By Matt Haste

What do we believe?

We believe that baptism is a public identification with the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

Why do we believe this?

Romans 6:3-4 – Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 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.

Why does it matter?

God commands believers to be baptized because He wants us to publicly identify with Jesus. Faith is, by its very nature, a personal thing. But the Bible never teaches that it is to remain private. Baptism is one way that God has commanded for us to tell others about our faith.

Public identifications are important in our world. Like many of you probably do, I wear a wedding band. My wife gave it to me on the day that we committed ourselves to one another in marriage. The band itself has no magical qualities. Sometimes I take it off when I am working or washing my hands. In those moments, I do not return to bachelorhood. The ring itself has no power. It doesn’t make me a husband. It announces that I am. It publicly identifies me as a husband who is committed to faithfully loving his wife.

Baptism is similarly significant. It does not transform you into something that you are not. Instead, it tells others who you are and, more importantly, Who you are committed to in this life. Have you ever thought about baptism in this way? How does this truth make baptism more significant to you?