quotations about baptism
Lastly, we must also know what Baptism signifies, and why God has ordained just such external sign and ceremony for the Sacrament by which we are first received into the Christian Church. But the act or ceremony is this, that we are sunk under the water, which passes over us, and afterwards are drawn out again. These two parts, to be sunk under the water and drawn out again, signify the power and operation of Baptism, which is nothing else than putting to death the old Adam, and after that the resurrection of the new man, both of which must take place in us all our lives, so that a truly Christian life is nothing else than a daily baptism, once begun and ever to be continued.
MARTIN LUTHER
"On Infant Baptism", Large Catechism
From what cause the rite of baptism first proceeded is not expressed formally in the scripture, but it may be probably thought to be an imitation of the law of Moses concerning leprosy, wherein the leprous man was commanded to be kept out of the camp of Israel for a certain time, after which time being judged by the priest to be clean, he was admitted into the camp after a solemn washing. And this may therefore be a type of the washing in baptism, wherein such men as are cleansed of the leprosy of Sin by Faith, are received into the church with the solemnity of baptism.
THOMAS HOBBES
Leviathan
So I followed that preacher man down to the river
And now I'm changed
And now I'm stronger
There must've been something in the water
CARRIE UNDERWOOD
"Something in the Water"
Infant baptism when practiced can be no more than an expression of the faith and hope of the parents that their child will ultimately be saved.
LEWIS SPERRY CHAFER
Major Bible Themes
Make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
BIBLE
Matthew 28:19
Baptism is the catalyst to spiritual maturity, not the sign of having attained it.
J.D. GREER
"Why Baptism Sunday?", Baptist Press, August 12, 2019
In baptism one returns to the state of creation ... when all humanity was unified.
L. MICHAEL WHITE
From Jesus to Christianity
I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.
JOHN THE BAPTIST
Matthew 3:11
The Church does not dispense the sacrament of baptism in order to acquire for herself an increase in membership but in order to consecrate a human being to God and to communicate to that person the divine gift of birth from God.
HANS URS VON BALTHASAR
Unless You Become Like This Child
Baptism is like the pool of Siloam, appointed for healing: it is salutary and medicinal: but the Spirit of God is that great angel that descends thither, and makes them virtual.
JEREMY TAYLOR
The Whole Works of the Right Rev. Jeremy Taylor
Baptism is rich in meaning. It suggests cleansing. When you are a disciple, you understand that you are cleansed by Christ. You understand that Christ died in your place on the cross, paying for your sins, fully forgiving you for all your wrongs. You are cleansed from guilt, and you are becoming a cleaner, healthier, more whole person.
BRIAN D. MCLAREN
More Ready Than You Realize
God's people should be baptized because God commanded it, not because some church requires it.
JOHN R. RICE
Bible Baptism
That is the best baptism that leaves the man cleanest inside.
HENRY WARD BEECHER
Proverbs from Plymouth Pulpit
Baptism is, in fact, much more than a ritual conferring membership in a community, as many people conceive it nowadays. It is a process of birth, through which a new dimension of life opens out.
PETER SEEWALD
God and the World
Baptism is like a precious jewel. Set apart by itself, it is nice and appealing but has nothing within it to compel. But place baptism against the backdrop of our sin and turn on the light of the cross and the jewel explodes with significance.
JOHN MARK HICKS
"The Role of Faith in Conversion", Evangelicalism & the Stone-Campbell Movement
O let all who thirst
Let them come to the water
And let all who have nothing
Let them come to the Lord
MATT MAHER
"Come to the Water"
Baptism is the door of the spiritual life and the gateway to the sacraments.
THOMAS AQUINAS
Summa Theologica
Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.
APOSTLE PAUL
Romans 6:3-5
Baptism is the sacrament of allegiance of them that are to be received into the Kingdom of God, that is to say, into Eternal life, that is to say, to Remission of Sin. For as Eternal life was lost by the committing, so it is recovered by the remitting of men's sins.
THOMAS HOBBES
Leviathan
Because to us in Baptism, a new life He hath given, a better birth than that of earth, and made us heirs of Heaven.
CECIL FRANCES ALEXANDER
"When Christ Into the Temple Came"