My Daily Pause

In 1 Peter 3:18-20, Peter compares baptism with the flood and the salvation of Noah’s family. In the same way that the flood separated Noah from the wicked, baptism separates us from the world and brings us into Christ.

Five More Ways the Flood Points to Baptism

So how else does the flood point to baptism and Christianity?

Cole Thomas – The Subsiding of the Waters of the Deluge – 1829

• Noah was on the water for nine months, then began to live on the earth. Christians are to be born of water (John 3:5)
• The flood destroyed the wicked who laughed and scoffed at Noah. Baptism might be thought to do the same thing considering the numbers that scoff and deride it as unnecessary.
• Water saved Noah. Water saves Christians who walk in newness of life.
• The flood washed away the filth of an evil generation. Water washes away sins (Acts 22:16)
• Just a few were saved through the flood. Just a few, in relative terms, will be save through baptism.

Baptism is our way to get into Christ. Responding to our faith in baptism is God’s plan for the beginning of our life serving him. Baptism is the way we gain association with Christ ad his church.

When we become Christians, we become part of the covenant made by God to Abraham. The result is, we get to be counted as his seed. It doesn’t matter what color our skin is or our station in life, it applies to all Christians! This is the sum total reason why everything from Abraham to Christ’s resurrection happened.

The way to membership in that covenant then, is to get into Christ. Galatians 3 is a popular scripture to mislead people from the correct way to get “into Christ.” (I’ve posted about how to get into Christ before.)

The truth of Galatians 3 is this:

1. We grow our faith by hearing about it, (Galatians 3:2, 5) and therefore reading and understanding the word of God (Romans 10:17)
2. We become children of God by that faith in Christ when we are baptized into him (Galatians 3: 26-27)

If anyone uses Galatians 3 to try and tell you there is another way to get into Christ outside of these steps, don’t fall for it! It’s a trick!

One of Paul’s key phrases for describing a Christian’s relationship with Christ was to say that The Christian is “in Christ”. He used this phrase at least 150 times in his letters! Once we are in Christ, we are a new creation – our sins bought and paid for. (2 Corinthians 5:16-17)

So how do we get into Christ? There is but one way:

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? – (Romans 6:1-4)

For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3:23-29) (See also How to be Abraham’s Seed)

For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:12-13)

You will not find another way to get into Christ in the Scriptures than through baptism. If you have been taught otherwise, I hope you can start with these passages (and also look at my Plan of Salvation page) and dig a little deeper in the matter.