What is the Meaning of the Word “Baptism”?

Mark 10

³⁵James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, *came up to Jesus, saying, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.” ³⁶And He said to them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” ³⁷They said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.” ³⁸But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” ³⁹They said to Him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you shall drink; and you shall be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized. ⁴⁰“But to sit on My right or on My left, this is not Mine to give; but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” (Mark 10:35-40, NASB)

Luke 12

⁵⁰“But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished! (Luke 12:50, NASB)

The Daily DAVEotional

I was recently engaged in an online conversation with a person who took issue with my blog post “Does Acts 2:38 Teach that You Must Be Baptized to Be Saved?”

This person argued that baptism by water is not only necessary for salvation but it is necessary to receive the Holy Spirit.

If you’ve read any of my many posts on baptism (see list below), you know that my position is that water baptism is symbolic, a physical illustration of a spiritual reality.

My argument is simple: most people import their modern understanding of baptism onto the New Testament texts that mention the word. But in the New Testament, the words “baptize” and “baptism” have a broader meaning than our narrower modern definition.

Most of us, when we hear the words “baptize” and “baptism”, automatically think of the religious rite whereby a person is either immersed in water or sprinkled with water.

While it’s true that in the New Testament, baptism often refers to the religious ritual that we’re most familiar with, there are a number of instances where the word doesn’t refer to the ritual cleansing we tend to think of when we hear the word.

I’ve highlighted, via my blog, many different instances where the words “baptize” and “baptism” are used in ways that don’t match our typical modern understanding.

A few different posts that feature passages where this is the case are my posts, “What is the Meaning of the Word Baptize?”, “What is Baptism?” and “What is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?”

The passages above from Mark 10 and Luke 12 are further examples of how the words “baptize” and “baptism” have a broader meaning in the New Testament than we typically account for.

Click here to see a A Comprehensive List of Blog Posts Based on Bible Passage Reference

In the Mark passage, James and John come to Jesus and ask for Jesus to do them a favor. Essentially, they ask Jesus to put them in positions of authority next to Jesus when He enters His glory.

Jesus responds by asking them if they are able “to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”

What is Jesus referring to here?

Jesus cannot be referring to a water baptism as he was already baptized by John the Baptist earlier in the storyline (see Luke 3:21-22). So what is this “baptism” that Jesus is going to experience?

In Luke 12, Jesus references a “baptism” that is distressing him.

Clearly, the use of the words “baptize” and “baptism” in these two passages is not the same as we tend to think of it. Jesus is not talking about immersing others in a pool of water in order to cleanse them from their sins so that they might experience eternal life.

It’s obvious from the context that Jesus is talking about his impending suffering at the hands of the religious leaders, a suffering that will include not only physical beating and torture but an excruciatingly painful death as well.

Jesus is asking James and John if they are able to “identify” with the suffering that he’s going to be identified with.

Essentially, Jesus is saying to James and John:

Oh, so you want to have a position of authority in heaven right next to me? Ok. Are you able to endure the suffering that I’m going to endure? Are you able to accomplish the mission that I’m about to undertake?

James and John, in their ignorance, tell Jesus that “Sure, we can do that!”

In as diplomatic a way as possible, Jesus tells them that they really don’t know what they’re asking. At the same time, Jesus lets them in on a secret, that yes, they WILL experience suffering and endure persecution for the sake of Jesus, but NO, Jesus will NOT be promising them a position of authority next to him in heaven.

What is the point of unpacking these stories?

The point is to demonstrate that the words “baptize” and “baptism” have a broader meaning in the New Testament than our modern definition.

In the New Testament, the broader meaning of “baptize” is “identification”. The context determines what the person is being identified with. When John the Baptist was baptizing people, the people were identifying with his message of repentance.

But Jesus’ baptism is different than John’s. According to the Scriptures, Jesus’ baptism is greater than John the Baptist’s and it is characterized by the Holy Spirit, not by water.

Jesus’ baptism entailed people becoming identified with the person of the Holy Spirit. It’s at that point that the person becomes united with the Holy Spirit and becomes identified as a member of the body of Christ – they become a member of the family of God (see Romans 6:1-6 and 1 Corinthians 12:13).

In the Bible, water is a symbol for the Holy Spirit. Therefore, water baptism is an illustration for the spiritual baptism that has already taken place in the life of the believer.

When a person is baptized with water, they are identifying themselves as a member of God’s family. The process itself is symbolic. The person, who was formerly dead in their sins and alienated from God, is immersed in water (a symbol of the Holy Spirit). This immersion signifies the union that happens the moment the Holy Spirit comes into our lives.

When the person is raised from the water it symbolizes the new life that now exists as a result of their new union with God via the Holy Spirit.

So what is baptism?

Baptism is not just a religious rite whereby a person is either immersed in or sprinkled with water. Baptism has a much deeper meaning. At it’s core, the baptism that Jesus offers is identification with the Holy Spirit, signifying a union with God and an initiation into the family of God.

More on Baptism:

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Reflection

If you hold to the view that baptism in water is necessary for salvation, what do you think was the purpose of Jesus being baptized? Do you think Jesus needed to saved?

Jesus clearly uses the terms “baptize” and “baptism” in ways that do not match our modern understanding. How do you explain Jesus’ use of these terms? What do they mean in this context?

John the Baptist said that while he baptized with water, one was coming after him who was much greater and he [Jesus] would baptize with the Holy Spirit. If Jesus baptizes with the Spirit, why do you think people put so much emphasis on water baptism?

Paul, in Ephesians 4:5 says that there is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism. What do you think is the baptism that Paul is referring to?

If the words “baptize” and “baptism” have a broader meaning of “identification”, how does this change your understanding of the ordinance of baptism within the church?

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