Baptism—Put Off the Old Man and Put On the New

David W Palmer

(Matthew 28:19–20 NKJV) “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, {20} teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you …”

The four gospels each contain unique aspects of Jesus’s commission to his graduating class of apprentices. Both Matthew and Mark mention baptism. We can see from this how crucial it is; the willingness to submit to baptism demonstrates faith in Jesus and his right to rule us; it is the foremost outcome of confessing him as Lord. Therefore, it is an essential aspect of salvation—where baptism is practical and available. (For example, a person confined to bed or on death row may not be able to receive full immersion, but their willingness even to be sprinkled at that time may reflect the same heart as someone else submitting to full immersion.)

Obedience to baptism may come before complete understanding of all it stands for; but thankfully, the faith and understanding that come later can be applied retroactively to the previous obedient act of baptism. So, let’s look today at some more of the truths about baptism that were revealed by the Holy Spirit—well after Jesus commanded obedience to it:

(Galatians 3:27 NKJV) “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

Yesterday, we looked at putting off the “old man” through identifying with Jesus’s death in baptism. In this passage, we see the next step: “have put on Christ!” Putting off the old nature is the first step; but to let Christ live through you fully, you have to put on the new nature—completely. Amazingly, if you have taken the first step of obedience by being baptized, this verse is saying that you have put on Christ. Now, beyond this first step of putting him on through obedience to baptism, we need to apply the same principle to every area of our lives:

(Ephesians 4:22–24 NKJV) “That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, {23} and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, {24} and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.”

God created this “new man” with his holiness and righteousness built in. He is a product of God’s miracle power; the Holy Spirit says, “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17 NKJV). This means that when we identify with Jesus’s death, burial, and resurrection in baptism, God raises us to life with Jesus through a resurrection from our death “in him.” 

However, the person he resurrects with Jesus is not the same one who died; he is a brand new creation. When we have committed to God that we will no longer give expression to our old nature, he gives us a new one to express—a new person that he created just like himself:

(Romans 8:29 APE) And those … he also fashioned in the likeness of the image of his Son .…

Renewing Our Mind to Our New Nature

(Colossians 3:9–10 NKJV) “Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, {10} and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.”

The key is to remember this amazing truth: we don’t have to improve ourselves by strenuous self-effort; we can now simply put off the old nature and put on the new one. Applying this truth is the best way to deal with temptation etc. Instead of wrestling with the old nature’s weakness, sin-tendency, or lusts; simply put him off, and put on the new nature/man! This is part of renewing your mind to the truth of God’s new creation. Hence, the phrase in the above verse: “renewed in knowledge.” This fits perfectly with the statement in verse 23 below:

(Ephesians 4:22–24 NKJV) That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, {23} and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, {24} and t