Every year around this time I am asked some version of this question: should I (or should my child) get baptized at camp?
It would be difficult to defend an absolute prohibition of baptisms performed outside the confines of the gathered church given the descriptions of early Christian practice within the New Testament. The Ethiopian eunuch, for example, was baptized in a river on the side of the road:
And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. (Acts 8:36-38 ESV)
Likewise, we could cite the example of the Apostle Paul who was baptized in the house of Judas on Straight Street (Acts 9:10-19) or the household of Cornelius who were all baptized on his private estate (Acts 10:44-48). The Philippian jailor, along with his whole household, was baptized at his personal residence (Acts 16). The same could be said for Lydia in the same chapter. In fact, it is difficult to think of a single example in the New Testament of a person being baptized in the presence of the gathered church.
While the church did not have official buildings in the first generation of their existence, they certainly did have regular times and places for meeting and so it is striking that in none of those recorded meetings is there mention of people being baptized. Baptisms seem to have taken place outside, in homes, by rivers, on estates immediately following the conversion of the individual or family units in question.
Even in the second and third generations, this seems to have been the common practice. Referring to Justin Martyr’s description of Christian worship in the second century Perry Edwards writes:
“The baptism took place away from the church, and after the baptism, the newly baptized went to church where the congregation was meeting. [1]
Baptism was originally inseparable from the matter of conversion. It was a physical act that communicated a personal response. In Acts 2 on the Day of Pentecost, when the crowd of listeners fell under conviction, they asked Peter how they should respond, and he said:
“Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” (Acts 2:38-39 ESV)
The concept of an extended delay between conversion and baptism is absent from the pages of the New Testament. The Ethiopian eunuch was baptized within minutes of his conversion; the same could be said of Cornelius, Lydia and the Philippian jailor. Even the 3000 who responded positively to Peter’s message on Pentecost are said to have been baptised on the same day. The longest delay recorded in the New Testament between conversion and baptism was the 3 days attributed to the Apostle Paul in Acts 9.
There can be no doubt that the general practice of the earliest Christians was to baptize people where and when they were converted. If that happened in a chariot, then the person was baptized in a river on the side of the road. If that happened in a prison, then the individual, along with all his believing family members, was baptized in whatever volume of water was near at hand. Therefore, it would be contrary to Scripture to require all baptisms to take place within the confines of the gathered church. If a person is converted at camp, there is no compelling reason why that person could not be baptized at camp on the same day.
That being said, there is a great deal of pastoral and practical wisdom in doing everything possible to involve the family and the local church in the process. A phone call from the camp director to the home pastor would be entirely appropriate. A phone call to mom and dad would also be wise and fitting. If the camp is relatively close by the parents and the pastor should be invited to attend and give their blessing. If that isn’t possible, photographs should be taken and shared so that family and church can join in the celebration. Long after the camp has been closed for the season, it will be the family and the congregation exercising oversight and providing spiritual care, and therefore while not required by Scripture, involving them and honouring them is in the long-term interests of all parties.
Delaying baptism and needlessly separating it from the time and place of conversion, while usually done for commendable reasons, has introduced unhelpful distortions in our thinking and practice.
While pastors and elders rightly have a concern for order and process, we must never place barriers in the way of people that go beyond what is required by Holy Scripture. To do so is to risk fundamentally changing what baptism is and what it intends to communicate. In many evangelical churches in North America, baptism has become a sort of “graduation party” given to those who have overcome sin, established mature habits, and demonstrated a commitment to Christian service.
But that isn’t what baptism is!
Baptism in the New Testament is more birthday party than graduation party. It celebrates the death and rebirth of a helpless spiritual infant, desperately in need of God’s grace and the support of the church community in order to survive and thrive in the world.
Delaying baptism and needlessly separating it from the time and place of conversion, while usually done for commendable reasons, has introduced unhelpful distortions in our thinking and practice. If a person has heard the Word of the gospel and received it in faith and is ready to pledge allegiance to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior then what is there to prevent him or her from being baptized? Philip couldn’t think of a good reason in Acts 8 and therefore we should be cautious about departing from his inspired example.
“he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.” (Acts 8:38 ESV)
Thanks be to God!
SDG,
Pastor Paul Carter
[1] Perry Edwards, Introduction To Early Church History: The First 500 Years (Eugene: Wipf & Stock, 2023), 74.
If you are interested in more Bible teaching from Pastor Paul you can access the entire library of Into The Word episodes through the Audio tab on the Into the Word website. You can also download the Into The Word app on iTunes or Google Play.