What We Believe About Baptism

We are excited that you are interested in baptism. We believe that baptism is an important step of obedience for every person who has accepted Christ as his or her Savior.

Christians believe that the blood of Jesus Christ, shed on the cross, provides the sole basis for the forgiveness of sin. Therefore, salvation occurs only when a person places his or her faith in the death and resurrection of Christ as the sufficient payment for his or her sin.

If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, then you are ready to be baptized. Just like a bride and groom show others their love for one another by wearing wedding bands, your baptism is your opportunity to show others that you have accepted Christ and are now walking with Him.

If you have any questions about how to begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, check out How To Become A Christian or contact  us at info@fbcclinton.org.

What Baptism Symbolizes

Baptism is a way of showing others that you have entered into a relationship with Jesus Christ. It symbolizes what took place in your heart at the time of salvation:

  • Accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
  • Shared in His death and resurrection, illustrated by going under the water (dead to your old life), then rising again (new life).
  • Were symbolically washed clean, and sins were forgiven by His death on the cross.

Because Jesus instructed us to be baptized, baptism is an act of obedience. While it is not necessary for salvation, it demonstrates submission to God. We immerse at First Baptist because we believe Scripture shows that Jesus modeled that for us as the way to publicly acknowledge our faith in Him.

Some denominations choose to christen infants. While we recognize the right of other churches to practice infant christening, we understand Scripture to teach that only professing believers qualify for baptism. Baptism does not make you a believer, rather it shows that you already believe.

The Baptism Process
The baptism process at First Baptist has been designed to be both simple and meaningful. From the communication card to the baptism, each step has been carefully planned with you in mind:

  1. Complete a Communication Card indicating your decision to follow Christ in believer’s baptism and give it to the Pastor or one of our Ministers during or following one of our worship services.
  2. When we receive your card, the church office will contact you to schedule your baptism and to set up a time to video your testimony.
  3. We will send you a letter confirming the date of your baptism, and the date, time and instructions for filming your testimony.
  4. Get baptized! Baptisms take place during one of the Sunday services and include a showing of your prerecorded video.

We consider it a privilege to walk with you as you take this next step on your spiritual journey.

For questions, please contact us at info@fbcclinton.org.