Well, along with the Lord’s Supper, baptism was an ordinance that was observed by the early church, by the apostolic church, as it is sometimes referred to. Persons who believed in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, who repented of their sins, who confessed His Name, were admitted to the church through, by, baptism. Again, back to Jerusalem, that very first congregation of the Lord’s people, we read there, Acts 2, verse 47, that “the Lord added t the church daily those who were being saved.”

The evidence indicates, of course, from the Scriptures, that the practice that they observed for baptism was by immersion. That is the only kind of baptism. We know that that word, “baptism,” in our language is a word that was transliterated—that is, it was taken from the original language and brought over into the English language with a few letters changed to accommodate the English speakers, but that word in the original language means “to dip, to plunge, to immerse, to cover over.” This was the practice of the early church.

This “outer practice,” so to speak, of baptism was, of course, in obedience to the command of Christ Himself. It was in obedience to the instruction of the inspired apostles, but we also know that there was a symbolic nature to it. Paul writes about that in Romans, chapter 6, where he speaks about baptism being a symbol of the death, the burial and the resurrection to a new life [“3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord,” [Romans 6:3-11].

And in the New Testament, baptism is also linked with a new birth, John 3:5. Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Unless you are born again, you cannot enter into the kingdom [“There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.’ 3 Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ 4 Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?’ 5 Jesus answered, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, “You must be born again,”’” John 3:1-7.].

And baptism is also, of course, linked—inextricably linked—to the forgiveness of sins, Acts 2:28 [“Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”].

For nearly a generation, the church at Jerusalem, in spite of persecution, provided something of a leadership for all of the other congregations, for all of the other churches. This was principally because of the affiliation of the apostles with that congregation. But even before the destruction of Jerusalem, which occurred in AD 70, other great congregations, other congregations of the Lord’s people, began to build and sort of assert their own leadership.

For example, there was the congregation at Antioch. That congregation was the one that took the lead in sending out missionaries, like Paul and Barnabas, to go into the far regions of the Roman Empire to preach the Gospel, to baptize, to establish congregations.

Summary

This is a look, then, at the things which came to pass, not by some random occurrence, but all at the hand of God, bringing together all of these events which occurred in history, that occurred just at the right time in the right sequence—everything was in just the right order. And God brought forth His Son. His Son established His church, and we see that the church has its beginnings, and grows and prospers. The church begins to make a real impact within the communities where churches are established.

From a “band of twelve,” we might say, whose leader had been killed at the instigation of the Jews and at the hands of the Romans, this body, this organization that is called the church, had become, in just a relatively short period of time, the “sect everywhere spoken against,” as it’s referred to in Acts 28:22 [“But we desire to hear from you what you think; for concerning this sect, we know that it is spoken against everywhere.”].

Our next lesson (Lesson 4) will cover the Expansion and Persecution of the church.