Pastoral
Care / Pastoral Details / Baptism
 BAPTISM - Taking a Closer Look
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all
the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new
disciples to obey all the commands I have given
you. And be sure of this: I am with you always,
even to the end of the age." - Matthew
28:19-20 (NLT)
Christ commanded the church to go into all the world, share the good news of the gospel with everyone, and then baptize those people who accepted Christ. At Grace we believe that baptism is the first step in connecting ourselves with Christ’s body, the church, and is our first step in following Him. That is why being baptized is one of the requirements of joining Grace Church. But even if you don’t join our membership, it is still God’s command to you as a believer to be baptized.
 WHAT IS THE MEANING OF BAPTISM?
1. It illustrates Christ’s burial and resurrection.
“…Christ died for our sins, just
as the Scriptures said. He was buried, and he was
raised from the dead on the third day, as the Scriptures
said.” - 1
Corinthians 15:3-4 (NLT)
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2. It illustrates our new relationship with Christ that we now have.
“ When someone becomes a Christian, he
becomes a brand new person inside. He is not the
same anymore. A new life has begun!”
2
Corinthians 5:17 (Living)
3. It visually demonstrates a spiritual event that occurs the moment we trust Christ as Savior – we were placed into the body of Christ by the Spirit and became united with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection.
“When we were baptized into his death,
we were placed into the tomb with him. As Christ
was brought back from death to life by the glorious
power of the Father, so we, too, should live a new
kind of life.”
Romans
6:4 (GW)
Baptism does not make you a believer – it shows that you already are a Christian. Baptism does not save you, only your faith in Christ does that. Baptism is exactly like a wedding ring – it is an outward symbol of a commitment we made in the past.
“God saved you through faith as an act
of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being
saved is a gift from God.” Ephesians
2:8 (GW)
 WHY BE BAPTIZED BY IMMERSION?
1. Because Jesus was baptized that way.
“As soon as Jesus was baptized, he came
up out of the water.”
Matthew
3:16 (TEV)
2. Every baptism in the Bible was by immersion.
(Example) “ He ordered the carriage to
stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip
baptized him” Acts 8:38
(NLT)
3. The Greek word for baptize, “baptizo” literally means “to dip under water”. This best symbolizes a burial and resurrection!
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 WHO SHOULD BE BAPTIZED?
Every person who has accepted Christ as Savior!
“Those who believed and accepted his message
were baptized…”
Acts
2:41
At Grace Church, we wait until our children are old enough to believe and understand the true meaning of baptism before we baptize them. Some churches practice a “baptism of confirmation” for children. This ceremony is intended to be a covenant between the parents and God where the parents promise to raise their child to know and serve the Lord. We practice this custom a different way, through our child dedication service. You can go to the child dedication service link for more information.
WHEN SHOULD I BE BAPTIZED?
As soon as you have believed!
“Those who believed…were baptized…that
day!”
Acts
2:41
There is no reason to delay. As soon as you have decided to receive Christ you should be baptized.
WHAT DO I NEED TO DO?
At
Grace Church, we require any adult baptism candidates
to go through our Class 101,
and we have separate classes for teens and children.
You can contact the church office to find out when
the next classes are being held. You can check the
Class 101 schedule for a convenient time for you to
take the class. You can then sign up at the Growth
Connection booth in the church foyer or by clicking
here to register online.
We hold baptism the fourth Saturday night of every
month following the 6:30pm service in the downstairs
part of the church.
If you have any other questions about baptism, feel free to contact the church office at 720-895-9000.
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