In Matthew 3, Jesus comes to John the Baptist at the Jordan River to be baptized. When Jesus comes out of the water, the heavens dramatically open up. What did that mean for the people watching? What should it mean for us? What is baptism anyway?

This is Week 5 of the Matthew: The Scriptures Fulfilled study. Sample Student Handouts and Leader Guides are available for download below.

Believer’s baptism is the act of immersing a new believer to outwardly demonstrate the inner change that has taken place when someone is forgiven from their sins and sealed by the Holy Spirit.

Read Matthew 28:19-20

• What did Jesus command here in the Great Commission?

Read Romans 6:1-11

• Paul describes the symbolism of baptism. What does being put under the waters of baptism represent according to these verses?

• What does being brought up out of the waters of baptism represent according to these verses?

• What does verse 6 say that sin does to us?

Baptism is an ordinance or sacrament (depending on your denomination), meaning it is a ceremony, practiced by the church (the people of God), established & commanded by Christ, to rehearse the story of God alongside other believers.

How does baptism rehearse the story of God?

Read Isaiah 43:2

• Note that water and fire often represent divine judgement in the Bible. What is promised here?

Read Genesis 6:11-18; 7:1, 15-23

• Why did God send the flood (Genesis 6:11-13; 17)?

• How was Noah safely brought through the waters of judgement (6:18-22)?

The Exodus from Egypt

• In Exodus 14:21-22, how did God’s people safely cross the waters of the Red Sea?

• Read Exodus 3:11-12; 6:6-7; 29:45-46. What were the people of God being saved from? What were they being saved to? In other words, what was the situation before and after their “baptism”?

Application

• What did you learn about the symbolism of baptism?

• How does this change how you view baptism, both your own and the witnessing of the baptism of others?

• If you have been saved, have you been obedient to the command to be baptized? If not, what is holding you back? What parent or leader can you talk with about your questions?

Corporate Response: Stand and Read Aloud Together (Not in Your Boring Voice): Psalm 66:1-12

Works Cited:

Allison, G. R. (2019). The Ordinances of the Church – The Gospel Coalition. In The Gospel Coalition. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/the-ordinances-of-the-church/

Baptist Faith & Message 2000 – The Baptist Faith and Message. (2000). In https://bfm.sbc.net/. https://bfm.sbc.net/bfm2000/#vii

Drimalla, S. (2021). The meaning of baptism in the bible. In BibleProject. https://bibleproject.com/articles/baptism-in-the-bible/

English, J., Worley, K., & Wilkin, J. (2019, March 19). Taking the Plunge into Baptism with Nate Elgin (No. 34) [Broadcast]. In Knowing Faith.

Grudem, W. A. (2020). Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Second Edition, pp. 1195–1198). Zondervan Academic.