How Baptism is Awkward and Awesome, and Why YOU Need To Experience It

Baptism is both awesome and awkward.  It’s an interesting thing!

Why would someone want to stand in a tank of water in front of a crowd of people, hold their nose, and allow themselves to be lowered backward into the water to be fully immersed, and then be pulled up and out again?  To some, that seems awkward.  And I can tell you some funny baptism stories that are hard to believe.

It sounds…different.  Because it is!  No one else but Jesus (and His church) asks us to do symbolically what really, truly happens literally at salvation.  Here’s where it’s awesome.  Jesus promises new life that takes place when the old life is buried, and the new “resurrected life” is initiated by salvation.   When you are baptized you are symbolizing death and burial to the old life (being lowered into the water), full immersion (being surrounded and filled with the Holy Spirit) and being raised up out of that water (resurrection to new life).

It’s an awesome picture of what happens when you come to faith in Christ. It’s an awesome experience to feel that happening, knowing what it means!  It’s awesome that the church and friends who gather celebrate this supernatural new life that’s occurred in you. It’s an awesome way for you to preach the Gospel to those who see it. It’s an awesome way to say, “I am not ashamed of Jesus!”   Ask those who’ve been baptized – they’ll say, “It was awesome!”

Who needs to be baptized?

1.  Those who have placed their faith in Christ for salvation – prayed for Him to save them from their sins – but who have not been immersed since then.

2.  This may mean those who were baptized as a young child, but had a genuine salvation experience later – and were never baptized since that experience.

3.  Those who were baptized as infants, but realize now that baptism symbolizes YOUR faith in Christ, not your parents or grandparents.

4.  Those who suddenly realize that they were in a process of learning to believe, but never have had that moment of full trust, and want it now!

5.  Those who were baptized after their salvation by some method other than immersion, which is the only biblical method of baptism.

Please don’t miss our awesome day of baptism at First Euless on July 24.  It’s an incredible time of celebration and joy!

If you’re interested in being baptized, let us know by e-mailing us at baptism@firsteuless.com or register online from this page:

http://www.firsteuless.com/notashamed/


(this article was originally written in 2014, and updated)