Baptism in water is a key practice of the church. Baptism was part of Jesus’s Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20) and on the Day of Pentecost, Peter urged the crowds ‘Repent and be baptised, 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) Paul wrote about the topic at length in Romans 6:3-14 and baptism remains, along with the Lord’s Supper, one of the two sacraments of the Protestant church everywhere. We may disagree about the manner and means of baptism, but its importance in symbolising the new life to which Christ has called us is undisputed.
Since our move to Beever Street, however, we have not had a baptistery in which to baptise people. We believe that baptism is for believers rather than infants (we dedicate infants to the Lord and pray He will lead them into a saving knowledge of Himself as they grow) and so this has been of concern for us. We have had a baptismal service since our move, but used our old baptistery to hold that service. Now that the old building has been sold, that’s no longer an option.
The solution to this problem arrived today: a portable baptistery!
A plastic lining fits inside the wooden baptistery and a heater will heat the water so that baptism by full immersion isn’t too breathtaking! When not in use, the portable baptistery can be packed away and stored in the building. Now we are excited about having this tool to baptise people and hope that anyone who has not yet taken that step of faith will consider doing so. We long to see more people coming to faith in Jesus and proclaiming Him as Lord over all!