And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? Acts 8:36
I remember an illustration that the late Doug Howard gave us many years ago of a stop he made at a local service station. While his tank was being filled, he noticed a young man, a Christian acquaintance of his, a member of the local Baptist church, who was washing a car beside the garage. Although he was using a hose and had plenty of water splashing about, the young man wore only a light pair of shoes, instead of rubber boots, on his feet. Doug remarked to him that he must be getting his feet wet. The young man replied, ‘That’s OK, a good Baptist isn’t scared of a little water!’ Well, I can’t answer for Baptists, but I do know many Christians who do seem to have a fear of the water of baptism, and many more who don’t seem to know the difference that being baptized – and acting baptized – should make in our lives.
Our text relates the eagerness of a new convert to be baptized. Although the Ethiopian eunuch is to be commended for his desire, his was not an unusual request during that time. We will find that in the book of Acts, conversion and baptism were almost simultaneous. You never read of one without the other, and usually only minutes apart. That was the normal practice in the early days of Christianity. No doubt the need for baptism was preached right along with the need for salvation, as it was important for new believers to immediately take a stand for Christ and against the old, dead religion of their fathers. We take a little more time these days, primarily to make sure those who request baptism show definite signs of divine life. And that’s OK. But those signs of divine life shouldn’t be taking years to appear! Nor should the need for baptism take years to understand. We should take it as a warning sign when an interest in baptism is not soon expressed by someone who has professed to be saved.
When we interview candidates for baptism, we often remind them that they will come under greater scrutiny afterwards, because both the unsaved and the other Christians will expect more of them. They will be expected to live according to what baptism means – dead to the world and walking in newness of life. I think that admonition gets lost on some of those who are baptized. They continue to enjoy the company of the same old companions, go to the same entertainment places as before they were saved, and speak the same worldly language as before. Their level of appreciation for and involvement in spiritual things rises no higher than occasional attendance at Assembly meetings. Their efforts at witnessing for their Lord and in supporting the Gospel are non-existent. Although baptized, they don’t act or live it.
What is hindering young Christians from being baptized? And what is hindering the rest of us from living according to our baptism? -Jim MacIntosh