Tertullian — Against Praxeas 12

When, however, the prescript is laid down that without baptism , salvation is attainable by none (chiefly on the ground of that declaration of the Lord, who says, Unless one be born of water, he has not life ), there arise immediately scrupulous, nay rather audacious, doubts on the part of some, how, in accordance with that prescript, salvation is attainable by the apostles , whom — Paul excepted — we do not find baptized in the Lord? Nay, since Paul is the only one of them who has put on the garment of Christ's baptism , either the peril of all the others who lack the water of Christ is prejudged, that the prescript may be maintained, or else the prescript is rescinded if salvation has been ordained even for the unbaptized.

I have heard — the Lord is my witness — doubts of that kind: that none may imagine me so abandoned as to excogitate, unprovoked, in the licence of my pen, ideas which would inspire others with scruple. And now, as far as I shall be able, I will reply to them who affirm that the apostles were unbaptized. For if they had undergone the human baptism of John, and were longing for that of the Lord, then since the Lord Himself had defined baptism to be one ; (saying to Peter, who was desirous of being thoroughly bathed, He who has once bathed has no necessity to wash a second time; John 13:9-10 which, of course, He would not have said at all to one not baptized ;) even here we have a conspicuous proof against those who, in order to destroy the sacrament of water, deprive the apostles even of John's baptism .

Can it seem credible that the way of the Lord, that is, the baptism of John, had not then been prepared in those persons who were being destined to open the way of the Lord throughout the whole world? The Lord Himself, though no repentance was due from Him , was baptized : was baptism not necessary for sinners ? As for the fact, then, that others were not baptized — they, however, were not companions of Christ , but enemies of the faith , doctors of the law and Pharisees .

From which fact is gathered an additional suggestion, that, since the opposers of the Lord refused to be baptized , they who followed the Lord were baptized , and were not like-minded with their own rivals: especially when, if there were any one to whom they clave, the Lord had exalted John above him (by the testimony) saying, Among them who are born of women there is none greater than John the Baptist. Others make the suggestion (forced enough, clearly that the apostles then served the turn of baptism when in their little ship, were sprinkled and covered with the waves: that Peter himself also was immersed enough when he walked on the sea. It is, however, as I think, one thing to be sprinkled or intercepted by the violence of the sea; another thing to be baptized in obedience to the discipline of religion.