Baptism is an expression of one’s trust in Jesus Christ and is always accompanied by faith. Baptism is a physical representation of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. In baptism we unite ourselves with Jesus (Romans 6). We bury our sinful lives in the water. We are entirely forgiven, and sin’s power over us is defeated. We rise to walk in a new life to be lived with Jesus in obedience to God. God places His Spirit within us. Our baptism is an opportunity to personalize this spiritual reality. The Bible has given us clear ways to demonstrate our belief, and baptism is one of them.

We like to describe baptism as the believer’s wedding ceremony. In 1 Peter 3:21 we find these words: “and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also-not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ”

Baptism is a “pledge” or response or intense desire to say “yes” to Jesus. It is, in fact, a “vow” like we make in a marriage ceremony. Even if you’ve known Jesus and loved him for a long time, in baptism you are formally entering into a lifelong commitment. You are promising to follow Jesus, to obey him, and to allow him to influence your life. You are choosing to enter into a lifelong committed relationship with Jesus.

It is interesting that the Bible often uses the metaphor of marriage or husband and wife to describe God’s desire for a committed and faithful relationship with us (Matthew. 25:1-13; Luke 5:34, 35; John 3:28-30; Ephesians 5:25-33; Revelation 19:7; 21:2, 9; 22:17, etc.). In baptism, just like in a marriage, we make our vow to forsake our rights of self-management and any other allegiances and commit to put Jesus first and turn over the “deed” of our lives to him.

Jesus invites us (and commands us) to join him in baptism. What an amazing invitation. He’s waiting.

Surrendering your life to Jesus and being baptized is the most important decision you will make. Because of that, we want you to be confident in the step you are taking. You are ready to be baptized if you believe that Jesus is the son of God, that He died on the cross for your sins, and if you are ready to surrender your life to him and his leadership, then baptism is your best next step!

Baptism is a practice Christians have done for thousands of years. Maybe you were sprinkled as a very young kid or were baptized in a different denomination or even religion. Maybe you’ve never been baptized. Here’s what we believe about baptism: It’s a core part of the Christian journey that’s meant for everyone who has decided to follow Jesus (Matthew 28:19-20).

The biblical practice of baptism involves being submerged by another person for a brief moment completely under water, then lifted back up. The action is symbolic of Jesus dying, being buried, and being raised to life again and also of being washed clean (1 Peter 3:21). It’s a powerful and personal experience and also the point at which we believe the Spirit of God comes to live within your heart and to empower you to live a life following Jesus (Acts 2:38).

In the Bible, baptism was the consistent response for people who surrendered their lives to Jesus. When people accepted Christ as Savior in the New Testament, they believed in Him (Acts 16:31), repented of their sins (Acts 2:38), confessed Christ as Lord (Matthew 16:16-18, Romans 10:9-10) and were baptized (Matthew 28:19-20, Acts 2:38-41, Acts 8:36-38). Our role as Christians is to teach others to do the same things the Apostles taught the early church.

Christ set the example for us when John baptized Him. “But John tried to talk him out of it. ‘I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,’ he said, ‘so why are you coming to me?’ But Jesus said, ‘It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.’ So John agreed to baptize him” (Matthew 3:14-15, NLT). If Jesus was obedient in being baptized, shouldn’t we be?

The Bible teaches that baptism accompanies the decision to follow Jesus, so as soon as you believe that Jesus is your Savior, you should be baptized (Acts 8:12)>.

You are committing to following Jesus with your life. That doesn’t mean you’ll never mess up. We all do. But, when you do, you’ll realign yourself and keep following him.

You need to realize only that you are a sinner in need of saving and that Jesus is your Savior. As you grow in Christ you’ll learn more about other teachings of the Bible. Being a follower of Jesus is a journey, and this is just the beginning!

Surrendering to Jesus necessitates some response on our part, one that includes belief, repentance, confession and baptism. Each part is equally important. They are the ways we express our trust in Jesus Christ for our salvation. The actions, including baptism, do not save us – we are only saved through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross – but each action is mentioned in Scripture as part of becoming a Christian. Any step taken is a response to salvation offered, not an effort at salvation earned.

The Bible teaches that only Jesus saves. Acts 4:12 states salvation is found “in no one else” but Jesus. We encourage people to believe, repent, confess and be baptized. As mentioned before, the actions do not save us – but each of these actions are mentioned in Scripture and are part of becoming a Christian.

It’s not profitable or fruitful to argue at which point one is saved. We do not judge anyone who has followed a different pattern. Judgment belongs to God alone (Romans 14:4, Romans 8, Romans 9, Romans 10, Romans 11, Romans 12). God has the right to save any heart, for He alone sees the heart. No one this side of heaven can fully understand the majesty and meaning of baptism.

In the early church, there weren’t any situations where people accepted Christ without being baptized. As we discussed earlier, Jesus is the one who saves us. His sacrifice on the cross is what brings freedom from sin. Baptism is an obedient expression of a surrendered heart and one’s trust in Jesus as the Leader of their life. The closest scriptural example we can find of a believer who was not immersed is Apollos (Acts 18:24-26). He was a very spiritual man who was committed to his relationship with Jesus. But Apollos had not been taught correctly about baptism. Apollos knew only of John the Baptist’s baptism, which was one of repentance and preparation for the coming of Jesus (Luke 3:1-19). He wasn’t familiar with the Christian baptism as the Apostles in the early church taught it. When Priscilla and Aquila instructed him, Scripture tells us Apollos was willing to change his ideas and submit to Christian baptism – baptism in Christ. Priscilla and Aquila did not judge him; they taught him.

Let’s look at how the word baptism is used in the Bible. The original language of the New Testament was Greek. When Paul and other authors wrote of baptism, they always used the Greek word baptizó, which meant, “to dip or immerse.” There are other Greek words that mean “to sprinkle or pour,” and the authors would have used those words if they had intended to include other forms of baptism. The preference of baptism by immersion can be seen in Acts 8:38 when Philip baptized a man from Ethiopia. After the man expressed his faith in Jesus Christ, they went down into the water – an action not necessary if Philip were baptizing him by sprinkling. Immersion was the commonly accepted form of baptism in the church for hundreds of years. Only in later centuries did people begin to substitute different forms of baptism.

Immersion is also a powerful symbol. In Romans 6:1-10 the Apostle Paul shows us that when we go down into the water we are making a spiritual declaration – we are dying to our old way of life. We are burying that life and all its sin and wrong doing in the watery grave. We come out of the water and symbolize our resurrection with Jesus. We are alive, but this time we come alive with Jesus whom we love and follow. This “new life” marks a new beginning.

There are several answers to this question, depending on your particular situation. If your baptism occurred as an infant, you should be baptized again. Your infant baptism was more a symbol of your parents’ faith than yours. Every baptism we see in the New Testament, however, was a believer confessing his or her own faith. So be baptized “again,” fulfilling the hope your parents had when they baptized you as an infant. Don’t fear that you are dishonoring them. What better way to honor the hopes they expressed in your baptism than to choose for yourself to follow Jesus?

But what if you were baptized after an initial conversion experience but now suspect that your actual decision for Christ occurred later? Should you get re-baptized? There’s no hard and fast answer, but if you have concerns that you were not committed to Christ at the point when you were baptized (i.e., you were pressured into baptism by your parents or friends, had no real grasp on salvation, had some ulterior motive, etc.), then be baptized again.

However, if your baptism depicted the beginning of a journey of faith, a journey marked by failures, followed by renewed repentance and recommitment, then trust His grace and commitment to you in your initial and ongoing decision for Christ. God is continuing to mature you in Christ, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. There is no Scriptural necessity to get re-baptized. If you are walking with Jesus now, you can trust your initial confession of faith and baptism was real and effective.

If you have not experienced believer’s baptism, even though you may have experienced baptism as an infant, we strongly encourage you to be baptized as a repentant believer.

Some churches and denominations choose to christen (or sprinkle) infants. We understand Scripture to teach that only professing believers qualify for baptism. Baptism does not make you a believer, but it shows that you already believe. Infants and newborns are precious and innocent, and do not have the need (nor the ability) to repent and turn from their sin.

That’s why we wait until a child has the need, and the ability, to repent and follow Jesus before we baptize them. For infants and babies, we do offer a parent dedication service for parents twice a year (May & October). This is about parents
 making the commitment to raise their kids to know and love Jesus. For questions, contact our Family Ministry Team.

At FCC we love to see children making decisions for Christ and confessing their faith through baptism! To receive baptism a child must be able to understand that they have sinned, but that Jesus died in order that their sin would be forgiven. Parents, are you wondering if your child is ready to be baptized? We would love to help you figure things out. Just reach out to our Family Ministry Team.

We recommend that you bring a dark shirt and shorts or swimming trunks to wear for your baptism. We also provide t-shirts and shorts as-needed. There are private changing rooms available for you at the church (including towels, hair dryers, showers, etc.)

We believe that any Christian can baptize another Christian. The person baptizing is important as they are important to the person being baptized. We strongly believe in having the person who has most directly discipled (taught, led and modeled Christ) you being the person you have perform the baptism (i.e. parents, group leaders, youth leaders, etc). However, we always have pastors and ministry staff available to perform baptisms.

Those being baptized will be met by a member of our Baptism Team and the pastor or person leading the baptism at Baptism Check-In. A short reminder of the new commitment to Christ and what this act symbolizes is stated, and then the person will be fully immersed into water (to picture the death of Christ) and raised again out of the water (to give the picture of Christ’s resurrection).

Those gathered around cheer and clap to celebrate your decision. You are welcome and encouraged to invite family and friends, take photos, and celebrate this special time together. We will provide you with a shirt, a small gift, and photograph to commemorate your Baptism.

Yes! We are always up for baptisms any time during the week. The important thing is not that you get baptized in front of the entire church—it’s that you’re ready to walk with Jesus for life.