Theological Term of the Week

baptismal regeneration
The belief that baptism is necessary for salvation, and that the act of baptism causes regeneration; or the belief that baptism is the usual means of regeneration.

• Scripture used to defend the doctrine of baptismal regeneration: 

  And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38 ESV)

  Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ … (1 Peter 3:21 ESV)

• From The London Baptist Confession, Chapter 29. (This statement teaches, in opposition to the doctrine of baptismal regeneration, that baptism is a sign of the listed benefits of salvation rather than the means through which one is saved.)

  1. Baptism is an ordinance of the New Testament, ordained by Jesus Christ, to be unto the party baptized, a sign of his fellowship with him, in his death and resurrection; of his being engrafted into him; of remission of sins; and of giving up into God, through Jesus Christ, to live and walk in newness of life.

• From Baptismal Regeneration by Charles Spurgeon:

  I come with much brevity, and I hope with much earnestness … to say that FAITH IS THE INDISPENSABLE REQUISITE TO SALVATION. “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; he that believeth not shall be damned.” Faith is the one indispensable requisite for salvation.

• From Systematic Theology by Wayne Grudem:

  [W]hat about 1 Peter 3:21, where Peter says, “Baptism … now saves you”? Does this not give clear support to the … view that baptism itself brings saving grace to the recipient? No, for when Peter uses this phrase he continues in the same sentence to explain exactly what he means by it. He says that baptism saves you “not as a removal of dirt from the body” (that is, not as an outward, physical act which washes dirt from the body—that is not the part which saves you, “but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience” (that is, as an inward, spiritual transaction between God and the individual, a transaction symbolized by the outward ceremony of baptism). We could paraphrase Peter’s statement by sying, “Baptism now saves you—not the outward physical ceremony of baptism but the inward spiritual reality which baptism represents.” In this way, Peter guards against any view of baptism that would attribute automatic saving power to the physical ceremony itself.

Learn more:

1. GotQuestions.org: Is baptism necessary for salvation? What is baptismal regeneration?
2. John MacArthur: Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation?
3. Greg Koukl: Is Baptism Necessary for Salvation? 
4. James White: A Brief Rebuttal of Baptismal Regeneration
5. John Piper: What Is Baptism and Does It Save?

Related terms:

• credobaptism
• paedobaptism
• regeneration

Filed under Defective Theology.

Do you have a term you’d like to see featured here as a Theological Term of the Week? If you email it to me, I’ll seriously consider using it, giving you credit for the suggestion and linking back to your blog when I do.

Clicking on the Theological Term graphic at the top of this post will take you to a list of all the previous theological terms in alphabetical order.

Round the Sphere Again: Putting Food By

Too Many Cukes
Miss Cellania makes pickles.

[I]n this day and time, you don’t can your own garden produce just to save money. The food itself is high quality from a lovingly-produced family garden, instead of a commercial farm thousands of miles away. You also have the satisfaction of knowing you were responsible for the end product. And while a jar of store-bought pickles would be too weird to give as a gift, home-canned pickles are a perfectly thoughtful gift.

(mental_floss Blog)

Preserving Peaches
These are two of my favorite ways to use up the fresh peaches that are in the produce department during August.

• Canning Peaches in 16 Steps. Home canned peaches are so much better and so much cheaper (at least for us) than the canned peaches in the supermarket.
• Peach-Raspberry Jam. Conveniently, my garden raspberries ripen in August, too. I make jam from the linked recipe, but I strain the seeds from only about half of the crushed raspberries because I think a few seeds make the jam prettier. 

Sunday's Hymn: Ye Servants of God, Your Master Proclaim

Ye servants of God, your master proclaim,
And publish abroad His wonderful name;
The name all victorious of Jesus extol,
His kingdom is glorious and rules over all.

The waves of the sea have lift up their voice,
Sore troubled that we in Jesus rejoice;
The floods they are roaring, but Jesus is here;
While we are adoring, He always is near.

When devils engage, the billows arise,
And horribly rage, and threaten the skies:
Their fury shall never our steadfastness shock,
The weakest believer is built on a rock.

God ruleth on high, almighty to save,
And still He is nigh, His presence we have;
The great congregation His triumph shall sing,
Ascribing salvation to Jesus, our king.

Salvation to God, who sits on the throne
Let all cry aloud and honor the Son;
The praises of Jesus the angels proclaim,
Fall down on their faces and worship the Lamb.

Then let us adore and give Him His right,
All glory and power, all wisdom and might;
All honor and blessing with angels above,
And thanks never ceasing and infinite love.

—Charles Wesley

Sung by a men’s ensemble:

Other hymns, worship songs, sermons etc. posted today:

• I’ll Praise My Maker While I’ve Breath at Whatever Things
• In the Cross of Christ I Glory at Jam and Books
• O Jesus, We Adore Thee at Hiraeth
• Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah at Rosemary at Home
• None Other Lamb, None Other Name at Fieldstone Cottage
• Now I Have Found the Ground Wherein at Tried With Fire
• Lord’s Day 32, 2011 at The Thirsty Theologian
• Voices From the Past - August 7, 2011 at The Upward Call
• Update: Your weekly dose of Spurgeon at Pyromanics: The Sin of Longing for Egypt

Have you posted a hymn (or sermon, sermon notes, prayer, etc.) today and I missed it? Let me know by leaving a link in the comments or by contacting me using the contact form linked above, and I’ll add your post to the list.