Baptism Today

"I think that Protestants and Catholics, for example, now are both reading God’s Word, The Holy Bible. We find Catholics bringing a Bible into the hospital; we find Protestants bringing a Bible into the hospital. If I read God’s Word, and if another individual reads God’s Word, then there’s bound to be some blessing, some harvesting of special help and comprehension from that Bible which will be similar. And we find Catholics talking about being born again and so forth. We find we’re coming together, not in affiliation, but in relationship to Jesus Christ — as fellow believers. So, I don’t think that baptism at this point is an issue about which we would quarrel.

"Now, if I were a pastor and one became a member of the church where I was pastor, I would insist upon their entrance into that body of Christians via baptism — if they hadn’t been baptized — in order to become a member. But in my cooperation and affiliation with other Christians, I cannot require the Baptist form of immersion of a Presbyterian, or Methodist, or Catholic, or someone else. If a person’s relationship and faith in Jesus Christ is real, then he’s a brother in the Lord and we cooperate."

Politicized Church  

14 of 29