Baptism
Baptism is one of two ordinances observed at New Covenant. An ordinance is an observance or remembrance of a saving experience that has occurred previously. We believe baptism is a symbolic act representing what happened to the person at the moment of salvation. It is symbolic of:
1. The old life of sin
2. Death to the old life of sin
3. Our new life in Christ
This ordinance has great spiritual and experiential significance, but for us, it does not have saving grace in and of itself. We believe baptism is an act of obedience to the example of Jesus (Matt 3:13-17) and the command of scripture (Acts 10:34-48).
We practice believer’s baptism at New Covenant. This means we only baptize those who have become disciples of Jesus Christ through repentance for sin and a public declaration of Jesus’s Lordship in their lives. There is no set age requirement for baptism, but the individual must be old enough to understand their public declaration of faith.
We practice baptism by immersion at New Covenant. We don't require a member to be re-baptized by immersion if they consider their previous baptism an equal experience and a valid testimony. We will re-baptize a new member by immersion if he or she desires.