I certainly believe in baptism as spoken in The Holy Bible. When Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him like a dove. Matthew 3:16
Baptism is a word that has much depth of meaning when looked upon in the vernacular of that time. Most anyone I know looks upon Baptism as the ritual we all know so well. The word derives from the Greek "baptizo", a transitive verb "I wash" used in Jewish text for ritual washing. Greek meaning to wash, to cleanse or purify by washing, to dip, immerse...
Jesus came to fulfill all that the Old Testament could not...and the baptism of Jesus was not completed in the Jordan, but on the cross, making a WAY for us by the spirit. The same spirit that raised HIM from the grave.
Luke 11:38, the Jews were quite distressed that Jesus failed to 'baptize' his hands before eating.
Mark 7:4talks about "baptizing" food.
Mark 10:38 Jesus speaks deeply about his baptism to yet be completed, as in
Luke 12:49
The Jews that Jesus took the gospel to had a very different understanding of what baptism truly meant, as it pertained to being 'unclean' or 'defiled'.
John 14:6 John 1:14 Revelation 9:13
1 Peter 1:22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
James 1:20-22 receive the implanted word, be doers of the word
Luke 8:11 The seed is the word of God
Baptism has a far deeper meaning than the physical act of being baptized. We must follow in the footsteps of Jesus Christ, our example, obeying with all our heart, mind, strength and soul. By faith, HE promises to cleanse us of all our sin through the washing of water by the word.
John 3:5
When we accept Him by genuine faith doing all that HE commands by the power of The Holy Spirit, He reveals deeper things of God (that will never be contrary to The Holy Bible). No where in that book does it say that after we die (physically) we will continue to grow IN HIM...in righteousness and holiness.
Jesus says "
whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:17-19) So if you don't get it right while walking here on earth, it won't happen after going to the grave.
I will stick the words of Jesus and The Holy Bible. The things LDS purport donot line up with Jesus sayings.