Baptism

This little article isn't EVERYTHING about baptism but just a few things you need to know if you're considering it.

There are 2 kinds of baptism that Christian churches tend to do.  One is "infant baptism" (where babies get sprinkled with some water and people pray for them and their parents) and the other is "believer's baptism" (where the person has already made their own decision to trust and follow Jesus and gets dunked right under some water to show it).  This article is about the second kind.

What is baptism?  This short video explains quite a bit about what the Bible says.  You might want to go through it carefully and explore the Bible passages mentioned to learn more.



If you're interested in getting baptised in this way, there's a few questions that might be helpful before going further...

1. Do you believe God loves you and created you to know him and be part of his kingdom family?
2. Do you believe your sin once separated you from God so that you couldn't know him or experience his love?
3. Do you believe Jesus is God's only solution for your sin problem and that he died in your place, for your sin and rose again from the dead?
4. Have you responded to this good news by giving your sin to Jesus and trusting him to forgive you and bring you into the relationship with God for which you were made?

If your answer is YES to these questions, you're already forgiven and saved by Jesus into a relationship with God!  You're a Christian!  This is important to understand because sometimes people think getting baptised will help them be a Christian or be a better one.  Not true!  Water doesn't save people.  Only Jesus saves people.  And only God the Holy Spirit has the power to truly change people to be more like Jesus.  But for all the reasons the video describes, water baptism is an important and significant part of what it means to follow him.

If you answered "no" or "not sure" to any of the questions above, baptism shouldn't be your next step.  Instead, keep exploring what it means to follow Jesus by reading the Bible, being part of a local church, or attending an Alpha course (or something like it).  Discover as much of the truth as you possibly can!

Some key passages from the video to explore further:

• The Holy Spirit lives in every believer (Ephesians 1:13, 1 Corinthians 12:13)
• Water baptism is commanded (Matthew 28:19, Acts 2:38)
• It's publicly saying you trust and follow Jesus (Acts 19:4-5)
• It's publicly showing that Jesus has died for you, to wash you from your sin (Acts 22:16)
• It's about death, burial and resurrection life with Jesus (Romans 6:4, Colossians 2:12)
• It's a reminder that you are in Christ and he is with you always (Galatians 3:27)
• It's for normal Christians, not 'super Christians' (Acts 8:36)

If you're a Christian and you haven't been baptised in this way, do chat to your church leaders about it and chat to me if you like.  Most importantly, talk to Jesus about it and then do what he says! :)