Does Jesus need to be baptized?
Jesus was God's son, so he was sinless and there was no need for him to receive forgiveness. John tried to refuse to baptise Jesus saying that it was he, John, who should be baptised by Jesus. Christians believe Jesus was baptised so that he could become like one of us. This shows his great humility.
When Jesus comes to John, John hesitates to baptize him. John's is a baptism of repentance, and Jesus has nothing for which he needs to repent. Why then does Jesus insist on being baptized? By choosing to be baptized, Jesus fulfills all righteousness – preparing himself to be a perfect sacrifice for us.
Since a person is saved by the gospel (Ro- mans 1:16), which does not include baptism (1 Corinthians 1:17; 15:3– 4), then a person can be saved without being baptized. All that is nec- essary is for a person to hear the gospel and trust Jesus Christ for eter- nal life.
He didn't need baptism in order to become a son of God. So Jesus' baptism was not the baptism that we receive, we who are sinners and must be reborn and made sons of God. But everything Jesus did had a purpose. His baptism (which He did not personally need) had a real purpose.
“And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: “And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:13, 16–17).
- heaven was opened.
- God's spirit descended on Jesus.
- God's voice was heard.
In other words, every Christian, by definition, has the Holy Spirit. If you want to be re-baptized out of obedience to Christ, that is one thing. But, if you are already a Christian, then there is no need for you to be baptized again in order to receive the Holy Spirit – you already have the Spirit!
Church doctrine now states that unbaptized babies can go to heaven instead of getting stuck somewhere between heaven and hell.
John, known as "the Baptist," was preaching in Judea, and baptizing those "confessing their sins."
The Correct Mode of Baptism
Then shall he immerse him or her in the water, and come forth again out of the water” (D&C 20:73–74). Immersion is necessary. The Apostle Paul taught that being immersed in water and coming out again is symbolic of death, burial, and resurrection.
What was the purpose of getting baptized?
Baptism is a church's act of affirming and portraying a believer's union with Christ by immersing him or her in water, and a believer's act of publicly committing him or herself to Christ and his people, thereby uniting a believer to the church and marking off him or her from the world.
And when Jesus was baptized, immediately he went up from the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”
Baptism marks the personal identification with Christ
When we come to believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, our lives become united to Christ's life. We begin a journey of faith, united to Christ. We renounce service to sin and give our loyalty and service to Christ.
The resurrected Jesus directed his disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the baptism in the Holy Spirit and promised, "you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth".
Given once for all, Baptism cannot be repeated. The baptisms of those to be received into the Catholic Church from other Christian communities are held to be valid if administered using the Trinitarian formula. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: 1256.
Limbo is the nether region where, according to Roman Catholic tradition, unbaptized babies go after death. It's a pleasant enough place, though devoid of the bliss of God's presence.
The Bible clearly teaches that the moment a person turns from his sin and trusts in Jesus to be forgiven of his sin, he is saved (Acts 2:37-41). He has passed from spiritual death to spiritual life (John 5:24) and has been declared not guilty in God's court of law (Rom 3:21-26).
Other Christian churches
As part of their sacraments, the New Apostolic Church and the Old Apostolic Church also practice baptism for the dead, as well as Communion and Sealing to the Departed. In this practice a proxy or substitute is baptised in the place of an unknown number of deceased persons.
Be called after His name. Serve God and keep His commandments. Serve each other and bear each other's burdens. Be a witness for Christ and His Church.
For Every Person. If we are old enough and mature enough to tell the difference between right and wrong, Heavenly Father wants us to be baptized (see Doctrine and Covenants 18:42). Jesus was perfect, but He still chose to be baptized to follow God's commandments (see Matthew 3:13–17; 2 Nephi 31:7).
Is it biblical to be baptized?
“They were baptized by [John] in the river Jordan, confessing their sins” (Matthew 3:6). John said, “I baptize you with water for repentance” (Matthew 3:11). In the Gospels and Acts, John's baptism is summarized as “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (Mark 1:4; Luke 3:3; also Acts 13:24; 19:4).
We Must Be Baptized for the Remission of Our Sins
The Apostle Peter taught, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38). Following Paul's conversion, Ananias said to him, “Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins” (Acts 22:16).
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
Jesus explained that He needed to be baptized to fulfill all righteousness. He meant that He needed to follow all of God's commandments like everyone else. He also needed to show others what they should do.
The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation. “No one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit” (Jn 3:5). Christ commanded his disciples to preach the Gospel, draw people to faith in him, and baptize those who come to conversion.
13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 15 Jesus replied, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John consented.
Some people are baptized as adults and others as infants, and some people are baptized as infants and as adults. In all cases, the meaning of baptism is about participating in this ancient biblical pattern of going through the waters of death and following Jesus out the other side and into the new creation.
Baptism seals the Christian with the indelible spiritual mark (character) of his belonging to Christ. No sin can erase this mark, even if sin prevents Baptism from bearing the fruits of salvation. Given once for all, Baptism cannot be repeated.