The fourth article of faith of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints declares that “baptism by immersion for the remission of sins” is one of the “first principles and ordinances of the Gospel.” Latter-day Saints believe, that baptism is an essential initiatory ordinance for all persons who are joining the Church, as it admits them to Christ’s church on earth (John 3:3-5). It is an essential primary step in the process whereby members may receive ongoing remission of their sins (justification), spiritual gifts (sanctification), and eventual admission to the Celestial Kingdom and eternal life (see Mark 16:15-16; 2). For a more complete discussion of the purposes of the ordinance of baptism, see Baptism, the Ordinance that Brings Spiritual Growth in Ye Shall Know of the Doctrine, volume 1, chapter 18.

Baptism marks an individual’s entering into a solemn covenant agreement with the Lord. The individual promises to become a member of the earthly Kingdom of God, to take upon themselves the name of Christ, to stand as a witness for Christ, to keep his commandments, and to bear one another’s burdens—manifesting a determination to serve him to the end. The Lord, as his part of the covenant, promises to pour out his Spirit upon them, redeem them from their sins, raise them in the first resurrection, and give them eternal life.

The rich symbolism of the ordinance invites candidates and observers to reflect on its meanings. Burial in the water and arising out of the water symbolize the candidate’s faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, as well as the future resurrection of all people. It also represents the candidate’s new birth to a life in Christ, being born of God, thus born again of the water and of the spirit (Romans 6:3-6).

Is baptism really necessary? The New Testament teaches the necessity of baptism. Jesus taught that baptism is necessary for salvation. He told Nicodemus, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:1-5). The Savior required baptism of those who professed to become his disciples (John 4:1-2). His farewell commission to his apostles was that they should go to all nations, teaching and baptizing (Matthew 28:19), and he declared, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:16). Paul wrote, “For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3:27). Paul, after his miraculous vision on the road to Damascus, was taught the gospel by Ananias who told him to “arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins” (Acts 22:16). To the penitent multitude on the day of Pentecost, Peter proclaimed, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38).

From the early days of the restored Church, missionaries have been sent to declare repentance and faith on the Savior, and remission of sins by baptism. This is the central teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I’ve already been baptized. Do I really have to be baptized again? The authority to baptize was lost from the earth at the time of the great apostasy following the death of the apostles. It was restored by John the Baptist to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery on May 15, 1829 (JS-H 1:68-72).

Latter-day Saints do not accept the baptismal practices of those Christian churches that arose in the centuries after the death of the apostles, including infant baptism, baptism by means other than immersion, and the idea that baptism is not necessary for salvation.

Consequently, persons coming into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at age eight or older are required to submit to baptism, even though they may have been previously baptized in other churches (D&C 22).

Does the method of baptism really matter? The form of the ordinance is prescribed in latter-day revelation, which makes clear that the baptism must be performed by a person who has priesthood authority and that it requires completely immersing the penitent candidate below the water and then bringing the person out of the water (3 Nephi 11:22-26; D&C 20:72-74).

In the early Church, at the time of Christ and for the several years after his death and resurrection, baptism was administered on profession of faith and evidence of repentance, and was performed by immersion at the hands of one invested with the requisite authority of priesthood.

The writings of early Christian historians provides us with ample proof that in the first century after the death of Christ, baptism was administered solely by immersion. Tertullian thus refers to the immersion ceremony common in his day: “There is no difference whether one is washed in a sea or in a pool, in a river or in a fountain, in a lake or in a channel; nor is there any difference between those whom John dipped in Jordan, and those whom Peter dipped in the Tiber. . . . We are immersed in the water” (James E. Talmage, Articles of Faith, 160).

Justin Martyr describes the ceremony as practiced by himself. First describing the preparatory examination of the candidate, he proceeds: “After that they are led by us to where there is water, and are born again in that kind of new birth by which we ourselves were born again. For in the name of God, the Father and the Lord of all, and of Jesus Christ, our Savior, and of the Holy Spirit, the immersion in water is performed; because the Christ hath also said, ‘Except a man be born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven’” (Ibid., 437).

Instances of baptism in the New Testament suggest that baptism by immersion was the method used in that day (Matthew 3:13-17; Acts 8:36-39; Romans 6:3-5; Colossians 2:12).

Baptism is followed by the laying-on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. Baptism for the dead. A belief that baptism is necessary for the salvation of all persons who reach the age of accountability should not condemn persons who have died without the opportunity to hear the true gospel of Jesus Christ and who have not been baptized by proper priesthood authority. Latter-day Saints believe that proxy baptism for the dead can, and should be, performed vicariously (1 Corinthians 15:29), and that a baptism so performed becomes effective if the deceased beneficiary accepts the gospel while in the spirit world awaiting their resurrection (see 1 Peter 3:18-20; 1 Peter 4:6). This vicarious work for the benefit of previous generations, binding the hearts of the children to their fathers (Malachi 4:5-6), is one of the sacred ordinances performed in Latter-day Saint temples.