What is Baptism
As a Baptist Church we follow one of the key
principles
of the early church, in the believers believed, repented and were
baptised. What this means is that following their acceptance of Jesus as
their Lord, and their turning to new ways of living, the early
Christians celebrated and proclaimed their new faith by means of baptism
- they acknowledged publicly their faith and symbolised the washing away
of sin by immersion in water.
At Selsdon Baptist we have a baptistry set into the
stage, and tend to have a baptism services two or three times a year.
The baptismal candidates usually give a short testimony, explaining how
they came to the decision to be baptised.
There are no set age limits on baptism, although
those being baptised are expected to be old enough to have an
understanding of the action they are taking. In practice, the youngest
is usually early teens, and there is no upper age limit. The key
requirement is to be ready to publicly declare your faith in Jesus as
Lord and to publicly commit yourself to Him. People come to baptism by
many routes - some are baptised in early teens shortly after making
their own private commitment to the Lord. Others, such as the writer,
started the life of faith in different denominations, and come to
baptism after many years. In all cases, it is an act of obedience to the
Lord.
Thinking about Baptism?
If you are interested in being baptised, speak to our
minister, Mike Elcome, or our youth minister. They run an occasional
series of sessions with a small group of people thinking through the
meaning and reasons for baptism.
Recent Baptisms
Details of recent baptisms at the church are included
in the website on the Headlines page. More
pictures of particular occasions are included here:-
Children and Babies
As explained earlier,
we do not baptise or 'christen' babies or small children. Parents,
however, often want to commit themselves publicly to the christian
upbringing of their children, and give thanks for the gift of their
little ones. More information can be found about Dedication services if
you follow this link.
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details about the Nurture Zone
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