Baptism is the sacrament that gives our souls the new life of sanctifying grace by which we become children of God and heirs of heaven.
Baptism is the very first sacrament we may receive. Unless we are baptized, we are forbidden to receive any other sacraments. Baptism has the three essentials of a sacrament:
- it was instituted by Christ;
- it is a sensible sign; and
- it confers grace
1. The sacrament of Baptism was instituted by Christ (perhaps at His own Baptism), and commanded at His Ascension.
- He said to the Apostles: “Go, therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). The Apostles obeyed His command on the very day of Pentecost. In answer to the question of the multitudes, “What shall we do?” after Peter’s first sermon, Peter said, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins” (Acts 2:38). About 3000 persons were baptized.
2. Christ instituted Baptism as the sacrament of spiritual rebirth, making the baptized members of God’s family. Baptism infuses grace into their souls, making them supernaturally like to God.
- As children of God they are given the right to enter heaven, and to gain merit by their good work, “Unless a man be born again of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).
3. The sacramental grace of Baptism is a regenerative grace that helps those baptized to live well the supernatural life they have begun as children of God.
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1. The first picture shows Jesus being baptized by St. John the Baptist in the river Jordan, before He began His public life. This baptism was a figure of the sacrament that Christ was to institute later.
2. The Apostles baptized all converts before they were admitted into the Church. On the first Pentecost, three thousand were baptized. Philip, one of the first seven deacons, after instructing the eunuch whom he had met reading the Scriptures, baptized him in a river they were passing.