Jehovah's Witnesses:why dont you follow jesus' example & get baptised well after your ';bloom of youth';

JW kids have to wait to start any kind of romantic relationship till after they are well old enough to know how to handle thier feelings and marriage love..bla bla...but why not encourage kids to think deeply %26amp; wait till beyond thier youths so they know EXACTLY what they are dedicating themselves to. ive seen kids as young as 8 getting dunked. do you really think that is appropriate? would you of signed a binding contract at that age? serious question. not trying to be rude.Jehovah's Witnesses:why dont you follow jesus' example %26amp; get baptised well after your ';bloom of youth';
This is another ';question'; whereby a practice common to all self-described Christians is pretended to be peculiar to Jehovah's Witnesses. Ironically and unlike Jehovah's Witnesses, a substantial percentage of self-described Christians baptize uncomprehending infants!





The questioner mentions the baptism of Jesus, pretending that Christian baptism should be the same. But the two baptisms are plainly NOT comparable; Christian baptism declares one's submission to Christ and dedication to God, whereas the human Jesus was already dedicated to God since birth (since he was a natural-born Jew).





Of course, Jehovah's Witnesses do not baptize infants and do not expect any dove-like manifestation of the holy spirit to alight upon their heads following their immersion!





Before becoming a baptism candidate, a student must have demonstrated full knowledge and conviction regarding everything the Bible teaches about the Father, Son, and Spirit. Ironically, unlike their critics who ignore the need to preach and teach and impart real understanding to baptism candidates, Jehovah's Witnesses actually follow ALL the instructions of Matthew 28:19,20.


.. ..(Matthew 28:19-20) Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded





It is sad and revealing that certain self-described ';Christians'; focus on trivial arguments while ignoring entirely the central mission of the true Christian congregation.


.. ..(Acts 5:42) Every day in the temple and from house to house they continued without letup teaching and declaring the good news about the Christ, Jesus.


.. ..(Acts 20:20) I did not hold back ...from teaching you publicly and from house to house


.. ..(2 Timothy 4:3-5) For there will be a period of time when they will not put up with the healthful teaching... You, though, keep your senses in all things, suffer evil, do the work of an evangelizer, fully accomplish your ministry.


.. ..(Matthew 10:11-14) Into whatever city or village you enter, search out who in it is deserving... Wherever anyone does not take you in or listen to your words, on going out of that house or that city shake the dust off your feet.Jehovah's Witnesses:why dont you follow jesus' example %26amp; get baptised well after your ';bloom of youth';
The decision to get baptized is a PERSONAL one. No one is ';forced'; to dedicate their life to God. Such a ';dedication'; wouldn't be valid because God wants willing people.





As a parent I would never permit my 8 year old to get baptized. Other parents feel differently and that's their responsibility and it's not my place to question their decision
Hello, I am pretty sure that Jesus got baptized at about the age of 30 years old. That's good; I have time to decide. I consider my self to be *unbias* and believe *universal*. Universal meaning I believe there is *truth* in all religions (except for the dark religion).
Far from me to criticize but anybody under 10 shouldn't.
What does the bloom of youth have to do with symbolizing one's dedication to Jehovah by water baptism? Absolutely nothing.





Are all Christians to get baptized after they turn 30? No. Preparing for and getting baptized are evidences that a youth is spiritually progressive, regardless of his age. If, as has been suggested, Timothy was still a teenager when he became the apostle Paul鈥檚 missionary companion, Timothy was probably baptized when he was in his mid or early teens. He had been instructed in the Scriptures from infancy, and once equipped with adequate knowledge and appreciation, he did not hesitate to get baptized.





';i am so sorry lioness. i dont know why they seem to think pressuring kids into baptism is a good thing. it does exist because i saw it myself.';





Not true! Children are not pressured to get baptized. In fact, many of them are encoraged to wait a little bit longer.





';They have no business baptizing anyone under the age of 30.';





Is this a pronouncement to JWs or to all religions?





Before persons gets baptized, they are made aware of what a dedication to Jehovah means. They know before baptism that they are required by Scripture to remain spiritually clean in the Christian congregation. If they break the Bible's standards of moral conduct, they know they could be expelled from the congregation. Disfellowshiped Witnesses will have you believe that it was not their fault for getting disfellowshiped. They want you to think that disfellowshiping is a ';JW thing.'; They don't want you to know that most professed Christian religions ALSO expell those who do not comply with certain standards of conduct. Most ex-witnesses will never tell you why they were expelled. Instead, they put the blame on someone else.





';Being that the penalty for stepping out of line with Watchtower rules is disfellowshipping ( which Jesus NEVER practiced)';





Wasn't Judas expelled from Jesus' group of intimate friends (the apostles) for being an unremorseful thief and betrayer before Jesus instituted the ';Last Supper';?
1stly their is no set age on baptism. Ive seen people as young as 5 get baptized. But before you get baptized you have to understand what baptism means. if a child said they want to get baptized and they have not 1 clue of what it entails they cant get baptized...but if they do know and are ready to accept what comes with being baptized they will be baptized and you can't just bust out of the blue and say i want to get baptized and then the next day you are...their is a process you have to know basic bible knowledge and other things in order too be baptized. And other things regarding your spiritual stregnth have to be in order...so that you can be baptized.





So ive seen people under the age of 10 and over the age of 60 get baptized everyone has their own time when they get baptized, no one pressures anyone. You just know when you are ready.





And what about these other religions christining their children right out the womb.
When we think about this question and the answers that have so far been given ,well if baptism was meant to be practiced as it is practiced by JW's then I would say that a person should wait until they were much older.Jesus was immersed at about 30 the scriptures say ,he was not immersed for the forgiveness of sins since he was sinless and without spot from the world.Scriptures show that baptism was given to those who excepted Him to be the Messiah ,They were being baptized (immersed)into His death and raised up (resurrected) into a new life .One that would be lived as a witness to Him.They would now apply the teachings of the Messiah to their lives as they progressed to maturity in the future.All one must do to arrive at this conclusion is to step away from man's teachings and consintrate on the WORD as God Himsef presents it in the scriptures.There was no 6 to 8 month study,there were no questions to answer,There was no public decleration before many witnesses.Think about the eunach and Phillip ,maybe the charriot driver saw this happening if it was of intrest to him ,the scripture doesn't say.Read the accounts of baptizms and do you see special vows imposed on anyone?The baptizm was a sign or symbol not a binding contract into any religion.It ment that they now excepted the sacrifice and death of Jesus Christ and they believed in the resurection of His body from death and they they now have excepted and put Faith in Him as their Hope and Salvation.As He so aptly put it You will be Witnesses of me to the most distent parts of the earth.
No one forced to get Baptised.When a son or a daughter reaches the age of responsibility, he or she must make a personal decision with regard to dedication and baptism. Jesus commanded that his followers be baptized. Before making a dedication, a youth should have adequate knowledge to comprehend what is involved and should be seeking a personal relationship with God. He should understand and be adhering to Bible principles, knowing that he will be held accountable for any infraction thereof. He should also have sufficient experience in sharing his faith with others and know that this is a vital part of true worship; he should truly want to serve God. Naturally, he would not be expected to show the maturity of an adult, but his spiritual progress should be reasonably steady.If one has 鈥榗ounted the cost,鈥?it places one at no disadvantage to make a dedication as a youth. With almost all new Christians, after baptism appreciation for God can only deepens.
Jehovah's Witnesses get baptized at whatever age they feel they are ready. We try and teach the seriousness of dedication, of what they are committing to, and to be very honest I DID discourage my daughter from being baptized too young (she was 12 and was NOT ready when she first started talking about it).





For myself? I was baptized at the age of 15 and never once regretted it. I've known people who were baptized VERY young too. I have friends who are in their 70s who were baptized at a very young age and they are still serving Jehovah. The wife was rebaptized after she got older because she felt that she had been too young when she was first baptized, but her husband never felt that need. They are still going strong.





I've seen people baptized very young and VERY old. I think there was a man I know of who was baptized in his 90s recently.





To be honest? it isn't the age, it is the heart condition. Some know at a very young age that they will always want to serve Jehovah. Some get baptized only because all their friends are doing it and they never really make a proper dedication. BUT ALWAYS when Witnesses are baptized it is THEIR decision. No one can or should tell someone when they can or cannot become baptized. It is between the individual and Jehovah. Personally I think as a parent it is my responsiblity to slow down or question my child so as to know whether they are indeed ready or not. I feel confident that my daughter was. My son (who is the same age she was last year when she was baptized) is not ready yet. But when he knows he is ready I trust that he will KNOW. He's a serious young man and he isn't going to do anything at anyone else's urging. He'll know when it is right for him. And if he doesn't seem ready? I'll make every effort to question him and slow him down if needed. I do NOT want any of my children making such an important decision impulsively or without proper knowledge of what they are doing.
I have to agree with you. Being that the penalty for stepping out of line with Watchtower rules is disfellowshipping ( which Jesus NEVER practiced) Thus loss of friends and family.


They have no business baptizing anyone under the age of 30.





I was the ripe old age of 13 when I got baptized. I hadn't even started minstrating yet. But because of that choice, I have had no contact with my family for over 25 years..to them I don't exist. Dead...