Articles
The Other Baptisms - John's Baptism
As noted in previous articles, Matthew 3:11 references three different baptisms. We have already considered the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the baptism of fire. This time, let us turn our attention to the baptism of John the Baptist.
While the baptisms of the Spirit and of fire are more spiritual or figurative in nature, John’s baptism was literal and physical. It was immersion into water (Mt. 3:11; John 3:23) and could be witnessed and experienced by those who chose to come to John. That also makes it very similar to the baptism that we practice, which can cause confusion.
It must have been a surprise that the prophet was baptizing people. The prophets of old had prepared the Jews for a coming messenger. It was prophesied that he would prepare the way for the Lord (Mal. 3:1; Is. 40:3) by restoring the hearts of the people (Mal. 4:5-6), but there was no mention of baptism. Nonetheless, baptism was such a prevalent part of John’s message that it defined his identity—he was John the Baptist (Mt. 3:1).
John’s baptism was significant. Those who believed John’s message were baptized. Those who did not, were not, which, in and of itself, would not be significant. However, the decision related to the source of John’s baptism. Was it “from heaven or from men” (Mt. 3:25)? If it was a man-made command, then John’s baptism didn’t matter at all, but if it was from God, then those who rejected it were rejecting “God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John” (Luke 7:30).
John’s baptism was a declaration of repentance. This is what we are told in Matthew 3:11. It is also repeated long after John was martyred (Acts 13:24; 19:4). What accompanied this repentance was confession of one’s sins (Mt. 3:6; Mk. 1:5) and changed behavior consistent with repentance (Lk. 3:7-8).
John’s baptism was also “for the forgiveness of sins” (Luke 3:3 and Mark 1:4). We are not told if they received forgiveness while rising up from the water or if the baptism symbolically looked forward to future forgiveness powered by the death of Jesus on the cross. If it is the first, then we are also not told by what power their sins were being forgiven. The latter option, on the other hand, makes more sense, given that John was preparing the way for the Lord, building faith in the one who was to come “to give to His people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins” (Lk. 1:77). Essentially, people who came to John and were baptized by him were stating their faith that the Messiah was about to arrive, and with Him, salvation. Regardless, anything that is for the forgiveness of sins must be significant.
There are obvious parallels between John’s baptism and the baptism we practice today. Immersion into water (Acts 10:47-48). Repentance and forgiveness of sins (Acts 2:38). However, the baptisms are not the same.
John’s baptism was into John and his teaching. Since John the Baptist was a prophet sent from God, this was not a bad thing at all. In fact, it was God’s purpose for His people. However, it was not His final purpose. John pointed to Jesus and eventually everyone who followed John needed to follow Jesus. This distinction is made clear in Acts 19:1-7. Those who were baptized “into John’s baptism” (Acts 19:3) learned the truth about Jesus being the Christ and were then “baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 19:5). If John’s baptism was the same as baptism into Jesus, then these individuals would not have needed to be re-baptized and Apollos, who only knew about John’s baptism, would not have needed to learn “the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:25-26).
This final point is of special significance to us today. It is only in Acts 19 that we see people being re-baptized. This reveals that it matters why a person is baptized and what a person is baptized into. If the reasons do not line up with the Gospel of Christ, then the baptism is not sufficient. If the baptism of John, which was from God and important, could not replace baptism into Christ, then how can modern baptisms which are based on man-made reasons (baptized as a sign that someone was already saved rather than to be put into Christ) or man-made methods (sprinkling rather than immersion) or man-made subjects (infants rather than confessing believers) be sufficient? We can say that the disciples in Acts 19 were baptized twice, but in truth, they were only baptized into Jesus once.
