Baptisms are a very special event. There are some important Bible verses about baptism that give us a lot of insight into what God expects of us, what baptism signifies for believers, and how it benefits us as Christians.
With baptism being one of the subjects about which Christians often debate regarding its practice and the specifics required in its use, it is crucial we understand what the Bible really says about it.
While searching through the Scriptures on baptism for the most significant passages, we have found 20 that should be extremely useful to you for Bible study, personal reflection, or use in a sermon about baptism.
20 Bible Verses about Baptism
1.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”
[English Standard Version,
Matthew 28:19]
2.
“And Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
[
Acts 2:38]
3.
“I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”
[
Matthew 3:11]
4.
“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
[
Galatians 3:27]
5.
“For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body–Jews or Greeks, slaves or free–and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”
[
1 Corinthians 12:13]
6.
“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”
[
Romans 6:3]
7.
“And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.”
[
Acts 22:16]
8.
“John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”
[
Mark 1:4]
9.
“Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized”
[
Acts 18:8]
10.
“because [fn] they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,”
[
1 Peter 3:20-21]
11.
“having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead.”
[
Colossians 2:12]
12.
“Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?”
[
1 Corinthians 15:29]
13.
“And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.”
[
Acts 19:4-5]
14.
15.
“Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?”
[
Acts 10:47]
16.
17.
“But when they believed Philip as he preached good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.”
[
Acts 8:12]
18.
“And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.”
[
Mark 1:5]
19.
“Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one may say that you were baptized in my name.(I did baptize also the household of Stephanas. Beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.”
[
1 Corinthians 1:13-17]
20.
“Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples),”
[
John 4:1-2]
Baptism in the Bible
In these Bible verses about baptism, a very important passage is the one that tells us to go out and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
This is a command of Jesus, not a suggestion. As a Christian, baptism signifies a dying with Christ and being buried with him, then being resurrected to live a new life with him.
These Scriptures about baptism show how this ritual is an outward display of our acceptance into the body of Christ shown in our obedience.
There is a lot of fuss about the proper method of baptism, but the Didache, an early Christian document dated somewhere between the first and third centuries of the church, suggests that either immersion or sprinkling are both acceptable.
I have often read about churches insisting that new members be baptised again if they come from a different denomination, but those who insist on this should consider Paul’s response to the Corinthian church division over baptism in one of the passages above.
bible-verses-about-baptism
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