54: Is Baptism A Work?

The idea that baptism is a work that results in salvation sounds controversial—but don’t jump ship just yet. In this episode, we take a closer look at what the Bible actually says about baptism, grace, and who’s really doing the work. If you’ve ever wrestled with the role of obedience in salvation, this one’s for you.

Read: https://ready4eternity.com/is-baptism-a-work/

https://x.com/Ready4Eternity https://www.facebook.com/ready4eternity

The presence of any advertisements in connection with this content is determined solely by the hosting platform. I have no control over whether ads appear or not. I appreciate your understanding.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Welcome to the Ready for Eternity
podcast, a podcast and blog dedicated to
inquisitive Bible students exploring
biblical truths that might not be fully
explored in typical
sermons or Bible studies.

(00:20):
My name is Eddie Lawrence.
Is baptism a work that
results in salvation?
The answer is an emphatic yes, but don't
tune out because that probably doesn't
mean what you think it means.

(00:43):
If you're still listening and haven't
blown a gasket after that intro, let's
talk about why I would say that baptism
is a work that results in salvation.
Most Protestants denounce the idea of a
works-based salvation and
their right to take that position.
In fact, there aren't any works or tasks

(01:05):
that we can perform that will put God in
debt to us. Simply put, there's nothing
we can do on our own, including baptism,
that will fix our sin problem.
God had to fix this problem for us, and
it's the reason Jesus had to die.
But my statement in the intro really goes

(01:26):
against the grain of Protestant thought.
This is because much of modern Protestant
thought has been inherited from the 16th
century reformers. These men were
reacting to the doctrinal positions of
the Catholic Church, and in their zeal to
distance themselves from anything that
might resemble earned salvation, they

(01:49):
lumped baptism into
the human works category.
The thinking was that if salvation was
achieved by doing
something, for example, baptism,
then this made the thing a work which
amounted to earning salvation. Therefore,
they concluded that baptism belonged in a

(02:09):
different category and had nothing to do
with becoming a Christian.
But here's the fundamental flaw in their
thinking and in modern thinking.
We confuse doing with earning.
God's people have always had things they
had to do to obtain God's promises. For

(02:33):
example, Noah had things to do to prepare
for the flood. However, Noah's tasks that
he performed in preparing for the flood
did not earn his salvation.
God saved Noah because God extended grace
to him in the form of a
warning and instruction.

(02:55):
Noah believed God, heeded God's warnings,
and followed God's instructions.
The things Noah had to do to obtain God's
promise, not drowning, were told to him
as an act of favor from God.
Without God's warning and instruction,

(03:16):
Noah and his family would have perished
along with everyone else.
Noah didn't earn or deserve salvation
because he built the ark.
Likewise, the Israelites had to do
something in order to conquer Jericho.
They marched around the walls just as God
commanded, but this didn't

(03:38):
earn them the military victory.
God gave them the city after they "did"
the things he told them to do.
Without God's instructions and
involvement, Israel would
not have taken the city.
Israel didn't earn or
deserve the victory.

(03:59):
The overthrow of
Jericho was a gift from God.
Such examples are numerous,
but the point is always the same.
God's people have always had to do
something to obtain God's promises.
This is not the same as saying they

(04:19):
earned the promises.
Scripture never implies that people
earned God's promises when
they did what he told them to do.
A more accurate way to word the question
that began this episode is, "Is there a
work happening during baptism which

(04:40):
results in salvation?"
The question isn't
whether baptism is a work.
The question is, "Who is doing work when
a baptism is taking place?"
It's God who is working in baptism. This
is clearly stated in Ephesians.

(05:00):
"Husbands, love your wives as Christ
loved the church and gave himself up for
her, that he might sanctify her, having
cleansed her by the washing of water with
the word, so that he might present the
church to himself in splendor, without
spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that
she might be holy and without
blemish." Ephesians 5, 25-27.

(05:25):
Who was washed with water? The bride of
Christ, which is the church. As we know,
the church is composed of all Christians.
Who does the washing
according to Ephesians 5?
It's none other than Jesus.
The Bible is clear that it's Jesus who

(05:45):
washes away our sins. He
is the one who is working.
The person being baptized is not doing
this work, nor is the person performing
the baptism. Jesus is doing the work
because only Jesus can take away sins.
Of course, baptism is only valid when
performed in faith. To be immersed in

(06:08):
water without putting trust in Jesus
results in nothing more than getting wet.
It's not the water that does something to
cleanse us. It's the work Jesus is
performing while we are being immersed in
water that matters. Jesus is the agent
who takes away our sins, not the water.

(06:28):
Some people raise a valid point when they
say, "If we have to do something, isn't
this the same as the Galatian heresy?"
False teachers fooled the Galatians,
saying the gospel
wasn't enough to save people.
They taught that in addition to the
gospel, Christians had to
also undergo circumcision

(06:50):
and keep the law of Moses. You can read
about this in Galatians
chapter 5 and Acts chapter 15.
Paul said that this teaching perverts the
gospel and, in fact, is no gospel at all.
Some might argue that if baptism has
anything to do with salvation, then this
is the Galatian heresy all over again.

(07:12):
After all, baptism isn't, strictly
speaking, part of the gospel.
Therefore, if we say that we must be
baptized to be saved, how is this not
adding a requirement to the gospel?
This is a fair and valid question.
In the next episode in the baptism

(07:33):
series, we'll consider how baptism fits
into the picture without being something
that is an addition to the gospel.
In conclusion, baptism is a work, but the
work that's being performed
is done completely by God.

(07:55):
Emersion is not something
we do to earn salvation.
It's during immersion that God cleanses
us of our sins and the Holy
Spirit comes to live inside us.
Thanks for listening to the podcast. We
hope this episode has deepened your

(08:16):
understanding of scripture. If you found
this content valuable, please share it
with your friends. For more biblical
studies, visit our website at
ReadyForEternity.com. That's the word
"ready," the number four, and the word
"eternity." ReadyForEternity.com. Be sure
and leave a comment on the Ready For
Eternity Facebook page or reach out on

(08:38):
Twitter. That's all for now. Keep
studying your Bible, growing closer to
God, and getting ready for
eternity. See you next time.