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About John Fields
Expertise
I can intelligently and respectfully discuss MOST thoughtful questions pertaining to doctrinal issues within the Churches of Christ. I feel myself to be especially adept when answering questions regarding the Gospel of Christ and baptism. I always strive to be humble, realizing that there are some issues that are respectfully and honorably debatable. I realize that the Bible is perfect and able to provide any truth that the seeker of truth is after. At the same time I realize that though I am very conscientious about pointing people in the right direction, I am still a fallible human being and certainly capable of making mistakes. I will always give my opinion AS my opinion and strive not to state as fact something which cannot be supported by good logic or a good thorough study through the scriptures.

Experience
I am a minister within the Churches of Christ. I have been preaching for 14 years and have been on five separate mission trips to the Volta Region of Ghana, West Africa. I have preached the Gospel to literally thousands of people and it is my passion to do so.

Education/Credentials
I graduated with honors from Atkins High School in Atkins, AR in 1984. I went on to get my Bible degree at Harding University in Searcy, AR where I graduated Cum Laude.

You are here: Experts > Religion/Spirituality > Christianity - Restorationism > Churches Of Christ > Sprinkling vs Baptism

Churches Of Christ - Sprinkling vs Baptism

Expert: John Fields - 11/2/2009

Question
Recently, my husband who is Catholic,which is to say that his mode of baptism was accomplished through pouring was told that he could not be an active member of my church. I am a member of the Church of Christ and was baptized at the age of 10. My husband has been attending the Church of Christ for the past fifteen years. He had been asked to do a closing prayer during a worship service which he did but was told that he was in error due to his mode of baptism. The Church of Christ baptizes by immersion only therefore he was not considered a member thus he had no right to serve during worship. If the Lord knows our heart at the time of baptism is it correct to say that a person's baptism is invalid simply because their mode of baptism is different than what the bible has to say about baptism or doctrine? Who has the authority to make that call other than the Lord himself?

Answer
Debra, I'm sorry to hear that your husband was placed in that embarrassing position. He was not wrong to pray, it was inappropriate for them to have asked him to pray when it could put him in such an awkward position.

The prevention of someone from participating in worship activities is not just an issue within churches of Christ. For instance, my understanding is that if I wished to receive communion within the Catholic church I would be refused because I'm not Catholic. Their reasoning is similar to ours, that only known kingdom followers are participants in kingdom activities.

I will expand further by zooming in on your last sentence. "Who has the authority to make that call other than the Lord himself?" You are EXACTLY right. Only the Lord has the authority. His is the ONLY authority for what we can and cannot do within HIS church. When the Lord speaks, we listen closely. If we are repeating what He has taught it's still Him doing the teaching.

Jesus said "Why do you call me Lord and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46) This shows us that since He is Lord we are obligated to do what He says. If we do not do what He says, we have no right to call Him Lord. Jesus knows the hearts of His sheep because His sheep hear His voice and follow Him. (John 10:27) He also says that if we substitute men's teachings for His own we are worshiping Him in vain? (Mark 7:7) So if we do something different than what He has said He knows our heart is not where it needs to be. That does not have to be a guess on our part. If a person has not done what is clearly shown in scripture, we know how Jesus feels about it.

So what has Jesus commanded us and what have we been shown? Debra, think back to your own baptism. He commanded that you be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (Matthew 28:19) He showed that baptism was a complete immersion. In John 3:23 it say that John was baptizing in Aenon near Salim because there was MUCH water there. What takes MUCH water a burial with water or a sprinkling of it? A burial. Concerning burials, Colossians 2:12 says that we are buried with Jesus in baptism. So baptism is a burial. But it is not just ANY burial. We are buried WITH HIM in baptism. Jesus died, was buried in a tomb, and was resurrected. We too must experience this with Jesus. In Romans 6:3-6 it shows that we are baptized into Jesus. His death, burial and resurrection become ours as well. Baptism is a reenactment of and joining to the events of the cross.

I've heard some say that pouring or sprinkling is a symbol of baptism. This is likely well intentioned but VERY ill advised. Baptism is not a symbol of burial. It is an actual temporary burial. Just as Jesus was shortly in the tomb, so we too are very shortly in ours at our baptism. Just as men at sea who die and are dropped into the water are said to be buried we are too in baptism. Jesus commanded the ACT of baptism not a symbol for the act. If we know what baptism was back then (and we do) we know what it is today. In Ephesians 4:4-6 it says that there is one baptism. It stands to reason that whatever baptism was back then it would be the same today since there is only one baptism. Since Jesus' authority is supreme and cannot be changed and since baptism was commanded by Him and demonstrated to be a burial and immersion we must bear fruit in teaching that and in following the command.

Finally, in baptism being commanded we meet another problem with many groups which practice sprinkling and pouring. They more often than not sprinkle and pour on their infants. This does not work scripturally. First a baby cannot obey a command since they cannot comprehend it. We are told to repent (of sin) and be baptized for remission of our sins. A baby cannot obey that command and secondly, as well, babies have no sins to remit or repent of anyway. Ezekiel 18:20 says that the son SHALL NOT bear the punishment for the father's sin. This means that the doctrine of original sin, which says that the child inherits the guilt of the fathers, cannot be correct without canceling out the scripture.

I hope this helps. If you have any further questions I would be happy to help further if I can. God bless you and your husband in your spiritual walk.

To Follow up Debra:
Thanks for the kind words. Prayer is the BEST thing you can do. I will put you in my daily prayers as well. It is great that he sees that he needed to be baptized at an older age so as to understand that one is a sinner who needs to repent by coming to God through His Son. That seems to be an acknowledgment that he agrees that a baptism of a baby is a false baptism, in other words, no baptism at all. But here are two additional points to ponder if I may. First, if he believes that infant baptism is illegitimate, considering that he is in a very small minority who is NOT baptized as an infant, what is the implication? Wouldn't that mean that since the Catholic church is chiefly comprised of those who have received sprinkling as infants that the majority of that church is still unwashed by Jesus blood? Would one want to remain a part of that?

Secondly, the fact that babies have no sin and cannot obey the sacrament is only one part of the difficulty. There are other ways for baptism to be performed which can make it illegitimate. Sprinkling is NOT the baptism that was practiced in the Bible. If your husband was immersed at 12 years old he is a Christian, regardless of where it happened or who performed it. If he was sprinkled, he received a baptism that is unproven and has no precedent in the scriptures. I am writing a book on this very thing and have done an extreme amount of research on this.

I have my contact info available. Please contact me if you'd like indisputable biblical proof that what I am sharing is so. This proof involves the Old Testament.

I know I may seem intense about this. It is not because I feel the need to be proven right only that there is so much on the line. It is so much better traveling through life with an exclamation point rather than a question mark. If he disagrees that's his prerogative, but I always try to be gentle, kind and respectful. I hope you'll write me. God bless you both.

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