Slideshow image

When new Christians are baptized, do they have to do it in water or can it be any liquid? Can they use orange juice if they want?

Acts 10:47-48

47 “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord…


This question comes from a young believer. Kids have a way of coming up with interesting questions. It's actually one that I haven’t been asked before. To begin, I will say that if someone were baptized in orange juice, they might regret it afterward, assuming it would be sticky and burn. Most ministers would probably advise against that.

First, it's good to understand Believers' Baptism is only for people who have received Jesus as Lord and Savior. It doesn’t save anyone, although it is commanded for those who have accepted Christ. The purpose of baptism by immersion is to display a commitment to follow Jesus. As they say, “it’s an outward sign of an inward change.”

Now, for the great question above, I cannot find any place in scripture that used an alternative to water for baptism. Every time it comes up in scripture, it seems to involve water. As water is used to clean us in the physical world, it is symbolically used in washing away sin, spiritually. Baptism doesn't save anyone, but water gives us a symbolic understanding.

Does that mean it is sin to use something else? No. I also cannot find a place in which the Bible definitively states that we HAVE to use water. However, it brings to mind that water is the most prevalent liquid on earth. It might be the most practical. If someone came to me, asking to be baptized in another liquid, I would probably direct them to use water, if nothing else, for practical purposes.

As long as a person is saved and examines himself or herself as to why they want to be baptized, that is the issue to understand. Those with a proper understanding of Believers’ Baptism should take the time to help others understand it, as well.


Jim Albin - Senior Pastor
First Baptist - Wortham, Texas