- 42 - manifestation, they would never have realized that they were in fact not yet ready for the kingdom of God. • Anyone who, because of worldly considerations, refuses to stand up i n p u b l i c f o r w h a t h e k n o w s i s t r u e a n d r i g h t , and to accept all the worldly consequences of his action, cannot be depended on. He is of no use to God’s cause, for the things of the world mean more to him. It was for this very reason that C h r i s t a c c e p t e d b a p t i s m f r o m J o h n. He, too, wanted all the people to see that he stood up for the truth preached by John. “As a sign of acceptance of his teachings and of the desire to improve one’s ways, John chose baptism by immersion in water. He might indeed have chosen any other symbol, but immersion in water was the most beautiful symbol indicative of the purpose of his preaching. He taught the cleansing from sin by virtue of abandonment of previous evil-mindedness. • As those being baptized were cleansed p h y s i c a l l y by immersion and, as it were, emerged from the water as new beings, so the acceptance of the truth would cleanse their s o u l s and enable them as new beings to lead a life of obedience to God. It was because of the symbolic nature of the rite that Christ retained baptism with water as an outward sign of the acceptance of his gospel. People today can hardly imagine the consequences for the early Christians of their public baptism, in token of their conversion to Christianity. The Jewish converts thereby exposed themselves to hatred and persecution on the part of their former fellow believers and particularly on the part of the Jewish priesthood, and suffered financial losses. They were insulted in the streets, dragged to prison, and stoned. The story of Paul and the fate of Stephen show the fanaticism with which the Jews of the times persecuted those of their people who had become Christians. Persecution by the Gentiles was equally savage. The pagan religion was the state religion; the worship of the gods, the festivals held in honour of the idols and the sacrifices offered to them were prescribed by law. It was considered to be one of the most serious offenses against the state and its ruler to fail to attend such acts of idol worship and sacrificial ceremonies, and it was punishable with death and confiscation of property. Of course, no Christian could continue to participate in such events, although he knew that if he were denounced, he must be prepared for the worst. The horrors that attended the persecution of the Christians by paganism are but too well known to you. Death and confiscation of their property was the lot of many Christians.. Howmany so-called Christians of today do you think would be willing to accept a baptism involving such consequences to their lives and property? Yet whoever lacks the courage to testify to his faith in the face of such sacrifices is no true Christian. “Baptism did not, therefore, dispense any special inner grace, but was a mere symbol that the baptized person was ready to accept all consequences attendant upon the public confession of his belief. What, then, are the consequences of this? • First and foremost, it follows that the baptism of infant children is of no value, since they are utterly incapable of recognizing the truth or of expressing a belief therein.
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