1. Baptism is an ordinance rather than a sacrament. An ordinance is an outward rite which "Christ has appointed to be administered in His church as a visible sign of the saving truth of the Gospel." Those who teach that baptism is a sacrament imply that it is a means of grace rather than a sign of grace. We believe that baptism is an outward expression of our inward confession of Jesus Christ as Lord (Romans 10:9-10). Baptism is reserved only for those who have put their faith and trust in Christ and are seeking to live victoriously through the power of the Holy Spirit.
2. From the Boca Raton Community Church Statement of Faith… "We believe that water baptism and the Lord's Supper are ordinances to be observed by the church during the present age. It will be our practice to baptize by immersion following conversion."
3. From the Boca Raton Community Church By-Laws… "church membership is open to those sixteen years of age or older, who fulfill the following requirements; receive Jesus Christ as Savior and follow the Lord in believers baptism."

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1. Only those who have been born again, who by faith have received Jesus Christ into their lives, making Him Lord and Master (Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 10-9-10).
2. The mere immersion of a sinner in water does not make him a saint. Dr. John R.W. Stott summarizes, "Faith secures the union; and baptism signifies it outwardly and visibly."

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1. When there is evidence of a changed life.
2. ILLUSTRATION: The Philippian Jailer (Acts 16:30-34).

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1. There has always been much controversy regarding the mode of baptism - should it be by pouring, sprinkling or immersion?
2. Boca Raton Community Church believes that baptism should be by immersion:

   1. The Linguistical Perspective: The Greek word for "baptism" literally means "to dip, submerge or plunge." "From the earliest age of Greek literature down to its close, a period of nearly two thousand years, not an example has been found in which the word has any other meaning. There is no instance in which it signifies to make a partial application of water by affusion or sprinkling, or to cleanse and purify apart from the literal act of immersion as the means of cleansing or purifying" (Strong, Systematic Theology, p. 933). "Water is never said to be baptized upon a man" (Strong, p. 935) - "into" the Jordan (Mark 1:9). "The Jordan being the element into which the person passes in the act of being baptized." en - "in" not in the instrumental sense, but as indicating the element into which the immersion takes place. (Mark 1:5, 8; Matthew 3:11).

   2. The Historical Perspective: Historically, immersion has always been the proper mode. Said Dr. Schaff: "The baptism of Christ in the Jordan, and the illustrations of baptism used in the New Testament are all in favor of immersion rather than sprinkling." According to the second century document The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, pouring was permissible if water was scarce and sprinkling was a later substitution developed in the Middle Ages. The Question Box, a Catholic book, states, "We admit that immersion brings out more fully the meaning of the sacrament, and that for 12 years it was the common practice." 3. The Symbolic Perspective: Immersion best symbolizes the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord in which the believer identifies when submitting to water baptism (Romans 6:1-10).

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1. Scripture doesn't address this specifically.
2. Place is not the issue… Heart attitude is!

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1. To follow the example of Christ (Mark 1:9)
2. To obey the exhortation of Jesus Christ in His Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20).
3. To evidence in an outward manner that we identify with Christ in His death and in His life (Romans 6:4).

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