Baptism is the sacrament that eternally unites you with Jesus Christ. You proclaim your faith in Jesus and are “buried” under water and then raised up as a saved child of God. This simulated “burial” and “resurrection” identifies you with Jesus, connects you with his burial and resurrection, and bestows on you the benefits of his righteousness (Romans 6:3-5).

You only need to know that Jesus is the holy Son of God and that he came to this earth to live a perfect life, to die a sacrificial death, and to be raised to life for your salvation and the salvation of the world.

The Bible says all your sins are forgiven—past, present, and future—and you receive the gift of God’s Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). You receive the holiness and righteousness of Christ and are given a new identity in him. You also become a citizen of God’s Kingdom, the worldwide community of faith (Titus 3:3-7).

You are making a pledge to give your life to Jesus and to live as one of his followers. So, you will declare that Jesus is the Son of God and that you are ready to make him the Lord of your life (Romans 10:9-13). When you come up out of the water, the Bible says you are a “new creation,” filled with God’s Holy Spirit who will give you the guidance and the strength to follow through on your pledge.

Any baptized follower of Jesus can baptize you—a Christian friend, a relative, or a minister. Remember, the focus is on what God is doing, not on what you’re doing or how you do it. If you don’t have anyone in mind, our Senior Minister, Allan Stanglin, would be honored to baptize you.

We provide shorts and shirts for those being baptized, but you can bring your own clothes if you’d like. We will give you a GCR “I Have Decided” t-shirt to wear during the baptism or after. We also provide plenty of towels. If you’re worried about your hair, know that it will get wet. We’ve got blow dryers, but you’ll need to bring your comb or brush.

The biblical view is that baptism is the time and place one is united with the crucified and resurrected Jesus and receives forgiveness of all sins and the gift of God’s Spirit (Acts 2:40-41, 8:12-13, 8:35-38, 16:14-15, 16:31-34, 18:8). In the Bible, the one who calls on the name of the Lord to be saved is baptized (Acts 22:16). At the very least, we know Jesus was baptized; it seems like a good idea to follow him into and out of those same waters.