Seven Implications That Baptism Has for Our Lives as a Christian

There are seven implications that baptism has for our lives as a Christian, each of which arises from a particular dimension of the sacrament. This is a great day to remember those!

First, we must daily respond to God and his Word in faith. Baptism is “the sacrament of faith” (CCC 1253), which gives us entrance into “the life of faith” (1236). “Faith,” as defined by the Catechism, “is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief” (1814). Baptism, as “a sacrament of faith,” thrusts us into a life in which we must continually profess our belief in God, his revelation, and infallible Church teaching. Such professions of faith can be as simple as “Jesus, I believe in you. Help my unbelief!” 

Second, we must daily renounce Satan and his evil ways. Baptism not only signifies liberation from sin and the devil, but also brings about such liberation within us. This is why, during the baptismal ritual, the celebrant prays one or more prayers of exorcism over the candidate, and the candidate explicitly renounces Satan. For a Christian to live out his baptism means to live his life free from the dominion of sin and the devil, which involves continually renouncing Satan and having recourse to the means that Christ has given us to set us free from post-baptismal sin: the sacrament of reconciliation. 

Third, we must do the things that go with our new threefold role. The anointing with sacred chrism in baptism signifies the anointing that the baptized receives by the Holy Spirit, an anointing that makes the baptized a priest, prophet, and king in Christ (CCC 1241). A priest is one who offers sacrifice and prays on behalf of the people of God. As members of the universal priesthood of Christ (1268), we must offer our lives to God as living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1) and engage in intercessory prayer (1 Tim. 2:1-2). 

Fourth, we must daily conform our lives to Christ. In the baptismal ritual, the newly baptized ordinarily receives a white garment. As the Catechism states, this symbolizes that the baptized person has, in the words of St. Paul, “put on Christ” (CCC 1243, quoting Gal. 3:27). Now, to “put on Christ” means to conform our hearts and minds to the heart and mind of Christ. This means that we must daily think with and like Christ and make choices that are in conformity with what Christ wills for us. 

Fifth, we must daily participate in the apostolic and missionary activity of the Church, in some way, shape, or form, according to our state in life. In the baptismal ritual, the newly baptized receives a candle, lit from the Easter candle, which signifies that the baptized person has been conformed to Christ to be “the light of the world” (Matt. 5:14; see also CCC 1243). To be a light to the world means to tell the world about the good that Jesus has done for us in our lives. As St. Peter writes, “[you are] God’s own people, that you may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Pet. 2:9). 

Sixth, we must participate in the liturgical life of the Church, the most important part of which is Holy Mass. Baptism imparts to the baptized “the sacramental character,” also known as the “sacramental seal,” which “consecrates [the baptized] for Christian religious worship” (CCC 1273)—in particular, “the holy liturgy of the Church.” If the whole purpose of the sacramental character is to make us fit to participate in the liturgical life of the Church, then being faithful to our baptism necessarily entails participating in the liturgical life of the Church. 

There’s one last thing: To live out the demands of your baptism, you must first recall the demands of your baptism. So here are the baptismal promises that either you made yourself (if you were baptized after the age of reason) or that your parents made on your behalf: 

• I renounce sin, so as to live in the freedom of the children of God. 
• I renounce the lure of evil, so that sin may have no mastery over me. 
• I renounce Satan, the author and prince of sin. 
• I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. 
• I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death and was buried, rose again from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
• I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. 

Being faithful to our baptism entails the reward of eternal life. This is part and parcel of the Christian life, which is the life of the baptized. 
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For believers and nonbelievers alike, Baptism Now Saves You is the go-to source for understanding this ancient and essential practice—and for explaining it to friends and loved ones. At its foundation is the life-giving exhortation of St. Peter: “Repent, and be baptized every one of you.”