BEGINNING TO WALK AS A DISCIPLE:
BAPTISM PREPARATION GUIDE
What is becoming a Christian? It is accepting God’s free gift of salvation by repenting of your sin and believing in Jesus. It is confessing Jesus as Lord and choosing to follow him as his disciple. Therefore, becoming a Christian means that a person has come to have faith in Jesus, and they are committing to a life of following Jesus as his disciple. The tangible step of faith into the life of a disciple is baptism.
This guide will explain what baptism is, explain who should be baptized, help prepare someone to be baptized, and introduce some next steps after baptism.
PART 1: WHAT IS BAPTISM?
PRACTICALLY, BAPTISM IS being immersed in water.
ACTS 8:36-38
And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.
BAPTISM IS a picture of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection and our union with Jesus in this through faith.1
BAPTISM IS an outward demonstration of one’s inner faith. We are
saved by grace through faith, not by works. Therefore, baptism is not a work that earns salvation, it’s an act of obedience to Jesus that proceeds from faith. Genuine faith will usually be displayed at conversion through repentance of sin, confession of faith, and obedience to baptism. Baptism is not a magical ceremony where the water has the power to save someone. Unless someone has faith, the act of being immersed in water is not genuine baptism as described in the Bible.
BAPTISM WAS normative in the New Testament. Jesus told his disciples to make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to obey Jesus’ teaching.2 In New Testament, when someone believed in Jesus and began to follow him, they didn’t sign a piece of paper, pray a prayer, or raise their hand in a church service—they were baptized.3 In fact, the early church could scarcely imagine the concept of an unbaptized Christian. Additionally, baptism was not delayed to a later time. New believers were baptized at the soonest opportunity.4
PART 2: WHO SHOULD BE BAPTIZED?
Someone who believes the gospel of Jesus Christ, repents of sin and confesses Jesus as their Lord, should be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
BELIEVE THE GOSPEL
To become a Christian, you don’t need a complete intellectual understanding of everything in the Bible. You don’t necessarily need to have read the whole Bible. You don’t need to have read all of First Steps! However, you do have to believe the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The gospel that we looked at in Step 3 can be summarized with the following key points from Romans:
ROMANS 3:23-25
...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith....
ROMANS 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
ROMANS 5:8
...but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
ROMANS 6:4
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.
ROMANS 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
ROMANS 10:9
...because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Do you believe that Jesus is the embodiment of the one true God and the world’s True King (the Christ)?
Do you believe that you have sinned and deserve just punishment from God?
Do you believe that Jesus died on the cross for your sins? Do you believe that Jesus rose from the dead?
REPENT OF SIN
In Acts 2, the Apostle Peter preached the gospel to a large crowd in Jerusalem.
ACTS 2:37-38
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
This echoed Jesus’ gospel message:
MARK 1:14-15
Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
The word repent means to change your mind and heart about the direction of your life. It means to make a 180o turn away from sin and towards God. Alongside faith in the gospel and confessing Jesus as Lord, repentance involves a change of loyalty. A Christian is no longer loyal to sin, but gives complete allegiance to Jesus.
We don’t repent once, and from that point on never sin again. Instead, becoming a Christian involves a lifetime of repentance. Each time we stray from following Jesus’ way, we repent and return to following him.
Do you repent of your sins?
The Bible teaches that there is one true God. Becoming a Christian means believing this truth. Therefore, we must also repent of false gods and false religions. Giving ourselves fully to God and the Lord Jesus, we must no longer worship, pray to, honor, or participate with false gods. We should get rid of idols and other religious items.
2 CORINTHIANS 6:14-16
Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God....
Do you repent of false gods, false religions, and false religious activities?
Do you believe in the one true God, Creator of all things?
CONFESS JESUS AS LORD
ROMANS 10:9
...because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
The gospel is the good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection, which declares him to be the world’s True King through whom God is rescuing the world. The shortest summary of this gospel is the confession “Jesus Christ our Lord.”5 To confess Jesus as Lord means to confess that Jesus is your True King, the ruler, and supreme authority in your life.
Anyone who seeks to follow Jesus must follow him as Lord—meaning Jesus is the boss of your life. Therefore, we must deny ourselves (I am not the boss) and obey Jesus in all he commands.
LUKE 9:23
“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”
Do you confess Jesus Christ as your Lord?
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE OF THE SON, AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Jesus commanded us to be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.6
There is only one God who exists in three persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. Christians refer to God’s triune nature by the word Trinity. Though the word “Trinity” is not in the Bible, the doctrine of the Trinity is found throughout the Bible.7
Each member of the Trinity works in our salvation:
God the Father planned salvation in eternity past, made us, loves us, chose us to be his children, and sent his Son and Spirit to accomplish our salvation.
God the Son accomplished salvation in history when he became a man, lived a sinless life, died in our place for our sins, and rose from the dead to save us, ascended to heaven, and sent the Spirit to be with us.
God the Holy Spirit applies salvation to individuals. He was sent by the Father and the Son to make our dead hearts alive by convicting us of sin and granting belief in Jesus, and dwells in every believer.
Because God is three in one, God is love. At the very core of his nature, God is a perfect and loving community.
God’s triune nature is not something that we must fully understand—indeed, we cannot. It is something we believe because that is what the Bible teaches.
Do you believe in one God who exists in three persons--the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit?
If you answered yes to all the questions in Part 2, then you should be obedient to Jesus in baptism.
Do you want to be baptized and walk in newness of life?
PART 3: WHAT DOES BAPTISM SYMBOLIZE?
Read the following passages and brief explanations before your baptism (or after your baptism if you are being baptized today!) to enrich your experience.
ROMANS 6:3-4, 6, 9-11
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.
We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.
We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Baptism shows we died to sin with Christ. This has at least two applications: on the one hand, our old self, which could never stop sinning, has been killed and buried with Jesus. So now we have the freedom to stop constantly sinning. But, on the other hand, every day, we must consider ourselves dead to sin and continuously strive to kill any sinful thoughts and actions that remain in us.8
Baptism shows we were raised to life with Christ. We are no longer dead and broken but raised up, given new life, and completely recreated by God.9 We are to live to God, which means striving to honor, please, and obey God every moment of our life.
ACTS 2:38
“Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Baptism shows our sins have been forgiven. Every sin we have ever committed and every sin we will ever commit has been forgiven and erased by God.
ISAIAH 1:18
“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.”
Baptism shows we have received the Holy Spirit. When we become a Christian, God gives us an amazing gift: his Holy Spirit comes to live inside of us. God’s Spirit brings our dead soul to life,10 helps us to know God’s love,11 helps us to stop sinning,12 empowers us for service,13 and is a guarantee that we will inherit eternal life.14
GALATIANS 3:26-29
...for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
Baptism shows that we are God’s children. It points to our union with Jesus Christ and our adoption as God’s child through him. In Jesus, we have the full access and privileges of a son or daughter in their father’s house. You are a true child of God.
Baptism shows that we are members of God’s family. Every Christian throughout all history, regardless of social status and nationality, is a member of God’s one worldwide church family. 15
PART 4: FOLLOWING JESUS AND CHURCH COMMUNITY
Becoming a Christian is not the final step. It is only the beginning of a lifelong journey of following Jesus as a disciple. After you are baptized, there are two essential steps to take.
FOLLOWING JESUS
Learning to follow Jesus as his disciple is a process. Consider all that was discussed in Step 5 and how you can grow each day to be with Jesus, become like Jesus, and join him in his work. One great way to start that process is by reading and discussing Next Steps with another Christian.16
CHURCH COMMUNITY
Following Jesus is meant to be done in a community of Christians. If you are not already a part of a church, find a Biblically faithful, local church community and commit to it.
NEXT STEPS
Becoming a Christian is not the end of the journey—it is the beginning! The Christian life is a journey of walking with Jesus, becoming like Jesus, and joining Jesus in his work. In other words, living as a Christian means living as a disciple of Jesus.
Christian disciples practice being with Jesus through reading God’s Word, the Bible, prayer, and praising God. Disciples pursue being formed into Christ’s likeness by devoting themselves to Christ’s teaching, Christian fellowship, and Biblical spiritual habits. Disciples join the work that Jesus is doing in the world by making disciples, showing mercy, and working at their vocation for God’s glory.
Next Steps is a practical guide that builds on First Steps. It explores these life-long goals of discipleship to Jesus—be with Jesus, become like Jesus, and join Jesus in his work.
1 Romans 6:3-4
2 Matthew 28:19
3 Acts 2:41, 8:12-13, 8:36-38, 9:18, 10:47-48, 16:15, 16:33, 18:8, 19:5.
4 Acts 2:38-41, 8:36-38, 16:33.
5 Romans 1:4
6 Matthew 28:19
7 Matthew 3:16-17, 28:19-20, Luke 10:21-22, John 3:34-35, 15:26, Romans 8:3-4, 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 2 Corinthians 13:14, Galatians 4:6, Ephesians 3:14-17, Titus 3:4-6
8 Colossians 3:5
9 2 Corinthians 5:17
10 John 6:63
11 Romans 5:5
12 Philippians 2:13
13 1 Corinthians 12:1
14 Ephesians 1:14
15 1 Corinthians 12:13
16 This resource is available in print or online here.