THE PLACE OF BAPTISM AND
THE LORD’S SUPPER IN WORLD EVANGELISM
by
Gary Ray Branscome
“Repentance and remission of sins should be preached
in Christ’s name among all nations,” (Luke 24:47)
Christ instituted baptism and the Lord’s Supper, not as isolated acts, but as a
vital part of His plan for world evangelism. And, because they are ordinances
of the Gospel, their very purpose is to proclaim the Gospel! Baptism was
intended to assure all who repent and turn to Christ that they have forgiveness
in Him. And, the Lord’s Supper was instituted to continually remind all who
trust in Christ that they have forgiveness, not because of what they do, but
because His body was given for them on the cross and His blood was shed for
them on the cross. Moreover, because Baptism and the Lord’s Supper were intended
to proclaim the good news of forgiveness in Christ, they are proclamations of
the Gospel, not “acts of obedience”. Nevertheless, because the way of the world
is to think only in terms of what we do, rather than what Christ has done for
us, the carnal mind finds it difficult to think of Baptism and the Lord’s
Supper as anything other than “acts of obedience”. For that reason, we need to
begin by looking at what the Bible actually says.
Let us begin with Baptism. When you were baptized did you do any thing? Were
you actively “baptizing”? Or were you totally passive while God’s servant
baptized you? If you were passive you were not doing anything. Instead,
everything that took place was being done to you. So how can anyone who is
really honest call that passivity an “act of obedience”.
I contend that they cannot, apart from satanic delusion. Baptism is not
something we do it is something that God (working through His servant) does to
us as a way of telling us that when we came to faith in Christ our sins were
washed away (by His blood 1John 1:7).
Think for a moment about the thousands of Jews who came to faith in Christ on
the day of Pentecost (Acts
At this point I always run into someone who thinks that I am saying that we
need to be baptized in order to have forgiveness. However, I am saying no such
thing. People need to stop putting words in my mouth. What I am saying is that
baptizing someone is the same as telling them that when they came to Christ
their sins were washed away. The only difference is that they are being told by
a ceremony, rather than by words. The ceremony pictures what is happening
spiritually, as their sins are washed away through faith in the shed blood of
Jesus Christ (1John 1:7, Romans 5:1-2). Just as the rainbow was given to Noah
as a sign of God’s promise, Baptism is given to us as a sign of God’s promise
of forgiveness in Christ. And, Baptism plays an active part in the work of the
Gospel, by assuring those who come to faith that they have forgiveness in
Christ. In 1521 Philip Melanchthon put it this way:
Signs do not justify, as Paul says in 1Corinthians
The Lord’s Supper
Let us look now at the Lord’s Supper. When you partake
of the Lord’s Supper are you actively doing something? Or are you passively
receiving something that is being given to you as a free gift? If you are
passively receiving something by what twisted reasoning can that be construed
as an “act of obedience”?
The purpose of the Lord’s Supper is to remind all who
come that Christ’s body was “given for” them on the cross, and that His blood
was “shed for” them on the cross, so that they could have forgiveness (Luke
22:19-20). Far from being something we do, the Lord’s Supper is something that
Christ is doing through His minister. The Lord’s Supper is Christ’s way of
telling every one of us that His body was nailed to the cross for our sins, and
that His blood was shed on the cross so that we could have forgiveness. And,
everyone who believes the words that Christ spoke when He instituted His
Supper, everyone who believes that Christ’s body was “given for” them on the cross
(Luke 22:19), and that His blood was “shed for” them on the cross truly
receives His body and blood, not as something physical but as the atonement for
their sin.
Now in order to make it perfectly clear that I am not
saying that we need to receive the Lord’s Supper in order to have forgiveness,
let me explain it this way. There is no difference between believing that
Christ’s body and blood were “given” and “shed” for you on the cross; and
believing that Christ died on the cross for your sins. In both cases
forgiveness comes through believing God’s promise, not through what we do
(Galatians
At this point there are always some who ask: “Why do
we even need the Lord’s Supper?” But Christ, who knows far more that we do,
instituted it for a purpose. He knew that there would be times in history when
the Gospel would be obscured and taken for granted. And, during those times His
Supper remains as a continual reminder to all who come that His body and blood
were “given” and “shed” on the cross so that we could have forgiveness. Christ
also realized that almost every congregation contains someone who professes
faith in Christ without really understanding the way of salvation. The people I
am talking about are not wicked. On the contrary they sincerely want to do the
right thing. They believe that they are sinners, but are often burdened with
guilt. Through the Lord’s Supper, Christ (who has a far better understanding of
the human mind than we do) assures each one of them that His body was “given
for” them, and that His blood was “shed for” them. So that when they come away
from the Lord’s Supper they have forgiveness, not because of the ceremony, but
because they believe that the blood of Christ was shed for them on the cross,
“for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). Believing that Christ’s blood
was shed for you is faith in Christ, faith in His sacrifice, faith in what He
did on the cross. And, the Lord’s Supper was intended to affirm that faith.
That is why whenever the Lord’s Supper is offered the emphasis must be on the
words that Christ spoke when He instituted it. And, those words need to be
repeated as the bread and wine are distributed. If His words are not repeated
then the person administering the Lord’s Supper is not doing what Christ told
him to do when He said “do this” (1Corinthians 11:24-25).
False Interpretations Hinder God’s Plan
Because the world tends to think only in terms of what
we do, rather than what Christ has done for us many find it hard to conceive of
Baptism as anything other than a work. Moreover, that lack of understanding
causes a problem when what the Bible says about Baptism is twisted and
distorted by those who think that it is a work. Consider for example, 1Peter
“Baptism also now saves us (not by removing the filth
of the flesh, but as the promise of a good conscience toward God,) through the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
Those who think that Baptism is a work either assume
that performing that work automatically saves, or they deny and explain away
what this passage says. However, consider the words, “Baptism also now saves
us… as the promise of a good conscience toward God, through the resurrection of
Jesus Christ”. As I pointed out earlier, Baptism is given to us as a sign of
God’s promise of forgiveness in Christ and this passage is saying just that. We
are not saved by the outward ceremony, but by believing the promise that it
gives, namely that we have forgiveness through the resurrection of Jesus Christ
(the resurrection is proof that He triumphed over sin). As it is written,
“Scripture has concluded all under sin, that the promise might be given to
those who believe, through faith in Jesus Christ” (Galatians
Looking at it another way, because the Bible defines Baptism as a “baptism of
repentance,” when Peter said, “Baptism also now saves us” he was not viewing
Baptism as an application of water and nothing more, but of Baptism in its
context of repentance and faith in Christ (Acts 13:24 and 19:4, Mark 1:4 and
Luke 3:3). In other words Peter was speaking of conversion, of which Baptism is
the outward sign. That is why C.F.W. Walther, speaking
of 1Peter
Another passage that people often find difficult to understand is John 3:5,
“Unless a man is born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the
Conclusion
We need to get beyond the mindset that thinks of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
nothing more than inconvenient rules that we need to “obey”. God instituted
them as proclamations of the Gospel, not a works of the Law. And, they need to
be administered as He intended — as a way of assuring all who repent that they
have forgiveness in Christ.