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13 Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done.
God’s Order Is The Order We Follow
Hear the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, believe the Gospel, saved, then get baptized in water. When you hear the preaching of the Gospel, you will hear about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ to save you from your sins. His work saves you. Your work doesn’t save you.
You believe in His death, His burial, and His resurrection and not in anything you do. You simply believe He did it all for you. He can save you. Believe He can save you. He saves you. Then get baptized in water. Not the other way around.
Acts 8:35-38
Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. 36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? 37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
This man heard the preaching. Believed. Was saved. And was then baptized in water.
Acts 10:43-45
To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. 44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Acts 10:46-48
For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, 47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.
They heard the word of God. They believed. They were saved. Then they got baptized.
Acts 16:30-33
And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway.
Hear the Word, Believe the Word, Get Saved, Get Baptized
They heard the word of the Lord. They believed. They were saved. Then they got baptized in water.
The Bible continues to teach that baptism doesn’t save you.
1 Corinthians 1:17-18
For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. 18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
Paul’s job was to get people saved by preaching the Gospel. He didn’t baptize but he got people saved. Others besides Paul baptized the people who believed.
We are talking about the laws of God and that God commanded us to get baptized in water after we’re saved by Jesus Christ. The commandment comes directly from the mouth of Jesus Christ.
Matthew 28:18-20
And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
These are the commandments Jesus left us with before He went to His Father in heaven. One of those commandments is to baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. That’s a commandment to us, his disciples, his church, to get people baptized. In the name of means with respect to God who is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
We are to preach the Gospel as Mark Chapter 16 commands us, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.” They believe. They are saved. We then get them baptized. We are fulfilling the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ.
This helps you when you get baptized in water. This helps us when you get baptized in water. We work together to please God by obeying His commandments. God rewards us, in heaven, for following His commandments.
Please, if you haven’t been baptized in water after you’ve been saved, schedule that with me today. Let’s do what God has asked us to do. He sees. He’s watching. Let’s please God.
Let’s pray.
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