Repenting

Last week we examined the term "baptism" in the Bible. We have seen that baptizo means “to cause something to be dipped into a fluid and then taken out again.” or in short: "dipping something in". We then looked at the difference between John's baptism and Christian water baptism. This week we shall go on to examine the conditions which must be fulfilled by those who desire to receive Christian baptism.

The first condition is stated in Acts 2:37-38, which records the reaction of the Jewish multitude to Peter’s sermon on the day of Pentecost and the instructions Peter gave them.

“Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?” Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’”

Here, in answer to the question “What shall we do?” Peter gives two commands: first repent, then be baptised.

We have already seen (in Part II) that repentance is the first response God requires from any sinner who desires to be saved. Repentance, therefore, must precede baptism. Thereafter, baptism is the outward seal or affirmation of the inward change produced by repentance.