One of the practices of Christianity that is important as well as controversial is the practice of baptism. As Christian, we believe that baptism is a rite that one must go through in order to be born again into the Christian faith. But is it truly required, or is just the acceptance of Jesus Christ as the son of God and the savior enough to be forgiven of our sins and enter heaven? This is an argument that has been ongoing in the Christian church for a long time, and I will not be attempting to answer that question here. I am merely discussing the history of the rite of baptism and why it is important to the Christian faith.
Baptism, or the ritual cleansing of one’s self with water is not a concept that was born out of Christianity, but …show more content…
For example, in the Church of Christ, they believe that you must be baptized in order to be saved while the Roman Catholic Church believes that baptism confers the grace of justification, thus removing the stain of original sin (equip.org, n.d.). In some Christian churches they believe that in order to be saved you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, while others say you can be saved if you have been baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost (equip.org, n.d.). Either way, they believe that baptism is an important part of professing your faith, and being absolved of sin. Some churches believe that being baptized is the only way a person can be saved, while still other believe that baptism is just a part of the process and that you can be saved by expressing your acceptance of Jesus as the son of God and as the Savior (equip.org, n.d.). The Holy Bible offers examples of both ways of being saved such as in Acts 2:38 when Peter tells the people on the day of Pentecost when he was asked “What shall we do? And he replied “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (equip.org, n.d.). This scripture can, and has been interpreted by some in the Christian church to mean that you have to be baptized in order to be saved. Then in Luke 23:43, Jesus told the thief, who was being crucified on the cross next to him, that “today you will be with me in paradise”, after the thief had placed in his faith in Jesus (equip.org, n.d.). In this scripture, we can see that even without baptism, a person can be saved just by accepting Jesus as the son of God and as the savior. This is where much of the debate about the rite of baptism comes from in the Christian
Baptism, or the ritual cleansing of one’s self with water is not a concept that was born out of Christianity, but …show more content…
For example, in the Church of Christ, they believe that you must be baptized in order to be saved while the Roman Catholic Church believes that baptism confers the grace of justification, thus removing the stain of original sin (equip.org, n.d.). In some Christian churches they believe that in order to be saved you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, while others say you can be saved if you have been baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost (equip.org, n.d.). Either way, they believe that baptism is an important part of professing your faith, and being absolved of sin. Some churches believe that being baptized is the only way a person can be saved, while still other believe that baptism is just a part of the process and that you can be saved by expressing your acceptance of Jesus as the son of God and as the Savior (equip.org, n.d.). The Holy Bible offers examples of both ways of being saved such as in Acts 2:38 when Peter tells the people on the day of Pentecost when he was asked “What shall we do? And he replied “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (equip.org, n.d.). This scripture can, and has been interpreted by some in the Christian church to mean that you have to be baptized in order to be saved. Then in Luke 23:43, Jesus told the thief, who was being crucified on the cross next to him, that “today you will be with me in paradise”, after the thief had placed in his faith in Jesus (equip.org, n.d.). In this scripture, we can see that even without baptism, a person can be saved just by accepting Jesus as the son of God and as the savior. This is where much of the debate about the rite of baptism comes from in the Christian