When the person emerges from the water the pastor exclaims, “You have been baptised “In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”” (Matthew; 28; 19).
People get baptised to publicly proclaim that they have become Christians.
“Each of you must turn away from sin and be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sin will be forgiven and you will receive God’s gift the Holy Spirit” (Acts; 2; 38).
I agree with the statement “Baptism should only take place when a person is old enough to confirm his/her faith” because I have become accustomed to this way of doing it and I think it makes more sense that infant baptism. Baptism is supposed to be a sign that you have turned from your sin and are now walking the right road with Jesus as your saviour. It makes no sense to be baptised as a baby as you do not actually know what is going on and it’s all your parents’ choice. Some people use the words of Jesus in Mark; 10; 15, “I assure you that whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall never enter it” as an argument for infant baptism. I do not think Jesus meant that you should baptise your child before they actually even know where, who or even what they are. He simply meant you should receive Him into your heart humbly and without knowledge or pride.
In Acts Peter told the people that they should turn from their sin and THEN be baptised to show
that they are now living for Christ. I personally do not think baptism has anything to do with how the parents are going to bring up their child or promise to bring him up in a Christian environment. It is simply a public way of showing that sin is no longer in your life and should be an individual decision to commit your life to God, not your parents’. I believe everyone being baptised should give evidence of their repentance first and show that you have faith in Jesus Christ.
I think the right thing for the pastor to say before baptising the candidate should be “On profession of your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and at your own request, I now baptise you….”. It is impossible for a baby to profess his faith in the Lord and to request to be baptised. The baby might not even know he has been baptised in later life and the parents that made the promise to bring him up in a Christian environment may have given up on it after the child is old enough to talk back and give cheek. Though if they have kept their vows, confirmation is an option later for the child to make his decision. This happens in Church of Ireland and in the Roman Catholic churches.
I believe strongly in believers’ baptism not only because that’s the way we do it in my church but also Jesus was baptised as a grown man. Not because he wanted to confess he was a follower of Christ (himself) and had turned away from sin (he never had any) but because he wanted to make an example for us. He easily could have been baptised as a baby by Mary and Joseph if it was God’s will but he chose to be baptised as a grown man and 3000 other men were baptised at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was first offered to Christians.
