Water Baptism

Why was Jesus baptized in water? Why must a believer in Jesus be baptized in water? We hope answering these two questions will help you better understand water baptism as you prepare for your water baptism.

The first time we hear of water baptism in the New Testament is the baptism that was administered by John the Baptist. In Luke 3:2-3, we read of one of the reasons John the Baptist baptized people in water. It reads:

2 . . . . The Word of God came to John the Baptist, the son of Zacharias. John was in the desert. 3 He went into all the country around the Jordan River. He preached that people should be baptized because they were sorry for their sins and had turned from them, and they would be forgiven. (NLV)

But then something interesting happens. Jesus came to John the Baptist to be baptized. Why did Jesus go to John the Baptist to be baptized in water? Jesus had no sin to be sorry for. Jesus had no sin to turn from.