Why do we baptize?

On Bank Holiday Sunday we baptized three people who wanted to declare their faith in Jesus Christ.

This involves being sent backwards under water and then brought back up again. It all seems rather bizarre! Why not just give them a handshake and a certificate?

The reason is because baptism is symbolic of a number of things. If it was only a declaration of faith then a handshake would probably do (actually in our church it’s more likely to be a hug!) However, there are at least two things in the ritual which are important. Firstly, we use water to represent the truth that Jesus, through His death, has cleansed us of all our guilt. Whatever a person may have done, Jesus has taken the punishment on the cross and they are declared ‘not guilty’. (It could be argued that this means we can do as much evil as we like because Jesus will forgive us. However no real Christian thinks like that. Anyone thinking like that has not really appreciated what Jesus has done and is probably a phoney).

Secondly the motion of going under the water and being brought back declares death and resurrection. It says that we believe that Jesus died as a punishment for our guilt and then was raised to declare that He had done it and we can be forgiven. Because He rose from the dead, all who belong to Him will be raised from the dead too. 1 Corinthians 15 promises that the day will come when Jesus raises His people, gives them new bodies and then we will live with Him forever.

Revelation 21: 1-7 speaks about the good things which we can look forward to. However the next verse warns that, for those who refuse Jesus, there is only eternal punishment. Jesus has made it possible for us to have eternal life, but He is the only one who can give this.