Month: March 2020

So You Want to Be a Disciple-Maker? The First Step (Part 12)

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…

(Matthew 28:19-20)

He was madder than a hornet. A young soldier we had led to Christ walked up and confronted us. “I’ve been reading my Bible,” he says. “Why didn’t you tell me I needed to get baptized!?” (He had now been in our ministry for over two years) Red-faced I turned to the guy that was discipling him and apologized for not being a better disciple-maker. One of the things that I’ve learned about problems in the ministry is that you ought always look upstream first. And the finger I was pointing for this young disciple-maker’s critical blunder was squarely pointed back at me. 

In almost every conversion story in the New Testament, a profession of faith was immediately followed by baptism. Immediately! Not 2 years! Not even longer than a few days in Paul’s case. (Act 9.10-18) Paul even baptizes the Philippian Jailor and his family in the middle of the night. (Act 16.33) It seems in almost every case both the baptizer and the baptizee had a sense of urgency. It really was the disciple’s first step of obedience.

Today we want to wait to see if “salvation” is really going to stick or we want people to go through eight weeks of classes to make sure that they understand what they are getting into. We use baptism as a gate of authentication. There is no such Biblical precedent for that. That my friends is pure tradition. So let’s stop holding the first step of obedience hostage for new believers. We would never say, “Don’t stop committing adultery until we are sure you’re a real believer,” would we? No way! Start challenging all would-be disciples to immediate baptism. It should be the first step of many steps in following Jesus.

Here’s a good little Bible study on the immediacy of baptism; Baptism Hammer

So You Want to Be a Disciple-Maker? Pouring Spiritual Concrete (Part 11)

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit… (Matthew 28:18-19)

Baptism. Think about it. It’s simple enough that almost anyone anywhere can do it but it’s just weird enough that people balk at it. “You want me to do what? Fully submerge myself in water while being fully clothed?” But Jesus knew exactly what He was doing when He gave us this command to be “baptizers.” A lot of times we are looking to put something very tangible around a very spiritual reality. We are looking for a way to pour concrete around a cloud to capture what it is. We walk an aisle, pray a prayer, attend confirmation, etc… Well, I don’t think that’s a bad thing. In fact, I think Jesus gave us the “concrete” to pour on our spiritual condition when we start following Him; its called Water Baptism. That’s the metaphorical picture we can point to that we express our commitment to Jesus. Baptism doesn’t save us but it is a way to capture the relationship I have with Him and to acknowledge to the world; “I have died to myself and I now live for Christ.” (Gal 2.20)

Many other religions tolerate and even like Jesus. It’s really no problem for some to say, “Yeah, I believe in Jesus.” But once you start talking about baptism the tenor of the discussion completely changes. A line has been drawn in the sand (or water). Baptism is the symbol of being “All In.” And they are not prepared to make that kind of commitment. Interesting that people from other religions would have a clearer view of the symbolism of baptism than a lot of Christians. Do we take Jesus’ command to be a baptizer seriously? Do we see baptism as an optional superfluous ritual or a religious act that is like a ticket to heaven or a command to be obeyed that gives us a tangible symbol of our new identity in Christ?