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Burning Questions
answered by Rev. Colin Le Noury
Is Baptism by immersion essential
to Salvation?
Are the
Christadelphians right in insisting
that Baptism is necessary to Salvation?
I
take pleasure in responding to Constance Jones'
question raised above; as it allows me to deal broadly
with the beliefs of one of the most subtle of latter
day cults.
One
of the characteristics of Christadelphianism is
that it places much emphasis on Bible prophecy.
Its main 'evangelistic thrust' is centred largely
on public lectures usually on a prophetic topic.
However, the eschatological stance of Christadelphianism
is not dissimilar to that of the Jehovah's Witnesses.
The
movements founder, Dr John Thomas, had an obsession
with the book of Revelation, and wrote extensively
on prophetic themes, placing his own interpretation
on the scriptures and requiring his followers to
accept them implicitly and without question - a
hallmark of many cult leaders.
It
is on the major doctrines of the Christian faith
that Christadelphianism goes wildly and seriously
astray.
These
include the Christian view of God, which involves,
on their part a rejection of the Trinity. Thomas
himself, wrote about a one Eternal God and below
Him a whole host of 'Elohim' or gods, created by
the Eternal God before the creation of the world.
Robert
Roberts, a disciple of Thomas, who became the British
leader of Christadelphianism, was rather more cautious
on the 'Elohim' but nonetheless critical of the
Christian view of the Trinity.
On
the personality of Christ the sect is equally in
error as they deny His deity, eternity and incarnation.
Jesus' divinity is of a secondary kind and He is
placed on a par with the 'Elohim' or secondary tier
of gods. In their view His existence began at the
time of His birth, which is totally contrary to
some of Jesus' clear statements on His pre-existence.
The
denial of His eternity and deity obviously leads
Christadelphians into denying the incarnation. Indeed,
in their belief He didn't become the Christ until
His baptism. Their rejection of the personality
of the Holy Spirit is just as heretical, and like
the Jehovah Witnesses, they seem to ignore the wide
use of personal pronouns, by Jesus, in His farewell
discourses in relation to the 'Paraklete' or Comforter,
see John 14:16.
It
is important to understand these major errors in
Christadelphianism doctrine as we address the question
raised about salvation and baptism.
Roberts
himself, in his book, 'Christendom Astray', makes
the following statement;
'NOTHING
WILL SAVE A MAN IN THE END BUT THE EXACT KNOWLEDGE
OF THE WILL OF GOD AS CONTAINED IN THE SCRIPTURES,
AND FAITHFUL CARRYING OUT OF THE SAME'.
The
interpretation that Christadelphianism places on
Robert's statement is that their doctrine (including
all the major errors highlighted above) are, 'The
exact knowledge of the will of God'.
'The
faithful carrying out of the same' mentioned in
Robert's statement is to be baptised into the mental
assent of these doctrines, combined with the living
of a life of good works. Justification by faith
is strongly opposed.
So
then the Christadelphian view of baptism, as with
many other cults, is linked into a whole body of
doctrinal error.
Some
of the scriptures used by the sect in support of
their emphasis on baptism deserve closer scrutiny.
These include Mark 16:15-16 and Acts 2:38.
Mark
16:16 states, 'He that believeth and is baptised
shall be saved; but he that believeth not is damned'.
Whilst baptism is clearly linked in this verse with
saving faith; it is not an express requirement for
salvation. The second part of the verse makes this
abundantly clear. A person is not damned through
not being baptised but rather because of his or
her lack of faith. 'By grace are you saved through
faith' states the apostle Paul to the Ephesians.
Similarly,
whilst Peter in the tradition of the Early Church
encourages baptism for all believers in Acts 2:38,
it is repentance for sin which leads to saving faith
in the atoning work of Christ. Nowhere in scripture
is baptism laid down as a requirement of salvation.
Having
so said, I must admit that I fully embrace believers
baptism. The teaching of Christ and His disciples,
and of the Apostolic Church, strongly points to
the fact that the baptism of believers in Christ
was common practice in the Early Church.
There
seems also to be plenty of evidence that the mode
of baptism by total immersion was the adopted practice.
The significance of it, as explained in Romans 6:3-5
would support this.
Christians
should be encouraged, once they have put their faith
in Christ, to give public witness of this through
believers baptism. Baptism does not save. The thief
on the cross is a classic example of this. He had
no time to be baptised and yet Jesus gave him the
clear assurance of salvation in the words, 'Today
you shall be with Me in paradise'. Mental assent
to a body of doctrine can never save a soul either.
Only a genuine faith in the living, risen Lord Jesus
who died as our Saviour and Substitute will bring
a person into a state of salvation.
YT
3/97
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