Christians of any age post-first century are blessed beyond measure because they have not only lived in the time frame to which all the prophets and the Law had alluded (The Last Days), they also have in their possession the very words of the Father, as delivered to mankind through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. But Christians on the day of Pentecost did not yet have a completed New Testament. In fact, the New Testament would not be completed until John penned the book of Revelation ca. 96 A.D., not to mention that the approximate date of the earliest New Testament book, 1 Thessalonians or Galatians, lies ca. 49-51 A.D. The non-existence of the New Testament in its modern form by the Day of Pentecost is virtually undisputed.
This reminds us very clearly that though the Church had come into existence on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2, for a time, the early Church only had for its guidance Apostolic authority, revelation given through those that had been empowered with miraculous knowledge, and the Old Testament, which Paul says was written for our instruction1. It was still entirely possible that argumentation originating in the Old Testament would result in the conversion of people into the body of Christ.
For example, one of the many conversions found in the book of Acts, the Ethiopian Eunuch in Acts 8, was found by Philip to be reading from Isaiah 53. By the end of the encounter with Philip, the Eunuch was clearly cognizant of what he needed to do for his salvation, for he is recorded as having said, “See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?”2 The Old Testament is proven here to be just as useful for Christians today to prove elements of Christianity as the New Testament is. Many times, the record of the New Testament is of the Apostles and disciples proving Christ first from a knowledge of the Old Testament.
But aside from the use of traditional notions of prophecy to prove New Testament truths as found in Isaiah 53, we have the study of typology (a somewhat more obscure variety of prophecy), which concerns itself with how elements of the Old Testament—be they ceremonies, places, or people—point the way to and are fulfilled in elements of the New Testament. These New Testament counterparts, anti-types, are essentially the elements of the Old Testament, but operating on a higher spiritual level (e.g., Moses and Jesus as Lawgivers of their respective testaments).
With this in mind, I'd like to look at three types of baptism found in the Old Testament, and how they unequivocally argue for salvation by baptism. We'll do this by looking at the type and antitype in tandem, taking each element of the type and comparing it immediately to the corresponding element in the antitype.
| Category |
Type 1 Noah and the Ark Genesis 6–8; 1 Peter 3:20–21 |
Type 2 Israelite Exodus Exodus 13:17–14:31; 1 Cor 10:1–2 |
Type 3 Naaman's Cleansing 2 Kings 5 |
Antitype Christian Baptism Romans 6:3–4; Colossians 2:11–12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Problem |
Sinful Nature & Separation
Genesis 6:5–7 shows wickedness was so great that God repented having made man. Even a single sin merits eternal separation from God (James 1:15, 2:10). Sin demands death/judgment, which in Noah's day was executed globally by the flood. |
Bondage to Slavery
Israel was trapped in physical bondage under Pharaoh in Egypt, powerless to rescue themselves from tyranny and death. |
Incurable Leprosy & Pride
Naaman suffered from a fatal, incurable skin condition, coupled with human pride that resisted humble submission to God's prophet. The command is simple, and it is not for us to contest it or try to add pomp and circumstance. |
Universal Sin & Spiritual Death
All have sinned (Rom 3:23) and the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23). Humanity is spiritually dead and in bondage, unable to self-atone. |
| Solution |
Immersion & Washing Away Evil
Water completely covered the earth (15+ cubits over mountains). By ridding the earth of evil mankind through immersion, the Lord literally washed away all that was evil in His sight, preserving only Noah and his family in the Ark. |
Passage Through the Red Sea
God parted the sea, bringing Israel safely through the water while destroying Pharaoh's pursuing forces as the waters collapsed back over them. |
Washing in the Jordan
Submitting to God's command by dipping seven times in the Jordan River, resulting in total physical restoration. |
Burial & Resurrection in Water
Immersion in baptism where the "old man" of sin is crucified/buried with Christ, and the believer rises cleansed to walk in newness of life (Rom 6:3–4). |
| Nuance / Lessons |
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