"Baptism Now Saves You"? I Peter 3:21

There are a number of passages in the New Testament that appear at first, or even second glance, to support the idea that water baptism is necessary for salvation. I Peter 3:21 is one of these.

"And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you, not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ" I Peter 3:21

I Peter 3:21 is a verse that, first of all, has to be interpreted in light of the clear teaching of Scripture that we are not saved by any works of our own (see Titus 3:5 and Ephesians 2:8-9). If water baptism is required for salvation, then we are not saved by faith alone, but by faith plus a meritorious work, i.e., water baptism. According to Scripture this cannot be.

But in addition to this over arching biblical truth, if we look closely at this verse we can see that even though Peter explicitly says "baptism now saves you", he qualifies and explains what he means.

Baptism does not cleanse us of moral defilement. It has no power to wash away sins or improve our spiritual standing with God. Peter clears up that possible understanding immediately. Rather it is "the answer of a good conscience toward God" (KJV). It is the believer's response to God, having been saved, to demonstrate that he or she believes that we are saved "through the resurrection of Jesus Christ". Baptism is not what we do to be saved. It is what we do because we are saved.

Lest there be any doubt about this, in the context, notice that the water did not save the people on Noah's ark. It was the ark that was the instrument of God's physical salvation of the eight people. "Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you." In a similar way, water baptism cannot and does not save anyone from God's condemnation. But like the picture of people being physically saved by trusting God and entering the ark, baptism is a picture of us being saved by being baptized into Christ's death, and then as Christ was raised, being raised up to a new life in Him (Romans 6:4).

Like all the other"baptism saves" passages, on close inspection, this one does not teach what it appears to teach. Only Jesus saves. Jesus plus nothing. Thank you, Lord!

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit - I Corinthians 12:13

Spirit baptism is one of the key issues that differentiates Charismatic/Pentecostal believers from other Christians, and I Corinthians 12:13 is one of the key verses that they say demonstrates that there are two baptisms of the Spirit, not just one.

There is usually little disagreement about the first half of this verse. Paul is teaching us that when we put our trust in Christ as our Savior, the Holy Spirit baptizes us into the body of Christ, that is, the Church. We become members of the universal Church. Whether we are "Jews or Greeks...slaves or free" we are all equally members of Christ's universal Body.

The second part of this verse is where disagreement begins. Charismatics/Pentecostals say that the drinking of one Spirit is a 'second blessing' or second baptism of the Holy Spirit, and this one is for enablement and power. These Christian brothers and sisters also claim that this second baptism is something we have to 'pray' for, 'ask' for, 'be yielded' for, etc. In other words, we have to simcerely want it and want it bad enough that God will give it to us.

The problem with all this is that the last part of I Corinthians 12:13 says nothing about human effort, in fact, the verb here is passive, "we were all made to drink". The text is clearly saying that whatever is being talked about here, it is something that God does for us without any effort on our part. We are passive participants in whatever is being described.

Another problem with the Charismatic/Pentecostal perspective here is that Paul says "we were all made to drink". I don't think there is any doubt that not every Christian has received the 'second blessing' or second Spirit baptism that Charismatics/Pentecostals urge us to receive. I haven't yet. Therefore, whatever Paul is speaking of, it has to be something that every Christian has received.

I believe that Paul is referring to what our Lord spoke of in John 7:37-39. Jesus says, "If any man is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink". He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, "from his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water." Verse thirty-nine goes on to say, "He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive."

The best understanding of the latter part of I Corinthians 12:13 is that Paul is saying that when we are baptized into the body of Christ by the Holy Spirit, Christ also gives us the Holy Spirit to dwell in us. So, this is speaking not about another baptism of the Spirit, but the gift of the Holy Spirit as promised by our Lord.

I am not saying that this one verse is the end of all discussion about one vs. two Spirit baptisms. What is clear is that I Corinthians 12:13 does not fit with the Charismatic/Pentecostal view of a second baptism.