How to write your baptism testimony:
It’s time to start working on your baptism testimony. But what am I supposed to say? Well, here's a good place to start. Let's answer the question:
Baptism Testimony Part 1: How was my life before I was saved?
Read Ephesians 2:1-2.
"And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience."
Paul says life before Christ is like being dead in our sins. We might have thought we were really living, but we were just following the course of this world. We might have thought we were choosing our own path, but Paul was right when he said we were actually following the prince of the power of the air (Satan). It’s important to admit our sin and recognize the futility and emptiness of life without Christ.
How was your life before you were saved? Was it:
empty?
Addicted?
Selfish?
Greedy?
How did you feel? Hopeless? Guilty? Fearful?
Don't worry about being embarrassed. There's no more shame for those who Jesus has forgiven. This is a great opportunity to be honest about who you were as a sinner, so that you can be honest about who Jesus is as a Savior!
A lot of people, including some of the people who will hear you give this testimony, think they have to get their life in order before they can even talk to God about being saved. They may feel like they’re too far away from God and he can never change them.
That’s where your story comes in.
It can be difficult to testify about the messiness and lostness of our lives before Jesus found us, but when we are open and honest about it, we can show others that you come to Jesus just as you are, and that He can take your brokenness and turn it into something new: a masterpiece for His glory!
Baptism Testimony Part 2: How Did God prepare me for being saved?
A good second question to answer is, “How did God bring me to the place of being ready to be saved?” Let’s Read the way Paul described some people’s journey toward confession of sin in 2 Corinthians 7:9-10.
"As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us. For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death."
What Paul is talking about in this passage is what Christians often call conviction.
Conviction is a blessing from the Holy Spirit, because it’s what wakes us up to the reality of how empty a life of sin truly is. Conviction from the Holy Spirit is what makes us aware of our need to repent or turn away from our sin.
Do you remember when the Holy Spirit convicted you of your sin and you realized your need to repent? Where were you and what were you doing? Maybe you were listening to a preacher. Maybe a friend was sharing the Gospel with you. Maybe you were sitting alone, reading the Bible.
There are many ways that the Holy Spirit will use to get our attention, but for the Christian there comes a point where we’re not just sorry about the consequences of our sin. We don’t just wish things were different. We come face to face with the reality that our sin brings death and destruction, and we must truly repent for our sins and ask God’s forgiveness.
Baptism Testimony Part 3: My decision - How I became a Christian
Your friends may need to hear someone clearly tell in their own words, how they became a Christian. It would be good to mention specifically that you repented of sin, and believed in Jesus alone for your salvation.
Some people think becoming a Christian is just a new habit of going to church, or doing good things – they need to know that salvation only comes by faith in Jesus.
As you continue to work on your baptism testimony another good question to answer is, “How did God save me?”
Read Romans 10:9-10. "Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved."
God saves us when we believe in faith and openly confess with our mouths that Jesus Christ is God’s Son and that He died for our sins and rose again from the dead. When we do that, God forgives our sins and saves us. Every man to have ever lived has sinned. We inherited our sinful nature from the first man, Adam, and our sin separates us from God. God loves us so much that He had a plan from the very beginning to bring us back to Himself. He came to earth as a human being in the person of Jesus Christ and sacrificed Himself for our sins. He took the punishment that we deserved. When you believe that Jesus really is God and that He gave His life for your sins, you will be saved.
In today’s passage, Paul says, “With the heart one believes and is justified.” Some like to explain what justified means like this: God made it just-as-if-I’d never sinned.
Praise God! Do you remember the moment that happened in your life?
Baptism Testimony Part 4: How has my life been changed since I’ve been saved?
It’s a good idea to wrap up your baptism testimony by answering the question, “How has my life been changed since I’ve been saved?”
Read 2 Corinthians 5:17. "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come."
When God saves us, our eyes are opened to the emptiness of the things we used to do. We likely had an empty feeling in our lives that we tried to fill with things that only made us feel more empty. People try to fill the void in their lives with relationships, pleasure, even work and busyness. But if you are in Christ, you’re a new creation. That old life is gone now, and God replaces the emptiness in your life with Himself. Instead of emptiness, Christians enjoy peace and joy and fullness of life through Christ -- and that reality is literally something created by God. No one else can give that to you.
You did not decide to re-create yourself into a new person. God didn’t just take what you were before and clean you up a little bit. He has made you a completely new creation. Your old habits, desires, selfishness, and even the things that you loved has changed. It has become new. How has God made that a reality in your life?
Make sure to put that into your testimony!
How to Share Your Baptism Testimony
#1: Share it in the mirror.
No pressure here, just go over it several times to get the flow in your mind.
#2: Share it with a family member.
If you've got a fellow Christian in your family, share it with them and ask for their feedback. If you don't, no problem. Share it with a pastor or mentor.
#3: Write it out and share it on social media.
You could either speak it on video, or write it and share it on a blog or Facebook. Perhaps you could use some social media graphics from your church if they use the Baptism Challenge.
#4: Share publicly at your baptism Sunday.
If you've done the others here, you will feel less nervous and more comfortable. Feel free to read it if you need to.
The Baptism Challenge
If you want your church to have access to a full course to prepare your disciples for baptism, check out this baptism preparation course:
To Download a free copy of the Baptism Challenge, drop your name and email here: