That is a very awesome question! First off, let me just say - because sometimes folks are confused by this - that you do not need to be baptized in order to be saved or to have a personal relationship with Jesus. Being saved is a decision you make by admitting you are a sinner, believing Jesus is who He says He is and choosing to accept Jesus into your heart.
Baptisms are a very public and symbolic way of sharing with others your decision to accept Jesus as your Savior and to follow him with your life and heart. The practice of baptizing people with water was first shown in the Book of Matthew, the first book in the New Testament. In Chapter 3, we get introduced to a very strangely described person named John the Baptist. He is really a different kind of person in the way he dresses and in the stuff he eats! But, he is baptizing people in the River Jordan. He says it’s for repentance of their sins. (At the end of that chapter, he baptizes Jesus, who while sinless, gives us a model we follow!)
In the Book of Acts, the fifth book of the New Testament, Peter (one of Jesus’ original disciples) commands us to, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.” (Acts 2:38)
Again, we see that the act of baptism is a symbolic way to repent by “washing away your sins” and then rising again (just like Jesus did when He was resurrected) and walking in the newness of life that Jesus has to offer. Very cool - no doubt!
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