In a sermon
dated October 7, 1872, John Taylor said the following:
We may have our own peculiar ideas about the
propriety of this, that and the other religious faith, ceremonies and forms of
worship, but I am now speaking of law, and of governments, and of the
arrangements that peoples, nations, churches, and the members of churches bind
themselves to be governed by. The same thing applies to any of the various
sects that exist in Christendom. The Baptist commences a church, and he
believes in baptism by immersion, but he could not be a Latter-day Saint. Why?
Because he can be baptized by anybody not having authority from God, and he
does not believe that baptism is for the remission of sins. According to his
ideas he must have his sins forgiven first, and then be baptized after a while.
He could not be a Latter-day Saint, because his ideas and ours are at variance.
(JOD 15:213)
Here, John
Taylor contrasts the Baptist understanding of the baptism wherein one receives
a remission of sins first and then, as a “symbol” of this forgiveness, gets
baptised afterwards. Instead, he teaches that water baptism is the instrumental means of
one’s (initial) remission of sins. In other words, he affirms baptismal
regeneration.
That this is
(1) the biblical teaching and (2) the teaching of Joseph Smith (notwithstanding
some wresting of something Joseph once said), see:
Acts 10:47, Cornelius, and Baptismal Regeneration (cf. Does Cornelius Help Refute Baptismal Regeneration? and. Was Cornelius Converted Before Acts 10?)
On the related issue of imputed righteousness (which informs a lot of the errant arguments against baptismal regeneration and other doctrines), see:
