IMMERSION—TRINE OR SINGLE?
By J. O. Corliss
For a number of years, I have been satisfied in my own mind that immersion is the proper mode of administering baptism; but in my labors the past year I have frequently met with those who are not only great sticklers for immersion, but for three, distinct, forward actions in its administration. The argument used to sustain these ideas may be summed up as follows: 1. All the commands ever given by God require a forward, and not a backward, movement. In proof of which, such cases as Noah’s entering the ark and Moses’ passing through the Red Sea are cited to show a forward movement. 2. The gospel commission requires baptism into the name of the Father, and into the name of the Son, and into the name of the Holy Ghost, which cannot be performed without one distinct action for each name. The same class contend sharply that no one can possibly get into Christ’s church, save through the rite of baptism, which will initiate them into its mysteries, and confirm them into its fellowship. Now if this be true, are they not in the most essential feature of the rite performing a backward action? They go under the water forward, but they rise from the watery grave into the church backward. It would certainly seem more natural to enter the grave backward, and rise to enter our new relations and to walk in newness of life by a forward action. This is a point I have never heard them answer. Paul, in writing upon this subject, treats it very clearly. He says: “Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?” Rom. 6:3. Does he mean that we are to go into the water nearly to our necks, and bow our heads forward as Christ did on the cross, thus simply showing his death, and then arise to walk in newness of life? No; for then we should lose sight of his burial and resurrection as brought to view in the following verse, which must be commemorated by an appropriate action, one that will fitly represent burial and resurrection: “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.” Rom. 6:4. The apostle says: “For I was alive without the law once; but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.” Rom. 7:9. Paul bowed to the claims of God’s law which caused him to die to sin. Then he says, “How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein?” After Christ had died, he was buried. Paul says: “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 rise to walk in newness of life.” Rom. 6:4. Was it the custom to bury the dead with the face downward, and was our Saviour thus put into the tomb? The most natural position in sleep or death is on the back; and we conclude our Saviour was buried in death in the usual manner. The apostle adds: “For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection.” Why be so particular about planting “in the likeness of his death”? The question is answered in a few words: “Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.” Col. 2:12. Thus baptism is shown to be a memorial by which “we express faith in the burial” and resurrection of Christ. This becomes necessary, since Christ died for our sins (1 Cor. 15:3, 4), and rose again for our justification. Rom. 4:25. The action on our part to do this, would consist in the performance of a rite as nearly resembling the event as possible. Hence we bury one who is dead to sin in a manner similar to the burial of the natural dead. This brings us to notice more particularly the formula which it is said requires a “threefold immersion.” If the gospel commission really requires a person to be immersed three times, to meet its full demands, then do not the advocates of trine immersion do their work in a very bungling manner? Let us see. The candidate is taken into the water, where, kneeling, he is submerged nearly to the neck. The administrator says: “I baptize thee into the name of the Father [dips his head], and of the Son [dips his head again], and of the Holy Ghost;” then dips his head the third time. In this, the candidate has only had his head dipped three times, while his body has had but one immersion! But suppose the above performance could possibly be construed into three immersions, the question arises, Does the commission require it? Or in other words, Is it necessary to perform three actions in order to baptize in the three names? In a work entitled “The Perfect Plan of Salvation,” on page 18, I read as follows: “The formula of baptism—‘baptizing them into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost’—as it stands recorded by Matthew, is very elliptical; and filling up the ellipsis agreeably with the laws of language, it will read as follows: ‘Baptizing them into the name of the Father, and baptizing them into the name of the Son, and baptizing them into the name of the Holy Ghost.’” If supplying an ellipsis will allow us to foist into the text the sense of three actions, let us see what it will do for other scriptures where the ellipsis is similar. “Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,” Matt. 23:1. Would we understand by this, that our Saviour gave one discourse twice, first to the multitude, and then to the disciples? Would we not rather suppose that he gave the discourse but once, and both parties heard it at the same time? Again, “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels.” Luke 9:26. The ellipsis here would supply the word glory, making it read, When he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s (glory), and (in the glory) of the holy angels. But in order to do this, must he come once in his own glory, return, and come again in his Father’s glory, then come the third time in the glory of the angels? Our trine-immersionist friends will say, No. So say we about the three actions in the commission to baptize. As we have seen, baptism is to commemorate the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. Did he die three times, and was he buried and resurrected three times? Only once you say. Then if we carry out the figure, and are planted in the likeness of his death (Rom. 6:5), why bury us more than once? Do you say that you bury once only in the name of Christ? then why bury once for the Father, and again for the Holy Spirit? Did either of them ever die? or were they ever buried? Any view we take of trine immersion it seems involved in a labyrinth of difficulties, the very opposite of the plain and straight-forward teachings of God’s holy Word. We are taught there, that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Rom. 3:23. That Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again, the good news of which constitutes an important part of the gospel. 1 Cor. 15:1–4. That in order for us to partake of its benefits, we must repent toward God, and have faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. Acts 20:21. To repent toward God is to see ourselves sinners by his law, and die to sin (Rom. 7:7–9); that is, stop breaking his law, which shows to all that we have really repented. To have faith toward Christ, we must believe that he died for our sins, and rose again (1 Thess. 4:14); which faith we express by appropriate works. Hence we go down into the water, are buried, and raised again. And while we thus express faith in his resurrection, we look even beyond, and recognize the power of God in raising him from the dead. Acts 2:24; Col. 2:12. And because the Father’s power was manifested in bringing Jesus forth, therefore we baptize in his name. The Holy Spirit was the medium through which the Father accomplished the work (Rom. 6:4; 8:11); hence that name is properly used in the formula of baptism. In expressing our faith in the fact that the Father by his holy Spirit raised up Christ, we perform one action only, connecting the three names in the formula of baptism as they were connected in the great event to be commemorated.