Understanding Biblical Baptism

Why should you get baptized?

“And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’”

— Matthew 28:18-20
“Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what shall we do?’ And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.’ And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, ‘Save yourselves from this crooked generation.’ So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”

— Acts 2:37-41
“And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’”

— Acts 22:16

Believers are called to get baptized for the following reasons:

1)      To obey what Jesus tells us to do.

2)      To bear the evidence that a person is a follower of Jesus.

3)      To follow the example of Jesus.
Baptism is not merely a responsibility to fulfill but a joyful privilege to receive. In it we publicly celebrate what Christ has accomplished for us and give visible testimony to the new life He has given. It is God’s appointed way for a believer to say, before the church and the world, “I belong to Jesus.” At the same time, baptism is the sign of entrance into the new covenant community. Just as circumcision marked out the people of God under the old covenant, baptism now marks out those who have been united to Christ by faith and brought into His body, the church.

Because baptism points to our union with Christ in His death and resurrection, it also speaks of dying to ourselves and living for Him. There is a real cost in that identification, yet the reward of knowing and enjoying Christ is always greater.

For this reason, the desire for baptism should grow out of a heart that loves God and wants to obey Him, and from a sincere longing to be identified with His people. It is not something we do to meet an expectation, to please others, or simply to join a church. Baptism is the glad response of faith to the saving work of Jesus and the visible beginning of a life lived among His covenant people.

Who should get baptized?

“So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.”

— Acts 2:41

“But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.”

 — Acts 8:12

“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”

— Galatians 3:27

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 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. We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.”

— Romans 6:1-7

The Scriptures teach that baptism is given to those who have received the new birth and have become followers of Jesus Christ. For this reason we practice what is often called believer’s baptism. Baptism is reserved for those who personally confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, who have repented of their sins, and who are seeking to walk with Him in a life of ongoing faith and repentance.

Baptism is the sign of the new covenant, and the new covenant is made up of those who know the Lord, have His law written on their hearts, and have received the forgiveness of their sins (Jeremiah 31:31–34; Hebrews 8:10–12). Because the sign points to these inward realities, it is given to those who give a credible profession of faith and whose lives show evidence of God’s saving work. In this way, the outward sign corresponds as closely as possible to the inward grace it proclaims.

For this reason, we do not baptize infants, nor do we recognize as baptism the application of water apart from personal faith and repentance. When someone comes to genuine faith in Christ after previously receiving a form of baptism that did not follow conversion, we do not speak of being “rebaptized,” but simply of being baptized in the biblical sense.

Baptism, therefore, is the church’s joyful recognition of God’s saving work in a believer’s life and the public entrance of that believer into the visible fellowship of the new covenant people.

When should a person be baptized?

“And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.”

 — Acts 22:16

In the New Testament, baptism consistently follows repentance and faith. The prerequisite for baptism is not spiritual maturity, but a credible turning from sin and a personal trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. When these are present, the outward sign should not be unnecessarily delayed. Throughout Scripture, those who received the gospel were baptized soon after believing, as soon as the opportunity was available.

For this reason, fear should not keep a believer from obedience. To delay baptism because of fear is to allow our feelings to speak more loudly than Christ’s command. Instead, baptism becomes an opportunity to trust Him, to step forward in faith, and to continue the lifelong pattern of turning from sin and following Him.

Nor should anyone wait until they feel “worthy.” We are not baptized because we are righteous, but because Christ is. Baptism does not mark the moment we have become good enough; it marks our union with the One who has clothed us in His righteousness. Repentance and faith are the visible signs that a person is ready to be baptized, and these are themselves gifts of God’s grace.

How should a person be baptized?

Loftstofan practices baptism by immersion for three primary reasons.

1)       The Meaning of the Word

The Greek word baptizō most naturally means to plunge, submerge, or immerse. It was commonly used to describe something being placed fully into a liquid. Immersion therefore reflects the ordinary meaning of the word used in the New Testament.

2) The Picture of the Gospel

“We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that… we too might walk in newness of life.”

— Romans 6:4

“Having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God.”

— Colossians 2:12

Immersion most clearly expresses our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. To be buried is to be placed under, and to be raised is to come out into new life. In baptism the believer is lowered into the water and raised again, visibly portraying the reality of our being buried with Christ and raised to new life.

The movement through the water also reflects the biblical pattern in which water represents judgment and salvation at the same time. In the flood and in the Red Sea, God brought His people safely through the waters of judgment. Baptism proclaims that the judgment our sins deserved has been fully borne by Christ, and that we now pass through in Him into new life.

3) The New Testament Pattern

The surrounding context of baptisms in the New Testament consistently points to immersion:

“When Jesus was baptized… he went up from the water.”

— Matthew 3:16

“They were being baptized by him in the river Jordan.”

— Mark 1:5

“John also was baptizing… because water was plentiful there.”

— John 3:23

“They both went down into the water… and when they came up out of the water…”

— Acts 8:38–39

These descriptions naturally fit the practice of immersion.

Where should a person be baptized?

Scripture does not command a specific location for baptism. However, in every clear example in the New Testament, baptism takes place in the presence of others. Whether it is the crowds at Pentecost, the gathered disciples, or those traveling along the road with the Ethiopian eunuch, baptism is never presented as a private act. It is a public confession of faith before witnesses.

For this reason, we seek to celebrate baptisms, whenever possible, in the context of the Lord’s Day gathering. In this setting the church is able to rejoice together in God’s saving work, to welcome the newly baptized believer in a visible way, and to be strengthened in faith by the reminder of the gospel that baptism proclaims. At the same time, the presence of unbelievers allows baptism to serve as a clear testimony to the transforming grace of Christ.

Baptism is not only a personal step of obedience. It is an act that belongs to the whole church. It is the moment when the body publicly recognizes God’s work in a believer’s life and gives thanks together for His redeeming grace.

Why is baptism required for church membership?

Baptism is the God-given sign of entrance into the new covenant community. It is the public confession that a person has been united to Christ by faith and now belongs to His body. Church membership, in turn, is the church’s recognition and affirmation of that profession of faith. For this reason, we do not see these as two unrelated steps, but as two parts of the same biblical pattern: a believer is baptized and then counted among the members of the local church.

Requiring baptism for membership is not about adding an extra condition to the gospel. We are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Rather, it is about receiving and obeying Christ’s command and following the order He has given to His church. Baptism is the first act of discipleship and the initial public step of obedience in the Christian life.

It also guards the clarity of the church’s witness. Membership is the church’s way of saying, “As far as we can tell, this person belongs to Christ.” Baptism is the visible sign that Christ Himself has appointed to mark out His people. To separate membership from baptism would be to separate the church’s recognition of a believer from the sign that Christ has given for that very purpose.

Finally, baptism expresses our visible union not only with Christ, but with His people. It is not a private spiritual experience but a public entrance into a covenant community. To be baptized is to say, “I belong to Jesus,” and at the same time, “I belong to His church.”

For these reasons, we gladly require baptism for membership. It is not a barrier to belonging, but the joyful and biblical beginning of life together as a committed member of the body of Christ.