What Did Jesus Teach About Baptism?

There are those would teach that baptism is not essential to salvation. These individuals will usually teach that faith alone is necessary, and that Christ never taught baptism. Let us then consider some of the words and actions of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, regarding baptism and whether or not it is necessary.

Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Matthew 3:13-17 (KJV)

There are also accounts of this even in Mark 1:9-11 and Luke 3:21-22. In this passage, Christ is setting an example for His followers. The reason given for this baptism was to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus, being sinless, did not need to repent have his sins washed away. But in order to fulfill righteousness, that is, to do all which the Father required, Jesus submitted himself to baptism. If our Lord saw the need to be baptized, we should too. It is also worth noting that the Lord had to come up out of the water. The implication is that in order to be baptized, he had to go into water deep enough that it could be reasonably called “going down into” it. The implication, in addition to the word baptism (baptisma - consisting of the processes of immersion, submersion and emergence, according to Vine) itself, is that it is submersion, not pouring or sprinkling.

And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Matthew 28:19-20 (KJV)

In this passage, Christ states that He has all authority. That is important to the context, because He is about to issue some commands to His disciples in what is often called the “Great commission.” He commands them to teach and baptize. Most people would happily and quickly admit that learning the gospel of our Lord is necessary for salvation. Also necessary to be His disciple is to be baptized. Being baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is to be baptized by the authority of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and with their full approval and acceptance. In other words, the command to baptize (and, thusly, be baptized) is given with the full backing of God.

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

Mark 16:15-16 (KJV)

This passage, parallel to Matthew 28:18-20, is short and simple to understand, yet many choose not to. The disciples are told to go and preach the gospel. They are then told two things which must both occur for salvation. First, that belief is necessary. Almost no one argues that faith is unessential to salvation. Faith is required by God. This faith must be active and living (James 2:14-26), that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God (Matthew 16:19), that God is and that He rewards those who seek Him (Hebrews 11:6), and in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ (I Corinthians 15:1-34). It is also stated here that one must be baptized to be saved. Just as in Romans 10:9-13, where both faith and confession are necessary for salvation, so we see here that both faith and baptism are necessary to grasp the salvation which has been offered by God. As for the fact that a lack of baptism (only a lack of faith) is named as leading to damnation, consider this: one cannot be be Biblically baptized without faith. Without faith, one will never choose to put on Christ (Galatians 3:27), so it is rather unnecessary to state here that its lack will lead to damnation.

When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John, (Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,)

John 4:1-2 (KJV)

This verse is occasionally named to teach that Jesus did not baptize anyone. To be completely honest, I do not know if the Lord ever did baptize anyone Himself. But there is a point made here about whose authority the baptizing was happening. The disciples, being learners and followers of the Christ, were, with full knowledge of their Master, baptizing others. Since the Pharisees knew the baptisms were attributed to Jesus, it is safe to say that the Lord, who is God and thus, omniscient, knew His disciples were baptizing others. We see no efforts to stop this from happening, and thus we see not only knowledge, but also approval and consent to their actions. Jesus approved of His disciples baptizing others.

Just from these four short passages we learn several things about baptism: First, that Jesus Himself was baptized. If our Teacher and Master was baptized, shouldn't we be as well? Second, that baptism fulfills righteousness. As we all (hopefully) want to stand righteous before God, should we not submit to baptism that we might also fulfill all righteousness? Third, that baptism is immersion. Fourth, that Christ commanded His apostles to teach and baptize all people. There is no exception made, but all must learn of Christ and be baptized. Fifth, that Christ had the authority to command baptism, and that the Father and Holy Spirit also likewise authorized and approved of it. It is not simply the will of the Son that we are baptized, but of the Father and the Son as well. Sixth, that each of us must be baptized to be saved. It is as necessary as faith to our salvation, and without it, we stand condemned. Seventh, that baptism must follow faith. It cannot precede the ability to hear, understand, and accept the teaching of the gospel. Eighth, that in Jesus' lifetime, He knew of and approved His disciples baptizing others and accepted that it be attributed to Himself, as it was done by His authority and will.

So did Jesus ever teach or show that baptism is necessary to be His disciple? Did Jesus teach that baptism is acceptable? Did Jesus teach that baptism is essential to salvation? He sure did!