Baptism, the First Step in the Journey of Faith

When a child is born, it is such beautiful and joyful news as the life of the child has just begun. Everyone in the child’s life wishes for them to live healthily, safely and joyfully. In the same way, baptism is a joyful event in which we are born into a new life spiritually and begin our journey in the life of faith. Through the Bible we come to see the urgency and importance of baptism through the teachings of Jesus and the deeds of the Apostles.

Tomorrow is Not Guaranteed

Baptism is needed as the first step in our journey of faith to secure our salvation since we do not know what could take place at any moment in our life. The Bible has been teaching us about the fleeting nature of our lives since the Old Testament, and Jesus allowed us to realize how momentary our life is through a parable.

Proverbs 27:1 “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring.”

Luke 12:18-20 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’

We do not know when our lives will be demanded from us, that is why we should partake in baptism, the joyful ceremony in which our souls are born into new spiritual life. Throughout the Bible, there are no instances in which the apostles prolonged baptism, because they realized the teaching of Jesus was to baptize people first as the first step in their life of faith.

Matthew 28:19-20 “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. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Jesus and the Apostles Conducted Baptism Immediately

There are many examples of the apostles putting into practice the great commission of Jesus to make disciples by first baptizing them, so that they could then begin their journey of faith.

Acts 16:14-15 “One of those listening was a woman from the city of Thyatira named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. When she and the members of her household were baptized…”

Acts 8:34-38 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him.”

Acts 10:47-48 “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.”

According to the Bible, baptism is an urgent ceremony that should not be delayed, as it marks the joyous beginning of our life of faith. With this in mind, once we have recognized the Savior in the age of the Holy Spirit as the Spirit and the Bride, we should have the same mindset as the eunuch who believed that nothing should stand in the way of his baptism. Baptism is a precious opportunity from God to start a new spiritual life and follow Them to the Kingdom of Heaven.