Is Rebaptism Necessary?

My mother was baptized at the age of 12, yet she was rebaptized at 86 years old. On that day, several people asked why. Only a few days before this, I handed her the following article written by Jason Hilburn, the brother in Christ for whom I am grateful God placed in my path and who baptized me many years ago. I am thankful that my mother had an open heart and mind as she read this and responded appropriately, just as the author responded when he learned the truth. Rebaptism is not a mythical act. This article includes a biblical example of some who needed to be rebaptized, and many in this world today need to be baptized again. I hope this article will reach at least a few of those people and help them understand the truth.

Why I Got Baptized Again (from Jason's Bible Blog)

I grew up in the Baptist church, and one day in worship I decided I wanted to be saved, so I went to the front and the preacher prayed with me. They told me I was saved at that point, and I was not baptized on that day, because they believe water baptism has nothing to do with salvation, so my baptism was delayed. It was days or weeks later when I was baptized in water.

Several years later I was engaged to a young lady (now my wife) who was, and still is, a member of the church of Christ. I began attending with her, and one Sunday night after worship the preacher asked me if he could talk to me, so we went into a classroom, and he began showing me Scriptures I had never considered. The Scripture that really hit home for me was Acts 22:16: “And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.”  Biblical baptism is to “wash away sins,” and I had been taught that baptism has nothing to do with washing away sins.

I also learned that in the Bible baptism was never delayed until a “Baptism Sunday” or anything similar, because people understood they were not going to Heaven unless they got baptized to have their sins forgiven. Acts 2 records about three thousand people being baptized in one day “for the forgiveness of sins” (2:37-41); the Ethiopian was baptized as soon as he saw water and did not rejoice until after baptism (Acts 8:35-39); Saul had been fasting three days but would not eat until after he was baptized to wash away his sins (Acts 9:18-19; 22:16); and the Philippian jailor was baptized “straightway” (immediately) in the middle of the night (Acts 16:33). The Bible repeatedly stresses the urgency of water baptism.

After seeing the Truth, I wanted to be baptized immediately. That night I was immersed for the second time in my life, and it was that second time that my sins were actually washed away, because I needed a proper understanding of what I was doing for it to be effective. Being Biblically baptized is not simply something done outwardly—it must be “obeyed from the heart” (mind) with sincerity and a proper understanding of its purpose to make one “free from sin” (Romans 6:17-18; compare 6:3-5).

Did you know the Ephesians were baptized (immersed) in water twice? (Acts 19:1-5). Paul required it of them, because the first time they had not done it exactly the way God said. Similarly to me, they had not been taught correctly and needed to be immersed again after gaining a proper understanding. This account, along with the fact that the Bible repeatedly teaches that God requires men to do things exactly the way He said, should motivate every person who has been baptized to seriously consider whether it was done exactly as God said, with a proper understanding.

If you have been baptized in water, please consider the following Biblical criteria and compare these to the baptism you received. True Biblical baptism requires:

• The correct subject – a penitent believer in Jesus as the risen Son of God (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 8:35-37)
• The correct confession – confessing one’s faith in Christ to people, which is not a prayer (Matthew 10:32; Acts 8:35-37)
• The correct mode – complete immersion, a burial in water (Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 2:12; see also Thayer’s Greek Lexicon)
• The correct authority – “into the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,” which is the same as “in the name of Jesus” (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 2:38)
• The correct purpose – for “forgiveness of sins,” for salvation, to be added to Christ’s one true church, not a man-made church/denomination (Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:36-41, 47; 22:16; Ephesians 5:23-26; 1 Peter 3:20-21)
• The correct result – after water baptism one has been born again, of water and the Spirit (John 3:5); he is a new child of God, free from all sin, and an heir of the greatest inheritance ever! (John 14:1-3; Romans 8:17; Galatians 3:26-29; Ephesians 5:25-26; 1 Peter 1:3-4)

It is safe to say that churches who regularly delay baptisms are not teaching the same purpose of baptism found in the Bible; else they would not postpone it, but rather stress the urgency of it. If your baptism was put off until later, even though they believed you were ready for baptism, that indicates that the purpose of your baptism was different than the Biblical purpose. Even if urgency was stressed, all the criteria above are critical.

Dear reader, did you understand the Biblical criteria above when you were baptized? Do you need to be immersed again with a proper understanding, like the Ephesians? The fact that Paul required them to be immersed twice shows that details do matter! Your soul is too precious to risk. As Peter said, “…Give diligence to make your calling and election sure” (2 Peter 1:10). Heaven is too wonderful to miss, and Hell will be more terrible than we can imagine. Please seriously consider these words written in Christian love.