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Baptism Intro: There is possibly no subject which elicits more passion and arguments that the subject of baptism. Let us study God's Word and find what He taught about this great subject. What Is Baptism It is a burial or immersion. The dictionary defines baptism as, "to dip (a person) into or sprinkle with water." Dictionaries give the modern usage of a word, not what the word actually means. People today do sprinkle, pour or immerse for baptism. In 251 water was poured on Novatian as a substitute for immersion. (This is the first case in history). The council of Ravenna in 1311 authorized the substitution of sprinkling and pouring for immersion. Greek lexicons teach baptism means immersion. Arndt and Gingrich say, "dip, immerse." Vine says, "consisting of the process of immersion, submersion and emergence (from bapto, 'to dip')." Little Kittel's says, "'to dip in or under,' 'to dye,' 'to immerse,' 'to sink,' 'to drown,' 'to bathe,' 'wash.'" Thayer says, "to dip repeatedly, to immerge, submerge." Others would say the same basic thing.
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