Baptismal Efficacy: A Catechetical Presentation, Pt. 2

2. Since the sacraments are effectual “only when received in faith,” does that mean Baptism does nothing for the person who does not believe?

Actually, I never said: Faith is necessary for the sacraments to be effectual. What I said was: Faith is necessary for the sacraments to be effectual “unto salvation.” That’s an important difference.

Every time a person is baptized he receives something from God—and that "something" is always good, and always beneficial—even if the person does not believe. In fact, we can see that by what Paul said about circumcision, which was the Old Testament equivalent to Baptism.

After telling his readers that being circumcised in the flesh was no guarantee of a circumcised heart (Rom. 2:28-29), he anticipated their objection: “What advantage then hath the Jew? Or what profit is there in circumcision?" Paul’s answer is unambiguous. He says: “Much in every way!” (Rom. 3:1-2).

In context, this means if a man was circumcised and perished in the end, he only had himself to blame. No one could say that God had failed to provide him with everything he needed to be saved. To say such a thing would imply that God was the “unfaithful” party in their relationship. And of course, that would be a slanderous lie:

• “For what if some did not believe? Will their unbelief make the faithfulness of God of none effect? Certainly not! Indeed, let God be true but every man a liar” (Rom. 3:3-4)!

I believe the same thing applies to Baptism. Those who are baptized profit “much in every way” even if they continue in unbelief. Objectively speaking, God has given them everything they need to be saved so that if they perish, they will only have themselves to blame.

This means that the sacraments are always effectual in one way or another. Since Baptism puts us in a real covenant relationship with Jesus Christ, it will either result in our salvation or the *increase of our judgment before God, for to whom much is given, much is required.[1] In either case, we cannot say that Baptism does nothing for those who do not believe.  

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Notes:

[1] This is what we might call the principle of proportionality, and Jesus used it in Luke 12:48 to show why some men will receive greater punishment than others on the Day of Judgment (cf. Mt. 11:20-24; Heb. 10:22, 28-29).

Baptismal Efficacy: A Catechetical Presentation, Pt. 1

One of the things I keep hearing from friends and Facebook friends alike is, Paul, I’m confused about what you’re actually saying about Baptism.

The more I think about it, that can be an indication that in my recent attempts to articulate my position,[1] I haven’t been as clear as I’ve tried to be. Another possibility is that some of the things I’m saying are new and unfamiliar, and those who are trying to understand me simply lack the necessary theological categories to process my material. 

Whatever the case may be, I have a desire to make myself as clear as possible. As a pastor, it’s my job to make sure that my teaching is understood by all. True, I can’t make people agree with me, but if they go away disagreeing with what I’m not saying, I’ll be the only one to blame.  

In this series, I want to explain my position on Baptismal Efficacy as clearly and forthrightly as I can. To help with that, I'll be presenting this material in “catechetical” form. First, I will pose the most pressing and relevant questions, and then proceed to answer those questions to the best of my ability.

Questions About Baptismal Efficacy

1. You have said that the sacraments are “effectual means of salvation.” Where did you get that terminology from and what exactly does it mean?

I get this terminology directly from the Westminster Standards. In Question 91 of the Shorter Catechism, we read: “The sacraments become effectual means of salvation not from any virtue in them, or in him that doth administer them, but only by the blessing of Christ and the working of his Spirit in them that by faith receive them.”

In order to grasp this, you have to know what it means to say that something is a “means of grace.” In simple terms, a means is a medium, instrument, or vehicle through which something is communicated. To be clear then, I affirm that God communicates the benefits of redemption to us through various appointed means, including the preaching of the word and the administration of the sacraments.[2]

It’s important to keep in mind, however, that in the sacraments (just like the word) God's grace is communicated in an objective manner. In order for it to become effectual unto salvation, the recipient must receive it by faith.

• To state it concisely: Baptism is an objective means by which God communicates His grace, and Faith is the subjective means by which that grace is received. 

The basis for this position can be seen in two examples from Scripture. In Hebrews 4:2, we learn that much of the Exodus generation perished in the wilderness but not because God withheld His grace from the people (indeed they all heard the preaching of the word). Rather, the people perished because they didn’t receive it by faith: “The word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.” 

The same thing can be seen with Baptism. When a baptized person fails to obtain salvation, the reason is not that God somehow withheld His grace. The problem is that the person did not receive what God had given him by the hand of faith. This is why Jesus said, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned.” 

So, yes, I believe that in and through Baptism there is always a real and objective giving or communication of saving grace. But it is only when we receive it by faith that we can benefit from it in a saving way. This is what we might call the “objective-subjective paradigm,” or as other theologians might prefer, the “gift-reception paradigm” of Holy Baptism:

“In baptism, God offers, and we receive; God promises, and we believe; God acts, and we respond. God wraps up the gift of Christ in the means of grace; we receive and open the gift by faith.”[3]

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Notes

[1] To get an idea of what I’ve been saying on this subject, see HERE for my article and HERE for the podcast interview about my article.

[2] Question 85 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism says: “To escape the wrath and curse of God due to us for sin, God requireth of us faith in Jesus Christ, repentance unto life, with the diligent use of all the outward means whereby Christ communicateth to us the benefits of redemption.” In Question 88, it says: “The outward and ordinary means whereby Christ communicates to us the benefits of redemption are his ordinances, especially the word, sacraments, and prayer; all which are made effectual to the elect for salvation.”

[3] Rich Lusk, Baptismal Efficacy and Baptismal Latency: A Sacramental Dialogue, found HERE. It is clear that Lusk is saying nothing different from what Calvin taught when he said: “From this sacrament, as from all others, we gain nothing, except insofar as we receive in faith.” John Calvin and Henry Beveridge, Institutes of the Christian Religion, vol. 3 (Edinburgh: The Calvin Translation Society, 1845), 339.

Water Baptism in John 3:5?

OBJECTION: When Jesus said that a man must be born of water and the Spirit, his statement had nothing to do with baptism. The water was just a metaphor about the need for cleansing.

ANSWER: The larger context of our Lord's statement is against this interpretation. In the background of his reference to water and the Spirit was the fact that, up to this point, Nicodemus and the rest of the Pharisees had rejected the baptism of John (cf. Lk. 7:30; 20:1-8). In fact, baptism seems to be one of the major themes of the first several chapters of the Gospel of John:

• In chapter 1, John the Baptist comes baptizing with real water. His main message is that although he himself only applies the water, it is actually Jesus who applies the Holy Spirit (cf. Mt. 3:11).

• In chapter 2, Jesus puts water into the six stone waterpots that were used for Jewish baptisms, that is, Old Testament purification rites. Then, he turns that water into wine (a symbol of his blood) to show that, in baptism, our sins are washed away by the blood of Christ.

• In chapter 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus that all the Pharisees must be born of water and the Spirit. This is why he speaks in the plural in verse 7. He does not say: "You must be born again" but rather "Ye must be born again." This refers back to their rejection of John's baptism.

But baptism doesn't just occupy the context prior to our Lord's Statement. It continues to be the primary subject in view even after it. In fact, right after the conversation with Nicodemus, the narrative continues with instances and controversies regarding baptism (v. 22ff). In this case, John's disciples broke out into an open dispute regarding the topic of "purification" (v. 25). Why? Because they saw that Jesus was also beginning to baptize (v. 26).

• In chapter 4, we see another reference to baptism with the woman at the well. In verses 1-4 we see that the baptizing activity of Christ was also rejected by the Pharisees, so he left Judea and went to Samaria. There, he told the woman that drinking the water that he provides leads to eternal life.

Interestingly, the reference to drinking points us back to the waterpots in John chapter 2, reminding us that those who drink the water that Jesus gives are cleansed by his sacrificial blood. But there is more. The cleansing takes place by his blood and Spirit, both of which we drink when we are baptized. For as Paul says: "By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (1 Cor. 12:13).