Baptism is a physical expression of a spiritual decision that you have made to God. It demonstrates the new life you have received from the Holy Spirit as a result of your faith in Jesus. The Baptism ceremony is a symbolic metaphor of what has taken place as a result of your faith: a dying to your former life and a resurrection of a new godly life due to the indwelling of the Spirit which is now living within you and impelling you on to live holy. That’s what the Bible means when it talks of being born again. Before you were dead in your trespasses, but when you accepted Jesus through faith you became alive with Christ (Ephesians 2: 5). According to 1 Peter 3:21, baptism is a pledge of a good conscience before God. It’s also a command that Jesus gave His disciples to participate in.
The act of Baptism is an act of obedience after a person realizes their need for Christ and makes the decision to enter into a relationship with Him. Belief and faith in Jesus is the precondition for baptism according to Acts 8:37-38. For this reason Grace Bible Church does not perform baptisms on infant or small children as they cannot possibly grasp this realization. In actuality, when you read scripture, you will not find any examples of baptisms carried out on infants or small children.
For children, the biblical expression of giving your life to God has always been in the form of dedication (Exodus 13:2; 12-15; I Samuel 1:26-28; Luke 2:22,27; 18:15-17; Matthew 19:13-15; Mark 10:13-16).
GBC offers baptism at various times throughout the year. If you have a desire to follow after Christ’s example of water baptism, please refer to the weekly bulletin to learn when the next corporate Baptism will be provided or call the church office and ask for Jackie Endsley at (863) 382-1085, for more information.