What is baptism?

Baptism is a public declaration of faith in Jesus Christ.
All those who have repented and come to faith are called by God to express their union with Christ in His death and resurrection by being baptized in water in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Doing so is a public declaration of belonging to the family of God. It is also symbolic of burial and cleansing, signifying death to the old life of unbelief, and purification from the pollution of sin. In baptism, we physically portray what happens spiritually when we receive Christ - the old is passed and the new is come. 
​
You do not have to be perfect in order to be baptized, you just merely need to accept and believe that Jesus is Lord of your life. Even after baptism, we all will still make mistakes, but the difference is that we repent of those sins and turn back to Jesus. For all of us, this is a lifelong process. Baptism is a reflection of what Christ has done for you, not what you do yourself. It is a reflection of the reality that Jesus died for your sins and was raised so that you can live as an adopted child of God.