One of the great blessings and encouragements within the church is when we gather together to witness believer’s baptism. At Omaha Bible Church we have been blessed to see many people baptized over the last few years. In the process of preparing folks for baptism we have given them reading material, sermon audio along with a time of questions and answers with church leaders in an interview. In effort to clarify many popular misconceptions about water baptism while also helping prospective baptism candidates our Senior Pastor, Patrick Abendroth, has written a helpful little book entitled, The Truth About Water Baptism.
This book does not intend on being an exhaustive study on the theological development of baptism. Instead it is aimed to help the new convert better understand the need and nature of water baptism. In addition, the book has proven a helpful resource for believers in general and pastors in particular who, like us here in Omaha, live in a predominately Sacramentalist town.
The book includes a discussion on the biblical basis for water baptism, the meaning and mode of water baptism, the relationship between water baptism and salvation, the candidates for water baptism, and the place for so-called ‘re-baptism’. The book is quick moving and easy to work through, but at the same time is not short on Bible verses and understandable explanations.
In this book Patrick also interacts with many of the passage that are erroneously used to support baptismal regeneration (Mk. 16.16; Jn. 3.5; Acts 2.38; 22.16; Ti. 3.5; 1 Pe. 3.21). This is especially helpful for folks coming from a Roman Catholic background.
Additionally, there is a thorough treatment of how someone becomes a Christian along with an explanation of the connection between faith and works.
There are other helpful books on baptism that are more detailed. But because baptism is often something people are confused about, we wanted to produce something to the point that many people can read with relative ease. The small size also makes the book inexpensive for churches to buy and give away.
As I mentioned we have found this book extremely helpful at OBC but also other churches have begun using the book as a resource for candidates for baptism. We have just completed a second edition and as a result of a printing discount we were able to reduce the price down to $3.99, a great deal indeed. You may order the book on Amazon or by contacting the church directly (info@OmahaBibleChurch.org). There are discounts available for bulk orders.