Being baptized into Jesus Christ is the single greatest event any person will ever have in life! It is the most important decision that any person will ever make in life! When someone says, “I want to be baptized,” there are some critical things for him/her to know, to understand and to do, in order for his/her baptism to truly be the baptism of which we read in the New Testament. (After all, why would anyone want any other baptism than the one in the New Testament, which is the only one approved by God?)
(For the purpose of this series of articles, we are going to assume that the person who wants to be baptized has heard about Jesus, is of accountable age and is desiring to be immersed in water. We are going to assume that the person has heard about the necessity of baptism and has expressed a strong desire to be baptized. For each of these elements, there is great joy.)
In Acts 8:36, there was a man who wanted to be baptized. Having been taught about Jesus (and obviously taught about baptism, as well), he saw a body of water and exclaimed, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” What a great desire! What a great question! He recognized there must be something he needed to know or needed to do before he could be baptized. And, he was right.
Before the man in Acts 8 could be baptized, there were some truths that he needed to understand. Before he could be baptized, there were some steps that he needed to take. Before he could be baptized, he needed to have a proper understanding of baptism from both the Scriptural and the personal perspective. Bible baptism is both a vital and urgent matter, but it must not be entered into without (1) proper Scriptural understanding, (2) deep personal reflection, and (3) strong rest-of-life devotion.
So, you want to be baptized? That is so wonderful! Here are some Biblical matters for you to consider; please make them personal to you.
To be a proper subject for Bible baptism and to properly obey this part of God’s plan, one must understand:
1. The all-authoritative nature of Scripture (God’s Word). The Bible is God’s inspired (2 Tim. 3:16), all-sufficient (2 Pet. 1:3), perfect (Jas. 1:25), complete (Rev. 22:18-19), unchanging (Psa. 119:89), unchangeable (Gal. 1:6-9), final (Jude 3) revelation of His divine will, which will judge us in the end (Matt. 28:18 + John 12:48). All that we do in word or in deed (which includes being baptized) must be done according to the authoritative name of Jesus Christ (Col. 3:17)! Our entrance into heaven depends on it (Matt. 7:21-23)!
Consider this matter carefully. (More next week.)