Help me advise my cousin who wants baptized

[Pergamum]

This is an email from my cousin Jason. I have explained the Gospel to him and he comes from a very loose living family.

How would you respond to this email, and can you help me explain the Gospel to him clearly. He proably has went to church less than 10 times in his life:

EMAIL.....
...Also I would like to talk to you about the steps that I should take to get baptized

I have never been Baptised but I feel like my soul is telling me I need to. If you have any advice for me , I would greatly appreciate it. Well I love you guys ,and I will wright back soon. Take care of yourself as I know you will," all of you".
END


What would you do before you baptized him?

Any simple materials that can be sent my way to help guide me and him?

My plan would be to counsel him a great deal and, if he appears to repent and believe to try to hook him into a local church and baptize him there. I come home in June and will make my cousin a priority.


Also, he wants ME to baptize him, but I don't pastor a US church. Is it better for me to baptize or for me to hook him into a local church and let the local guy do it. Here, I try to refer new believers to local leaders, but what should I do for my own family? Usually baptism is "into" a local church and is done by leaders of that local church.

 

[Contra_Mundum]

I think he needs to join a church, and not so be attracted to the "get baptized" idea. Baptism happens when you join the church; and having done so then you can be disciplined--first by baptism, then teaching; and failing those ordinary means, suspended from the table and ultimately excommunicated.

 

[Ivan]

Have you shared the Gospel with him, Perg?

 

[Pergamum]

Yes, I agree.

-----Added 3/10/2009 at 11:58:34 EST-----

Yes, I have shared the Gospel with him and have prayed and have done so several times. I plan to do so again this summer.

He wants me to teach him and baptize him. I would prefer he join a church and I would only want to baptize if that local church agreed. It is sentimental to be baptized by a dear relative and maybe not bad of course, but I also think he is looking at baptism as an amulet or a charm.

 

[LawrenceU]

You are on the right track, Pergy, in my opinion.

 

[Pergamum]

IF he dawdles and can;t find a decent church, should I refuse to baptise him? Or should I even be baptizing him at all? I hate merely referring someone to a stranger.

 

[Berean]

but I also think he is looking at baptism as an amulet or a charm.

I think you hit the nail on the head. Almost like baptism is getting his ticket punched so he can then go on with his life as he sees fit. I could be wrong...

 

[SolaScriptura]

IF he dawdles and can;t find a decent church, should I refuse to baptise him? Or should I even be baptizing him at all? I hate merely referring someone to a stranger.

If he "can't" find a decent church then he shouldn't be baptized. He is not the Ethiopian eunich: in the middle of nowhere enroute to someplace with no Christian presence.

Baptism belongs to the Church as a public ordinance. The Sacrament is not for his personal spirituality. Nor is it to be admnistered by Lone Ranger ministers.

Let him find a legitimate church, if not a "decent" one. Let him make public his profession there and then receive the Sacrament in a right way.

Stress the importance of - and priority of! - repentance and faith in Christ alone.

 

[Pergamum]

Yes, Ben, you bring up a valid issue of baptism being a public ordinance. It seems that people are usually baptized INTO a local church and we should not separate baptism from the practice of entering a local fellowship.

However, we do have examples of people being baptized as soon as they believe, no waiting period being necessary, the new believers being baptized in their very home that night.


Yes, I will make sure there is true faith and true repentance. And ideally we can find him a church so that he can be baptized into a local church body.

He still wants ME to baptize him, however, wherever he ends up...and so I am thinking through this aspect as well.



My own baptism was like this:

I believed, not in a local church, but in my home I then sought out a pastor, had him baptize me. Then I went and sought out a local church. My baptism might not be the regular practice but it was valid. The pastor baptized me because I made my intentions known that I was going to seek out a church next, but that I saw that baptism was the first step in Christian obedience and so I did not want to delay.