The question has occasionally been asked, even among Seventh-day Adventists, as to whether one can receive baptism “into Christ” while not becoming a member of a particular religious body. Those attracted to the notion of “leaving religion to follow Jesus,” irrespective of how this notion is phrased, often ask this question—and answer it emphatically in the affirmative.
But first we need to ask: What does the Bible teach about baptism?
Biblical Baptism
The first mention of baptism in the Bible, of course, is in the experience of John the Baptist and his ministry at the Jordan River. Here we see the first evidence that baptism, while offered to everyone, is not offered unconditionally. The ministry of John and its connection to baptism are described in the following verses:
Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judea, and all the region round about Jordan,
And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance (Matt. 3:5-8).
In His parting instructions to His disciples, Jesus made it clear that the imperative of teaching is to both precede and follow the ordinance of baptism:
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;
Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you (Matt. 28:19-20).
As with John the Baptist, it was made clear on the Day of Pentecost that repentance for sin and the reception of God’s Word of truth were essential if one was to receive baptism:
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.
And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.
Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls (Acts 2:38-41).
A few verses later it becomes clear what in fact these new believers were added to:
And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved (verse 47).
Two points are established by the above verse: (1) those added through baptism were added to the church, God’s organized body of believers; and (2) being added to the church was and is a matter of salvation. We will address this point in greater depth as we go along.
Later in the same book, when Peter baptized those assembled in the house of Cornelius in Caesarea, it is likewise clear that the rite of baptism was reserved for those who had met certain conditions:
While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord (Acts 10:44-48).
An earlier passage from the book of Acts teaches plainly, of course, that the receipt of the Holy Spirit is reserved for those obedient to divine commands:
And we are His witnesses of these things, and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey Him (Acts 5:32).
Putting all these verses together, we see that repentance for sin and receiving God’s Word are necessary prerequisites for Biblical baptism. And from the example of John the Baptist it is clear that refusing this rite to those lacking “fruits meet for repentance” (Matt. 3:8) is also in accord with the Biblical message so far as baptism is concerned.
The Unscriptural Divide Between Jesus and Doctrine
The notion of some that baptizing a person “into Jesus” is somehow different from baptizing that person into a church—the latter being contingent, as in the case of Seventh-day Adventism, on acceptance of a series of Bible doctrines—is rooted in the unscriptural distinction between a personal relationship with Jesus on the one hand, and the heart-based acceptance of doctrinal truth on the other. (We can’t stress often enough that divine truth cannot merely be embraced theoretically, but must in fact be brought into the heart and life through conversion.) The problem lies in substituting the fabricated Jesus of postmodern spirituality for the Jesus described in Holy Scripture.
But the Jesus portrayed in the Bible bears little resemblance to the eclectic, ecumenical, vaguely inclusive Jesus in which many today believe. The Jesus of the Bible, when tempted by Satan in the wilderness, declared that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). In closing His Sermon on the Mount He declared, “Not every one that saith unto Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of My Father, which is in heaven” (Matt. 7:21; see also Matt. 19:16-26; Luke 10:25-28). Elsewhere He stated, “If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed” (John 8:31).
The apostle Paul echoed these teachings of Christ when stating to the Thessalonians: “God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth” (II Thess. 2:13). When writing to Timothy he likewise connected the embrace of doctrinal truth with salvation:
Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine: continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee (I Tim. 4:16).
It thus makes perfect sense that Jesus, in His final charge to His disciples before returning to heaven, connected the rite of baptism to the imperative of “teaching [new believers] to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19-20). As noted above (Matt. 7:21; 19:16-26; Luke 10:25-28), the recorded teachings of Jesus reflect the overall witness of the New Testament that Spirit-empowered obedience to God’s commandments, and the heart-based acceptance of doctrinal truth, represent the condition of Biblical salvation (e.g. Rom. 2:6-10; 8:13; II Thess. 2:13; I Tim. 4:16; Heb. 5:9; James 2:10-12).
Thus, to speak of being baptized “into Jesus” as distinct from being baptized into a Biblically-defined faith community, is to imagine both a Jesus and a Christian worldview not found in the pages of Scripture.
Baptism and the Church
As we noted earlier from Acts 2:38-47, baptism in the Bible involves joining the visible body of believers, which the Bible calls the church. Baptism is not merely a one-on-one covenant between the believer and Jesus. It involves membership in the faith community—and with it, accountability to the Bible’s standards of faith and practice acknowledged thereby.
It is on the basis of these Biblical teachings that Ellen White admonishes the church regarding the danger of bringing people into its fellowship too quickly, without adequate instruction as to the requirements of Holy Scripture:
Too much hasty work is done in adding names to the church roll. Serious defects are seen in the character of some who join the church. Those who admit them say, We will first get them into the church, and then reform them. But this is a mistake. The very first work to be done is the work of reform. Pray for them, talk with them, but do not allow them to unite with God's people in church relationship until they give decided evidence that the Spirit of God is working on their hearts [1].
In an even stronger statement she writes:
Not one should be buried with Christ by baptism unless they are critically examined whether they have ceased to sin, whether they have fixed moral principles, whether they know what sin is, whether they have moral defilement, which God abhors. Find out by close questioning if these persons are really ceasing to sin, if with David they can say, I hate sin with a perfect hatred [2].
Conclusion
In sum, the Bible makes no distinction between accepting Jesus and accepting the truths of Scripture, nor does it present the rite of baptism as anything other than the divinely-established gateway into the fellowship of God’s covenant community, the church. No Seventh-day Adventist pastor or evangelist has any right to lead someone through the ordinance of baptism who has not embraced the total faith as espoused by the global Seventh-day Adventist Church in the duly voted 28 Fundamental Beliefs of our denomination. Any alternative pathway to church fellowship stands at odds with the teachings of both the Bible and the writings of Ellen G. White, the latter often called the Spirit of Prophecy.
REFERENCES
1. Ellen G. White, Review and Herald, May 21, 1901.
2. ----Manuscript Releases, vol. 6, p. 165.
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan