What is Baptism?
Baptism is “going public” with your faith in Jesus. It’s our favorite thing to celebrate at Garden City! The earliest Christians would be baptized immediately upon placing their faith in Jesus as a symbol of their new life in Christ. Baptism is the act of immersing a believer under water and then bringing him/her out of the water, identifying the believer with Jesus (Acts 10:48; Rom 6:3; Gal 3:27), with the universal church (1 Cor 12:13), and with the local church (Acts 2:41). God has given his church two sacraments: baptism (a one time event that we do upon entrance into the church family), and communion (an ongoing event that we celebrate regularly with our church family once we’ve been baptized).
If you want to be baptized at our next baptisms, please fill out our Connection Form and let us know. Include a note in the form if there’s someone specific you’d like to baptize you. We also encourage you to give a two-minute testimony about your life to those gathered as witnesses. This is not a requirement, but we believe your story will have a great impact for Jesus!
The questions below serve as a template for composing your testimony. Answer at least two questions from each section below in a “life story” format – it should read more like a narrative than bullet points and be right around 300 words long.
Old Life (Without Jesus) What was your life like before Jesus, and what did you believe about the world and your existence in it? What were your major idols – in what/whom did you place your hope? When and how did you recognize your need for Jesus (what was the turning point)?
The Gospel (The Story of Jesus) Who is Jesus, and what is the gospel (Choose a verse/short passage of scripture to support your explanation)? Why do you believe in the gospel of Jesus?
New Life (With Jesus) How has Jesus transformed your life and confronted your idols? How is the gospel currently at work inside of you (how is God sanctifying you)? What is at stake for those who don’t believe in Jesus, and why should they believe in Him?