non-pastors baptizing

Yes I would, in fact we have a man baptizing his son this coming Sunday. I see nothing in Scripture that would prohibit that from happening. I think it is a beautiful thing for the body of Christ to be a part of

 

A he or a she would not matter to me. I see nothing in Scripture to prohibit it.

 

As a youth pastor, I don't really have the authority here, but if it were my call, I'd have no problem with a man or a woman doing a baptism. In fact, I think it is probably best for a man to baptize men and a woman to baptize women.

 

Though Scripture doesn't explicitly prohits women from baptizing, the mention of only men when a gender is given, is sufficient for me to decide.

 

(NOTE: The following is only an observation from one lay person regarding my church's practice and shouldn't necessarily be considered as "official policy.")

We have let men other than our elders baptize folks.

Sometimes it may be the man who led them to the Lord. Sometimes it may be a deacon or the leader of a care cell that has ministered to that person. Occasionally it has been the father of a child who had led his child to the Lord.

While I have no children myself, I can imagine what a thrill it would be for a father to be able to administer the ordinance of baptism for his child!

 

We hear the Great Commission preached so often regarding the 'going out' that we for get it also says 'make disciples' and 'baptize'.

If we as a people of God are supposed to 'go out' why wouldn't we also 'baptize'?

Rob

 

Hey using logic and scripture isn't what we do here. We argue. :laugh:

I think you're right. We have asked the church to allow non-pastoral men to baptize their children and in one case someone they had led to the Lord after 20 years of witnessing.

 

Amen! Though I don't know if I could do it without crying.

 

If you are a Christian then you are qualified to baptize. We preachers generally have to do it (although most lay people won't admit this) because no one else wants to get wet. Don't they know that's what waders are for?

 

I am not sure I follow you here, can you expand on this statement?

 

I've let others baptize other than me. Best I can figure, the church can appoint anyone they want to baptize.

As for baptizing your kids - yes, it's great! I've done it for 3 out of my 4!

 

Yes on the "others" question; the women question has never come up.

Well....if we're going on strictly who Jesus was talking to in the Great Commission, it was the eleven. That would disqualify all of us, no?

Honestly, the gender side isn't one I've thought about much. The "non-pastor" side is. Our church is fine with it.......provided the baptizer is a Christian and there's not a reason to prohibit them from participating in the event (e.g., open rebellion, or they've been to Disney this year, ortheir wife wore pants in the last 12 months, etc. <-------THE LAST TWO were sarcasm. Direct all angry responses to Squire Robertsson)

 

Didn't the early church have women assist with baptisms of other women?

I'm not a big church history buff, so someone correct me if I am wrong.

 

ummm...In some cases, it was necessary, because in the earliest days of the church, many new converts were baptized....shall we say.....in the clothes they were born with.


Separate, of course.

(whew. I hate tiptoeing.) :laugh:

 

That's what I thought. :laugh:

 

I got to baptize 3 of my 4. It was quite a thrill.

Does the bible say they were baptized without clothes? I had never heard that before.

I have never seen a woman baptize anyone before but I don't see why they could not scripturaly.