3 Views on Baptism

In Ephesians 4:5, the apostle Paul declares that there is “one Lord, one faith, one hope, one baptism, one God and Father of all.” Sadly, the “one baptism” Paul speaks of in Ephesians is anything but a unifying force in the Christian church today. In addition to differences between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism, there are even differences among Protestants on this important subject.

At Core Christianity, we strive to help people understand the core truths of the Christian faith. This guide presents the three main Protestant views of baptism that you will encounter among Christians you know and churches you attend: Lutheran, Baptist, and Presbyterian. Each author approaches the subject from a different angle, but all agree that Scripture is our only infallible rule of faith and practice.

Even if we don’t ever achieve perfect unity in this life on the important doctrine of baptism, we can be grateful that through baptism we are united to Christ and one another in ways that transcend our ability to understand and articulate them. By being “baptized into his death,” we are assured that Christians of all denominations and beliefs about baptism will also be united with Christ “in a resurrection like his” (Rom. 6:3-5).

Our prayer here is that this guide will be an aid to you—not just by informing your mind but also by forming your heart in gratitude and thanksgiving to God who has made us—all of us—alive together in Christ!

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