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The Sacrament of Baptism gives birth to the Christian's life of faith. ... Having died in the old nature with Christ, the new Christian is now called to imitate the life of Jesus through the new heart and spirit that he received as a gift of God during the Sacrament of Baptism. [Rom. 6:8] ... Because Jesus obeyed His Father, the Christian is made righteous during the Sacrament of Baptism. [Rom. 5:19] He was buried with Christ during the Sacrament of Baptism so that now he may be raised as a new creation, he too walking in the newness of life. [Rom. 6:4] ... "The new creation is everything!" [Gal. 6:15] The new heart and spirit has the blessed hope of not experiencing the spiritual death of the unsaved. Through the Sacrament of Baptism in the name of the Blessed Trinity, the Christian has become a new creation. "So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away, see, everything has become new!" [2 Cor. 5:17] Because there is no more traces of the original sin or personal sin in the newness of the person, he is pure in the eyes of God. He has become suitable as a Temple of the Holy Spirit for God to dwell within him as a Christian. Through the Sacrament of Baptism is fulfilled the promise of Jesus to the woman of Samaria. Jesus said to her, "Believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem..." "The hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. For the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. [Jn. 4:21-4] ... That is why those who are baptised are told to behave as new persons who have been created in the likeness of God, truly being good and holy. [Eph. 4:24] The new heart and spirit must make every effort to control the sinful inclinations of the physical body that is called to die. ... s soon as the new convert is baptised, he is received into the Body of Christ, being united to Jesus. (C.C.C. # 790) Through faith in Jesus, the newly baptised Christian receives his new heart and spirit of the seed of God, this qualifying him as a member the invisible family of the people of God. (C.C.C. # 804) He receives the same Holy Spirit as everyone else receives, no matter his gender, his age, his culture or his nationality. [1 Cor. 12:13] ... he Holy Spirit is responsible for the building up of the invisible Body of Christ that is made visible though the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Sacrament of Baptism is the doorway into the Body of Christ. No one can belong to the Body of Christ as a true child of God [1 Jn. 3:1], nor enter the Kingdom of God [Jn. 3:5], unless he is baptised. (C.C.C. # 1257, 1277) These are the Words of our Lord Jesus Himself! ... Once the new Christian has entered into the Body of Christ by the grace and love of the Heavenly Father, the Holy Spirit gives him gifts and virtues for the building up of the Church. This allows the new Christian to perform the spiritual works to which he has been called in the Church of Jesus. (C.C.C. # 798) ... Now, the newly baptised Christian can say for sure that "Jesus is Lord". [1 Cor. 12:3] Because God sent the Spirit of Jesus in the heart of the baptised Christian, the Holy Spirit can now call out "Abba! Father!" on behalf of the newly born Christian. [Gal. 4:6] The new life and the indwelling Holy Spirit are the most beautiful and life saving spiritual gifts that make it possible for the person to know what is spiritual. [1 Cor. 2:13] ... Once baptised and belonging to the Body of Christ, the new Christian belongs to Christ. He is subject to others and required to obey and serve the Church leadership in sincere submission for the successful growth of the Body of Christ. While the Christian has duties to perform towards the Church, he also enjoys the Church Sacraments. By the power of the Holy Spirit, the Sacraments help the Christian to grow in his spiritual life to become more like Christ. ... Having received these gifts from God, the believer also receives the name of 'Christian' to show that he belongs to the visible (the Church) and invisible (the family of God) Body of Christ ... Having been baptized in Christ, the member of the Body of Christ is expected to become actively involved in the Church. Sadly, some people have become Christians by name only, they not shining in the holiness of Jesus as they were meant to. This fall away from the teachings of Jesus has even led to division in the Catholic Church, some groups breaking away from the direct descent of Peter. Because of this, it can be said that the believers in Jesus who have been properly baptised belong to an imperfect union in the Catholic Church. Therefore, they suffer from this imperfection until such time as the Body of Christ becomes one as Jesus intended it to become one. To further explain the above, the physical Church is supposed to be a reflection of the spiritual Church of Christ. While all Catholics are equal and united as one invisible people of God by their new birth of the heart and spirit, they are divided in the visible Church. The purpose of the Divine Plan of God is to have the physical Church reflect the spiritual Church. All of God's people who have been reborn should be one people in one physical Church under one Head, Jesus Christ Himself. ... Based on what has been said, no one can obtain salvation from Christ unless they do so through the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, the visible Body of Christ. (C.C.C. # 846) For it is through the Sacraments of the Holy Catholic Church that is found the fullness of the grace of God that is absolutely necessary for salvation. Through faith in Christ and the Sacrament of Baptism, the believer receives his new heart, his new spirit and the indwelling Holy Spirit, all these being necessary to manifest a living faith in Christ prior to partaking in the Sacraments of Confession and the Holy Eucharist. ... It should be noted that although the fullness of the means of salvation is only found through the Holy Catholic Church, there are exceptions where non-Catholics can obtain their salvation. These include Baptism of desire, Baptism of Blood and the death of catechumens prior to their baptism. Also, infants of other Christian faiths who die after having been baptized, and who have not reached the age of reason (age 8), are considered to be saved. ... When a person is baptised, he is devoted to God. He has a responsibility to promote Christianity. Some people choose to become living sacrifices so they can enjoy a greater daily personal relationship with God. This is seen in those who consecrate their lives to God, the priests, the religious brothers and sisters and the missionaries. These Christians are required by their consecration to do missionary work according to the mandate of their religious Orders to which they belong. ... The Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Holy Orders can only be received once in the lifetime of the believers. (C.C.C. # 1246, 1272, 1280) This is because the Christian is sealed by the Holy Spirit in his new birth. This means that the new Christian heart and spirit now belongs to Jesus Christ. Therefore, the Christian belongs to Jesus forever, being open to God's grace to serve according to the Sacrament(s) that he has received. ... Because the Christian has been sealed by the Holy Spirit through Baptism, he is now allowed to participate in the religious services of the Church. The Christian is now obligated in love to serve God and practice the baptismal priesthood which he has received by living a holy life and practicing charity. ... The Christian who remains faithful until the end to the requirements of his Baptism will leave the world marked with the sign of faith, with his baptismal faith, in expectation of the blessed vision of God - the consummation of faith - and in the hope of resurrection. (C.C.C. 1274) This is the resurrection of those who have done good, they resurrecting like Jesus. [Rom. 6:5] They will be raised imperishable and will be changed. [1 Cor. 15:52] They will be like angels in Heaven. [Mt. 22:30] ... Those who have received the new birth in Christ, they have become members of the common priesthood. (C.C.C. # 1268) That is because through the gift of a new heart and spirit, they belong to God. They have become spiritual priests in the invisible kingdom of God on earth. As a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people, [1 Pet. 2:9], they are called to participate in the religious services of the Church. Not only do they have a right to participate, but they are obligated in to do so in thanksgiving by their Baptism. (C.C.C. 1141) ...