Posts Tagged ‘baptism’
I’m concerned that my 15-year-old still doesn’t want to be baptized
Question: My husband and I both attended Christian colleges and are life-long members of the church of Christ. We have two children, ages 12 and 15, who we have faithfully taken to church since they were babies. They are now both very involved in the church youth group. I am concerned about my 15-year-old…
Read MoreHow do you get added to Jesus Christ’s church?
Question: How do you get added to Jesus Christ’s church? Answer: “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. … So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and…
Read MoreWhat does water do when getting baptized?
Question: I was asked a question, which is, “What does water do when getting baptized?” How can I answer this scripturally? Thank you. Answer: It gets you wet. “Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience — through…
Read MoreWhere are Gentiles commanded to be saved by baptism?
Question: I had not visited this site in a while, and ran upon it, along with our correspondence, recently. I noticed that your last comment has an interesting conclusion, and I quote “You claim that the Philippian jailer was not baptized”. This claim never was, nor ever has been made by me. I conclude that he…
Read MoreDeath Bed Repentance
by David J. Riggs A neighbor lady who had become a rather close friend to my wife, came into our home and said, “Do you believe in death-bed repentance?” This was not the first time I had been required to give an answer on this topic. My answer is, “I believe in one kind of…
Read MoreHow can I get baptized? My father is a Muslim and won’t allow it
Question: I don’t know if you will be able to reply to this, but I hope you will and I will try anyway. I’m a 14-year-old girl who has a Muslim dad. I want to give my life to Christ. I found a site a few years ago that said if I prayed the sinner’s…
Read MoreWe wanted to share what happened to us
Question: Thank you so much for all your help and teaching. My husband and I left the Southern Baptist church last week and joined the church of Christ in our area. The church of Christ was having a tent gospel meeting beside the lake my husband I were fishing at. and we overheard the preacher…
Read MoreYour article on circumcision helped me understand the importance of baptism as a sign of the covenant
Question: Our Sunday School group is studying the book of Romans. In searching for a deeper understanding of why God told Abraham to circumcise his household, I came across your article on circumcision. I feel the article was very helpful to me to understand this sign of the covenant that God made with Abraham. And I…
Read MoreWas my friend wrong to be baptized even though it was after curfew?
Question: My friend possibly had to break the town curfew to be baptized. Is this an Acts 5:29 issue or a Romans 3:8 issue? I have a feeling I’m taking that a bit too seriously, but the law is the law. Although I doubt that law was created to stop youths from going to a…
Read MoreWas baptism nailed to the cross?
Question: I’ve been discussing baptism with someone and the essentiality of water but the person was saying to me something about progressive gospel and how baptism was a ritual and all rituals and things of that nature have been nailed to the cross and such we don’t have to do them including baptism, so could…
Read MoreWhat if you continued with your sin after baptism?
Question: What if you continued with your sin after the baptism of water? Do you still need to be baptized again? Answer: The proper question is whether you repented of your sins before you were baptized. Some people do want to become Christians, but they are not interested in giving up some of their sins.…
Read MoreCan a person be baptized correctly by someone who doesn’t teach the whole truth?
Question: I have a few questions for you. One is regarding your answer: “Does a person leaving the Christian Church need to be baptized again?” about a person leaving the Christian Church. I talked to a preacher who is in a bit of conflict with a person who left the Christian Church on the same…
Read MoreShould I wait to be baptized?
Question: I am a new convert. I converted about 6 months ago, but I have been always curious about God and learning about Jesus. The only problem is that I’m not baptized through the waters yet. I still know that the Holy Spirit is with me and I can carry (at least to me )…
Read MoreBeing Made New
https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/BeingMadeNew.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Isaiah 42:1-12 I. It is that time of year when we begin thinking about the new year. A. Sure, it is just a date, a marker in the sand, but it becomes an opportunity to look at what was done and resolve to do better. B. Paul talked about that in…
Read MoreDoes a person leaving the Christian Church need to be baptized again?
Question: What is your thinking (based on Scripture) on a situation where someone has been baptized in the Christian Church but says they were baptized for the remission of sins and they want to place membership in the church of Christ? Do they need to be baptized again? The argument is that we are placing…
Read MoreCan two non-Christians, involved in adultery, be baptized?
Question: I want to hear about your views on this particular topic. There’s this man who is married with kids. He had some problems with his wife — she being aggressive and abusive. He met another woman while he was still married to his wife and had sexual relations with her. He eventually divorced his…
Read MoreI somehow lost my love
Question: I go to a church of Christ. Lately, something has been telling me I need to get myself right and that I need to get baptized again for the right reason, but over the years I lost how to love and believe and how to let him in my heart. My conscience keeps telling…
Read MoreWhy can’t my sister get baptized?
Question: In a second marriage where a non-Christian is wanting to become a Christian but was divorced for reasons other than adultery, is the sin the adultery or the remarriage? I am asking this in the context of repenting. Do you repent of the adultery in this second marriage or repent of the divorce and remarriage and…
Read MoreBaptism: The Re-Enactment of the Gospel
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton
Read MoreShould I be baptized again because I didn’t fully understand what baptism was about?
Question: I was re-baptized by a minister in the church of Christ because a brother said that if I was not baptized for the remission of sin then my previous baptism was not valid. Now I have many doubts because I feel that I accepted this baptism as a sacrament of sorts, like a ritual that…
Read MoreHow can Paul die with Christ if Christ is living?
Question: I am confused about “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20 NLT). Isn’t God the living God?…
Read MoreWill baptism cleanse me?
Question: I have just recently joined the church and am going to be baptized soon. I have been worried lately because I have had premarital sex (and I am not married now), and I want very desperately to find a way to cleanse myself. I feel very guilty about what I did, and I pray…
Read MoreWhat if you feel that a particular church is not suitable for you?
Question: What are the suggestions if one cannot afford monetarily to attend church, or feels that a particular church is not suitable for him? If he does private bible study, is this enough? Does he have to go through the baptism ceremony? If a Christian continues to study other religions and philosophies, is this against…
Read MoreWhen did baptism for the remission of sins start?
Question: In the “Articles” section, under Baptism, “Answering Arguments Against Baptism”. You state that “Baptism for the remission of sins did not begin until the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:37-38), so the thief (and Jesus) lived under the law of Moses.” Please read Mark 1:4: “John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism…
Read MoreWhat if I did not repent before I was baptized?
Question: Hello, I was baptized as a teenager. It is only now, over twenty years later, that I have repented. I just “got” what repentance truly means after committing many sins! Does this mean I was not saved when I was baptized — was it in vain? Do I need to be baptized now? Here…
Read MoreDo I have to divorce my husband in order to be baptized?
Question: I was married to a man who would not make love, have sex, or be intimate with me. He said he preferred to masturbate and fantasize about my sister, neighbors, and the neighbor’s mother. This greatly distressed me. He was also abusive, holding a gun up to my head threatening to kill me. He was…
Read MoreDoes receiving the Holy Spirit mean baptism in water is unnecessary?
Question: I have another friend that believes you don’t need water baptism because once you believe that’s when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and that’s when you’re baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. She gave me theses Scriptures: Acts 11:14-16, Acts 11:47-48, Matthew 3:11-15, Acts 10:44-48, Titus 3:5, John 3:1-5. If you don’t…
Read MoreIs baptism unnecessary for salvation because every conversion in Acts doesn’t mention baptism?
Question: Hi. I received the below email and am having a tough time responding to these verses in regards to is baptism being necessary for salvation. I was hoping you might be able to help with these verses. Thank you Here are the places in Acts that you need to check out. Also, remember that…
Read MoreWhy do you patternists abandon your theology to claim that baptism is necessary for the salvation of Gentiles?
Question: Patternists abandon their theology when imposing water baptism in order to obtain salvation on all lost Gentiles today. There was not one Gentile in the crowd in Acts two when these words were spoken. A lost Gentile was told what to do (pattern) in Acts 16:30-31, and the “pattern” given as the response to…
Read MoreCan a woman baptize if there is no man available?
Question: I need to ask you about what a person should be baptized for. I was baptized. My reasons were: for the washing of sins, to confirm my faith in Jesus, because it was a commanded, and because it’s necessary for salvation. And the pastor baptized me in the name of Jesus Christ. Was it valid,…
Read MoreDo we die to sin at the point of repentance?
Question: After viewing your web site, my brother and I saw the graphic on the gospel re-enacted. I appreciate the way it is laid out. I am attaching a similar graphic that is being taught in this area and in many other areas also. In this graphic, it is taught that in baptism we repent of…
Read MoreShould a person who was sprinkled be baptized again?
Question: I’ve been reading your answers regarding questions on baptism. Since you believe you have to be immersed in water to be properly baptized, would a person need to be baptized again if they were not immersed in water? I ask this because so many people are baptized with just the sprinkling of water. Answer: See: What…
Read MoreDid Jesus die only for the saved?
Question: Can you tell me what exactly our Lord meant when he said in John 10:15 about laying down his life for the sheep? Was that exclusively for the sheep and not the goats, as the Reformed Christians believe? Some Calvinistic doctrine rings true to me. I have some of their literature and preaching tapes…
Read MoreWhat Saves a Person?
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Since, “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (II Peter 3:9), it would be sensible to understand that in order to get people saved, God would tell them…
Read MoreWhat Must I Do to be Saved? (Hamilton)
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Listening to preachers, pastors, and priests today, one wonders if they could answer the question, “What must I do to be saved?” in a manner similar to the apostles. What Must I Do to be Saved? In the very first sermon recorded, Peter convicted the Jews of participating in the death of…
Read MoreYour website does an excellent job of explaining the Scriptures in an understandable manner
Question: I was sitting here reading from the website “while I probably should be working,” and thought I would send you an email telling you how special your website is at teaching and helping one understand the Scriptures. One of my problem areas is I know what is correct but have trouble understanding and developing…
Read MoreI was baptized as an infant. Do I need to be baptized again?
Question: I was baptized as an infant; however, I have recently found Christ and repented from my sinful ways. I know the importance of baptism and want to ensure that I am in accordance with the Scriptures. There are many different views on this subject; however, I cannot seem to find anyone to answer me…
Read MoreI applaud you on making the Bible’s teaching on salvation clear
Question: Just wanted to drop a note and applaud you on your web site for making it clear to people that the Bible is very plain about salvation. Baptism is not a very tough subject, but false teachers make it that way. I just wish people would understand the difference in the works of merit…
Read MoreWas John the Baptist associated with the Baptist church?
Question: I love your site. It is very helpful and is the truth. Why was John called “John the Baptist?” I know there is no other religion mentioned in the Bible. Is this where the Baptist organization get its name? Is John the Baptist the same as John the apostle? Answer: Actually, the truth is…
Read MoreMust you be baptized even after saying the prayer of salvation?
Question: I was wandering if you had to be baptized, even after saying the prayer of salvation to be completely saved. Answer: Just one small problem — there is no mention of salvation coming through prayer in the Bible. To claim to be saved by saying a prayer, then, is to make up your own…
Read More