Believer's Baptism

What is Believer's Baptism?

At Chapel Hill Free Will Baptist Church we believe that full-immersion water baptism follows salvation as one of the first steps for new believers.
Acts 8:35-39

Baptism literally means "to immerse in water" and should be viewed as our public expression and testimony of our decision to accept and place faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, our Lord and Savior.

The act of Baptism symbolizes the crucifixion, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. By standing in the water, you symbolize death; Your submersion symbolizes burial; and the act of being raised out of the water symbolizes the resurrection and your new life.

- Romans 6:4-5

Who Should be Baptized and When?

According to Acts 16:30-34, anyone who has already received the word of God, believes in the Lord Jesus and is ready should be baptized. More supporting evidence for this belief can be found in Acts 2:41, Acts 8:12, Acts 8:37, and Acts 10:43-48 as seen below.

• Here we see that they FIRST received the word and THEN they were baptized.
  Acts 2:41 ASV " ⁴¹They then that received his word were baptized: and there were added unto them in that day about three thousand souls."
• Again, AFTER they believed, THEN they were baptized.
  Acts 8:12 ASV " ¹²But when they believed Philip preaching good tidings concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women."
• IF you believe with all your heart, THEN you may be baptized.
  Acts 8:37 ASV
  " ³⁷ And Philip said, If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."
• AFTER the people received the Holy Spirit, THEN they were baptized.
  Acts 10:43-48 CEB " ⁴³All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name. ⁴⁴While Peter was still speaking, the Holy Spirit fell on everyone who heard the word. ⁴⁵The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles. ⁴⁶They heard them speaking in other languages and praising God. Peter asked, ⁴⁷These people have received the Holy Spirit just as we have. Surely no one can stop them from being baptized with water, can they? ⁴⁸He directed that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they invited Peter to stay for several days."

Why Should We Be Baptized?

Jesus set the example for us to follow in Matthew 3:13-37 -

Matthew 3:13-17 NLT
¹³Then Jesus went from Galilee to the Jordan River to be baptized by John. ¹⁴But John tried to talk him out of it. “I am the one who needs to be baptized by you,” he said, “so why are you coming to me?”
¹⁵But Jesus said, “It should be done, for we must carry out all that God requires.” So John agreed to baptize him.
¹⁶After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. ¹⁷And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”

Jesus clearly indicates that baptism is a commandment from God, and that it pleases Him and brings Him great joy. We should accept baptism as one of the first steps that Jesus asks us to take in our walk with Him.

Baptism Classes

Baptism classes are generally scheduled on Sundays at 1O:OO am following an attendees request to learn more about Baptism. If you want to be baptized or have any questions about Baptism, please see or contact Pastor John at john@mychapelhillchurch.com.

Chapel Hill Membership

Please see or contact Pastor John if you are interested in becoming a member of Chapel Hill.