I believe in the basic things, Trinity, Jesus is God in the Flesh, he died for our sins, was buried and resurrected from the dead. The Bible is the word of God.
but beyond that point I am not sure on any doctrine.
I like to look at the oldest denominations first and see what they teach. Even if I later on have my beliefs lined up with a different denomination, I figured I learned something.
It doesn't make much a difference what denomination we are baptized in right?
I'm surprised at the responses here, not on the baptism issue but on the church denominational issue. Allow me to present a more detailed, honest answer that's not intended to offend anyone but might actually be helpful to you.
There are noticeable differences in the churches around us, and I believe that you should research each of them enough to make a prudent decision matching your conscience. Here's my breakdown of (some) churches from major to subtle:
Many churches represent false religions. While most here might be quick to name Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, New Age, or Unitarian Universalism as examples, there are Christian cults to be included in this category, like Mormonism, Jehovahs Witnesses, and Scientology. Like smoking, drugs, and soda pop, these are very bad habits to not start.
The next divide among church denominations has got to be Catholic versus Protestant. Without getting into objectionable details, recognize that they have major doctrinal differences that are incompatible with one true faith. Just like all of the world's religions, they are not the same, nor equal. One must be right and the other wrong. Fortunately, we're free now to choose which side of the fence we want to be on, but don't be naive or ignorant in thinking that such differences are insignificant or unimportant. I think one must start here in finding truth before fine tuning down any further denomination.
The further division of church denominations focuses more on non-Catholic Protestant churches. I've found the Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran and Methodist churches tend to have a more formal, ritualistic, Catholic-like service style. This needn't necessarily be right or wrong, but a personal preference to be considered. The Pentacostals and 7th Day Adventists are also quite different, with each having unique beliefs that are neither main stream nor cult.
A harder distinction to make among Protestant church denominations is the choice between conservative or liberal. I say hard, not because the information's not easily available on-line, but because the liberal ones have become prevalent in so many of the denominations. Their views on cultural issues like gay marriage, gender identity, and abortion differ, as well as their views on LGBT church leaders, female pastors, and acceptance of evolution over creationism. The Episcaopaleans tend to be quite liberal, the Methodists split, and the Baptists conservative. While these differences aren't as doctrinely significant as Catholic versus Protestant, they are still important for the Christian that values following God's word more than yielding to secular cultural pressures.
Finally, be aware of the massively popular Word of Faith movement represented by certain mega churches, prosperity preachers, and even Bethel. They all preach Jesus and love well, but do not represent biblical Christianity.
So, it
is complicated and tough for any new Christian to find a good church, especially when the bad ones now out number the good ones. Where do you start?
Christians tend to skip the first step and churches don't teach it - apologetics. You should learn
why Christianity's the one and only true religion in the world, and why you believe it, so that when someone (or something) challenges your faith, you're prepared with an answer. Secondly, you should study the Catholic versus Protestant issue and make an informed decision. Fortunately, there's an abundance of books, articles, and videos available to study this (and I have my list of favorites for anyone interested).
Since Christianity depends upon the Bible's authority, I believe that it warrants a literal interpretation of the Bible, which makes me a conservative Protestant Christian. Traveling full time, I frequent different churches and screen them according to their denomination or specific web page doctrinal statements. Besides the essential Gospel creeds, I respect and favor a church that specifically endorses belief in the Genesis 7-day creation account, two genders only, marriage between a man and a woman, and the sanctity of life. The casual service, non-denominational congregational churches used to meet these needs, but most now have seemingly gone liberal, particularly with female pastors. Thus, excluding the (dry music, super strict) Church of Christ churches, I've found Baptists to be the largest, conservative, Bible believing denomination. If in doubt, and in need of a church while learning which path to take, most Baptist churches will teach you Biblical Christianity right. (Even then, you'll find a worship style difference between the black and white congregations.)
As for Baptism, any place by anyone may suffice, but I'd suggest that you might prefer doing it amongst people you know or will see again or within a church that represents your true beliefs.
