When should a person be re-baptized?
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Hiram: To the holy brief. This is season one episode 10. Here on the holy brief, we offer brief insights into big questions. I know we've been gone for a while, but we're looking forward to getting back to it and being more consistent in the season and in the weeks to come. Today's question is, when should one be rebaptized?
If someone was baptized for the forgiveness of their sins according to what the New Testament teaches, but then later as an adult, an individual realizes that they didn't know as much concerning commitment and what it meant to follow Jesus. Is this a cause or reason to be rebaptized? This is a great question. And I think it's one that occur is occurring more often and people often have questions about their baptism and what they did, especially as we grow, develop, and mature. The New Testament has a lot to tell us about baptism and what it means about our relationship to Jesus.
Jesus says, it's what puts us into a relationship with him and makes us his disciples. In Matthew 28 and verse 19. And acts chapter two and verse 38, baptism is for the forgiveness of sins and it's at that point that one receives the Holy Spirit. Acts 22 and verse 16 says, baptism washes away our sins and it's the point at which salvation is initially enjoyed according to first Peter chapter three and verse 21. Peter says, baptism also now saves us.
It's after baptism that Paul says we enjoy this newness of life. Romans six verses three through five. So baptism whenever it occurs according to what the Bible teaches at whatever age that happens with the person that's accountable and understands what he or she is doing is always a cause for rejoicing. You know, the Ethiopian eunuch was bapt by Philip in Acts chapter eight and in verse 39, we're told he went on his way rejoicing, excited about the blessings that he had received in Jesus. But what about a person who's been baptized and then later realizes that they're older now, maybe they developed intellectually, and they know a few more things.
Is this a cause for a person to revisit baptism and to do it again? If a person has been baptized for a reason that. We're We're some purpose other than what the New Testament teaches, then a person needs to be baptized scripturally the right way. I think an example of this is found in Acts nineteen one through six. Paul meets these 12 men from Ephesus in Acts nineteen one through six, and he gets into a discussion with them and he says, have you received the Holy Spirit since you've believed?
They claimed to have been baptized and John said, they tell him, we haven't even heard of the Holy Spirit. We've only received the baptism of John the Baptist. It's at that point that Paul baptizes them or rebaptizes them biblically for the right reason, but that was because they didn't understand about Jesus and the relationship to the Holy Spirit and the difference between the baptism of John the Baptist, which was pre Jesus's Great Commission baptism, and so they need to be baptized again. But in the event that a person understands all of those things and just as simply aged and developed and their Bible knowledge has matured, this is no reason to be baptized again necessarily. We should keep in mind that much of what the New Testament has to say to us about accomplishes, how it works in the lives of God's people is mentioned by individuals that are writing to people who are already Christians.
That means when we read about baptism in Romans or in Colossians two eleven through 13 or first Peter three twenty one or Galatians three twenty six and twenty seven, Paul and Peter, they're writing to people who've already undergone the process of being baptized, but he's further deepening their knowledge and helping them to appreciate the depth of what they had already done in a way that previously they haven't known. Baptism is important. It's for the forgiveness of sins, but we'll always be learning more about what it means and how it applies to our Christian lives. If we must be rebaptized every time our knowledge develops or our knowledge deepens, then we'd be being rebapt rebaptized every month as we grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. We shouldn't try to put people into Christ with minimal knowledge of Jesus or about baptism or the church or salvation.
People need to know what they're committing their lives to. We need to know about Christian commitment and what it means to fully follow Jesus. The New Testament says in Matthew 28 and verse 19, Jesus speaking to his disciples, go and disciple the nations, baptize them in the name of the father, son, and holy spirit, teaching them to observe all things, whatever I've commanded you. And behold, I'm with you always even into the end of the age. So Jesus says, teach them, baptize, and continue to teach them.
They need we need to know about the commitment we're making in counting the cost. Luke 14 and verse 33. But we must also go guard against going to the other extreme. The other extreme where we basically make it to where a person has to be a 70 year old Bible scholar before they can become a Christian and follow Jesus. A person needs to know why why they're doing this and what baptism accomplishes, but we don't need to overdo it to the point where people can't ever submit their lives to Jesus unless they know absolutely everything that the New Testament teaches on every subject because none of us are ever gonna be there.
If a person is convicted and realizes that they have sin and they need saving from that sin, and he or she believes that Jesus Christ is the son of God and they're willing to turn away from those sins and be baptized into Jesus based on the knowledge they possess at the moment and the comprehension level that he or she possesses at the time and age that they're baptized, we must accept that and realize that that's sufficient. And then allow a person from there to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Second Peter three and verse 18. If we've got any doubts about this, we should read the sermons in the book of Acts and see how conversion work then. The pattern that we find throughout the book of Acts is individuals are taught, they're baptized, and then they're further instructed and learn more about the commitment that they make in infancy at the beginning of their walk with Jesus as a person's baptized into Christ.
You read in Acts two forty one after individuals are told to be baptized in verse 38. Those that gladly received his words were baptized. And that same day, they were added unto them about 3,000 souls. And then they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to the breaking of bread, to the fellowship, and the prayers. It was after their baptism that they developed and grew, and we got to allow ourselves and others to do that very same thing.
And so just because a person develops and just because we mature in age and we learn more about what it means to be a Christian and the commitment, and maybe we didn't possess that fully or to a great degree of maturity at the point in which we were baptized, this in no way means that we need to do it again. We shouldn't encourage this idea. We need to be careful that we keep in mind that the power in salvation is in Jesus, acts four and verse 12, and not necessarily in our knowledge of Jesus and all that he did. Salvation comes because of who Jesus is and what he accomplishes, and we need to know those things. But salvation doesn't come because of our accurate comprehension and of our ability to figure out everything.
We need to keep the focus on what Jesus has done. Our knowledge in Jesus continues to grow. Our knowledge of Jesus continues to grow, but his blood always saves. Matthew 26 and verse 28. And so if a person has doubts and questions, we need to remind them of these realities.
First John three and verse 20 says, if our heart condemns us, God's greater than our heart and he knows everything. Even if a person doesn't feel saved, it's not about our feelings. It's about the facts of the gospel. If we've done what Jesus has said in faith and trust him, then we are saved and we can have that eternal life right now. First John five and verse 13.
But if a person is reminded of these realities and still can't find rest in their soul or their mind about this idea, and it just continues to torment them, then they can be re immersed so that an individual can be sure. We should keep in mind, Jesus didn't come to Earth, suffer, die, be raised from the dead so that we'd always be unsure, so that we'd always be tormented. But we also should keep in mind that God is not looking for reasons to send us to hell. John three sixteen and seventeen, he sent his son because he loves us, not in order to condemn us, but that the world through him might be saved. God isn't looking for reasons and ways to condemn us, but through the way of Jesus ultimately to save us.
First Thessalonians five and verse nine. We shouldn't teach and preach as if a person has to have this full and comprehensive knowledge of baptism, Jesus, the church, and salvation before one can become a Christian or later if you develop more of that knowledge, you have to be rebaptized. Or we strip baptism of its power as it's ultimately about our initial faith in Jesus. That's not the end, but the beginning of our Christian memorial. Thanks for listening to the holy brief today.
Appreciate this question. If there are follow ups or other questions that you have, we're back at it. So looking forward to receiving more of those questions. Until next time, thanks for listening. Keep studying, keep searching, keep asking, but above all, keep believing.
