Should I be baptized again?

[geaniebeanie]

Hi, newbie here! I was saved and baptized in the Friendship Southern Baptist church on June 22, 1986 when I was 10 years old. I was a follower of Christ all of my teenage years and into my twenties. Unfortunately, the devil got a hold of me and for years I was an idol worshiping Hindu. I realized the error of my ways early this year and have been repentant of my horrible sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior. Now I read and study my bible every single day without fail, pray daily, and am looking for a church to attend. My question is this: After back sliding for so many years, do I need to be baptized again?

 

[mickey30981]

Does the Baptist church teach in once saved always saved? If so, why would you need to be re baptized??

 

[abysmul]

Hi, newbie here! I was saved and baptized in the Friendship Southern Baptist church on June 22, 1986 when I was 10 years old. I was a follower of Christ all of my teenage years and into my twenties. Unfortunately, the devil got a hold of me and for years I was an idol worshiping Hindu. I realized the error of my ways early this year and have been repentant of my horrible sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior. Now I read and study my bible every single day without fail, pray daily, and am looking for a church to attend. My question is this: After back sliding for so many years, do I need to be baptized again?

If you feel like you want/need to, I see no reason not to.

 

[mickey30981]

If you feel like you want/need to, I see no reason not to.

Really? The bible says you can only be born again once. Since baptism does nothing, why should he do it again.

No challenge here, honestly. Just curious.

 

[miamited]

Hi gb,

Well, I believe that if this matter is gnawing at you, that it may likely be the Holy Spirit. I can't find any Scriptural testimony that anyone is forbidden from having a second baptism. What I do know is that Jesus said one must be baptized and believe. Since you explain that you fell away and are only now convicted to read and pore over the Scriptures, it's possible that you didn't have the 'belief' that Jesus was speaking of, but now do.

Your story is exactly what happened to me and I was baptized a second time.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

 

[mickey30981]

Hi gb,

Well, I believe that if this matter is gnawing at you, that it may likely be the Holy Spirit. I can't find any Scriptural testimony that anyone is forbidden from having a second baptism. What I do know is that Jesus said one must be baptized and believe. Since you explain that you fell away and are only now convicted to read and pore over the Scriptures, it's possible that you didn't have the 'belief' that Jesus was speaking of, but now do.

Your story is exactly what happened to me and I was baptized a second time.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

Sounds good! I appreciate that too. The only thing is how does one have assurance that they actually have the belief that Jesus is speaking about. Thanks again!!

 

[miamited]

Really? The bible says you can only be born again once. Since baptism does nothing, why should he do it again.

No challenge here, honestly. Just curious.

Hi mickey,

That's true and so the obvious question is: Has that person been born again once? Do you know whether she has? Or are you trusting that being born again just means you said a few words and took a bath?

When I read Jesus' words to us about that day when many stand before him crying out "Lord, Lord! Did we not do great miracles in your name and in your name drive out demons?" That most of those people said a few words and took a bath. When one is considering the ways of a child, then one must think as a child. At the age of 10 you or I or anyone for that matter, don't really have any idea what motivated this young child to say that she trusted in Jesus. Many children do it because their parents encourage it. Many do because they've been to VBS or small group and they notice that it seems to garner great attention and pats on the back because little suzie accepted Jesus today.

She will do whatever seems right in her heart to do, but I would never discourage anyone from getting baptized unless it's just a monthly or yearly thing they feel they need to do. When I consider that someone who is 10 was baptized and now today has real questions about whether they should be baptized then I will encourage that. There is certainly no condemnation in the Scriptures against it.

Honestly, why anyone would discourage a second baptism for someone who now thinks differently about who God is and finds a real desire to know Him through His word, I just don't understand. You don't know her heart. You don't know if, as Jesus said, she had true belief before she was baptized. You don't have any idea what her personal motivation may have been to be baptized at that young age.

My son was also baptized about that age and I have already sat down with him and told him that if his understanding of God should ever change; if he were to ever feel that he may not have actually believed what his Father and the Son have asked of him and thinks that it has changed what he believes, that he should have no qualms about being baptized again.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

 

[Sophrosyne]

Hi, newbie here! I was saved and baptized in the Friendship Southern Baptist church on June 22, 1986 when I was 10 years old. I was a follower of Christ all of my teenage years and into my twenties. Unfortunately, the devil got a hold of me and for years I was an idol worshiping Hindu. I realized the error of my ways early this year and have been repentant of my horrible sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior. Now I read and study my bible every single day without fail, pray daily, and am looking for a church to attend. My question is this: After back sliding for so many years, do I need to be baptized again?

I say go ahead and do it if you feel urged to. The bible doesn't say you forfeit anything by not being baptized and baptists tend to practice believers baptism of which your first instance doesn't seem to be related to faith in Jesus at all making it not such.

 

[miamited]

Sounds good! I appreciate that too. The only thing is how does one have assurance that they actually have the belief that Jesus is speaking about. Thanks again!!

Hi mickey,

Well, that is something that only the person themselves can answer. Obviously, this person, in now beginning to read the Scriptures is finding that she may not have had it at the age of 10. As I say, why would anyone discourage re-baptism? Is there something I'm missing in the Scriptures that would bring condemnation from God for such a practice?

However, to give some answer to your question, I'll share my own experience. I was baptized as a young child. My grandfather was a pastor all of his life and yes, I stood before a congregation and said that I was trusting in Jesus and then down under I went. Then I went out and lived my life like hell's demons. Sure, I continued to go to worship services and I went to summer youth camp, etc. etc. But, I absolutely did not have any thoughts or love for God or His Son or His Spirit or His word in my life. I had just been baptized and when I was filling out a questionnaire of some kind I always checked off 'christian' and if anyone asked my, yea, I was a Christian but I based that on the very fact that I had made that proclamation and been baptized. So, I'm a Christian, right?

Well, when I was about 40 my Father put a serious whoppin' on my heart and I realized that I'd been living a lie for the last 30 years. I didn't love Jesus. I wasn't really trusting him. I was just a man who was a Christian because I'd once given testimony to that fact and been baptized.

I got down on my knees and I asked God to forgive me for my sin and to give me an unquenchable thirst to know Him because I now believed that the testimony, all of it, that He had caused men to write for me, was the truth. Since that time I also dealt with a regular and severe gnawing in my spirit that I needed to be baptized. It gnawed and gnawed on me for several years before I finally gave in. The issue has never come up again in my spirit.

As I said before, only the person themselves knows in their heart what they believe about God, but I'm pretty confident that most of those standing before Jesus on the day of God's judgment begging him to remember them, will be people who, one day in their life, stood and said that they trusted in him and were then baptized. This is why Jesus says that the baptism must be coupled with belief and even goes further in saying that if they don't have belief then their baptism is worthless.

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

So yes, I believe that there are false baptisms. The OP seems to be experiencing a gnawing in her heart that hers may have not been the kind of baptism that Jesus describes. A baptism coupled with belief. So, let's look at the possibilities. She was baptized but didn't truly believe. Jesus says there is condemnation in that. She was baptized but didn't truly believe and now truly believes and is baptized. Is there condemnation for that?

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

 

[mickey30981]

Hi mickey,

That's true and so the obvious question is: Has that person been born again once? Do you know whether she has? Or are you trusting that being born again just means you said a few words and took a bath?

When I read Jesus' words to us about that day when many stand before him crying out "Lord, Lord! Did we not do great miracles in your name and in your name drive out demons?" That most of those people said a few words and took a bath. When one is considering the ways of a child, then one must think as a child. At the age of 10 you or I or anyone for that matter, don't really have any idea what motivated this young child to say that she trusted in Jesus. Many children do it because their parents encourage it. Many do because they've been to VBS or small group and they notice that it seems to garner great attention and pats on the back because little suzie accepted Jesus today.

She will do whatever seems right in her heart to do, but I would never discourage anyone from getting baptized unless it's just a monthly or yearly thing they feel they need to do. When I consider that someone who is 10 was baptized and now today has real questions about whether they should be baptized then I will encourage that. There is certainly no condemnation in the Scriptures against it.

Honestly, why anyone would discourage a second baptism for someone who now thinks differently about who God is and finds a real desire to know Him through His word, I just don't understand. You don't know her heart. You don't know if, as Jesus said, she had true belief before she was baptized. You don't have any idea what her personal motivation may have been to be baptized at that young age.

My son was also baptized about that age and I have already sat down with him and told him that if his understanding of God should ever change; if he were to ever feel that he may not have actually believed what his Father and the Son have asked of him and thinks that it has changed what he believes, that he should have no qualms about being baptized again.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

Thank you!! Sounds good! What you are saying then is that you can just assume youre saved, but if you have doubts, confess and commit. But then you really don't know for sure though, so we just have to trust in Christ.

God bless, yours in Christ.

 

[miamited]

Thank you!! Sounds good! What you are saying then is that you can just assume youre saved, but if you have doubts, confess and commit. But then you really don't know for sure though, so we just have to trust in Christ.

God bless, yours in Christ.

Hi mickey,

Well, no, that's not really what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that mickey doesn't know this person's heart. I don't know this person's heart. Only God knows their heart and it would seem that God, through His Spirit is causing some angst in her mind that her baptism at the age of 10 wasn't a valid baptism based on the words of His Son.

Therefore, if the Spirit is pricking her to consider this, she should. And if the Spirit is pricking her to consider this, then there's really only one reason that I can think of that he would.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

 

[jmcorn]

Charles Stanley has some really good messages on reasons for believing in eternal security.

 

[mickey30981]

Charles Stanley has some really good messages on reasons for believing in eternal security.

thank you. but does that include knowing one is saved from he outset? What I am hearing eternal security does not sound so secure.

 

[jmcorn]

thank you. but does that include knowing one is saved from he outset? What I am hearing eternal security does not sound so secure.

He also has some sermons on that topic. How to be certain that you are saved.

 

[americanvet]

Hi, newbie here! I was saved and baptized in the Friendship Southern Baptist church on June 22, 1986 when I was 10 years old. I was a follower of Christ all of my teenage years and into my twenties. Unfortunately, the devil got a hold of me and for years I was an idol worshiping Hindu. I realized the error of my ways early this year and have been repentant of my horrible sins and have accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior. Now I read and study my bible every single day without fail, pray daily, and am looking for a church to attend. My question is this: After back sliding for so many years, do I need to be baptized again?

If you feel the need to then do so. But as far as need I don't think so.