Buried with Him and Raised with Him
by Terry Wane Benton
The action of real baptism is very misunderstood today. People see a man dunking another person in the water and think it is a strange initiation rite, but there is much more to it than what you see with the physical eye.
What is supposed to be happening in the heart of the one being baptized is far more significant than a mere initiation rite. The person being scripturally baptized is repenting of sin, dying to the love of sin and the practice of sin (Romans 6:1-6). If there is no genuine repentance going on in the heart, then the person is merely getting wet, and that is a strange thing to let someone do to you if there is no real repentance going on in the heart.
Additionally, the person is being “buried with Christ” (Colossians 2:12) when they go down into the water. He is uniting his heart and life with Christ, allowing Jesus to cut away his sins, discard the former way of life—the old man of self-centered living—and then rise up with Christ as his partner and constant companion. He is rising up from baptism, but he is rising up from what was buried (the old way of living) and rising up united with Christ to walk in newness of life. Former things have passed away, and now in Christ all things are new (II Corinthians 5:17).
Things that go on in heaven are such things as the record of sin is discarded, and a partnership is established between God and the new, forgiven soul. Rejoicing in heaven happens when a soul is united with Christ in baptism. All of this is not seen by the physical eye when you watch a person being baptized. The person being baptized has “faith in the operation of God” (Colossians 2:12). He believes in what God promised to do (Acts 2:38; Mark 16:16), and he knows this is no mere ritual of getting wet. To him, he looks forward to having his sins removed from his record, joining his heart in partnership with Jesus, and starting his new life of fellowship with God and His people. He sees this as a new birth, a time to start over, but this time as a wiser, purpose-filled companion of the One who died for him.
Others may have been merely dunked in water, but not the one who properly understands the spiritual teachings of the Bible on scriptural baptism. Have you been scripturally baptized into Christ?
