I might answer your question with a question of my own: Is there a certain age one must be to be saved?  I think we all would agree that there is no particular age.  If a young child understands their need of a savior, and understands that God sent His Son to die for our sins, then that child is certainly old enough to put his/her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. 

Charles Spurgeon once said, “A child of five, if properly instructed, can as readily be regenerated as an adult.”  I suppose we might say there are only three things necessary for one to be saved:

*  A proper understanding of sin and the Gospel.

*  Personal conviction of sin through the Holy Spirit.

*  An attitude of repentance and faith that Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins.

If one understands these things and puts his/her faith in the Lord Jesus, then surely they can understand the meaning of baptism as an act of obedience of one who has been saved.  Age is not a factor. 

I do want to be crystal clear about one point…Baptism is NOT a requirement for salvation.  Baptism is separate from salvation.  Let’s look at a few verses that tell us how to be saved:

*  John 3:36, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

*  Acts 16:31, “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.”

*  Romans 10:9-10, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

*  Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”

Each of these verses (and many more) show clearly that salvation comes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  Baptism is not mentioned in any of these passages.  That is not to say that baptism is not important.  If you have Christ as your savior, then you should be baptized as an act of obedience to your savior. We read Romans 6:3-5, “Are you ignorant that we, as many as have been baptised unto Christ Jesus, have been baptised unto his death? We have been buried therefore with him by baptism unto death, in order that, even as Christ has been raised up from among [the] dead by the glory of the Father, so *we* also should walk in newness of life. For if we are become identified with

[him]

in the likeness of his death, so also we shall be of [his] resurrection.” (Darby Translation).

Having been baptized as a believer on the Lord Jesus Christ, we are then told to “walk in newness of life.”  We have, through baptism, professed our faith in the Lord by identifying with Him in His death, burial and resurrection, then we should live like those who have a new life in Christ.  After all, when we put our faith in the Lord, we become brand new people as we read in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” 

If you understood the meaning of baptism when you were baptized at age eight, there is no need to be baptized again, however you should still be ‘walking in newness of life.’  (439.6)