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Brittanyeah

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I grew up southern baptist and I have always gone to a baptist church, but did not know that you had to be baptized to become a baptist! I don't think it is right at all, it is a personal thing and the baptist church (as a whole) should not make someone get dunked if they have already been sprinkled. Why do you have to be baptized (by immersion) in the baptist church to become a baptist?
 
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mlqurgw

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I grew up southern baptist and I have always gone to a baptist church, but did not know that you had to be baptized to become a baptist! I don't think it is right at all, it is a personal thing and the baptist church (as a whole) should not make someone get dunked if they have already been sprinkled. Why do you have to be baptized (by submersion) in the baptist church to become a baptist?
Because sprinkling isn't baptism. The day anyone can show me in the Scriptures or by experience that you can bury someone by sprinkling a little dirt on their face I will start doing it. Baptism is a sign of dying, being buried and rising again with Christ. There simply is no identification wth those things in sprinkling.
 
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FreeinChrist

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Some Baptist churches insist on people being immersed, others leave it up to the person.

I personally think that following Christ in baptism - as in immersion - would be a spiritual event and worthwhile.
 
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th1bill

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... What I find the most interesting in your question is the idea that you are interested not in being a Christian but a Baptist. Don't get me wrong, I am a member of the Southern Baptist Church and was baptized by full immersion in a Missionary Baptist Church but before I was a Baptist I was a Christian and today the important portion of my Christian walk is not my walk with the Baptist Church, it is my walk and my service to my LORD and Master, Jesus the Christ. When I sign a letter I note that I am a Bond Servant, a slave, to my LORD, not to the Southern or the Missionary Baptist Associations.
... In short, why are you worried about such a thing? Are you not fully committed to Jesus?
 
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MatthewDiscipleofGod

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Baptism in the Bible is described in the Bible as immersion. The word itself means immersion. A first century writing of the church called the Didache talks about how people should be Baptized in flowing water. Baptism is for believers and is a command. The reason most Baptist churches won't allow a person who has not had believer's Baptism to be a member is because they are living in willful disobiedience to God.
 
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PastorJim

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I grew up southern baptist and I have always gone to a baptist church, but did not know that you had to be baptized to become a baptist! I don't think it is right at all, it is a personal thing and the baptist church (as a whole) should not make someone get dunked if they have already been sprinkled. Why do you have to be baptized (by submersion) in the baptist church to become a baptist?

Simply put, because the Bible commands that all believers be baptized and baptism is one of two ordinances entrusted to the church.
 
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PastorJim

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Baptism in the Bible is described in the Bible as immersion. The word itself means immersion. A first century writing of the church called the Didache talks about how people should be Baptized in flowing water.

I find that the Didache is an excellent source of insight into some of the things we're commanded to do in scripture.

The Didache isn't inspired and it should never be a source of doctrine or put on an equal level with scripture, but it is helpful for providing historical context to scripture.

Unfortunately, most Christians have rejected it because we don't want to do anything that makes us look like we're condoning Catholicism.

Baptism is for believers and is a command. The reason most Baptist churches won't allow a person who has not had believer's Baptism to be a member is because they are living in willful disobiedience to God.

Agreed. In scripture, one of the statements baptism makes is that the believer is now identifying with the church and is being introduced into the church. That isn't the main point of baptism, but it is one of the points involved.
 
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BereanTodd

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Not all baptist churches require baptism for membership. However, we do not recognize any baptism other than adult baptism (preferably by immersion) as legitimate for Biblical reasons as outlined above.

But most of my saved life has been in the Southern Baptist church, and of 3 separate churches I have been a part of, only one required this for membership. In fact, as I shared in a similar thread somewhere, my current church fairly recently baptised two women in their 40s, both long time members, who only now are being baptised.
 
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the particular baptist

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Brittany what is infinitely more important than baptism, is, the understanding the true Gospel.

Pews all over the western world in every denomination are full of people that have met the status-giving christ, the charge-your-sins-to-jesus-credit-card type christ, the your-best-life-now christ, the its-all-about-love christ, the emotion-experience-high christ, but, those people have not met the Sovereign Christ. The true Church of Christ is fully regenerate, wholly pure, having denied herself and living under the Lordship of Christ.

To have the Sovereign Christ one must deny himself, leave his life behind, and come under the Sovereignty of Christ, living in repentance, hating the things God hates and loving the things God loves, realizing that salvation IS Christ, not some ticket-out-of-hell. (see John chapter 6 and all of 1 John)

A good resource for this is Joseph Alleine's booklet on conversion here >
gracegems.org/28/alarm to the unconverted.htm

For those who understand and live the true Gospel i am inclined to say that manner of baptism isnt a make or break deal, b/c what it is is symbolic not regenerative.

in Christ,
flavio
 
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Brittanyeah

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... What I find the most interesting in your question is the idea that you are interested not in being a Christian but a Baptist. Don't get me wrong, I am a member of the Southern Baptist Church and was baptized by full immersion in a Missionary Baptist Church but before I was a Baptist I was a Christian and today the important portion of my Christian walk is not my walk with the Baptist Church, it is my walk and my service to my LORD and Master, Jesus the Christ. When I sign a letter I note that I am a Bond Servant, a slave, to my LORD, not to the Southern or the Missionary Baptist Associations.
... In short, why are you worried about such a thing? Are you not fully committed to Jesus?

Oh my I am not interested in becoming a baptist I already am (through being baptized my immersion), I just didn't know of this little rule. And why do you question my faith when all I did was ask a question on why we have to be immersed? I am fully committed to Him, and it has nothing to do with why I am curious about something I didn't know.
 
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Brittanyeah

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Simply put, because the Bible commands that all believers be baptized and baptism is one of two ordinances entrusted to the church.

Thank you, I believe your simple explanation is the most relevant to my actual question.



P.S. - I love your quote, I went to Bellevue my whole life until he died.
 
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Brittanyeah

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Please let me clear the air about something real quick - I am saved, this thread has nothing with to do with my salvation and I am 1000% positive on where I am going to spend eternity. But this question is out of curiosity of the Baptist denomination, that is all.
 
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arunma

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Brittanyeah, Ron (Mlqurgw) has it right. Baptism by sprinkling isn't baptism. The very word "baptism" is a transliteration of a Greek word that, if simply translated, means "immersion." Scripture is rather clear that all of the baptisms in the New Testament church were by immersion. More than that, they were all done to believers. So the form of baptism performed in paedobaptist churches isn't a valid baptism.

That being said, some credobaptist churches have been moving away from the practice of requiring baptism of adult members. The Baptist church I attended in college has recently started the process of changing its bylaws to allow people who were baptized as infants to become members without being baptized as adults. I am currently becoming a member of the non-denominational church I now attend, and this church allows people to become members without being baptized. At our membership class, our pastor gave a simple statement of his logic which I think is the best explanation I've ever heard. He said, "if Martin Luther or John Calvin walked into our church and wanted to become members, we wouldn't want to turn them away."

The truth is, many sound believers in both ancient and modern times believe that infant baptism is valid baptism. I don't share this view, but the problem is that Scripture doesn't speak as forcefully here as it does on other topics. And to be honest, I'll accept a Bible-believing member of a PCA church as a beloved brother in Christ long before I will accept a liberal member of an American Baptist Church who believes in a false gospel.

I find that the Didache is an excellent source of insight into some of the things we're commanded to do in scripture.

The Didache isn't inspired and it should never be a source of doctrine or put on an equal level with scripture, but it is helpful for providing historical context to scripture.

Unfortunately, most Christians have rejected it because we don't want to do anything that makes us look like we're condoning Catholicism.

I agree on the use of the Didache and other ancient documents in helping us to interpret Scripture, as long as they are never elevated to have the same authority as Scripture. They do make excellent commentaries on the Bible, if viewed in this light. And I say this as someone who is vehemently opposed to the apostate Catholic Church.
 
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Brittanyeah

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Brittanyeah, Ron (Mlqurgw) has it right. Baptism by sprinkling isn't baptism. The very word "baptism" is a transliteration of a Greek word that, if simply translated, means "immersion." Scripture is rather clear that all of the baptisms in the New Testament church were by immersion. More than that, they were all done to believers. So the form of baptism performed in paedobaptist churches isn't a valid baptism.

That being said, some credobaptist churches have been moving away from the practice of requiring baptism of adult members. The Baptist church I attended in college has recently started the process of changing its bylaws to allow people who were baptized as infants to become members without being baptized as adults. I am currently becoming a member of the non-denominational church I now attend, and this church allows people to become members without being baptized. At our membership class, our pastor gave a simple statement of his logic which I think is the best explanation I've ever heard. He said, "if Martin Luther or John Calvin walked into our church and wanted to become members, we wouldn't want to turn them away."

The truth is, many sound believers in both ancient and modern times believe that infant baptism is valid baptism. I don't share this view, but the problem is that Scripture doesn't speak as forcefully here as it does on other topics. And to be honest, I'll accept a Bible-believing member of a PCA church as a beloved brother in Christ long before I will accept a liberal member of an American Baptist Church who believes in a false gospel.



I agree on the use of the Didache and other ancient documents in helping us to interpret Scripture, as long as they are never elevated to have the same authority as Scripture. They do make excellent commentaries on the Bible, if viewed in this light. And I say this as someone who is vehemently opposed to the apostate Catholic Church.

Well thank you for your input :)
 
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Brittanyeah

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Baptism doesn't make you a Baptist, it is an outward expression of your faith in Jesus Christ. You are also baptized to become a member of some churches, if you haven't already been baptized elsewhere.

I know that it doesn't make me baptist? But I am a baptist and I had to be baptized to join my church.
 
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mlqurgw

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I am about as Baptist as they come but I differ with most in the fact that I find no one in the New Testament joining a local assembly. I find no church roles or membership lists in the Scriptures either. When one is born of God through the power of the Gospel of the free and sovereign grace of God in Christ he is a member of the church. He ought to place himself under a God called pastor to be instructed in the Word of God and the way of Christ but we don't become members of a local assembly by baptism. Baptism is a public identification with Christ and is not the door to the church Christ is. I am part of a local assembly because I regularly attend there and have placed myself under the authority of the local pastor. I need not make any pledges, sign any covenants, or adhere to any creeds in order to be a part of the church.
 
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PastorJim

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I am about as Baptist as they come but I differ with most in the fact that I find no one in the New Testament joining a local assembly.

See Acts 2:47.

I find no church rolls or membership lists in the Scriptures either.

I can think of several verses that talk about church membership but let me ask you this: given all that the New Testament says about church discipline, wouldn't membership be implicit in the fact that the God commands us to excommunicate unrepentant sinners?

I mean, it wouldn't make very much sense to excommunicate someone from a church who isn't a member of that church in the first place, would it?
 
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