Part 3: Christian Basics
The answer depends on who answers. For some, baptism is a purely symbolic act showing that the converted person has been saved. Others teach that baptism is a direct and vital command of the Lord. One must obey this command to receive salvation.
Were you baptized to show that you were already saved or were you immersed for the forgiveness of your sins as part of your process of becoming a Christian?
We need to turn to the Word of God, the Bible, to discover what God really says about baptism.
The Lord's Church was founded on the first day of the Jewish Feast of Pentecost after Jesus' death. The apostle Peter lectured the great mass of Jews who had gathered in Jerusalem telling them to:
Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
This scene is described in Acts, Chapter 2, verse 38.
This passage shows that both repentance and baptism are necessary if one's sins are to be taken away. When we remember that Peter was speaking through the inspiration of God, this statement should, forever, settle any question about the purpose of scriptural baptism. Baptism, then, is not because we have already been saved, but because as Peter says, it is "so that your sins may be forgiven."
A similar phrase is used in the book of Matthew, Chapter 26, Verse 28. While speaking of His blood, Jesus said that it was to be shed for the forgiveness of sins.
If language means anything at all, the purpose of baptism is for the forgiveness of sins. The Bible is very clear about baptism's purpose. It is also clear about who might be baptized and these are adults, believing and repentant sinners. Since infants can neither repent nor believe, they are not proper subjects for baptism. A supporting scripture is found in Mark, Chapter 16, Verse 16:
"Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; but whoever does not believe shall be condemned."
Obviously, if one does not believe that Jesus is the Christ, baptism would be meaningless. Both are needed for a person to be saved. Other passages tell us that repentance and the confession of our faith in Christ are also required. See Acts, Chapter 17, Verse 30 and Matthew Chapter 10, Verses 32 and 33.
The example of Saul's' conversion further proves these readings. Saul, a Jewish persecutor of Christians, had seen the Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus where the Lord said to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" Saul was blinded by the radiance of the Lord and was lead into Damascus
Ananias then said to Saul, "And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on His name." Saul, later to become the Apostle Paul, arose and was baptized for the remission of his sins. Obviously, this scripture is telling us that baptism washes away sins. See Acts 22: 12-16.
But, we have seen that God's approval is not through baptism alone. Hearing the Word of God, believing what it tells us (that Jesus is the Christ), repenting of our sins, confessing before mankind that we so believe are additional scriptural requirements along with baptism.
Baptism is a burial in water, that is, total immersion. The very word we pronounce as baptism is a Greek word meaning to bury. Thus, total immersion is required: one does not bury any large thing by sprinkling or pouring a little dirt over it. Another scripture you might find interesting is Romans Chapter 6, Verse 3 thru 6:
Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
Galatians, Chapter 3, Verses 26 and 27 reinforces the above:
You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have been clothed with Christ.
If you have not been baptized or were baptized for any other purpose than for the forgiveness of your sins as God requires, call any nearby congregation of the church of Christ. They will be happy to study God's Word with you.