Once we've made the decision to follow Jesus, He asks us to announce our decision to the world through the act of baptism.
The Apostle Paul spoke of the symbolism of baptism, writing:
Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. - Romans 6:4-6
Our going under the water represents the death of Jesus and His burial. It's a vivid picture of the truth that our old life, which was ruled by sin, has also died along with Jesus.
But the glorious news is that the story doesn't end there!
Our coming back up out of the water represents Jesus' resurrection - His rising from the dead in His glorified, Heavenly body. As Jesus was raised from death into new life, we too have been raised from death into new life as sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father.
We provide a more detailed explanation of baptism and address common questions through our online baptism pathway. If you would like to be baptized or just want to learn more about baptism, please fill out the form below and we'll email you an invitation to that online pathway.