Colossians 2:11-14 - See the Gospel: Baptism

Seeing the Gospel: The Significance of Baptism

When we gather as the church, we come to sing the gospel, speak the gospel, and see the gospel. One way we see the gospel is through the ordinances—visible, symbolic acts given by Jesus to His church to display His saving work. These are not just church traditions; they are gospel reenactments instituted by Christ, taught by the apostles, and practiced by the early church. We’ve already considered the Lord’s Supper. We return to this theme with a focus on the second ordinance: baptism. Our passage, Colossians 2:11–14, guides us in understanding why this visual proclamation of grace is so vital.

Baptism raises important questions: What is really happening when someone is baptized? Why immersion? What does it mean to witness someone else’s baptism? And why should it matter if you’ve already been baptized? These questions are worth asking because baptism isn’t just a ceremony—it’s a gospel declaration. My aim isn’t merely to give information but to stir your heart to worship and obedience by showing how baptism visually expresses the glorious reality of our union with Christ and the immeasurable grace we’ve received through Him.

Paul is writing to a young church vulnerable to false teaching—teachings that added legalism and mystical practices to the gospel and made believers doubt that Jesus is truly enough. Paul counters these errors by pointing them to what has already happened in Christ: through faith, they have been united to Him. Baptism displays that union—it is a sign that we belong to Jesus, that we have been buried with Him in death and raised to new life. It echoes spiritual circumcision—not a physical act, but the supernatural work of God cutting away sin and giving us a new heart. The painful sign of circumcision pointed forward to the cross, where Jesus was cut off for us.

This is why baptism matters for every believer. It’s not about going through a ritual; it’s about declaring, “I belong to Jesus.” And the best picture of that is immersion—being buried beneath the water and raised up again. That image, repeated throughout the New Testament and practiced in the early church, reflects the gospel more clearly than sprinkling ever could. Baptism marks our entrance into God’s family, our embrace of Jesus, and our assurance that our sins have been nailed to the cross. If you haven’t been baptized as a believer, what’s holding you back? And if you have, celebrate it—remember your rescue, rejoice in the gospel, and ask God to show you who you might lead to that same step of faith.

Main Idea – Baptism is the Visual Expression of God’s Immeasurable Grace that Marks us as Members of His Family.

Outline –

1. The Message of Baptism
2. The Mode of Baptism
3. The Marking of Baptism