History

• John the Baptist was the first to perform Christian baptisms. While baptism has to do with the death and resurrection of Christ, as a symbolic public display on the part of the person being baptized, John performed these baptisms before Christ had even been accused and put to death. Jesus himself was baptized by John. This information and story are found in what is known as the Synoptic Gospels of the Bible.
  
  

Considerations

• The way baptism is viewed between Catholics and Christians varies. Catholics believe that you must be baptized as a young infant or you won't make it to heaven if you die before you are able to choose between Satan and Christ. Christians believe the choice between Satan and Christ must be made by the individual freely. This means they must, at some point in their lives, decide if asking Christ into their heart is what they want. After they do that, they are baptized.
  
  

Function

• The function of baptism is to publicly show that you have decided to follow Christ in your life. It tells people on a public level that you have asked him into your heart and for him to lead your life. It is not a way to heaven. When you go under the water it is a symbol of your old self dying with Christ. As you come out of the water it is a symbol of your new self being raised just as Christ rose again from the grave.
  
  

Effects

• Many people who decide to "take the plunge" do so after asking Christ to reign in their lives. The effect that baptism has for many of these people can be described as incredible. People report feeling light as a feather with happiness. Others cry out of gladness that they were able to share their faith through this public display of obedience to Christ. Then there are some people who understand what it means to become a Christian by watching someone else get baptized.
  
  

Time Frame

• For someone to get baptized in most churches, the person must undergo some events in their life first. The No. 1 thing a person must do is to turn their lives over to Christ. There are very few pastors who will perform a baptism without a person having already done this. Next a pastor will usually want to meet with the person to see if their faith is real or not. If the faith is real, there will usually be one more meeting to discuss the process of the baptism. In many churches, white robes are worn and the pastor will usually tell the church a little about the person and then ask him if he has asked Jesus into his heart and now trusts him with his life. Once the individual has answered yes, the pastor gently dips the person into the water and then helps him up and out. It can take days to weeks between people being saved, accepting Christ into their lives, to actually being baptized.