QUESTIONS ABOUT BAPTISM
Who Should Be Baptized?
Christians are people who believe that the blood of Jesus Christ, shed on the cross, provides the sole basis for the forgiveness of sin. Therefore, salvation occurs only when a person places his or her faith in the death and resurrection of Christ as the sufficient payment for his or her sin. The New Testament shows baptism taking place as a response to a person's faith in Christ. There is no instance of anyone receiving baptism before they have responded to Jesus in faith.Therefore, we believe that baptism should be for believers only. If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are a candidate for baptism. Just as a bride and groom show their love for one another by wearing wedding bands, baptism is an opportunity for believers to show that they have faith in Christ and have begun a new kind of life.
What Does Baptism Symbolize?
Baptism is a way of showing outwardly what has occurred inwardly in a person's life:• Faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior
• Sharing in His death and resurrection illustrated by immersion in water (dead to the old life), then rising again (new life
• Being symbolically washed as, our sins are cleansed by Christ's death on the cross.
• Because Jesus instructed His people to be baptized, baptism is an act of obedience.
• While it is not necessary for salvation, it demonstrates submission to God. We practice baptism by immersion at Campus Bible Church because we believe it to be the Scriptural model, illustrating all of the symbolism of a believer's new life in Christ.