Baptisms - I love baptisms. Yes, my theological convictions are baptistic, and they are strong. I think it mainly comes from seeing the wonder of Jesus. All that the covenants from Abraham to David in the Old Testament pointed to, Christ fulfilled. In him we have every obligation met and every promise received by faith. The New Covenant, brought through Christ's shed blood, is indeed as the author of Hebrews states it - BETTER. One of the most glorious truths making the New Covenant better than the Old is how we can now see and define God's people. Along with that comes the wonder of the way we are sealed and signified as those who belong to his family. That's where baptism comes into play.
Whether Old or New Covenant, the signs that God gives that accompany his covenants do not have saving power. In Genesis it was clear that Abraham believed and it was credited to him in righteousness (Genesis 15:6). This was clearly a statement of saving faith prior to Abraham being circumcised as the accompanying covenantal sign and seal of his faith. That's the way the Apostle Paul describes this in Romans 4:11-12. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, 12 and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
Romans 4:12 must mean that from the beginning, this sign of the covenant was the identifying factor for Abraham's physical offspring (who were circumcised as eight day old babies) not that everyone would be his spiritual offspring. That only happens by faith. Some people believe that because this sign was given to unbelieving children, baptism today should also be administered to unbelieving children for them to be included in covenantal relationship with God. The problem with this logic is that it completely disregards that the identity of God's covenant people has changed with the fulfillment of the Old Covenant and the bringing in of the New Covenant in Christ.
Even the expectation of the Old Covenant was that there would be a future time that those in covenant with God would no longer live in disobedience. They would all know God and have life in his Spirit poured upon all of them. (Ezekiel 37, Jeremiah 31:31-34, 23:4, Isaiah 32:11-16). Under the roof of the Old Covenant, you could find both believers and unbelievers in a physical family and national identity. The New Covenant would be different. Everyone in the New Covenant is a believer. With the change of the nature of the covenant people in Christ came the change of the administration of the sign and seal of faith. It is no longer circumcision for physical progeny but baptism only for spiritual progeny.
One of the texts that Christians sometimes debate over is Colossians 2. Some Christians believe that Colossians makes a direct correlation between circumcision and baptism and therefore argue that baptism should be administered in the same way as circumcision and thus for non-believing infants. The problem with this argument is twofold. Firstly, it ignores the regenerate nature of the New Covenant people as described above. Secondly, the circumcision that correlates with baptism in Colossians 2 is not physical. Let's read the passage carefully.
Colossians 2:6-12 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. 8 See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.
There are a few observations we can make about this passage to give clarity on the connection between circumcision and baptism.
1. Paul is clearly writing to believers. From vs 6-10 he is speaking to those who have received Christ and warning them not to be persuaded by worldly dogmas. He even tells them that they been filled in Jesus.
2. In vs.11 he does not say that they have been physically circumcised but spiritually circumcised. It is a circumcision without hands by putting off fleshliness for Christ. He is talking about them coming to faith, not receiving the physical sign. This means the correlation that he then makes with baptism in vs.12 is a correlation with their faith, not with physical circumcision.
3. The baptism described in vs.12 also is explicitly stated as happening THROUGH FAITH. It neither gives saving faith, nor is it applied to an unbeliever, but it is a sign that happens through faith.
Once we see these beautiful truths, we can understand that baptism is administered in a New Covenant context to those who have come to faith in Christ who has kept all the obligations of the covenant for us. In Jesus, we are proclaiming through baptism that all the promises given to Abraham are ours as his spiritual offspring.
Baptisms - I love baptisms.