Because Jesus commanded this identifying mark for His followers! (See
Matthew 28:19-20).
As Christians, we should be baptised to obey Jesus’ instruction.
In the Bible, those who were given Christian baptism were already believers
in Jesus.
Matthew 28:19 identifies those that should be
baptised (disciples).
See also Acts 2:38; Acts 8:12; Acts 16:33-34
We cannot be certain how the first Christians baptised people, and the
amount of water involved in baptism is certainly not critical. However, in
the Greek language in which the New Testament was written, the word
translated “baptise” actually means “to dip”, “to plunge” or “to immerse”.
It seems likely that baptism was regularly performed by immersing the
whole body in water. When baptism is by immersion, it offers a vivid picture
of what it means to become a Christian. If you are being baptised at Bendigo Baptist Church you will be encouraged to make a public statement of your wish to follow Christ, which is such an encouragment for those who are already followers. After the public declaration, you will be fully immersed in water as a representation of being dead in Christ and then coming back out again, representing new life in Christ.