Every so often, we set aside a Sunday and call it “Decision Day.” Fortunately, or unfortunately, procrastination is part of our human nature. The bigger the commitment, the longer we tend to defer it. God is always inviting us to a place of commitment.
In John 3:1 Jesus meets a rather distinguished Pharisee named Nicodemus. He is a trusted authority figure, a ruler, a teacher, among the Jewish people. Nicodemus was incurably curious about Jesus but because of his high-profile status, he couldn’t just walk up to Jesus, and ask questions. As a ruler and teacher. He didn’t want to send false signals that he was somehow embracing Jesus. So, he arranged to meet Jesus at night.
In John 3:2, Nicodemus says, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could perform these signs you do unless God were with him.” It’s more of a statement of adoration than a question! Nicodemus already knows something “in his heart” he isn’t ready to admit in his mind, or confess with his lips, and certainly not acknowledge in any kind of tangible, public way.
But Jesus knows the heart of men, and cuts right to chase. In John 3:3 Jesus says, “Truly I tell you, unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Almost instinctively, Nicodemus balks at the suggestions. In John 3:4 he says, “How can anyone be born when he is old? Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born?” Nicodemus knows exactly who Jesus is, and what Jesus expects of him. But here Nicodemus is seeking for a way to be committed to Jesus without putting any skin in the game. He already believes, he just doesn’t understand why someone like him, with his faith, with his heritage, with his stature, at his age, would have to be baptized. Nicodemus wanted to know if there was a way to “privately be cool with Jesus” without being “publicly committed to Jesus.”
Perhaps you can empathize with Nicodemus. There is a verse in Luke’s gospel, Luke 7:30, where were told how the “Pharisees and experts in the law had not been baptized by [John], they rejected the plan of God for themselves.” Nicodemus wasn’t rejecting God’s plan, he just wanted to do it on his own terms. He was like Meatloaf in that one song, “I will do anything for love, but I won’t do that…”
In John 3:5-8 Jesus says, “Truly I tell you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again. 8 The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. So, it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
I’m often asked, “What is the big deal about baptism?” If you read passages like John 3, you certainly cannot conclude that baptism is irrelevant, or optional. Jesus’ language is too exacting to dismiss. Twice Jesus says, “Unless someone is born again… of water and the Spirit… they cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
First, Baptism Signifies Testimony. There comes a point in every relationship, where you must “Define the Relationship.” When I was younger, I was pretty shy and lacked confidence. I would compensate for my insecurities by joking around. But when push came to shove, I never knew the right thing to say or do.
So there I was, a freshmen in college, and I meet Lara. A group of students were supposed to meet after an intramural basketball game, but nobody stayed after, except Lara and me. It was very awkward out of character for me, but I muttered, “So what are we going to do tonight?” Somehow, we ended up at Lincoln’s only bowling alley. Lara was terrible at bowling! She’d fling the bowling ball down the lane with wrist. As terrible as she was… she still beat me.
After we’d “hung out” for weeks, I just had to express my intentions. So, one night I said, “Lara, I’d like to begin seeing you on a regular basis.” Now in my mind, I’d really clarified things. We were an item! We were a thing! We were officially dating! But to Lara, it was just a word salad. “What do you mean? Aren’t we already seeing each other on a regular basis? What do you think we do at the library? In the Cafeteria? After Chapel? At Church? When we take walks on campus? When we’re getting pizza? When else do you want to see me?” I was too vague.
There is nothing vague about baptism. Baptism defines our relationship with Jesus. It’s a testimony. It’s a declaration of our identification with Jesus. It’s a declaration that unlike like the “Pharisees and Experts in the Law,” we’re embracing God’s plan for our life. We shouldn’t be surprised that God would expect something like baptism, or like the Lord’s Supper, to clarify our commitment. I think of Revelation 3:16, where the Lord announces to the Church at Laodicea: “Because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” Jesus was telling Nicodemus, “Either this is a thing, or it isn’t a thing.”
Second, Baptism Signifies Teachability. Nicodemus was probably a lot like the Apostle Paul. Paul was very proud of his heritage. In Philippians 3:5-6 he spouts off his credentials, “… circumcised the eighth day; of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; regarding the law, a Pharisee; 6 regarding zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless.”
Like the Apostle Paul, Nicodemus was as Jewish as Jewish can be. But now Jesus was telling Nicodemus that despite his proud heritage, he needed to be born again. Elsewhere Jesus would tell people they couldn’t enter the Kingdom of God unless they “became like little children!” Little children need to be taught! Baptism was humbling.
People today are just as proud of their heritage as was Nicodemus. When people say, “I’m Catholic. I’m Lutheran. I’m Methodist. I’m Baptist. I’m Presbyterian, I’m Christian…” What is really being said? The decision for Nicodemus, in baptism, was whether his Jewish heritage, or Christ Jesus himself, would be greater.
For whatever its worth, in asking Nicodemus to be baptized, Jesus wasn’t trying to negate Nicodemus’ heritage. Quite the opposite. He was asking Nicodemus to more fully, more perfectly, more completely honor his spiritual heritage. And this is often the case for those who have various denominational heritages. You aren’t being asked to negate, nor disown, nor disrespect your heritage. We are being invited to let the Word of God govern our heritage, not let our heritage govern our relationship with Jesus.
Third, Baptism Signifies a Transition. When did your physical life begin? Well, “technically” it began at conception. But “practically” and “legally” it began at birth. At birth you passed from darkness into light, through water. You took your first breath. When you are baptized, it’s not “technically” when your life in Christ begins. People believe. People repent. People worship. People confess. People pray. People do a lot of things before their baptized. But baptism is something more than these things. It’s a kind physical and spiritual and psychological transition for the believer.
Think of it this way. Noah spent many years, in faith, building the ark, preaching righteousness. But then God asked him to enter the ark, God closed the door, and God flooded the whole earth. Peter tells how in that ark, “Eight people—were saved through water.” And then he says, in 1 Peter 3:21-22, that “Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the pledge of a good conscience toward God) through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, now that he has gone into heaven, He is at God’s right-hand w/angels, authorities, powers subject to him.”
Peter is NOT teaching that baptism in itself saves us, as if the waters of baptism are somehow mystical. He is however teaching that Baptism marks a mental, physical, spiritual transition… a conscientious personal pledge… by a person, to embrace God’s salvation in Christ Jesus… a pledge to surrender, to subject oneself, to Christ Jesus as are all the angels, authorities and powers in heaven! This pledge is the reason in the Christian Church we practice believer baptism vs. infant baptism. It’s an individual conscientious pledge!
In 2 Corinthians 10:2, Paul correlates Baptism to the Israelites crossing the Red Sea. He says of the Israelites, “They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” The Israelites relationship with God no more began at the Red Sea, than Noah’s began when the first drops of rain fell, than does a believer’s relationship begins with Jesus at baptism. But what baptism does mark is a point of clear transition, like the ark, like the crossing of the red sea, like physical birth… where we go from the old life into the new life… from darkness (slavery/ fear/ judgment/ death) into light.
I’m not the one correlating baptism to the salvation history of God. It’s Jesus. It’s the Apostle Paul. It’s Peter. I’m just inviting you to read Scripture on the matter.
Baptism signifies Transformation. When you are physically born, oxygen is the air you learn to breath. When you are spiritually born, your oxygen, is the Holy Spirit. Jesus tells Nicodemus, John 3:5-8, “Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit.” He says, “The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” In Baptism, you’re inviting the Holy Spirit to carry you wherever the Spirit wills. Just like the wind carries a ship wherever it will, you’re yielding your whole life over to the presence/power of God’s Spirit. It’s no small thing.
Baptism signifies Trust. In John 3:13-16, Jesus tells Nicodemus, “No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven—the Son of Man. “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. 16 For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”
The reason the physical sign of baptism matters is because it’s a physical reenactment of birth… we were born through water. It’s a physical reenactment of Noah’s salvation.. eight in all were saved through water. It’s a physical reenactment of Israel’s salvation… a whole nation was baptized into Moses at the sea, and crossed over from death into life. It’s a physical reenactment of salvation in Christ… that just as Christ died, was buried, and raised to new life so shall we!
Jesus was inviting Nicodemus in baptism to embrace the salvation of God. Not that the water itself would be salvation… but that the water points to greater reality that God is saving us in Christ, by virtue of Christ’s resurrection.
And this is a great place to wrap things up. In Romans 6:3-4, 8-11, the apostle Paul explains how in baptism we declare our trust in Christ’s resurrection. “[3] we were baptized into Jesus death… we were buried with Jesus by baptism into death… [4] in order that just as Jesus was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too may walk in a new way of life… [8-11] now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him, because we know that Christ having been raised from the dead, will not die again. Death no longer rules over him. For in light of the fact that he died, he died to sin once for all; but in light of the fact that he lives, he lives to God. So too, consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.”
Will you define your relationship with Jesus, Jesus’ way?