Baptism. HELP!!

[Olivia C]

I really want to get baptised but I'm not sure if I should. I was christened as a child but this was not a choice. I never gave my life to Jesus and didn't practice my faith. Now that I am older I have given my life to God and want to be baptised. Is this wrong because I may be implying that my acceptance into the church as a child wasn't enough?

Please help. All advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[Paidiske]

As you were baptised as an infant, the answers you'll get here will vary. Basically, they'll fall into two camps:

1. Your baptism as an infant doesn't need to be repeated, but you can be confirmed or reaffirm your baptism, and this is a good thing to do.

2. Your baptism as an infant wasn't truly a baptism, and you should be baptised as an adult.

This is one of the big disagreements about practice amongst various Christians.

I fall into the first camp, which says if you've been baptised, why not seek to be confirmed and make the promises for yourself? But I'm happy to discuss that further if you want to explore that set of ideas.

 

[Winken]

You certainly may be baptized. Don't worry about it!! You're a Christian!!

 

[ByTheSpirit]

Baptism is a requirement of Jesus and it should done only upon repentance of sins and confession of Christ as Lord.

Infant baptism is never viable for salvation because an infant can do neither of those two things.

If you want to get baptized, repent of your sins and pledge to follow Jesus in every area of your life. Then get baptized

 

[Brian Mc]

I really want to get baptised but I'm not sure if I should. I was christened as a child but this was not a choice. I never gave my life to Jesus and didn't practice my faith. Now that I am older I have given my life to God and want to be baptised. Is this wrong because I may be implying that my acceptance into the church as a child wasn't enough?

Please help. All advice is greatly appreciated.

Baptism is a step of faith between you & Lord Jesus ... you can do it on your own ... in a river, a lake, a pond or even under your shower.

As Jesus did (He set the example for ALL to follow) He went under the water, His old self (the carpenter) was left behind & as He came up Father anointed Him with His Holy Spirit .... He was a new creation .... the same thing happens when you make a heart commitment to Him.

As Paul said ...Gal 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His crucifixion] ....{the "old self" has died with Jesus}; it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me {a new creation}; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Born again believers have "earth suits" but Father, Lord Jesus & the Holy Spirit are in/with them 24/7.

Father supplies His Holy Spirit .... put Him on ....
Eph 6:10 In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].
Eph 6:11 Put on God's whole armour [the armour of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies {and} the deceits of the devil.
Eph 6:12 For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
Eph 6:13 Therefore put on God's complete armour, that you may be able to resist {and} stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].
Eph 6:14 Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity {and} of moral rectitude {and} right standing with God,
Eph 6:15 And having shod your feet in preparation ...{having understanding} [to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability, the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of peace.
Eph 6:16 Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one].
Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God.

Plus we are commanded .... that IN THE SPIRIT
Eph 6:18 Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose {and} perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God's consecrated people). (Joining with the Holy Spirit in intercession for all the saints Rom 8:27, 34)

The Holy Spirit is always ready for you ...
Rom 8:13 For if you live according to [the dictates of] the flesh, you will surely die. But if through the power of the [Holy] Spirit you are [habitually] putting to death (making extinct, deadening) the [evil] deeds prompted by the body, you shall [really and genuinely] live forever.
Rom 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

2 Cor 5:20 So we are Christ's ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us. We [as Christ's personal representatives] beg you for His sake to lay hold of the divine favour [now offered you] {and} be reconciled to God.

1 John 4:17 In this [union and communion with Him] love is brought to completion {and} attains perfection with us, that we may have confidence for the day of judgment [with assurance and boldness to face Him], because as He is, so are we in this world.

I liken it to as Christ Jesus taught in John 15 ... He is the True Vine, as soon as a person is drawn to Christ Jesus (John 6:44 No one is able to come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me attracts {and} draws him {and} gives him the desire to come to Me, and [then] I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.) Father (the Gardener) cuts us off the Adam vine (that is dead at the cross of Jesus) & trims us & then cuts Lord Jesus (the True Vine) & grafts us into HIM, then He binds us to Him with His Holy Spirit (the word Covenant means "to cut") ... we then are simply required to rest in Him. As He moment by moment supplies us with everything we need, we grow stronger & in time His fruit is produced on us .... for Father's glory --- Father & Lord Jesus are achieving Father's will through us (with Them in us) on earth ....... as He is, so are we in this world. (AS WE BELIEVE & TRUST IN HIM)

 

[Haipule]

I really want to get baptised but I'm not sure if I should. I was christened as a child but this was not a choice. I never gave my life to Jesus and didn't practice my faith. Now that I am older I have given my life to God and want to be baptised. Is this wrong because I may be implying that my acceptance into the church as a child wasn't enough?

Please help. All advice is greatly appreciated.

Outside of theology, the Greek word translated as "baptism" is baptismos. So, you can see that it has not be translated for us. It means: to submerge in order to effect a change.

That word was used by Nicander long before the Newer Covenant was written. He said baptO the vegetable in boiling water then baptismos it in vinegar. So, when we are baptismos we go in as a cucumber and come out as a pickle.

The first thing the apostles taught was baptismos using water to demonstrate the change that occurs when we are baptismos into the teaching of the Father, Son and pneuma hagion which they were commissioned to do by Jesus Himself; which baptismos will have an effect--baptisma.

Water baptism is a beautiful picture that I think you should enjoy.

 

[HereIStand]

Infant baptism isn't explicitly mentioned in Scripture. Arguably, when the Bible mentions whole families being baptized, children would have likely been included. One problem with infant baptism is when its done as a ritual with no intent on the part of the parents or godparents to raise the child in the faith. But since you've now grown in faith as an adult that wouldn't apply to you. God Bless.

 

[Solomons Porch]

You stated you wanted to be baptized. Then go get baptized.

 

[Haipule]

Baptism is a step of faith between you & Lord Jesus ... you can do it on your own ... in a river, a lake, a pond or even under your shower.

As Jesus did (He set the example for ALL to follow) He went under the water, His old self (the carpenter) was left behind & as He came up Father anointed Him with His Holy Spirit .... He was a new creation .... the same thing happens when you make a heart commitment to Him.

As Paul said ...Gal 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ [in Him I have shared His crucifixion] ....{the "old self" has died with Jesus}; it is no longer I who live, but Christ (the Messiah) lives in me {a new creation}; and the life I now live in the body I live by faith in (by adherence to and reliance on and complete trust in) the Son of God, Who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

Born again believers have "earth suits" but Father, Lord Jesus & the Holy Spirit are in/with them 24/7.

Father supplies His Holy Spirit .... put Him on ....
Eph 6:10 In conclusion, be strong in the Lord [be empowered through your union with Him]; draw your strength from Him [that strength which His boundless might provides].
Eph 6:11 Put on God's whole armour [the armour of a heavy-armed soldier which God supplies], that you may be able successfully to stand up against [all] the strategies {and} the deceits of the devil.
Eph 6:12 For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
Eph 6:13 Therefore put on God's complete armour, that you may be able to resist {and} stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].
Eph 6:14 Stand therefore [hold your ground], having tightened the belt of truth around your loins and having put on the breastplate of integrity {and} of moral rectitude {and} right standing with God,
Eph 6:15 And having shod your feet in preparation ...{having understanding} [to face the enemy with the firm-footed stability, the promptness, and the readiness produced by the good news] of the Gospel of peace.
Eph 6:16 Lift up over all the [covering] shield of saving faith, upon which you can quench all the flaming missiles of the wicked [one].
Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword that the Spirit wields, which is the Word of God.

Plus we are commanded .... that IN THE SPIRIT
Eph 6:18 Pray at all times (on every occasion, in every season) in the Spirit, with all [manner of] prayer and entreaty. To that end keep alert and watch with strong purpose {and} perseverance, interceding in behalf of all the saints (God's consecrated people). (Joining with the Holy Spirit in intercession for all the saints Rom 8:27, 34)

The Holy Spirit is always ready for you ...
Rom 8:13 For if you live according to [the dictates of] the flesh, you will surely die. But if through the power of the [Holy] Spirit you are [habitually] putting to death (making extinct, deadening) the [evil] deeds prompted by the body, you shall [really and genuinely] live forever.
Rom 8:14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.


1 John 4:17 In this [union and communion with Him] love is brought to completion {and} attains perfection with us, that we may have confidence for the day of judgment [with assurance and boldness to face Him], because as He is, so are we in this world.

I liken it to as Christ Jesus taught in John 15 ... He is the True Vine, as soon as a person is drawn to Christ Jesus (John 6:44 No one is able to come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me attracts {and} draws him {and} gives him the desire to come to Me, and [then] I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.) Father (the Gardener) cuts us off the Adam vine (that is dead at the cross of Jesus) & trims us & then cuts Lord Jesus (the True Vine) & grafts us into HIM, then He binds us to Him with His Holy Spirit (the word Covenant means "to cut") ... we then are simply required to rest in Him. As He moment by moment supplies us with everything we need, we grow stronger & in time His fruit is produced on us .... for Father's glory --- Father & Lord Jesus are achieving Father's will through us (with Them in us) on earth ....... as He is, so are we in this world. (AS WE BELIEVE & TRUST IN HIM)

2 Cor 5:20 So we(Paul and Timothy from 1:1) are Christ's ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us(Paul and Timothy). We(Paul and Timothy) [as Christ's personal representatives] beg you(Corinthians) for His sake to lay hold of the divine favour [now offered you] {and} be reconciled to God.

If you don't correctly honor the pronouns of 2 Corinthians you can confuse and put people on a guilt trip. Such as 2 Corinthians 4, "death works in us(Paul and Timothy) but life in you(Corinthians).

G'day and Aloha, I live on Maui but did live in Colloroy Plateau for awhile surfing Manly, and Narra and lived on Tazzi for three months. Yes, I am the first American surfer to ever surf in Tasmania! Eaglehawk Neck was doin it mate!

 

[Albion]

I really want to get baptised but I'm not sure if I should. I was christened as a child but this was not a choice. I never gave my life to Jesus and didn't practice my faith. Now that I am older I have given my life to God and want to be baptised. Is this wrong because I may be implying that my acceptance into the church as a child wasn't enough?

Please help. All advice is greatly appreciated.

If you've been baptized, you cannot repeat it, not even if you find some church that agrees to do the ceremony all over again, whether because it believes in such a thing as re-baptisms (which have no basis in scripture) or because it thinks that only its own baptisms are valid.

Therefore, return to being an active and practicing Christian in accord with the directives of whatever church you join and, if it is important to you, be confirmed or repeat your vows. But if it's the latter, you're only reaffirming the vows, not being baptized again.

 

[Kit Sigmon]

I really want to get baptised but I'm not sure if I should. I was christened as a child but this was not a choice. I never gave my life to Jesus and didn't practice my faith. Now that I am older I have given my life to God and want to be baptised. Is this wrong because I may be implying that my acceptance into the church as a child wasn't enough?

Please help. All advice is greatly appreciated.

I was christened in the black methodist faith...this isn't baptism, it's people of the church recognizing the wishes of your parents to teach you about the Lord and the Bible, they would also serve as one's mentors and advisors.
When I was around seven years of age I sought out Jesus to be my Lord and Savior...then I was baptized.
When you put your faith in Jesus, according to scripture you go onto being baptized...I've yet to find anything in the Bible about baptizing those who haven't
been saved/born again.
If you know of any Bible verses that speak of baptizing a person who isn't saved, please share them on the forum.

 

[Albion]

The verses that teach infant baptism have been referred to many times here. More to the point of this thread, however, a baptism of a minor does involve sponsors and promises to raise the child in the faith. What Kit describes as something other than a baptism looks like it was, in fact, a baptism (also called a christening in some churches).

 

[Tigger45]

Christenings and baptisms are not the same thing. Typically if a church and/or denomination doesn't baptize infants or very young children they will do some sort of christening or dedication. So if that's the the case and you being a believer in Christ I'd say get baptized preferably in a congregation you've been properly discipled in.

 

[Albion]

Apparently the word christening can mean different things in different denominations. It used to be another word for a baptism of a child, but apparently there are some churches that use it to mean a dedication instead of a baptism. As concerns this thread, we don't what the "christening" referred to in the OP was.

 

[teresa]

Hi, Olivia!

I'm excited for you!

I am a new Christian too and want to get baptized as well.

 

[Olivia C]

Hi, Olivia!

I'm excited for you!

I am a new Christian too and want to get baptized as well.

Thank you so much. I wish you well on your journey with Christ. God bless.

 

[Brian Mc]

Jesus set the example of what baptism should be ... a decision made, to surrender to Father's will & to, as Father supplies, receive His Holy Spirit.
Jesus went under the water which "washed away the old man" (the carpenter) He had a new role to follow .... see Luke 4:8-19 ... then to pay for ALL/every man's sins with His life on the cross ,,, & with His dying words He said, "It is finished!" ..... freedom, salvation is available to ALL who believe!

The sprinkling of water on a babe who has not made a decision to believe in what Christ Jesus achieved is man's rules & a deception to many millions of "believers" in the world today.

Men prefer darkness .... to realise that they are free (the prison walls are imaginary ... Christ Jesus set them free) .... AS SOON AS they turn to the LIGHT all darkness (& deception) goes!

 

[Albion]

Jesus went under the water which "washed away the old man" (the carpenter) He had a new role to follow .... see Luke 4:8-19 ... then to pay for ALL/every man's sins with His life on the cross ,,, & with His dying words He said, "It is finished!" ..... freedom, salvation is available to ALL who believe!

The sprinkling of water on a babe who has not made a decision to believe in what Christ Jesus achieved is man's rules & a deception to many millions of "believers" in the world today.

The best procedure for anyone who has come to the Lord recently but not been baptized yet--or if baptized some time ago but not raised in the faith--would be to speak about baptism with the pastor of the church you'll attend.

By the way, there is no scriptural evidence that Jesus "went under the water." Any means of applying water in baptism is sufficient.

 

[GandalfTheWise]

If you feel God is leading you to be baptized by immersion as a proclamation of your faith, I'd say go for it. I was baptized as an infant, committed my life to Christ at about age 12, was confirmed at about 13, and felt lead to be baptized by immersion at age 18 (in a river in Northern Wisconsin in March just after the ice went out). Our pastor baptized 3 of us and had a group of friends and church members around us. I was in college at the time and came back in dripping wet clothes into the dorms. "What happened to you? Oh, I was just baptized." My wife's story is similar.

I'm sure there are some here that would say that the infant one "counted" and that at 18 I was just getting wet; others here would say that the one at 18 was the one that "counted". There was a time in my life when I would have thought that this was an argument worth having; now I don't. I think God's grace is bigger than any boxes that denominations put on how His grace ought to work. My wife and I having adult immersions by choice was deeply meaningful to both of us whether or not it "counted" or was "proper". Neither of us regret having done that and would make the same choice again.

We had our children dedicated. All of them committed their lives to Christ at a young age. We decided to leave baptism as a choice for them when they were older and never pushed it. It became an issue when we started attending a local mainline Protestant church (which I'll leave nameless) that refused to accept our children as "real" Christians because they were not baptized. My kids decided (as a group and on their own) they wanted to be baptized by immersion in the local lake (because that was "more natural" as they put it) rather than "touching with water on the head" (I forget the term used). My wife and I were pleasantly surprised because we didn't push them one way or another. The church had a special service for them down at the local lake with copies of the baptism liturgy printed for everyone to use which was done a cappella. It was the pastor's first time doing a baptism by immersion. I'm guessing it was many people's first time seeing one. A number of people started crying. It was a blessed time for all involved.

 

[Albion]

We had our children dedicated. All of them committed their lives to Christ at a young age. We decided to leave baptism as a choice for them when they were older and never pushed it. It became an issue when we started attending a local mainline Protestant church (which I'll leave nameless) that refused to accept our children as "real" Christians because they were not baptized. My kids decided (as a group and on their own) they wanted to be baptized by immersion in the local lake (because that was "more natural" as they put it) rather than "touching with water on the head" (I forget the term used). My wife and I were pleasantly surprised because we didn't push them one way or another.

That's something of a religious parallel to deciding not to immunize the children and hoping that they don't get sick. Often they don't, but not always.