In Baptism and New Birth, John Mulligan walks through what actually happens when someone is baptized — not culturally, not traditionally, but biblically. He ties recent baptisms in the church (and even national attention on mass ocean baptisms) to what Scripture shows in Acts 8, where Philip teaches and then baptizes the Ethiopian official. Baptism, he says, is not a ceremony for babies, not a public badge for people who already “made a decision,” and not an optional add-on for later. It is the moment of new birth, the point where God forgives sin, gives the Holy Spirit, and starts a brand new life.

From Acts 8:26 –39, we’re shown eight essentials. (1) Baptism is the final stage of conversion — it happens after someone is taught Jesus and is ready to respond. (2) It’s a conscious, informed choice — the Ethiopian is already reading Isaiah, already asking about Christ. Nobody drags him in, and nobody decides for him. (3) It is received in humility — “Philip baptized him.” The person being baptized doesn’t perform a ritual; they submit, handing their whole self over to God. (4) It’s immersion in water — they go down into the water and come up out of the water, matching the literal meaning of the word “baptize”: to immerse. (5) It doesn’t require a special priest or a holy location — just a believer who can help and enough water to bury the old life and raise the new one. (6) It doesn’t demand advanced theology — only honest faith, repentance, and the confession that Jesus is Lord. (7) It is an act of faith, not self-achievement — you’re not “earning salvation,” you’re surrendering to Christ where He promised to meet you. (8) And it leads to joy — the Ethiopian “went on his way rejoicing,” because he knew his sins were washed away and his life had truly begun again.

So where does that leave us? First, baptism is not a symbol we schedule for later once we “clean ourselves up.” It’s the God-ordained point of new birth — the reset, the remission of sins, the moment you go from “knowing about Jesus” to actually being united with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection. Second, this is urgent and deeply personal. In Acts 8, when the Ethiopian sees water, he doesn’t say “maybe someday.” He says, “What’s stopping me from being baptized?” If you’re carrying guilt, if you know you need to turn from sin, if you’re ready to belong to Christ and walk in a different life — that question is the right question. And the door is open.