Baptism, a Necessary Christian Ordinance
- Baptist Daily Devotional
- May 17
- 2 min read
Rev. Enoch Thompson | May 17 2025 | Acts 8:36-38
KEY VERSE: “As they travelled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water. Why shouldn't I be baptised?" Acts 8:36 (NIV)
MESSAGE:
Different Christian groups practice baptism in different ways and for different age minimums. What is essential is that there is an understanding that the Lord Jesus instructed that those who believe in the Gospel of the Kingdom are to be baptised. The Ethiopian Eunuch understood the significance of baptism as an initiatory rite of conversion from one religious or spiritual condition to another. As a Gentile convert to Judaism, he would have gone through a water baptism to mark his conversion. Now that he stood on the verge of another conversion, he asked for water baptism to mark that new beginning.
Water baptism does not save the human soul; it is the heart conversion which happens when we believe in the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus for our sins, which precedes the water baptism, it is the pledge of a new conscience to God, that settles the mater of our soul’s destiny (1 Peter 3:21). This clarification is helped in the context of our text when in Acts 8:37(NIV), often presented as a footnote in some translations of the Bible, we read, ‘Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." The eunuch answered, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
FEET AND HANDS FOR THE MESSAGE:
Have you believed in Jesus Christ as your Saviour who died in your place, the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world? If so, have you been baptised in obedience to His instructions? If not, please talk to your church leaders and get this done quickly. It is your first demonstration of obedience to your new Master.
PRAYER:
Lord, thank you for the ordinance of baptism. Thank you for the significance of my new life in Christ. Please help me to live the baptised life; baptised by the Spirit in the spirit realm and baptised by water to identify with Christ in His death and resurrection unto a new life. For your dear Name’s sake, Amen.
THERE SHALL BE SHOWERS OF BLESSING.
SHOWERS! BLESSINGS!!
The 365 DAILY BIBLE READING
Day 137: Ruth 3 - Ruth’s Bold Request
DAILY word study: WATER
The word water in Acts 8:36 is ὕδωρ (hydōr) in Greek. It refers to natural water - used for washing, cleansing, and life. In baptism, it symbolises spiritual cleansing and death to the old self.
For the Ethiopian eunuch, water marked the threshold of a new beginning. He already believed. Now he sought to seal it through the ordinance Jesus commanded. Baptism is not about the water’s power—it is about what the heart has already believed and received.
Reflection:
Water cannot save, but water speaks. It testifies that the believer has identified with Christ in death and resurrection. See Romans 6:3-4 for the clear link between baptism and the new life in Christ.
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