In the Scriptures we have what may seem to be incoherent teachings on the means of forgiveness. It is clear that Jesus came to forgive his people from their sins. Before his birth, Jesus’ mission was proclaimed to his mother, Mary. “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matt. 1:21). Just before his death, Jesus proclaimed his mission to the disciples. “And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins'” (Matt. 26:27-28).

We cannot miss this fact: forgiveness of sin is accomplished by the saving work of Jesus Christ, not by any work of our own. And yet, some may think that baptism is a requirement to receive forgiveness. That is, one cannot be forgiven unless baptized. This is due in part to what we have recorded in Scripture. Peter announced to the Jews in Jerusalem at Pentecost, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins,” (Acts 2:38). Even the great forerunner, John the Baptist, came preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins (see Mark 1:4).

So we cannot miss this second fact: baptism goes hand-in-hand with the gospel message. But we ought not to interpret the words in Acts 2:38 to mean that forgiveness of sins is a result of baptism. The verse does not state, “repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ in order to be forgiven of your sins.” That would mean baptism in and of itself secures forgiveness. But we cannot take someone and baptize them Nacho Libre style and believe they are forgiven of their sins, even though that person has not repented nor believes in Christ. Instead, the verse says, “Repent and be baptized each one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.”

Understanding How Prepositions Work

The key to theological accuracy is often found in the details. Those details are what grammarians call prepositions: through, from, out of, and yes, even the pesky word around baptism, for. The English preposition for can be used to explain or clarify something. “Little Timmy hobbled on crutches, for he was crippled.” In this case, for explains why Timmy was using crutches – he was a cripple. For can also be used to specify a beneficiary of certain acts. “The batter got hit by a 100mph fastball. He took one for the team.” The team benefitted an advance of base runners at the expense of the batter’s pain. The word for can also be used to express a purpose or intention; “The entire South went into the grocery store before a snow storm for some milk and bread.” The intention of the trip was acquiring milk and bread.

The preposition for is used in these three ways when Jesus instituted the Last Supper. He had his disciples eat the bread and drink of the cup for it was his blood of the covenant that was going to be poured out (explanation), for the many (beneficiaries), for the forgiveness of sins (intention/purpose). I write all this to make one simple point: the preposition for does not de-facto mean in order to.

Check Your Surroundings

Too often we can fall into theological error by zooming in on one verse, or one word in a verse, and then building our theology on that one word. That may sound contradictory to the whole discussion above that zoomed in on the one word for. But theological clarity is achieved by using a microscope and a fish-eye lens, a telescope and the naked eye. We need the minute details, and we need the view of the horizon. Now that we have zoomed in, we need to zoom out and check the literary surroundings.

In the gospels we have a move towards redemption. That is, forgiveness in Christ’s name has yet to be accomplished, but the story is going there. The teachings are future-oriented. Jesus will die, he will save his people from their sins, his blood will be poured out for forgiveness. In Acts we look backwards towards redemption. Christ has died and rose again, his blood has been poured out for many for forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness has been accomplished in Christ’s work alone.

So when the men of Israel who crucified and killed Jesus by the hands of lawless men, when those men asked Peter what they should do, Peter answered, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” This is not because baptism would accomplish forgiveness of sins; only Christ can do that. Rather, we must read that the right response to Christ’s resurrection was twofold: repent and be baptized. But this is not just any baptism. The baptism Peter refers to is clarified as baptism “in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” That whole phrase goes together. That is the kind of baptism Peter is referring to. It is not “be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ” so that you may be forgiven. It is be baptized “in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” This baptism, Christian baptism, is the baptism that says forgiveness of sins is in the name of Jesus Christ. Being baptized is faith responding to the teaching that in Christ alone is forgiveness.

A Voice from our Past

Hear these words from St. Basil the Great in his work, On the Holy Spirit. “Now Faith and baptism are two ways of salvation that are naturally united with each other and indivisible. While faith is perfected by baptism, baptism is established by faith, and is carried out by the same names. For as we believe in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, so also we are baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The confession that brings salvation comes first and there follows baptism which seals our ascent.” (ss. 12,28).

Concluding Thoughts with a Question

Here is the key distinction: Baptism has no power of its own to wash away sins; but Jesus Christ does. So Baptism does not forgive sins, for only Christ can do that. Baptism in Christ’s name for the forgiveness of sins, then, is faith responding to the question “What can wash away my sins?” with the resounding, “Nothing but the blood of Jesus!”

So then, should you be baptized? If you believe Christ alone has accomplished forgiveness of your sins, then…

I have been reading K. Moody Stuart’s biography of Brownlow North, published by Banner of Truth. Stuart records several letters that people wrote to thank Brownlow North for his preaching ministry. One particular letter struck me as a bright example that I want to follow.

This is an excerpt from a letter an English lady wrote to Brownlow North on March 3rd, 1862.

“My Dear Sir — I desire to express my warm gratitude, first to God, and then to you, who were the means to me of enlightening and quickening in the way of grace. … The Bible has depths I never saw before; Jesus Christ is to me ‘wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.’ I cannot praise Him enough for revealing Himself to me; and I am most grateful to you, dear sir, as having been the means of showing me this new life. I thank you especially for having shown it so clearly in the Bible; for now, if any doubts arise, I can turn at once to those passages, Romans 3:20-24 and 10:104, which brought me, through the grace of God, life and salvation….”

We see three aspects of this encouragement. First, all praise is given to God, for every good and perfect gift comes from above. Second, gratitude is expressed to the human agent God had used., acknowledging the means God employs. And third, her gratitude was expressed in having scriptures to refer back to. Glory to God, thankfulness for human means, and a firm foundation in the Scriptures. This woman, a sister in Christ, whose initials are M.J.F., has encouraged me through this letter.

“For we all together stumble in many ways. If someone does not stumble in word, that one is a perfect man, able to control the whole body.” James 3:2

James, the half-brother of our Lord Jesus, makes a remarkable claim in his short epistle. The one who can tame the tongue can also tame every other aspect of life. I was meditating on this as I walked my dog around the neighborhood today. Think about it; if a man works hard to tame his tongue by keeping his word, he can be self-controlled in other areas of life. A husband tells his wife that he will wash dishes that night. Then he has a long, tiring day at work. Gets home late. Has an early morning the next day. Yet, he said he will wash the dishes that night. So, in an effort to tame his tongue by keeping his word, he washes the dishes. Small steps in taming his tongue by keeping his word leads to victory in other areas of life. The marriage grows cold; there is stress in raising children; there is a young and free co-worker trying to catch his eye. Yet, he is a man who tames his tongue; he keeps his word, and he will keep that word to his wife, “in sickness and health, till death do us part.” He does not give in to the temptress. He reprioritizes life to make the marriage warm again. He gives the stress of raising children to the Lord, and delights in his imperfect children. Why? Because he has learned to keep his word, he has tamed his tongue.

As I was meditating on this verse, walking the pup, I came to a T-intersection in my neighborhood. One small car, which should have yielded to a big truck, turned in front of the big truck, nearly causing an accident. The big truck driver honked the big truck horn for perhaps longer than what was necessary. But this honking was justified; the driver needed to warn the other driver that they almost caused an accident; they were probably texting anyway and needed to be reminded to watch the road. But then the big truck driver proceeded to hit the gas and accelerate within a few feet of the small car’s bumper. Then, on a one lane road, the big truck swerved around and in front of the small car just to show them that they did wrong. All this just in time for both cars to slam on their brakes and stop at the red light. Whoever the big truck driver was, they obviously did not have a tamed tongue. What does Peter tell us in 1 Peter 3:9? “Do not give back evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but rather blessing, since for this you were called, that you might inherit a blessing.” If that big truck driver learned to speak blessings on those who cursed, that road rage would have been tamed. That driver could have given the blessing of a courtesy honk that says, “hey, watch the road, be more careful,” and stopped there, instead of proceeding to give the cursing honk and dangerous cut off maneuver that almost lead to a big pile-up.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, all this to say, if there is a sin you are struggling to overcome, perhaps the key to unlock the door of greater holiness, greater Christlikeness, is to focus on taming your tongue. Then you will see self-control bleed over to other areas of your life.

“If someone does not stumble in word, that one is a perfect man, able to control the whole body.”