The Baptism Basics

The first time I got baptized, I had no idea what I was doing and why. Just a few moments earlier, I had walked down the aisle to confess my sins for the week and pray the sinner’s prayer. Afterwards, the church mothers celebrated my confession, ushered me to the bathroom to change my clothes, and took me to the baptism pool.

Throughout my childhood, I watched so many others take this step. I had even sung “Take Me to the Water (To Be Baptized)” along with the choir and cheered when someone emerged from the waters. However, I was clueless as to why we sang or cheered. And unfortunately, no one explained to me why we sang and cheered before the congregation sang and cheered for me.

Over the years, I have heard many baptism stories like mine of people who received baptism with little to no understanding of its significance. I’ve also walked with new disciples through their questions about the who, what, when, and why of baptism. There just seems to be a lot of confusion. However, the confusion is warranted. Not only have most people been invited to be baptized apart from understanding what it is and why we do it, but there has also been much debate around baptism throughout Church History. To help bring more clarity to this sacred church practice, I would like to answer the following questions: (1) What is Baptism? (2) Why Do We Do It? and (3) Who Is It For?

What is Baptism?

Baptism is a sacred church practice that Jesus left His disciples to celebrate every time someone puts their faith in Him. More traditionally stated, it's one of two ordinances Jesus passed down to His Church as a way for them to remember Christ's death and resurrection. While communion, the other ordinance, celebrates Christ's death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins, baptism celebrates our union with Christ in His death and resurrection.

In Romans 6:3-5, the apostle Paul writes this about how baptism celebrates our union with Christ:

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

As believers, we participate in baptism to confess our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. As an illustration of the unseen and spiritual work that took place when we placed our faith in Christ, we go under the water as Christ went into the grave, and we come out of the water as Christ was raised to new life.

Why Do We Practice Baptism?

Though baptism is not a requirement for salvation, it is meant to be one of our first steps of obedience as a disciple of Christ. Through baptism, we publicly profess these three truths:

1. We Belong to Christ. Through baptism, we profess to others that we belong to Christ. We are His disciples and are committed to living under the blessings of HIs teachings. 

2. We No Longer Belong to the World. Through baptism, we proclaim our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. Though we will not be perfect, we proclaim that in Christ, we have died to sin and no longer belong to the ways of the World. In Christ, we have been raised from the dead to walk in the newness of life.

3. We Belong to Christ’s Church. Through baptism, we also publicly profess we belong to God's people - the Church. They are the community of people who will help us grow more into the image of Christ and who will hold us accountable when we get off track. Together, we live out our baptism by dying to the pull of our flesh towards sin and living out the fruit of the Spirit that leads to life (Galatians 5:16-26).

Who Is Baptism For?

Baptism is for all who make the decision to repent of their sins and place their faith in Christ's death and resurrection. By faith, they accept Jesus' death on the cross as the full payment for their past, present, and future sins. And by faith, they accept the gift of being restored to a right relationship with God as His child through Christ's resurrection.

Unlike communion, baptism is not meant to be practiced often by a believer. It is intended to be a one-time experience that marks the beginning of one’s journey as Christ’s disciple. However, there will be occasions when someone gets baptized more than once.

Like me, maybe you didn’t quite understand what was happening the first time you got baptized. But this time, it will be from the heart and with full awareness of why we sing and cheer every time someone decides to follow Jesus through baptism. Or maybe, not like me, you got baptized as a baby, but now that you are an adult, you want to proclaim that the faith passed down to you by your parents is your own. There is also the possibility that your stance on baptism has changed as you’ve spent time in the Scriptures and want to live out your new conviction.

These are the most common reasons I’ve encountered, but I imagine there may be more. So, here’s my counsel for anyone desiring to get baptized or re-baptized or who has more questions than this article answers: Share your desire and questions with a trusted pastor, ministry leader, or believer. Invite them to help you discern whether or not baptism is the next step for you in your discipleship journey.

And if you’re connected or near to Vertical Church, please fill out our Next Steps Form. We would love to have a conversation about baptism and help you take your next steps towards Christ.