If you’ve ever watched someone get dunked underwater at church while a room full of people cheered and thought, “What exactly is happening right now?” you’re asking a very reasonable question.
Water baptism is a public way of showing that you’ve decided to follow Jesus. Going under the water and coming back up symbolizes leaving your old life behind and beginning a new life with Him.
Christians have been baptizing people for nearly 2,000 years, and Jesus Himself was baptized. But if you didn’t grow up around church, the whole thing can land pretty firmly in the “Umm, okay?” category of your brain.
So what is baptism? Why water? Does it actually do anything? And why would someone choose to get baptized?
Here’s what’s going on.
Who Started Water Baptism?
Water baptism didn’t start with Christianity. Religious washing was already part of Jewish life, but John the Baptist is the person who introduces baptism into the story of Jesus.
John was a preacher, Jesus’ cousin, and a guy who spent a lot of time standing in a river telling people to change their lives because God was about to do something big. He baptized people in the Jordan River as a public sign that they were turning away from sin and getting ready for the Savior God had promised.
Matthew says John was fulfilling something the prophet Isaiah had written centuries earlier:
Listen! It’s the voice of someone shouting, “Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord! Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God!” Isaiah 40:3 NLT
Basically, John’s job was to get people ready for Jesus. And then Jesus showed up at the river.
Jesus asked John to baptize Him. John was understandably confused. He thought Jesus should be baptizing him. But Jesus insisted, and John baptized Him in the Jordan River.
So while John didn’t invent baptism, he helped give the practice the meaning Christians recognize today. He used baptism to point people toward Jesus. Then Jesus stepped into the water Himself and eventually asked His followers to keep doing it.
Read the full story of Jesus’ baptism here.
Why Do Christians Make a Big Deal About Water Baptism?
Christians make a big deal about baptism because Jesus did. He was baptized Himself; He told His followers to baptize others, and baptism became a way for people to publicly show that they had decided to follow Him. So why do Christians get baptized?
1. Jesus Was Baptized
This one is pretty simple. Jesus was baptized, and following Jesus means learning to live the way He did. Getting baptized is one way Christians follow His example.
2. Jesus Told His Followers to Baptize People
Before Jesus left His followers, He told them to go into the world, make disciples, and baptize them (Matthew 28:19-20). That’s why Christians are still doing this nearly 2,000 years later. Baptism isn’t just a weird church tradition. It’s something Jesus specifically asked His followers to do.
3. Baptism Shows What Jesus Has Done for You
This is where the whole going underwater thing starts to make more sense. Baptism is a picture of Jesus’ death and resurrection. When someone goes under the water, it represents Jesus going into the grave and their old life being left behind. When they come back up, it represents Jesus rising from the dead and the new life they have because of Him.
Paul, one of the earliest Christian leaders, described it this way:
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. Romans 6:4 ESV
The water isn’t what makes someone a Christian. It’s a visible way of showing what they believe Jesus has already done in their life.
How does water baptism actually work?
How Does Water Baptism Actually Work?
Water baptism is pretty simple: a person is lowered into water and brought back up as a public expression of their decision to follow Jesus.
Exactly how that happens depends on the church. Some churches baptize by fully immersing someone in water, while others pour or sprinkle water over them. Some baptize infants, while others practice baptism after a person is old enough to decide for themselves that they want to follow Jesus.
The approach we’re describing in this article is often called believer’s baptism. A person chooses to be baptized after deciding to follow Jesus and is briefly lowered under the water before being brought back up.
There’s usually some cheering involved, too. Baptism is meant to be a celebration. Someone is publicly saying, “I’ve decided to follow Jesus,” and inviting other people to celebrate that decision with them.
At my church, water baptism looks like this:
- People who are going to be baptized often invite many of their family and friends to be part of this fun celebration. As with all of our services, everyone is welcome.
- As the band begins to lead us in worship, everyone who’s prepared for baptism climbs into a pool.
- Then, while the church is singing and worshiping, each person in the pool is baptized one at time by a pastor, family member, or friend who briefly, carefully, lowers them into the water and lifts them back up.
- There’s a lot of fun cheering and clapping, and just a tangible sense of joy in the room.
- There are other simple logistics and details involved, but these are the main pieces.
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Some reasons people think about getting baptized:
If you’re reading this and you’re wondering if you should get baptized, then hopefully some of these reasons will be helpful as you make your personal decision to go public with your faith.
- You’ve decided to follow Jesus but you’ve never been baptized. As we said earlier, we don’t believe baptism is a requirement of knowing and following Jesus, but it’s something He asked us to do. If you’ve committed to follow Jesus and you haven’t yet been baptized, then now is a great time to think about taking that next step.
- You were baptized but you didn’t make the decision yourself. Sometimes people who were baptized as infants, or when the decision wasn’t theirs to make, decide they’d like to get baptized again, this time by declaring their own intention to make Jesus known.
- You got baptized but it was a while ago or at another church. Baptism isn’t something you need to keep doing. It’s a one-time public declaration of your faith. But that doesn’t need to stop you from sharing your faith every day in other ways. Also, here’s more about what to do after baptism.
So what then?
Water baptism is a symbolic and powerful way to show who God made you to be by doing what Jesus asked you to do.
Water baptism was made known by someone whose God-given identity was to proclaim Jesus to people and clear a way for Him. Did you know that if you’re a Jesus follower you have that same identity? Before Jesus went back to be with God, His father, He shared these words for His followers:
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. …” Matthew 28:19-20 NIV
Water baptism is a symbolic and powerful way to be who God made you to be. Are you ready?