what's it all about?

God wants each person who follows Him to confess Christ publicly. By believing, that person receives God's Spirit. That belief, however, always acts itself out by obedience to God. Romans 10:9 says that you are saved by believing with your heart and confessing with your mouth that Jesus is Lord. Confessing, in this instance, means agreeing with God about who is Lord! Saying that you are lining up yourself with Christ is the natural reaction to believing! If someone is truly saved, they're going to express it somehow, not keep it a secret.

If you are madly in love with someone and he or she responds to you, wouldn't the natural reaction be to 'let others know?' Christ in fact says that if you will not stand up with him before other people, then He won't stand up with you before Father God (Matthew 10:32-33). If you were the child of some famous person would you be ashamed or embarrassed? If you're God's child you DO have the MOST FAMOUS person in the world as your Father, brother, and friend!

Baptism is a great way to confess your faith in Jesus.

And Christ COMMANDED we get baptized. (one example: Matthew 28:19). If you're unwilling to obey Jesus on this one, what else will you disobey on?

This public act for the person who has believed is a drama which shows in a simple way these three things:

what Jesus did for that person by dying and coming back to life
the fact that that person is identifying himself/herself with Jesus in this act, accepting Christ through faith for their forgiveness, knowing that one day God will raise our bodies into eternal life
that they are "dying" to their previous way of life where self and sin ruled... and beginning a new life where Jesus is the head leader.
Keep these three facts in mind as you read the next section.

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How should baptism be done?

It doesn't matter if someone is baptized in a creek, a swimming pool, a Jacuzzi, or a beautiful church baptistry. In fact, Jesus was baptized in a river that was probably a little dirty.

Read Mark 10:35-39, Mark 14:36, Matthew 20:22, John 18:11, and Romans 6:1-14. Do you see the picture of baptism as someone who is immersed then immediately lifted up out of the water?

A lot of good people disagree on whether it's ok to sprinkle someone, or if they should go totally under the water.

The word baptize in the Bible comes from the Greek word baptiso, which means "to immerse, to dip, or to plunge under water." Baptism is to be done under the water. There is no instance anywhere in the New Testament where a person was sprinkled rather than immersed under water. They went down into the water to be baptized. Sprinkling started in England centuries ago when a king wanted to make his whole army join his new church, so he had them walk or ride by as people threw water on them. The Bible teaches baptism as going under the water.

Does the person have to go under the water lying face-up? Can they simply squat under the water? Maybe face-down? The Bible doesn't address this in specific, only the 'message' of baptism (first section on this page). Personally, I don't think it matters, as long as it portrays the image of death, burial, and resurrection in that particular culture. Many churches in America and other countries have the tradition of going under the water in the face-up position. Why? Because people in our culture are typically buried face-up, and baptism is a drama of our death, burial, and resurrection with Christ.

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When should I do it?

It's best if you do it as soon as possible after you get saved. An example in the Bible is when the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:36-38) believed, he was baptized right then.

First of all, be sure that you're faith in Christ is real. After that, get your parents' permission. Then go for it.

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What if my parents say 'no'?

Sometimes parents (mostly non-Christians) don't want their son or daughter to get baptized. There are many reasons why they feel this way, and you should honor their parent's wishes.

"But I thought the Bible said to get baptized." I hear this sometimes after I tell someone to obey their parents and not get baptized. Here's my reasoning.

God commands children to obey their parents.

Ephesians 6:1 - Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.

Baptism, even though it is very important, is not something that will make you lose your salvation or anything. Even though God commands that we get baptized, you can still honor your parents by waiting until you're an adult before you do it. Just be sure to not put it off when you come of age and have the chance to do it.

Sometimes Christian parents will want for their son/daughter to wait for a while before getting baptized. Many times it's because the parents want their child to know for sure that they're really saved. Sometimes it's other reasons. Ephesians 6:1 applies here too. Trust that God will work through them to lead you. And if you think they're wrong, then you might choose to respectfully talk with them and share why you feel you're ready. If they still say to wait, then it's cool. Just pray for them... God can help them make the right decision. And ya never know, they might be right after all. Imagine that... (joke).

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Do I need to be baptized to go to heaven?

Some good people disagree on this issue, but let me show you what the Bible says.

Baptism is an outward sign of an inward decision. It does not save us.

What about the thief on the cross (Luke 23:39-43)? He wasn't baptized, yet Jesus promised him eternal life. In fact, Jesus said that he would be with Jesus later that day in paradise. So how could this be possible is baptism is necessary for eternal life? I heard someone say once that Jesus made an exception is this guy's case. I thought that logic was sort of funny... and unbiblical.

Sometimes you'll read where an apostle or somebody else told a person if they wanted eternal life that they should 'believe and be baptized.' That's because to the 1st century Jew, getting baptized in the name of Jesus was the way to prove you were serious about Christ. Many families would disown a son if he did this; some were killed right after baptism (according to history). In the same way, John the baptist told tax collector to not be dishonest in what they did; he told Romans soldiers to not intimidate people or falsly accuse them; Jesus told the rich young ruler to give his stuff to the poor. The point was this: if your faith is real, then your actions will prove it. But it doesn't mean that water baptism saves us. Yes, Jesus commands water baptism. I'm not downplaying that at all. But obedience doesn't produce eternal life; faith does.

Here's one of the verses that confuses some people:

1 Peter 3:21 --- There is also an antitype (symbol) which now saves us-- baptism (not the removal of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ... (NKJV)

Peter even says that water baptism doesn't save us... it's the baptism of the heart that saves us (the same way that Paul taught that circumcision of the heart was what saved... not circumcision of the flesh-- a part of the Old Testament law). Remember, water baptism is simply an outward expression of an inward decision.

Faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord is what saves us. The Bible is LOADED with teachings on this. I'll mention just a few.

Romans 1:17 --- The righteous will live by faith. (NIV)

Romans 4:1-4 --- What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather, discovered in this matter? If, in fact, Abraham was justified (declared righteous) by works, he had something to boast about--but not before God. What does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation. (NIV)

Ephesians 2:8-9 --- For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- not by works, so that no one can boast. (NIV)

Salvation is by faith, not by outward deeds, even though real faith will produce outward obedience.

Just because baptism isn't required for heaven, that doesn't mean we should blow it off, though. It's a command of Christ, so it's very important. Jesus said over and over, "If you love me, you'll obey me."

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IN CONCLUSION:

While water has no value in and of itself, there are at least three good reasons why every true Christian should be baptized:

• it is a public demonstration of our decision to follow Christ
• it is God's first command for us after salvation
• it is a reconfirmation of our faith in Christ and surrendering of our life to His command