The Ordinance of Baptism

We have established the need for the Aaronic Priesthood to preach the gospel of repentance and administer to the repentant one the ordinance of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins. Now let us consider the experience Joseph Smith related when he and Oliver Cowdery baptized each other under the direction of John the Baptist, and compare this with the teachings of that day and with the Holy Scriptures.

Baptism of Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery

Let us refer again to Joseph Smith's own story, in which he informs us that while he and Oliver Cowdery were engaged in translating the Book of Mormon, they went into the woods to inquire of the Lord respecting baptism for the remission of sins, which they found mentioned in the translation of the plates. It was in answer to their prayers that a messenger from heaven descended in a cloud of light, laid his hands upon their heads, conferred upon them the priesthood of Aaron, and then commanded them to go and be baptized. He gave directions that Joseph should baptize Oliver and that afterwards Oliver should baptize Joseph. This messenger said that his name was John, the same that is called John the Baptist in the New Testament, and that he acted under the direction of Peter, James, and John.

Hundreds of books have been written on the subject of baptism. Who should be baptized, adults or children? What is the purpose of baptism? What is the correct mode of baptism—by immersion, sprinkling, or pouring? In this one grand and glorious experience, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery learned more about these matters from John the Baptist, who was sent to prepare the way of the Lord and who was privileged to baptize the Son of God, than they could have learned had they read all the books that have ever been written on the subject of baptism.

In keeping with the commandment of John the Baptist, and under his direction, these two young men baptized each other by immersion, for the remission of their sins, on May 15, 1829, presumably in the Susquehanna River in the western part of the state of New York. This should put an end to all controversy on this subject as to how baptism should be performed and the divine purpose thereof.

In April 1830, the month The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized, Joseph Smith received a revelation on church organization and church government:

No one can be received into the church of Christ unless he has arrived unto the years of accountability before God, and is capable of repentance.

Baptism is to be administered in the following manner unto all those who repent—

The person who is called of God and has authority from Jesus Christ to baptize, shall go down into the water with the person who has presented himself or herself for baptism, and shall say, calling him or her by name: Having been commissioned of Jesus Christ, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Then shall he immerse him or her in the water, and come forth again out of the water. (D&C 20:71-74.)

Little Children Not to Be Baptized

From this revelation we first learn that no man can be received into the church of Jesus Christ unless he has arrived at the age of accountability before God and is capable of repentance. This, obviously, eliminates infants and little children, for they have not arrived at the age of accountability before God; neither are they capable of repentance.

In a revelation given through Joseph Smith in November 1831, the Lord gave further light and instruction in this matter:

And again, inasmuch as parents have children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents.

For this shall be a law unto the inhabitants of Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized.

And their children shall be baptized for the remission of their sins when eight years old, and receive the laying on of hands. (D&C 68:25-27.)

Thus the Lord himself fixed the age of accountability at eight years, at which age children who have been taught by their parents as commanded are to be baptized.

The prophet Mormon wrote to his son Moroni on this subject as follows:

And now, my son, I speak unto you concerning that which grieveth me exceedingly; for it grieveth me that there should disputations rise among you.

For, if I have learned the truth, there have been disputations among you concerning the baptism of your little children.

And now, my son, I desire that ye should labor diligently, that this gross error should be removed from among you; for, for this intent I have written this epistle.

For immediately after I had learned these things of you I inquired of the Lord concerning the matter. And the word of the Lord came to me by the power of the Holy Ghost, saying:

Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them; and the law of circumcision is done away in me.

And after this manner did the Holy Ghost manifest the word of God unto me; wherefore, my beloved son, I know that it is solemn mockery before God, that ye should baptize little children.

Behold I say unto you that this thing shall ye teach—repentance and baptism unto those who are accountable and capable of committing sin; yea, teach parents that they must repent and be baptized, and humble themselves as their little children, and they shall all be saved with their little children.

And their little children need no repentance, neither baptism. Behold, baptism is unto repentance to the fulfilling the commandments unto the remission of sins.

But little children are alive in Christ, even from the foundation of the world; if not so, God is a partial God, and also a changeable God, and a respecter to persons; for how many little children have died without baptism!

Wherefore, if little children could not be saved without baptism, these must have gone to an endless hell.

Behold I say unto you, that he that supposeth that little children need baptism is in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; for he hath neither faith, hope, nor charity; wherefore, should he be cut off while in the thought, he must go down to hell.

For awful is the wickedness to suppose that God saveth one child because of baptism, and the other must perish because he hath no baptism.

Wo be unto them that shall pervert the ways of the Lord after this manner, for they shall perish except they repent. Behold, I speak with boldness, having authority from God; and I fear not what man can do; for perfect love casteth out all fear.

And I am filled with charity, which is everlasting love; wherefore, all children are alike unto me; wherefore, I love little children with a perfect love; and they are all alike and partakers of salvation.

For I know that God is not a partial God, neither a changeable being; but he is unchangeable from all eternity to all eternity.

Little children cannot repent; wherefore, it is awful wickedness to deny the pure mercies of God unto them, for they are all alive in him because of his mercy.

And he that saith that little children need baptism denieth the mercies of Christ, and setteth at naught the atonement of him and the power of redemption. (Moroni 8:4-20. Italics added.)

It is strange, indeed, that so many churches should practice the principle of infant baptism when there is no account of any such baptisms having been performed in the church of Jesus Christ in primitive days, nor any instructions given that it should be done. Obviously, any such instructions would have to be given to the parents for the children, since infants cannot act for themselves.

In a revelation given through the Prophet Joseph Smith in September 1830, the Lord, in speaking on this subject, said:

But behold, I say unto you, that little children are redeemed from the foundation of the world through mine Only Begotten;

Wherefore, they cannot sin, for power is not given unto Satan to tempt little children, until they begin to become accountable before me. (D&C 29:46-47.)


The Fallacy of Infant Baptism

The erroneous concept of the need to baptize infants is, no doubt, due to the teachings of the churches of the day that little children are answerable for the original sin of Adam and Eve or the sins of their parents. This concept cannot be true, as we have already pointed out from the revelations of the Lord through the Prophet Joseph Smith, for Jesus died to atone for the sins over which we have no control: "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:22.)

Jesus Christ redeemed all from the fall; he paid the price; he offered himself as a ransom; he atoned for Adam's sin, leaving us responsible only for our own sins. One of our Articles of Faith states: "We believe that men will be punished for their own sins, and not for Adam's transgression."

The apostle John understood this doctrine: "I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake." (1 John 2:12.)


Children to Be Blessed

The question may then be asked: If children are not to be baptized until they reach the age of accountability (eight years), what, if anything, should be done for them? The Lord answered this question in a revelation through Joseph Smith, the Prophet, in April 1830:

Every member of the church of Christ having children is to bring them unto the elders before the church, who are to lay their hands upon them in the name of Jesus Christ, and bless them in his name. (D&C 20:70.)

How perfectly this all agrees with the teachings and practice of Jesus when he ministered among men:

And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them; and his disciples rebuked those that brought them.

But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God.

Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them. (Mark 10:13-16.)

It is apparent that the disciples of Jesus must have felt the unworthiness of little children to command the personal attention of their Master, even as many present-day ministers of religion must feel in requiring that they be baptized. In this, Jesus was "much displeased." He is equally displeased with the so-called infant baptisms being performed today. He set the example by suffering the little children to be brought unto him. He took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them. This is his pattern and commandment to his church of this dispensation. As we have already pointed out, Joseph Smith did not get this information from reading the Bible or any other book written on this subject, but by the revelations of the Lord to him.

Baptism by Immersion for Remission of Sins

Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery were baptized by immersion for remission of their sins, as directed by John the Baptist; and in a revelation to Joseph Smith, the Lord indicated how baptism should be performed, giving even the words to be used by the one officiating in performing the ordinance. (See D&C 20:72-74.)

We will now consider the pattern given and the purpose of baptism as introduced by John the Baptist in this dispensation, the same as was taught and practiced in the primitive church. Jesus himself set the example "to fulfil all righteousness":

Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.

But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

And lo a voice from heaven, saying. This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (Matthew 3:13-17.)

It requires a considerable stretch of the imagination to think Jesus would go to John at the River Jordan and then go down into the river, only to have a little water sprinkled or poured upon his head. "When he was baptized, he went up straightway out of the water." He could not come up out of the water unless he had been in the water, and he would not have gone into the water to be sprinkled or poured. He had to go into the water to be immersed or baptized. What does the word baptize mean? Taken from the Greek bapto or baptizo, it means to dip or to immerse. In discussing the principle of baptism, Jesus and his apostles could just as easily have referred to sprinkling or pouring if that had been satisfactory, but they did not. Not a little water but "much water" was needed for the ordinance of baptism: "And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized." (John 3:23.)

John could have found sufficient water for sprinkling or pouring almost anywhere. He could have gone to those desiring baptism, but they came to locations he selected "because there was much water there" where he could really baptize or immerse them.

Paul indicated that there is "one Lord, one faith, one baptism." (Ephesians 4:5.)

If there is but one baptism, then answer the question Jesus put to the high priests:

The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven, or of men? And they reasoned with themselves, saying, If we shall say, From heaven; he will say unto us, Why did ye not then believe him?

But if we shall say, Of men; we fear the people; for all hold John as a prophet. (Matthew 21:25-26.)

Since the baptism of John was from heaven, all men should be willing to accept it. John's baptism was by immersion for the remission of sins:

John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

And there went out unto him all the land of Judea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. (Mark 1:4-5.)

Could this account be written more plainly?—they "were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan"? There is only one mode of baptism, and that is the mode by which John baptized, and it was performed in the river, not by the river.


Repentance to Precede Baptism

Remission of sins comes only through baptism when one has truly repented of his sins; and baptism without repentance is not a means by which one can "flee from the wrath to come."

And he [John] came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.

Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. (Luke 3:3, 7-8.)

Peter held out this same promise of forgiveness of sins through repentance and baptism to those to whom he preached on the day of Pentecost:

Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?

Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. (Acts 2:37-39.)

What a glorious promise! Is there any honest seeker after truth who would not want to reach out his soul and accept such an invitation for himself and his loved ones as here extended by Peter? In addition to knowing what we should do when we seek the blessings and gifts of God, we should know where to find those who hold his Holy Priesthood and are thus authorized, through proper ordination, to officiate in his name. The reason we are not confused in these matters is that they were revealed to Joseph Smith through the restoration of the gospel. We use the Bible to show that these revealed truths are in harmony with its teachings.


Baptism, a Requisite to Salvation

After Jesus' resurrection he appeared to his eleven apostles:

And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. (Mark 16:15-16.)

This is but a confirmation of what the Savior said to Nicodemus before the crucifixion. Therefore, when he declared, while hanging on the cross, "It is finished" (John 19:30), he did not mean that his gospel should not continue to be preached by those he sent to minister for the salvation of his children, as some maintain.

There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:

The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?

Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? (John 3:1-5, 9-10.)


Baptism, a Second Birth

If one cannot see or enter into the kingdom of God without being born again, it is very important that we should fully understand what the Savior had in mind. Since he indicated that this second birth should be "of water and of the Spirit," it is obvious that he had in mind the matter of being baptized in water and receiving the Holy Ghost following baptism, for how similar to our first birth this second birth really is. When one is first born into this life, his body comes forth out of water; the spirit takes possession thereof; and he is literally born of water and of Spirit. Were this not so, how could he be born again of water and of the Spirit?

Paul discussed this rebirth in this manner:

Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. (Romans 6:3-6.)

This seems very plain. When "we are buried with him by baptism into death" (the analogy with burial could not be true were we sprinkled or had water poured on us), we are born again of water when we come forth from this watery grave; and our sins having been remitted, we "should walk in a newness of life." We can only walk in newness of life when we are born again. Our "old man" of sin is therefore crucified with Christ, and we are born again, in similitude of his resurrection.


Baptism of Cornelius

The experience of Cornelius of Caesarea, a devout man who feared God, and prayed to him always (see Acts 10:1-4), teaches quite a lesson.

If an angel of God were to appear to someone in our day with such a message, most religious teachers would not worry about his need of baptism. But not so with the Lord, who sent the angel to tell Cornelius to send men to Simon Peter and "he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do." (See Acts 10:5-6.)

The Lord then gave Peter a vision of a vessel or sheet let down from heaven, containing all manner of wild beasts and fowls and creeping things. Peter was hungry and a voice came unto him, saying:

Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.

But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.

And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common. (Acts 10:13-15.)

This was because Cornelius was the first of the gentiles to accept the word of God. After Cornelius and Peter had related to each other their experiences that had brought them together, Peter preached Christ and the baptism of John to Cornelius and his company. They accepted his message; the Holy Ghost rested upon them; they spoke with tongues and magnified God. Then answered Peter:

Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?

And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. . . . (Acts 10:47-48.)

From this example we learn that no matter how righteous one may be who seeks after truth, the Lord directs him to one of his servants who has been ordained to the priesthood, so that he can be baptized at his hands and be instructed.

This was also true with respect to Saul (Paul), to which we have already referred. Even though the Savior spoke to him on the road to Damascus, the Lord directed him to go into the city of Damascus, where the Lord instructed one of his servants, Ananias, what to do. Ananias first restored Paul's sight by the laying on of hands, and then baptized him. Paul was later ordained to the ministry. (See Acts 9; 13:1-3.)


John's Baptism Confirmed in These Latter Days

Now these are exactly the same steps taken by the Lord with respect to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery when they went into the woods to inquire about baptism by immersion for the remission of sins, the only difference being that there was no one upon the earth holding the priesthood of God with authority to administer the ordinance of baptism unto them. Therefore, the Lord sent the resurrected John the Baptist, who conferred the priesthood of Aaron upon them, which priesthood held the keys (power and authority) of baptism by immersion for the remission of sins. John then commanded them to baptize each other.

Again, Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery did not obtain this information from reading the Bible, but from the revelations of the Lord to them and by their own experiences through obedience to divine instruction.

We have now given consideration to the principal points of interest covered by the visit of John the Baptist to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery on May 15, 1829. John did inform them that the Aaronic Priesthood held the keys, or the right and privilege, of "the ministering of angels." The truth of this will be fully evidenced in consideration of the further visits of heavenly messengers in connection with the recommitment to this earth of the necessary keys and authority for a complete "restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. (See Acts 3:21.)



(Legrand Richards, A Marvelous Work and a Wonder [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1950], 107.)