In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus commands his followers to "go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit..." Baptism is the means by which followers of Christ are identified.

In passages such as Acts 2:41, 8:12, and 10:47-48, it is evident that baptism follows an individual's decision to trust Christ alone for salvation.

The New Testament records the baptisms of adult believers only. Baptism was never intended to provide salvation for an individual, but rather to publicly identify a person with Christ.

In Romans 6:1-11, the apostle Paul explains how the immersion mode of baptism identifies the believer with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Going under water represents Christ's death and coming out of the water illustrates His resurrection.

You do not have to be baptized to have Christ in your heart any more than you must exchange rings to be pronounced man and wife. But if the inner commitment to trust Christ alone for salvation has been made, then the public declaration of baptism should be as valued and as visible as the gold ring on a newlywed's finger.

Let me repeat a previous thought.

"If we could summarize the heartbeat of baptism it could be captured by the following statement…. "declaring to a watching world who needs to know."   It is a declaration of my faith in Jesus. It is a declaration of my new Christian beliefs. As well it is an invitation for "the watching world", to look at my life and identify me as a follower of Christ in my lifestyle.  It is a stake in the ground moment for the person being baptized."

When Jesus called people to be baptized I believe he was calling new believers who wanted to begin the journey of publicly identifying themselves as followers. It is our desire to help and encourage you in that direction as best as we know how.