The Baptism Debate - 2175 Words

Often held as a rite of passage and entrance into the Christian church, baptism is much more than just symbolic ritual. Baptism was commanded by Jesus Christ in the Great Commission recounted in the book of Matthew. Even though we are simplistically called to be obedient by being baptized the Christian church has long debated the aspects of this ordinance. Denominations are divided on the basic meaning, types and modes of baptism even two thousand years after the founding of the Christian church. Just as the other ordinance, the Lord’s Supper, congregations find themselves at odd with tradition, biblical interpretation and even individual understanding. However, the simple message of this awe inspiring act can be explained out of the†¦show more content†¦Thereafter, infant baptism became the norm.† (Hammett, 2005, pg 269) Three arguments are often used in support of infant baptism. The early church used the idea of household baptisms mentioned in the book of Acts to support that entire families were baptized for the acceptance of faith by the parents of the household. Other historians point to the Gospel encounter of children being brought to Jesus for blessing and for Him to pray over the children. The last support can be found in the need of an act of covenant being established as it once was in the Old Testament. In the time of Abraham young boys were circumcised as a sign of the convent. In the New Testament infant baptism was used as that sign. (Hammett, 2005 pg 269-270). Each of these were steeped further in tradition than biblical basis. The New Testament points more specifically to believers’ baptism rather than infant baptism. As stated earlier, baptism is a symbolic act of obedience representing a choice of salvation through Jesus Christ. It is unreasonable to think that an infant would be able to make such a choice by itself. The parallel of Abraham’s covenant is also misapplied. Hammett points out, â€Å"As circumcision was applied to Abraham’s physical seed under the old covenant, so baptism is to be applied to Abraham’s spiritual seed under the new covenant. But the spiritual seed of Abraham are thus of faith, which means that believers should be baptized, which, they wouldShow MoreRelatedThe Baptism Debate Essay3011 Words   |  13 PagesLIBERTY UNIVERSITY THE BAPTISM DEBATE A RESEARCH PAPER SUBMITTED TO PROFESSOR MARSHALL WICKS, PHD IN COMPLETION OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THEO 350-B02 BY RANDY WILSON LYNCHBURG, VA MAY 28, 2011 Introduction The debate over baptism has become one that encompasses so many areas. Where most theological discussions are concerned with a primary topic, baptism debates consist of many. Debates on the purpose of baptism, the benefits of baptism, who baptism was designed for, andRead MoreIntroduction. 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