Water Baptism

Baptism is an outward expression of an inward change. It’s a public declaration of how Jesus changed your life. Being baptized shows others that you’ve decided to follow Jesus, and allows them to celebrate this decision with you (Acts 16:31-34).

It symbolize that you:

• Accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.
• Share in His death and resurrection, illustrated by going under the water (dead to your old life), then rising again (new life).

 

6 Common Questions About Baptism

People often have questions regarding baptism: Why should I be baptized? What if I’ve already been baptized, do I have to do it again? Does it matter if someone is sprinkled or dunked? Take a few minutes to read the answers to these questions about baptism.

 

1. What is baptism?

Baptism is an outward expression of an inward change. It’s a public declaration of how Jesus changed your life. Being baptized shows others that you’ve decided to follow Jesus, and allows them to celebrate this decision with you (Acts 16:31-34).

Baptism doesn’t save a person; it’s a symbol and celebration of salvation (1 Peter 3:21). The power that brought Jesus back to life is the same power Jesus uses to change our lives – and that’s worth getting excited about!

2. Why should I be baptized?

Why does baptism matter? Jesus instructs us to be baptized and set the example by being baptized (Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 1:9).

Obedience to Jesus shows we believe and follow Him as Lord of our lives not just our Savior. (1 John 2:3). Because Jesus went public about His love for us, we can go public about our love for Him. Being baptized shows that we turn away from a life of sin toward Jesus, the only one who can change us (Acts 2:38-41).

3. When’s the best time to be baptized?

For everyone who decides to follow Jesus, baptism is the next step. Anyone who commits his or her life to following Jesus is ready to be baptized (Acts 8:12). You don’t become ready when your feelings or your reasoning justifies it. This would be based on your own work. Baptism is based on the work of Christ and thus it is by grace we are ready to be baptized right after becoming born again through our confession of faith in Him.

4. Do you baptize children?

As parents, we can help point our children to Jesus, but they are the ones to decide if they will commit their lives to Christ. (Romans 10:9).

Any instance of biblical baptism follows a person’s own decision to trust Jesus for his or her salvation and commitment to follow Him (Acts 10:47-48). At OSC, we wait until children are old enough to express their own decision to follow Jesus and understand the meaning of baptism. If your child has already asked Jesus into his life, explain what baptism is and what it means. Facilitate the conversation, but don’t dominate it. When you are certain that they understand their need for salvation and that they received it not by being a good boy or a good girl, but by their trust in what Jesus did on their behalf, we invite them to be baptized as well. 

5. What’s the difference between immersing, sprinkling and other ways of baptizing?

Baptisms in the Bible were by immersion. The original word for baptism most often referred to being immersed or submerged in water. Jesus was baptized by being immersed in the water and rising out of it (Matthew 3:16, Mark 1:10).

Submersion in the water symbolize the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Being submerged underwater represents our death to sin and old way of life, and being raised out of the water is a picture of how Jesus raised us and gave us a fresh start in life (Romans 6:3-5). Although less important than being baptized as a declaration of your inward faith, it still carries deep significance to be immersed over being sprinkled by water. 

6. Do I need to be baptized again?

If you haven’t been baptized by immersion since you decided to follow Jesus, we want to help you take your next step of being baptized. Once you’ve taken that step, there’s no need to be baptized again. Even if you have “back-slid” in your relationship with God, He doesn’t require you to be baptized again. The biblical way to respond to sin is to repent from it (Change your thinking about it) reject it, and start walking in obedience. Obedience to God is better than any “sacrifice” or “work” we can make to prove our love to him. Simply start following His word again in the fellowship of a Biblical Church.

God never asks us to take a next step that isn’t good for us. He always gives us more than we deserve or can imagine, including the joy we receive from listening to Him and doing what He says.