Holy Baptism
Christians disagree about baptism just as much as we disagree about all sorts of other issues that are important to our faith. Who can be baptized? When can they be baptized? Is sprinkling enough or should it be a full emersion? If someone is baptized in one denomination, does it count as valid for others? Who can perform the baptism? What happens when the baptized person turns away from their faith? What does baptism DO?
We talked about a lot of these questions in lecture. As Lutheran Christians, here are the most important things to remember:
God loves you whether you are baptized or not.
Baptism is practiced to help you learn about transformation, not to change God’s mind about you.
The when, where, who, and how much is really not important.
There’s no need to do it again and again. God got it right the first time. After that, we simply remember that we are baptized—a practice that can happen anytime, anywhere, over and over again.
But here are some fun videos of baptism, just to see how it is practiced by different people in different places. Enjoy!
Baptism in the country of Jordan by orthodox priest:
Full immersion as shown in the movie, “Jesus Revolution”:
What do you notice about these different practices?
Which one is better? Why
Read—John 3:1-10
Jesus tells Nicodemus that one must be reborn by the Spirit. He doesn’t specifically talk about baptism, but Christians have linked this passage with baptism. What do you think links this passage to our practice of baptism?
What are some ways we can remember our baptism? (Think creatively.)
