Chapter 3 of "Believer's Baptism"

In this chapter, entitled "Baptism in the Epistles", the book becomes very helpful. Tom Schreiner (of Southern, wrote the BEC commentary on Romans), does a great job of exegeting each passage in the Epistles that addresses water baptism. He makes three important points that show the error of paedobaptism:

1. Several passages (such as Galatians 3:1-5) show that receiving the Spirit is "the indisputable mark of entrance into the people of God". Yet we receive the Spirit by faith - something infants are not capable of. Moreover, there is a clear connection in Paul between water baptism and spirit baptism; namely, water baptism is the visible expression of having received the Spirit's baptism. Paedobaptism loses this connection.

2. Schreiner rightly shows that it is not true that baptism in the New Covenant merely replaces circumcision in the Old Covenant. Particularly useful is his point that in Paul's polemic against the Judaizers in Galatians, he never once argues that baptism has replaced circumcision. Had he held to the theology of our Presbyterian brothers, we would have expected him to do so (since that would have settled the issue quite nicely.)

Schreiner says "If Paul adopted the view customary in paedobaptist circles, we would expect him to say that circumcision is no longer required because baptism has replaced circumcision as the covenantal sign. Paul does not prosecuts such an argument in Galatians or anywhere else in his letters, nor, incidentally, did the early church advance such an argument during the apostolic council of Acts 15. It would seem that the simplest argument Paul could make in Galatians would be as follows: 'Of course, circumcision is not required, dear Galatians, because you all know that baptism has replaced circumcision as the initiation rite for the people of God.' Instead of making such an argument, however, Paul insists that demanding circumcision for salvation nullifies the cross of Christ."

Some may point out that Schreiner is making an argument from silence, but it is a very loud silence!

3. Finally, Schreiner prepares the way for Wellum's 4th chapter and the deathblow to paedobaptistic thought by showing the discontinuity between the Old and New covenants that many covenant theologians overlook. In my opinion, this is the most important paragraph in Schreiner's essay:

"It is precisely here that the difference between the old covenant and the new shines forth. In the new covenant everyone knows the Lord (Jer 31:34), but in the old covenant physical circumcision did not necessarily translate into spiritual circumcision of the heart (see Deut 10:16; Jer 4:4 with Deut 30:6). Those who belonged to Israel were not necessarily spiritually regenerate. Physical circumcision was to be succeeded by spiritual circumcision and regeneration. But the new covenant community is the community of the Spirit. Only those who have the Spirit of God belong to God (Rom 8:9) and are his sons and daughters (Rom 8:14; Gal 3:26). Baptism is applied to those who have received the Spirit by faith (Gal 3:1-5), not to those whom it is hoped will receive the Spirit in the future. The Christian church is not tied to any nation or ethnic group, but comprises all believers in Jesus Christ everywhere. We have seen that baptism is a sign of unity in the church, but it is a unity among those who believe, as Gal 3:26-29 clarifies. Those who are the seed of Abraham believe like Abraham, and therefore they belong to Jesus Christ."

Next up: Stephen Wellum on the old and new covenants.